Computer upgrade time!

[DeeBye]

I've been rocking an ASUS A10-5700 for way too long. I bought it to fill my computer void after my last gaming PC died and I was between jobs, so I didn't have a whole lot of cash to rebuild. It's not a terrible computer for something so cheap, but it's about time I got something with a little more oomph.

I actually have a decent stock of reusable parts I can import into a new build. I have a never-been-used Cooler Master Elite 430 case that I bought very cheap a while ago, but never got a chance to use. I have an okay-ish Gigabyte HD6770 videocard sitting in a closet that I've barely used. I have a Corsair 600W modular PSU, and I can re-use the 1TB HDD and 2x4GB 1600 DDR3 RAM from my current little computer.

What that basically means is that all I'm really looking for at this point is a new CPU and motherboard. I can upgrade the rest incrementally.

After looking at some suggestions, I think I want an Intel i5-4590. I'm not sure if going to an i7 will be worth it for me. I'm a little confused about the Intel motherboards, but some online research says that I'll want a H97 one. Is this correct? I'm finding some other LGA1150 boards for a lot cheaper.

This is what I've looked at so far from PCPartPicker.

I'd love some advice about the next upgrade path after that. Obviously I'll want a new videocard (I'm looking at something in the Radeon R7 260X or GTX 760 range, possibly). I also really want a SSD, but I have zero knowledge about which brands/sizes are worth buying.

Thanks in advance.

[Drasca]

www.anandtech.com for the latest SSD reviews. Basically its a good time, and whenever you want an SSD you can have one, because prices will fall.

However *any* ssd is better than a HDD right now. Lots of good brands out there, no complete trash as long as you get this generation's ssd.

i5's are plenty. The i7's primary benefit is Hyper Threading, which for gaming isn't as a big deal. If you use multiple programs at once it may benefit more though-- but since you game you'd likely turn off others regardless.

[DeeBye]

www.anandtech.com for the latest SSD reviews. Basically its a good time, and whenever you want an SSD you can have one, because prices will fall.

However *any* ssd is better than a HDD right now. Lots of good brands out there, no complete trash as long as you get this generation's ssd.

i5's are plenty. The i7's primary benefit is Hyper Threading, which for gaming isn't as a big deal. If you use multiple programs at once it may benefit more though-- but since you game you'd likely turn off others regardless.

Thanks. That's good to know.

What about aftermarket CPU coolers? My beef with my current A10-5700 is that the CPU fan is really loud when gaming (it's almost silent when idle though). Are they as easy to install as a retail fan/heatsink? Are there any really quiet ones you can suggest that aren't obnoxiously huge?