What upgrades should i make?

**♔The Black Knight♔** · January 20, 2013, 04:56 PM

I'm looking to set aside some money to upgrade my computer for rome 2 coming out.

I have 64 bit intel core i7 2600 cpu 3.4 Ghz

8 gigs of ram

AMD radeon 5770

Windows 7

And 1.5 TB (1/3 is taken up)

I want to get to optimal preformance but specs arnt bad except my video card may need to get upgraded. Would you guys think its worth the money or should i stick with what i got?

Ram is good, memory is good, processor is ok, and the video card is not too bad. If i do need an upgrade what products should i get? I want to spend bout $400. I want to play the game on high/ultra.

**Bolkonsky** · January 20, 2013, 08:52 PM

I'd recommend a 7870 with that setup.

**Totalheadache** · January 22, 2013, 07:02 AM

aftermarket cooler for cpu if u havent and oc to around 4ghz, sandys might even go higher. i'd recommend the corsair h series coolers...

then second on list would be gpu. we need to know your psu and resolution really...

new gpus arent 2 far off. a 7870 would be a def improvement, i'd lean towards a 7950 or even a 7970 on the cheap...atm. but in 1 month or so we should know some more about how long till next gen.

getting that cpu up to a decent speed would be my main priority.

if you cant because your mobo is a bad overclocker i'd probably sell the cpu myself (but hunt around the web first i.e "overclocking i7 2600 on xxxx mobo")

**Crazyeyesreaper** · January 22, 2013, 12:32 PM

long as the motherboard is P67 z68 or z77 it wont matter socket 1155 overclocking is ALL ABOUT THE CPU has next to nothing to do with the motherboard Sandy a good board might get you 200mhz for a price disparity of $200 between boards. Ivy Bridge it gets you nothing.

his chip should do 4.3-4.7ghz that is the average range for a 2600k if properly cooled. also as far as AIO coolers go i cant recommend the Corsair H series when Swiftech is releasing a full blow water kit for $140 that is just install run same the H100 for instance but has a REAL PUMP AND BLOCK not to mention it can be added to aka GPU block etc.
http://www.swiftech.com/H220.aspx

gpu either a 7870 Tahiti LE or a GTX 660 Ti. for bang for buck.

**Totalheadache** · January 22, 2013, 01:50 PM

Originally Posted by Crazyeyesreaper

long as the motherboard is P67 z68 or z77 it wont matter socket 1155 overclocking is ALL ABOUT THE CPU has next to nothing to do with the motherboard Sandy a good board might get you 200mhz for a price disparity of $200 between boards. Ivy Bridge it gets you nothing.

his chip should do 4.3-4.7ghz that is the average range for a 2600k if properly cooled. also as far as AIO coolers go i cant recommend the Corsair H series when Swiftech is releasing a full blow water kit for $140 that is just install run same the H100 for instance but has a REAL PUMP AND BLOCK not to mention it can be added to aka GPU block etc.
http://www.swiftech.com/H220.aspx

gpu either a 7870 Tahiti LE or a GTX 660 Ti. for bang for buck.

then go for the swiftec. think i did see them mentioned the other day...

personally i go for a dual res pump/combo and then buy seperate blocks...but those switftec's sound good.

**Bolkonsky** · January 22, 2013, 02:42 PM

That'd fit perfectly in the $400 budget too. For the swiftec though, a new case might be necessary. 269mm is freaking huge.

**Crazyeyesreaper** · January 22, 2013, 04:45 PM

he doesnt NEED the swiftech im just saying i cant recommend the regular AIO kits really anymore not with Swiftechs arrival and at $140.

that said a typical $50-60 cooler examples Hyper 212+ Evo, Thermaltake FRIO, Noctua NH-C14 or D14, Corsair H60 or Water 2.0 Performer, etc will all do the trick my FRIO with 2x fans on low handled the 2500k i had no issues the CHIP was a dud clocker but never got that hot.

for cost to benefit ratio the Hyper 212+ EVO is probably the best option I have one and its actually REALLY quiet for what it is and did pretty good in my testing on Sandy Bridge-E where it allowed me to run 4.1 GHz on a CPU that sucks down about 200w of power.

**Totalheadache** · January 22, 2013, 05:15 PM

Originally Posted by Crazyeyesreaper

he doesnt NEED the swiftech im just saying i cant recommend the regular AIO kits really anymore not with Swiftechs arrival and at $140.

that said a typical $50-60 cooler examples Hyper 212+ Evo, Thermaltake FRIO, Noctua NH-C14 or D14, Corsair H60 or Water 2.0 Performer, etc will all do the trick my FRIO with 2x fans on low handled the 2500k i had no issues the CHIP was a dud clocker but never got that hot.

for cost to benefit ratio the Hyper 212+ EVO is probably the best option I have one and its actually REALLY quiet for what it is and did pretty good in my testing on Sandy Bridge-E where it allowed me to run 4.1 GHz on a CPU that sucks down about 200w of power.

that's why i suggested the h series to start off. i had a noctua nh 14 and it was brill so def recommend that one.

for $400 bucks he can do gpu plus a decent cooler...dont want to go overboard on cost. so yeah a hyper 212 and then spend the rest on gpu. sorted.

not sure though if he'd need to replace the fans that come with it? (i.e better noise+more effective getting a couple of decent 120mm fans? guessing it uses 120mm fans).

**Crazyeyesreaper** · January 22, 2013, 06:10 PM

the fan on the Hyper 212+ evo is silent i have it for my review sample tests, its AS QUIET AS A NOCTUA. so simply put the Hyper 212+ as is will suit his purpose and wont be heard unless his room is quieter than a library aka at 30cm aka 1 FOOT give or take noise level was 48 dBA on an open test bench and that was at 100% fan speed.

the Hyper is silent and can be had for arorund $25 after rebate that leaves $375 use that to grab a GTX 670 with 680 PCB aka EVGA 670 FTW NOT the FTW LE for instance sell the game and send in MIR its $350 problem solved. get a GTX 680 for $350 essentially and good enough cooling for 4.5 GHz 24/7

For reference the Noctua NH-C14 with 140mm fans at 100% fan speed i get around 46 dBA

so really out the gate the Hyper is fine adding a second fan might shave off 3-4'C but i dont think it will be neccesssary

**♔The Black Knight♔** · January 22, 2013, 09:46 PM

Thanks for the recomendations. Crazy i think ill probably am going to go with that hyper cooler. I try not to overclock my gpu due to fear of blowing it up so hopfully ill be able to do that after i place the cooler in. Right now my cpu sounds like a rocket so hopfully whatever gpu i get will keep it alot quieter.

These upgrades may happen later in time so should i be looking at better equipment later in the year? If not maybe other products will be cheaper. Anything i could look at in the future?