New build advice: new GFX card or whole system?

[ballzac]

Hi guys,

I'm just after some advice on a new 'gaming' system. Most notably, I want to know whether people think it would be best, with what I'm starting with, to wack a top of the line graphics card into my aging system, or to spend the same money to upgrade my entire system but end up with a much lower powered graphics card.

It's been quite a while since I've started feeling like my system needs upgrading, but I don't have much time for gaming these days, so I've been surviving with what I've got and probably would have managed for a couple more years with what I've got, but...

As soon as I heard about Oculus Rift, it's suddenly brought the need to upgrade to the forefront of my mind. I've been dreaming about effective VR for my entire life, and I can't wait for the consumer edition of this thing to come out.

It's a little premature at the moment, but I basically want to upgrade around the same time it comes out. The better graphics that I can have, and the smoother the frame rate, etc., the more immersive the VR experience will be.

At the moment, I have:

Core2Duo E8400
4GB RAM
8800GT
GA-EP35-DS3R

I realise there will be a big mismatch if I wack a new, top of the line graphics card in this setup, but I also know that a good graphics card can often make up for shortcomings in the rest of the system, and if I upgrade the entire system, I will have less money to spend on the graphics card itself. I'm probably going to be looking at spending about $700 all up, and this could be in about a year, depending on when the consumer edition of the Rift comes out.

Another concern I have is that I have two monitors plugged into the 8800GT, and I'm guessing that I need one output free for the Rift, so if I get another two-head card, I will have to unplug a monitor to make room for it.

The MB I have only has one PCI-e slot, so I can't keep my old card in there for extra monitors with the new one in there for gaming/Oculus. The solution would be to either get a three head card, or upgrade the whole system and put both graphics cards in there (assuming the two cards can play nicely together).

So, if anyone can suggest which route would be better for me to take to get the maximum performance for the price range I'm looking at, it would be much appreciated. Also, I know it's early days yet, but if anyone has any specific recommendations for what is likely to be available in a year or so, I'd love to hear them.

Cheers

 

[spirit]

$700 should get you a pretty decent system which will outperform an E8400 and an 8800 GT. I'd get yourself a whole new system.

 

[ballzac]

$700 should get you a pretty decent system which will outperform an E8400 and an 8800 GT. I'd get yourself a whole new system.

Thanks for your input. That's the way I'm leaning at the moment, but it's good to have some outside input

 

[spirit]

Thanks for your input. That's the way I'm leaning at the moment, but it's good to have some outside input

Definitely build new. As you already said, you'd probably be bottlenecking a high end card by pairing it with an E8400, so the money would be better spent on new parts.

 

[jamesd1981]

I definitely would not put a high or even mid range card in an old system it would just be a waste, go for a whole new system.

I have always thought a good motherboard is the hub for everything else, so you could get a board with multiple pci-e slots, not to mention you would get the benefit of new standards like usb 3.0, sata III, pci-e gen 3

When you say it would leave you less money to spend on a good card, well that depends if you must finish the whole build in one go.

To build my new machine i really wanted top end parts, but even selling my last i3 system that had everything, ssd, large hdd, h60, 6850 gpu and the extra money i had.

I knew i could either build a mid level system all at once or build a high end system starting with the necessities like board, cpu etc and then add in other parts as i go.

So far the intel hd graphics in my i7 have run all my games reasonably, so i can wait to add in a good card soon.

You can add or swap graphics card and drives easily at anytime, but to me you don`t want the hassle with your motherboard or cpu.

I would concentrate on the heart of your system then add the extras as you go.

 

[Tuffie]

E8400 and an 8800 GT, I couldn't see an honest reason for upgrading, that is apart from upgrading for the sake of upgrading...

I say bang a cheap vidya card in one of your available PCI slots to run your 2nd monitor (who does anything system intensive there anyway) or even more sensibly get a KVM switch. Save your money for a new set of wheels, invest in property or something...

 

[ballzac]

When you say it would leave you less money to spend on a good card, well that depends if you must finish the whole build in one go.

