PC Upgrade to Core i5 2500K

[playXray]

Hi guys,

I want to upgrade my PC, so I've picked out the following:

Asus P8Z68-V PRO Z68 Socket 1155 8 Channel HD Audio ATX Motherboard

Intel Core i5 2500K 3.3GHz Socket 1155 6MB Cache Retail Boxed Processor

Corsair 8GB (2X4GB) DDR3 1600Mhz Red Vengeance Memory Kit CL9 (9-9-9-24) 1.5V

Are those ok? I've got an 850w modular PSU (can't remember the brand but it was a decent one) and a 9800GTX graphics card.

Thanks for any advice.

[Daedroth]

What about a case, hard drives and optical drives?

[playXray]

What about a case, hard drives and optical drives?

I can't remember what case I have but it's enormous, certainly big enough to fit a full size ATX motherboard in. I have a CD/DVD re-writer drive, and 1TB Seagate SATAII HD. It all works fine with my existing MSI 975X ATX motherboard, so I guess it'll be ok with the new one?

[HyBry]

Couple of things.

If you are not in a rush, then why not wait for Ivy Bridge chips. I think february is rumored to release time for those.

And why that mobo?

There are cheaper Asus options:

Asus P8Z68-V LX @ 84

Asus P8Z68-V LE @ 124

Asus P8Z68-V @ 133

Sure they are inferior, but do you really need the extra features they offer. Looks like for SLI you need V or V-Pro, but besides that for average it might not be worth overpaying. Look into the differences and see what really makes them different and if you need it. For example, SATA III ports - only thing that really makes use of that is SSD and you are likely to have only one or two of those.

[playXray]

Thanks for the information. I want to get this done pretty soon actually, I'm expecting a baby next month so I want to get all this stuff done before he comes along to take up all my free time! As for the motherboard, I may well get SLI in the future so I'd rather stick with the PRO. I may not need it, but it's nice to have the option and it's only an extra ?20 from the Asus P8Z68-V LE. Other than the points you've raised, is there anything else I should know or is this list good to go?

Oh, and why's that RAM so cheap?!? It looks perfect for what I need, but it almost seems too good to be true. Or are the RAM prices in my head out of date now?

[HyBry]

Thanks for the information. I want to get this done pretty soon actually, I'm expecting a baby next month so I want to get all this stuff done before he comes along to take up all my free time! As for the motherboard, I may well get SLI in the future so I'd rather stick with the PRO. I may not need it, but it's nice to have the option and it's only an extra ?20 from the Asus P8Z68-V LE. Other than the points you've raised, is there anything else I should know or is this list good to go?

Oh, and why's that RAM so cheap?!? It looks perfect for what I need, but it almost seems too good to be true. Or are the RAM prices in my head out of date now?

Yeah.. RAM is dirt cheap right now. Not sure why, but that is the case right now.All else looks OK.

[neo1911]

You will be wasting money on K editions as they don't give any boost in games framerate. Use the saved money in getting slightly better graphics card.

[HyBry]

You will be wasting money on K editions as they don't give any boost in games framerate. Use the saved money in getting slightly better graphics card.

It is not supposed to give extra performace just because. K edition allows for overcloking. And that in turn will give benefits such as extra fps.Although I agree that if the OP has no intention to overclock then get a non-K edition.

[playXray]

Will that RAM be ok for overclocking?

[neo1911]

It is not supposed to give extra performace just because. K edition allows for overcloking. And that in turn will give benefits such as extra fps.Although I agree that if the OP has no intention to overclock then get a non-K edition.

What I meant was: Overclocking does not give significant fps gains in most modern GPU heavy games. When K edition is mentioned, we automatically assume that the talk is about overclocking, innit?

[ARchamps]

The i5 is a good choice if you need it now. Some benchmarks leaked for Ivy and it doesn't look significantly better. You probably don't need to overclock now, but it'll be great to have it down the line. Your other parts look good too. The UEFI bios is very nice on the ASUS mobos.

I would take a second look at your PSU, just to make sure it has the specs to support your system. How long have you had it?

[playXray]

The i5 is a good choice if you need it now. Some benchmarks leaked for Ivy and it doesn't look significantly better. You probably don't need to overclock now, but it'll be great to have it down the line. Your other parts look good too. The UEFI bios is very nice on the ASUS mobos.

I would take a second look at your PSU, just to make sure it has the specs to support your system. How long have you had it?

It's only about 18 months old - my old Tagan one blew up and I replaced it with the 850W modular one I have now. I think it's an Antec but I can't remember off-hand. I'll have a look when I get home.

Thanks for all the input guys, much appreciated.

[ARchamps]

It's only about 18 months old - my old Tagan one blew up and I replaced it with the 850W modular one I have now. I think it's an Antec but I can't remember off-hand. I'll have a look when I get home.

Thanks for all the input guys, much appreciated.

I forgot that you aren't upgrading your GPU now anyways, so it should be fine! (but just make sure lol). My i5 runs with a 620W PSU with a GTX 560 Ti (both overclocked). Just make sure you have enough amps on the rails (which you should) :)

[HyBry]

I forgot that you aren't upgrading your GPU now anyways, so it should be fine! (but just make sure lol). My i5 runs with a 620W PSU with a GTX 560 Ti (both overclocked). Just make sure you have enough amps on the rails (which you should) :)

850W will be more then enough, unless it is crappy PSU.I ran my system (in sig) on 425W PSU perfectly fine. But I do keep it at stock (heat being the limiting factor for me) :)

[PGHammer]

Thanks for the information. I want to get this done pretty soon actually, I'm expecting a baby next month so I want to get all this stuff done before he comes along to take up all my free time! As for the motherboard, I may well get SLI in the future so I'd rather stick with the PRO. I may not need it, but it's nice to have the option and it's only an extra ?20 from the Asus P8Z68-V LE. Other than the points you've raised, is there anything else I should know or is this list good to go?

Oh, and why's that RAM so cheap?!? It looks perfect for what I need, but it almost seems too good to be true. Or are the RAM prices in my head out of date now?

The V-LE and V-LX are also IB-ready - the V-PRO/GEN3 does have the advantage of SLI (if you are going with dual nVidia GPUs); however, it's not exactly cheap, either.

I'm going with the V-LX because I've never bought nVidia discrete for my own use (despite being a previous owner of an nForce 6-series (7100/630i)-chipset motherboard - when I moved from integrated with that particular motherboard, I stayed with ATI/AMD as my discrete choice), therefore, SLI is a non-starter. (In fact, CrossFire would itself normally be a nonstarter - however, that's become pretty much a checkbox item, especially with ATX+Z68; the only choices without it cost MORE than the V-LE, let alone the V-LX.)

Double-check the RAM prices (they may have dropped since) - the CPU is fine.