Too old to upgrade?

[Octaris]

Hi guys!

 

I'm currently thinking about getting a now pc or upgrading my old one.

I built myself a small gaming rig in 2012 and am still using it today with the addition of a SSD card.

 

It has an

-i5 2500k

-8GB DDR3

-Radeon HD 6950

- 250 GB SSD for Windows

-1TB HDD for games

 

I'm not exactly your typical power user and like to keep them things as long as possible.

 

But the other day I discovered Escape from Tarkov and wanted to try it out. Let's it didn't exactly play smooth...

 

With todays hardware market being crazy and no sight of getting any better and less costly I was wondering if there is still some juice in this old hardware or if its a lost cause and I should invest in a new pc.

 

PS: I'm not willing to pay 2000$+ for a new system just to play 1 or 2 new games thats why I struggle with the decision.

 

PPS: The pc I am still using is not overclocked whats o ever.

 

If anyone has insights and tips about my problem I am very much looking forward to hearing them

[8tg]

You can get pretty ok performance with Sandy bridge on tarkov with more ram, a cpu overclock, and a better gpu.

Find a 16gb kit of ram, make sure your cpu cooler can handle an oc and then push your i5 2500k to 4ghz, replace your gpu with basically anything not from 2010, new gpu prices are nuts, maybe look for a used R9 270x, GTX 770 or something, those play the game fine and would pair with the 2500k well.

 

 

[Imbadatnames]

5 minutes ago, 8tg said:

You can get pretty ok performance with Sandy bridge on tarkov with more ram, a cpu overclock, and a better gpu.

Find a 16gb kit of ram, make sure your cpu cooler can handle an oc and then push your i5 2500k to 4ghz, replace your gpu with basically anything not from 2010, new gpu prices are nuts, maybe look for a used R9 270x, GTX 770 or something, those play the game fine and would pair with the 2500k well.

 

 

Issue is you’re paying for DDR3 which is 2 gens out of date now 

[Imbadatnames]

11 minutes ago, Octaris said:

Hi guys!

 

I'm currently thinking about getting a now pc or upgrading my old one.

I built myself a small gaming rig in 2012 and am still using it today with the addition of a SSD card.

 

It has an

-i5 2500k

-8GB DDR3

-Radeon HD 6950

- 250 GB SSD for Windows

-1TB HDD for games

 

I'm not exactly your typical power user and like to keep them things as long as possible.

 

But the other day I discovered Escape from Tarkov and wanted to try it out. Let's it didn't exactly play smooth...

 

With todays hardware market being crazy and no sight of getting any better and less costly I was wondering if there is still some juice in this old hardware or if its a lost cause and I should invest in a new pc.

 

PS: I'm not willing to pay 2000$+ for a new system just to play 1 or 2 new games thats why I struggle with the decision.

 

PPS: The pc I am still using is not overclocked whats o ever.

 

If anyone has insights and tips about my problem I am very much looking forward to hearing them

Maybe first thing buy a GPU because you’re likely gonna need one anyway. Even something like a gtx 1060 would be a solid upgrade from a 6950 but considering prices currently I’d try and snipe a 1070 on eBay for between 200 and 250

[BondiBlue]

7 minutes ago, Imbadatnames said:

Issue is you’re paying for DDR3 which is 2 gens out of date now 

And? DDR3 is pretty cheap these days. You don't always have to have the latest and greatest to have a satisfactory experience. 

[8tg]

7 minutes ago, Imbadatnames said:

Issue is you’re paying for DDR3 which is 2 gens out of date now 

It’s like 40$ to get 16gb of ddr3

Spoiler

And that can be even cheaper depending on the current configuration, if it’s two 4gb sticks in a 4 slot board then you just gotta get another two 4gb sticks which is 20$ at most.

 

Still significantly more cost effective than buying a whole new platform just to play a few games.

[Devryd]

I wouldnt spend much money on more RAM. If the CPU performance still wouldnt be enough, you would have wasted the money on the RAM. Get a new GPU maybe 1070 or sth and a propably a new PSU and then look from there

[YoungBlade]

Without an overclock, Escape from Tarkov is likely maxing out your CPU. Have you monitored your CPU usage when in game?

