Hi SteamGifts!

I have a rather interesting dilemma right now. I have a reasonably powerful PC atm, and I can only come up with a limited amount of money to upgrade it.

Current Specs:
CPU: FX-6300 (6 cores, 3.5 GHz)
Mobo: ASUS M5A97 LE R2.0
RAM: 12GB (Kinda cobbled together...some of is ADATA DDR3 but I don't know much more than that)
Cooler: Stock Cooler
PSU: 500W EVGA Bronze
GPU: GTX 760 SC 2GB GDDR5 (I also have a GTX 750ti available to me in another PC if I wanted to swap them out)
HDD: Various 7200 RPM Harddrives, no SSD

Lately I've been playing a lot of ARMA 3, and I'd to be able to squeeze a little more performance out of it, and from research I'm fairly certain I need a better CPU. My question is should I buy new parts now (I would buy them during black friday sales probably, and I estimate I'll have around $200 to spend by then) or wait until I can get a job (next summer) and get a whole new PC (which I really don't need but I could get one) then?

Any advice welcome, I have a couple of possible ideas but I want to hear others first.

Ninja edit giveaway: https://www.steamgifts.com/giveaway/iO0FA/psychonauts

8 years ago*

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Whole new pc

8 years ago
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You would have to replace CPU and GPU but it really depends on what u play do u play new games aswell or are the games u play just shooters like arma and COD?

8 years ago
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Take a look at my steam profile, add battlefield 3, 4 and Overwatch to the list.

8 years ago
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U really don't need a better PC even my laptop with a gtx 960m can run all these games at 60 fps with decent graphics i would just wait until u can afford a big upgrade like a 1080 or 1070 and then a i7 or i5 there is no need to upgrade now just wait until next year because i bought my PC to fast and i regret not waiting for the 1070

8 years ago
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Wait. Save. New CPU/mobo/RAM/GPU.

Don't invest any money in AM3+ this late in the chipset. That's a waste. Wait for Zen to release and then decide to go Intel or AMD then.

8 years ago
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I would upgrade whole new PC. I´m in similar situation with even older pc.

8 years ago
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doubt Zen is going to be any good (able to jump ahead of intel) ... but you could get a used and
moderately priced 3rd/4th gen intel i5 CPU + mobo and re-use everything else you got off craigslist or ebay

and as HBH said don't throw any money @ AM3+ cpu's ...
http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/cpu-hierarchy,4312.html

8 years ago
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Ooh thanks for this. Great resource.

8 years ago
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8 years ago
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yeah its a nice summary - hadn't checked thought the FX 6300 was too weak
but its certainly good enough for ARMA 3 and most other games

what ambidot posted is probably the best upgrade-suggestion (some saucy gpu)

8 years ago
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8 years ago*
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+1
Get yourself a new GPU. Next year you can get yourself a new CPU/Motherboard/Ram combo. By then AMD latest may even be on par with Intels i5/i7 series and you'll be spoilt for choice.
The 760 can just barely run 1080P with high/ultra details at acceptable frames.
Edit: If you want to use DX12 you'll need Windows 10. Although DX12 by itself is no reason to get Win 10.

8 years ago*
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I do have windows 10 atm. I think I'll try to do a little extra work to afford 1070 on black friday or Christmas sales and upgrade everything else next year. Thanks for the advice everyone! The giveaway is open for about 24 hours.

8 years ago
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I wouldn't upgrade so soon, your PC is still quite good... until newer Nvidia drivers start degrading the GPU's performance.
Perhaps it could've happened already?
By the way, make sure to have an even number of RAM sticks, as otherwise they wouldn't work in dual channel mode.

The most feasible upgrade route would be building a new PC altogether, recycling at most your current PSU, case, and HDDs.
You could sell the other parts to make some cash to use for the upgrades, or give the old PC to a relative.
Mind that you might need a new Windows license, unless the rumor about Win10 licenses being tied to Microsoft accounts turns out true.

8 years ago*
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Closed 8 years ago by erindalc.