Major Upgrade to My PC

FredM8 · 02 Jul 2015

I am doing an upgrade to my PC that currently uses the MS-7504 (V1.X) Mainboard
So far I have installed a 630 watt PSU, a 250 GB Samsung SSD, and a EVGA GTX 960 4GB GPU is on it's way.

Next on the list is a new Mainboard and Processor. Can anyone advise me of what my choices are ? I am unsure whether to retain my old PC case or go for something else. The Silverstone FT02 case looks awesome and is expensive ! But is it really needed ? I like the 5 front bays as it gives a lot of options and would permit me to have a less bitty set up. The internal bays would permit a future RAID set up, but what is the situation with RAID and SSD's. In the future I will want to run a large High definition monitor like the ViewSonic VP2780-4K 27-Inch. This is going to be a long term project because of the expense, but bit by bit that is where I want to get to. It's big boys toys.

AddRAM · 02 Jul 2015

I got 3 for you to consider

1) An Asus Sabertooth Z87, they are very cheap right now, I just installed one and it is rockin good :)

2) An Asus Sabertooth Z97, about $100 more and less sata ports, but it`s the latest hardware.

3) An Asus Maximus VII Formula, this board is awesome looking.

4) And for a cpu, you shouldn`t get anything else accept an Intel I7 4790K, it`s the best socket 1150 cpu on the market right now.

Motherboards | SABERTOOTH Z87 | ASUS USA

Motherboards | SABERTOOTH Z97 MARK 1 | ASUS USA

Motherboards | MAXIMUS VII FORMULA | ASUS USA

4790K - Newegg.com

FredM8 · 02 Jul 2015

Thanks a lot for that. It all looks very impressive and expensive. Because of the expense, I have uploaded my current mother board manual in a ZIP file. Could you confirm for me please that the boards you have suggested will fit into my current PC case ? Many thanks !

PS. Of the 3 boards listed which is the technically superior ?

ThrashZone · 02 Jul 2015

The Maximus line is the cream of the crop typically more expensive.
This weekend is a good time to buy.

ignatzatsonic · 03 Jul 2015

That manual says your current motherboard uses the micro ATX form factor.

Micro ATX motherboards will fit in nearly any case, but full size ATX motherboards will not fit in SOME smaller cases.

Your system specs say your case is "Microtower uATX". That says to me that it may be quite small and unable to accept a full size ATX motherboard.

But, you may not have any need for a full size ATX motherboard regardless.

Difficult to advise you since we know nothing about:

1: your intended use for the PC

2: your budget for the parts not yet purchased.

3: whether you have over-clocking intentions.

4: the vendors from whom you will purchase.

5: the time frame for buying the motherboard and CPU. Intel is introducing a new line of processors in August and you may want to wait to at least check them out.

Generally--I'd try to avoid buying parts bit by bit. Research what you need for case, motherboard, CPU, and RAM and then buy it all at once if possible.

Are you locked into the Star Tech 630 watt power supply?

FredM8 · 03 Jul 2015

The problem is that I am just not sure what the final use of my PC will turn out to be.
Mainly I am looking for a very capable domestic work horse that will be able to run 2 very high definition large monitors. When I started out on computers around 1996 the monitors we had in college were under 12 inches ! Since then I have loved the comfort of large displays with high resolution. I can also remember how nerve wracking it was not to have adequate back up facilities and having to back up my documents on a couple of hundred floppy discs. Today I have eSATA storage and backup which is very practical. I like the external drives because if the worst happens to my PC for whatever reason, the disconnected external drives will not be affected and as my backup is a clone on eSATA there is no problem anyway. My main drive is located in the front bay below the CD ROM in a rack. When looking at alternative cases I am looking for plenty of front drive bays for CD ROM, main drive, multi card reader & USB ports, and I have seen a gismo recently that I really like the sound of that also requires another front bay. This gismo will enable the physical connection or disconnection of up to four drives. So, I would be able to have all of my storage and backup drives or whatever, located in the case making it all much tidier. The overriding function of my PC will be that of a domestic workhorse, but I want a good one. By constructing a semi gaming machine I should get that. And because of its primary function putting it all together a bit at a time will still make sense as long as I do not take years about it. Then of course there is just the fact that I like to play around with my computer !

Overclocking is not on the agenda
Budget is negotiable depending on the circumstances of the day
Vendors will be decided at the time.
The StarTech PSU should do, but could be replaced if needed in the future

ignatzatsonic · 03 Jul 2015

FredM8 said:

Budget is negotiable depending on the circumstances of the day
Vendors will be decided at the time.

I'd say start another thread when the budget is known within a reasonable percentage and you have a set list of parts you want to buy. Otherwise, we're all just guessing.

Maybe you can spend 600 pounds; maybe 2000. Maybe you can wait for Skylake processors; maybe you can't.

Not sure what "the time" means. Generally, I wouldn't begin to look around until I was within a couple of weeks of buying.

If you want to buy just one part at a time in multiple purchases over several months, start a thread about that part.

Even if you want to buy one part at a time, I'd try to come to a decision on case, motherboard, and CPU before going any farther.

As it is, we don't know what you can spend and don't have a specific parts list or any idea of vendors. Some UK vendors have better stock and prices than others, just as in USA.

GeneO · 03 Jul 2015

I would go for the Z97 if you are going to overclock. There is a lot of anecdotal evidence that they overclock better than the Z87.

If you can wait a little while, I would go for a Intel Skylake based system.

FredM8 · 03 Jul 2015

Thank You !
At the moment I am feeling a bit peed off as I have just paid for and installed a EVGA GTX 960 4GB GPU and can't see any real difference. They do provide a Valley Benchmark program which shows graphics like I have never seen before, awesome, fantastic, are the only words to describe. But, I still have to wait for certain large HTML or PDF files to display ? I would have thought that with such a massive GPU upgrade that would have been a thing of the past. Even dragging program windows from one screen to another still results in a lot of juddering, just like the old very weak card ( Asus Nvidia GT 610 ) What on earth have I paid so much money for ?

GeneO · 03 Jul 2015

You won't see much improvement in anything mundane. Where the difference will be is in games that require lots of graphic processing and newer graphics features,. For everyday work you won't see much difference. I would bet the jittering you are seeing doesn't have anything to do with the GPU.