What should I upgrade first? GPU or CPU?

T

Thea

New Member
It's almost 3 years ago since I upgraded my computer, and now I'm considering it again, but the problem is, that I don't have the largest budget. I'm going to upgrade both CPU and GPU at one point, but which one first? I know that if I buy a new CPU I'd also have to buy and new motherboard and DDR4 RAM.

Current CPU: Intel Core i5 3470
Current GPU: Nvidia GeForce GTX 660
 
I would upgrade video card first if game performance isn't going very well. You can always use the new video card in a new system. The processor is still pretty decent. What exact model of power supply do you have?
 
Are you a big gamer? What games do you play now? I'm leaning towards the GPU as well unless you only play old games but also do a lot of CPU intensive work.
 
Geoff said:
Are you a big gamer? What games do you play now? I'm leaning towards the GPU as well unless you only play old games but also do a lot of CPU intensive work.
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I personally wouldn't say I'm a big gamer. I just play the games my friends play. That being games like CS:GO (Which I know most computers can run without any problems) and GTA V.
 
GPU too!

I'm on a machine right now playing GTA V and its got just a 750TI in it, but plays pretty decent for the 2GB ram it has. Cheap card, very decent capability!
 
voyagerfan99 said:
Well if you're playing gta v I'd upgrade the gpu. What's your budget?
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I don't really have a budget, but I will start saving up some money. The reason why I wrote that I'm short on money is because it will take me some time to save up the money it costs to buy everything at once.
But I think, when I have the money I'll be willing to pay 225-300$ (I live in Denmark and things are a bit more expensive here)
 
You'd want to get something along the GTX 970 or 980 lines to really notice a big difference I think. I guess a 960 would be an upgrade but I'd go higher-end than that.
 
100% GPU. I have been using my Intel Core i5 2500 for about 5 years now I believe and I have the nVidia GTX 970 and I can run nearly all games on max settings. CPUs are very reliable and strong past a certain point even though as an enthusiast I love great CPUs, that's the truth.
 
Quinn O'Brien said:
100% GPU. I have been using my Intel Core i5 2500 for about 5 years now I believe and I have the nVidia GTX 970 and I can run nearly all games on max settings. CPUs are very reliable and strong past a certain point even though as an enthusiast I love great CPUs, that's the truth.
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The i5 2500 and just about all of the i5s and i7s and released at the same time or after it are still very good CPUs and there isn't really a reason to upgrade. I loved my i5 2500K and used it for 4 or 5 years. It's still going strong in another machine and I only upgraded to this i7 3770K because I got the opportunity to upgrade for free.
 
As everyone one is suggesting to upgrade GPU. You should upgrade GPU. As your CPU looks good. It has decent performance and speed.
 
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