Suggestions to boost my PC

[JordoJord]

So I play The Sims 3 & currently I can have all the expansion packs running but of course it won't be moving as fast as if I had less running.

My current PC specs are:
HP Pavillion P7-1421 PC
- Next Gen AMD Quad-Core A8-5500 Accelerated Processor
- 8GB DDR3 system memory
- 1.5TB Hard drive
- AMD Radeon HD 7560D
- Super Multi DVD burner
- Windows 8

I'm looking to upgrade in a costly manner & not entirely looking for perfection. Just running faster.

My PC is pretty stock I haven't done anything besides install programs ( The Sims, Simcity, Photoshop)

Thanks!

 

[GhostRyder]

Well depends on the area you want to boost your machine. If you are speaking in the area of gaming, my suggestion would be to grab a new video card (Since you have an APU, an AMD GPU might be your best option) because that will boost your gaming up significantly.

But its going to depend on what you want to be boosted.

 

[hood6558]

Upgrading the APU to the best one that will fit your motherboard (A10-5800K, $110) will provide little or no gains for gaming, unless you add a high-end graphics card that would "bottleneck" with your present APU. Your memory is good as it is (8 GB DDR3 1600MHz). The main thing to improve gaming performance will always be your graphics card. AMD or nVidia cards will work equally well, but you can't go over a certain level without upgrading your power supply (presently a 300 watt OEM cheapie, probably no PCIe cables for video card). The best card available that doesn't need external power is the new GTX 750 Ti ($150). The HD 7750 is AMD's best without ext. power, but it's much slower. Beyond these suggestions, you'd need a decent 500+ watt PSU (~$100) and a better video card ($250-350). But I don't think Sims 3 is all that demanding, so you should do great by just adding a 750 Ti and leaving everything else the same.
EDIT - I just looked up some specs on these cards, and the GTX 750 Ti is so efficient that it draws a maximum of just 60 watts at full load. Also amazing are it's benchmark scores in Passmark - 3704 vs 1633 for the HD 7750, more than twice as fast, and the AMD cards still sell for $120-$160. I know which one I'd choose...