You make a good argument. The only problem with this is Moore's law. That is, by the time I can afford the video card, I look at the prices on mobos and cpus, and I could have gotten something a lot better for what I spent initially...frustrating. Having said that. It's the graphics capabilities that I'm most interested in, so if I did upgrade everything else first (and I'd probably just use my 8800gt rather than onboard graphics) I'd still have a really good machine for my purposes once I can then afford a good graphics card.

E8400 and an 8800 GT, I couldn't see an honest reason for upgrading, that is apart from upgrading for the sake of upgrading...

I say bang a cheap vidya card in one of your available PCI slots to run your 2nd monitor (who does anything system intensive there anyway) or even more sensibly get a KVM switch. Save your money for a new set of wheels, invest in property or something...

Most of the latest games I can only play on low settings, and many I can't play at all.

 

[FuryRosewood]

Above poster did not read post and looked at specs. I will suggest what the others said, but you may want to save a bit more for a better experience with that headset.

 

[jamesd1981]

You make a good argument. The only problem with this is Moore's law. That is, by the time I can afford the video card, I look at the prices on mobos and cpus, and I could have gotten something a lot better for what I spent initially...frustrating. Having said that. It's the graphics capabilities that I'm most interested in, so if I did upgrade everything else first (and I'd probably just use my 8800gt rather than onboard graphics) I'd still have a really good machine for my purposes once I can then afford a good graphics card.





Most of the latest games I can only play on low settings, and many I can't play at all.

Yes it all comes down to peoples finances, so it depends how long you would need to wait to add the card, if it was not to long it would be alright as long as you got a gen 3 card you would not be out of date.

Have you tried to put together a build based on your budget perhaps you can find a balance between good card and the rest of the system.

 

[ballzac]

Yes it all comes down to peoples finances, so it depends how long you would need to wait to add the card, if it was not to long it would be alright as long as you got a gen 3 card you would not be out of date.

Have you tried to put together a build based on your budget perhaps you can find a balance between good card and the rest of the system.

I only work part time at the moment (I'm working on a PhD) so all financial requests have to go through my girlfriend (who works full time)

Considering that I would be doing this around the time that the consumer version of the Rift comes out, which will be around $300 plus shipping, I probably won't be able to ask for much more for a while But I might be able to spend a little more money depending on what our finances are like when the time comes (which is still a while off).

I did look at what I could get for $700 or so, considering that I have a case and a decent PSU, it's not looking too shabby. I'd end up in the 'sweet spot' for the graphics card, but I wouldn't mind going a little higher if I can afford it, because the 8800GT was a 'sweet spot' card when I got it, and it was only just able to play the latest games of the time (like Crysis) smoothly on high settings.

 

[jamesd1981]

What are you doing with your current system ? using some parts from it for the new build ?

 

[ballzac]

What are you doing with your current system ? using some parts from it for the new build ?

Not sure. I'll definitely use the case (armor+mx) if whatever video card I get fits in it, and the power supply should last me a bit longer.

I do have a spare case lying around (an old one from the beige era) and I've probably got a spare PSU that suffice if I don't demand too much from it. At the moment I have a newer machine (overclocked i5-2500K) that I use entirely for coding and running simulations on, hooked up to my 'personal' one (the E8400) using synergy, with a total of four displays between the two machines. Not long ago I probably would have jumped at the chance of hooking a third computer up to this setup, but it might be a bit of overkill, particularly if I have the oculus for gaming, movies, etc.

I've also got a server computer, a 'troubleshooting' PC that has very low specs but is good for formatting drives and stuff. Then my girlfriend has her computer in here, so there's a total of 5 computers in this one room. Then I also have an HTPC in the loungeroom and one in the bedroom...so it's really not that easy to find a use for an extra computer...bathroom maybe?

 

[jamesd1981]

Well the parts you do not re-use, you could sell and put that towards your new build to up your budget a little.

 

[Okedokey]

At this stage if you're short on cash, I would simply get a GTX 670 or similar, which will play any game at 1080p. Then overclock that 8400, and you're set. It wont be perfect, but it will be $300 and you're good to go. With a new system you'll also need Windows most likely too. THe E8400 was one of the best gaming chips for its time.