Soft upgrade?
Soft upgrade?
Hello everyone, tech experts! I’ve been using my PC for about ten years now, and it’s served me well. I’m particularly impressed with the CPU lately. Both of us are looking to upgrade, but building two new high-end machines would be expensive. We’re trying to save up, though mine is starting to struggle because I usually play more demanding games than she does. In the meantime, I’ve been considering a soft upgrade for my current setup.
I was thinking about switching to a 2060/2070/2080 GPU and increasing RAM to 32GB. This would help with memory issues and prevent games like First Descendant from shutting down my GPU. I’m planning to use some used parts since it’s just a temporary fix.
What do you all think? Is this a good idea?
Current specs:
Power Supply: Cooler Master G750M, 750W
CPU: Intel i7-4790K
CPU Cooler: MasterLiquid ML240R RGB
Motherboard: Asus Z97-P, Socket - 1150
RAM: HyperX Fury DDR3 1600MHz 16GB (2x8GB)
GPU: GTX 1070
Chassis: Chieftec Scorpion II Gaming
(It’s not ideal – it’s been noisy since the start, and I prefer the Fractal Design Define R5 more.)
It's true that the whole setup requires an update, and it's another tough time to purchase a graphics card. My suggestion is to continue saving a little longer. Even a decent modern system will outperform older ones. Personally, if you save around a thousand dollars in the US and then ask, it might be worth considering.
Yeah, I understand, but upgrading could take about a year. That’s the main goal, and I’m really looking forward to it. I’m in Norway, and we’re considering spending around 3k dollars per computer. That’s why I’ve been exploring the possibility of a soft upgrade and whether it would be worthwhile. Would "only" cost about $300?
Yeah, it doesn't have to cost 3k to create something better. I believe the prices here are a bit different from what we see in the US. I could sell my 10-year-old setup for 600. We're trying to make something that will last, so we're targeting around 2-3k. My partner already has a GPU, which means hers will be a bit more affordable than mine.
The issue here really comes down not only to age, but ability. Something like a 1070/1080 are a great pairing with your 4th gen i7. I would also comment that the combination has been known as legendary for a long time.
Putting a 2070 into that system on the same 1080 monitor isn't going to show much marked improvement, if any at all. In addition, it will increase system heat and power supply load. (150w vs 188w for 1070/2070). You run a risk of causing a failure of hardware on power supply age alone.
An i3 14100 is ~90% more powerful than your 4790K.....
Consider looking at something such as the Ryzen 7xxx series on the lowest end with a good mobo, a 7700xt or so card on a good power supply. Step it up later to a 9xxx Ryzen in a higher line or even wait to see if AM5 will have one more generation.
Don't throw money at that aged 4th gen legend.