Upgrading video card

[Grey Fox]

PCI Express 3.0 motherboards are RARE.

Mono your system is fine. I want to steal it.

Pedrito's and I systems are eerily alike.

at the time it was the sweet spot between price and performance. I've dusted the old thread about what to buy, and our systems could've been even more similar, if only I have waited for the Asus motherboard with the updated chipset.

L.

You have a link to that thread?

http://languish.org/forums/index.php/topic,4581.0.html
But the thread was started before the reset of the board, so the first part is lost.

L.

Oh the nostalgia.

I have to agree now with Viper about case fans too. They are way noisy in my 8 years old case now.

[viper37]

When it boots up, the computer now has an obvious disruption.  It boots, the fan moves, then stops for 10 seconds, and moves again.  Didn't occur before.  So I think I broke the motherboard. 

Most likely a power supply problem then.
Change it for an Antec HCG-850M or XFX Pro 850W Black Edition

I'd start there at the computer shop.

How is i7 5820k or 5830k?  Won't consider i5 though. 

yeah, the i5 is equivalent to what you have, only marginally better overclocking ability.
These two i7 are overkill for the games you play and the way you play it.
Btw, the 'k' in Intel is for unlocked processors, meaning those you can easily overclock (unlike AMD where you can overclock all processors).  If you don't plan on overclocking and they sell for more than a regular CPU, don't bother with the premium.

Btw, my current gaming rig is an Core i5 4670k and Radeon 290x.  I have yet to see a game I can not run with all graphic options to the max.
The i7 5820-30 would be useful in a SLI/Tri-SLI setup where you run on multiple monitors (4-6).
See, I got Skyrim, with all 2k graphic mods and zero problems at all for performance.

But it's your money.

[Monoriu]

Those are all good points, but unlike you, I am a computer idiot, and I really hate to upgrade the computer.  So one of my aims is not just to be able to run all current games with graphics options to the max, but to be able to do so 2 years down the road as well.  This upgrading video card business is already extremely stressful from a psychological point of view, and I have absolutely no intention to repeat this very unpleasant experience any time soon.

[Grey Fox]

you gotta break some eggs to make an omelet.

[Monoriu]

you gotta break some eggs to make an omelet.

I've already paid a dear price for the card.  I didn't expect to break the computer in the process 

Yeah, it is all my fault, I know that.  Really shouldn't expect that I can replace the card.  I'll remember that. 

[viper37]

Those are all good points, but unlike you, I am a computer idiot, and I really hate to upgrade the computer.  So one of my aims is not just to be able to run all current games with graphics options to the max, but to be able to do so 2 years down the road as well.  This upgrading video card business is already extremely stressful from a psychological point of view, and I have absolutely no intention to repeat this very unpleasant experience any time soon.

You will still need to upgrade 2 years down the road.  You bought your computer, top of the line, 3 years ago, and you are upgrading the video card today because you feel it's not powerful enough...

2 years from now, we will have Windows 10 with DirectX 12 and the first games to really use this new API will be out.  Mantle (AMD api wich DX12 will mostly copy) will either be extinct or will be very popular.  You current video card and i7 5xxx cpu might no be able to play Call of Duty Advanced Warfare 3000 on full graphics then, or at least, not as pretty&fast as the latest video cards on the market 2 years from now, just as your current card is not as good as the 970.

If your motherboard is not dead (I'm pretty sure it isn't), I'd say keep your setup at least one more year.

[Monoriu]

Everything fixed.  Took it to the computer shop and they did all the installation, driver updates, cleaning etc for free. 

I was sorta right that the problem is motherboard related    Apparently when I installed the new card last night, I somehow loosened one of the plastic things that kept the RAM cards in place.  That prevented the system from booting up properly.  That's the issue, and yes I still suck.  Feel free to use this as ammunition to laugh at me for years to come 

I also bought a new 6T internal HDD.  As the motherboard is not dead, I feel this is not the right time to replace it or the CPU. 

[Monoriu]

Initial impressions with 970.  I see more details in Rome 2.  The card is also more quiet, as there are 2 large fans vs 570's 1 small fan.  Loading times of large 1080p anime files are much shorter. 

[Grey Fox]

Yeah, having half a ram plugged in will stop a computer from booting up.

I sure do hope you see a difference, it's a 400$ video card!

[DontSayBanana]

Everything fixed.  Took it to the computer shop and they did all the installation, driver updates, cleaning etc for free. 

I was sorta right that the problem is motherboard related    Apparently when I installed the new card last night, I somehow loosened one of the plastic things that kept the RAM cards in place.  That prevented the system from booting up properly.  That's the issue, and yes I still suck.  Feel free to use this as ammunition to laugh at me for years to come 

I also bought a new 6T internal HDD.  As the motherboard is not dead, I feel this is not the right time to replace it or the CPU. 

Which everybody had been trying to tell you for days.  Your problem is you just don't listen.

Glad the computer's not fried, though.  And yeah, the card's onboard RAM will speed some things up for you.

[Monoriu]

Which everybody had been trying to tell you for days.  Your problem is you just don't listen.

Glad the computer's not fried, though.  And yeah, the card's onboard RAM will speed some things up for you.

Anything else you guys want to tell me?  I've spent more than enough on computers for now, but I'm sure I'll need to buy some upgrades sooner or later.  I think the biggest weakness of the system is the CPU and motherboard, and they are next 

Is there anything new that I should pay attention to? 

[DontSayBanana]

Anything else you guys want to tell me?  I've spent more than enough on computers for now, but I'm sure I'll need to buy some upgrades sooner or later.  I think the biggest weakness of the system is the CPU and motherboard, and they are next 

Is there anything new that I should pay attention to? 

Have you posted the full spec already?  Power supply, motherboard, CPU, RAM, video card and HDDs/SSDs?

[Grey Fox]

Anything else you guys want to tell me?  I've spent more than enough on computers for now, but I'm sure I'll need to buy some upgrades sooner or later.  I think the biggest weakness of the system is the CPU and motherboard, and they are next 

Is there anything new that I should pay attention to? 

Have you posted the full spec already?  Power supply, motherboard, CPU, RAM, video card and HDDs/SSDs?

He has.

Intel I7 2600k CPU
16GB Ram
Asus Intel P8Z68 V LE motherboard
Super Flower Golden Green 850W power supply
Windows 7
GTX 970

He's got like a billion TBs of storage and a 256gb ssd if I remember correctly.

[viper37]

Which everybody had been trying to tell you for days.  Your problem is you just don't listen.

Glad the computer's not fried, though.  And yeah, the card's onboard RAM will speed some things up for you.

Anything else you guys want to tell me?  I've spent more than enough on computers for now, but I'm sure I'll need to buy some upgrades sooner or later.  I think the biggest weakness of the system is the CPU and motherboard, and they are next 

Is there anything new that I should pay attention to? 

Wait for Windows 10 and DirectX 12 to be on the market, than think of an upgrade.
Whatever we tell you now will be outdated one year from now.

General advice: buy another power supply, don't upgrade to the latest&newest since they carry a prime to early-adopters, think of what you want to do, what kind of games and on how many monitors you intend to play on.

[Monoriu]

He's got like a billion TBs of storage and a 256gb ssd if I remember correctly.

Not a billion 

1 x 500G SSD
1 x 128G SSD
1 x 6TB (internal)
1 x 2TB (internal)
3 external HDDs with 14TB