 

If the CPU is limiting you, you could consider upgrading to an i7 2600(K) or i7 3770(K) - that latter assuming your motherboard has a BIOS that supports it. You can find them for about $50-60 on eBay, and the 2500K sells for around $25-30 so you could potentially recoup half of that.

[8tg]

4 minutes ago, Devryd said:

I wouldnt spend much money on more RAM. If the CPU performance still wouldnt be enough, you would have wasted the money on the RAM. Get a new GPU maybe 1070 or sth and a propably a new PSU and then look from there

The game needs more ram, 8gb of ram is not an option for tarkov, it’s a severe performance limiter.

A 1070 is overkill for a 2500k, and incredibly expensive versus buying something that pairs well with the hardware and doesn’t cost nearly as much.

 

what’s all this avoidance of spending money on ddr3 about lmao

[Monkey Dust]

I'd try to pick up a used PC if you're working to a budget, or bits of used ones to make a whole one. Or if you could stretch to $1000 and want to go new, a PC based around an Intel 12400F, H760 board, 16GB DDR4, 512GB SSD, cheap case, mid-priced PSU should leave about $400 for a GPU.

 

I recently retired my old 4670k system, mostly because it was getting increasingly temperamental, but also it was really struggling with modern games, lots of stuttering.

[Heliian]

What motherboard do you have? 

[Imbadatnames]

2 hours ago, 8tg said:

It’s like 40$ to get 16gb of ddr3

  Reveal hidden contents

And that can be even cheaper depending on the current configuration, if it’s two 4gb sticks in a 4 slot board then you just gotta get another two 4gb sticks which is 20$ at most.

 

Still significantly more cost effective than buying a whole new platform just to play a few games.

It’s 40 wasted if it’s not the issue though and CPU upgrades for that socket aren’t far off a platform swap

[Imbadatnames]

2 hours ago, BondiBlue said:

And? DDR3 is pretty cheap these days. You don't always have to have the latest and greatest to have a satisfactory experience. 

That plus a new CPU worth upgrading to is running into running to about 150 though and that’s IF they have a Z series board 

[BondiBlue]

16 minutes ago, Imbadatnames said:

That plus a new CPU worth upgrading to is running into running to about 150 though and that’s IF they have a Z series board 

Who says they need a CPU upgrade right now? The i5-2500K is older, but it should be fine for now. Besides, OP could sell the RAM and make back some of the money if needed. It's a cheap upgrade, and it's definitely worth it. 

[8tg]

27 minutes ago, Imbadatnames said:

It’s 40 wasted if it’s not the issue though and CPU upgrades for that socket aren’t far off a platform swap

They explained in their original post that’s what they’re trying to avoid doing.

40$ for some ram and a free cpu overclock will get them a decent chunk of performance specifically in tarkov.

Versus at minimum, absolute minimum, 350$ for a move to a current gen i3, with a motherboard and ram.

 

Then there’s still the gpu upgrade to consider, a modern entry level gpu will cost 400$+, something that’s at least double the performance of an HD 6950 will be under 200$.

 

There are upgrade options for Sandy bridge still, a cpu upgrade should be last since that’s fairly minor, and an overclock can do a lot for the 2500k. But a whole new platform just to play a few games is not worth the cost over small upgrades.

[Imbadatnames]

44 minutes ago, 8tg said:

They explained in their original post that’s what they’re trying to avoid doing.

40$ for some ram and a free cpu overclock will get them a decent chunk of performance specifically in tarkov.

Versus at minimum, absolute minimum, 350$ for a move to a current gen i3, with a motherboard and ram.

 

Then there’s still the gpu upgrade to consider, a modern entry level gpu will cost 400$+, something that’s at least double the performance of an HD 6950 will be under 200$.

 

There are upgrade options for Sandy bridge still, a cpu upgrade should be last since that’s fairly minor, and an overclock can do a lot for the 2500k. But a whole new platform just to play a few games is not worth the cost over small upgrades.

Why would you go current gen i3? Go used Ryzen you can get a 2600 for less. Should just update the GPU anyway which is what I said. 2GB vram is anaemic these days  and a lot more performance could be had for 200-250 with a GTX 1070

 

[Imbadatnames]

59 minutes ago, BondiBlue said:

Who says they need a CPU upgrade right now? The i5-2500K is older, but it should be fine for now. Besides, OP could sell the RAM and make back some of the money if needed. It's a cheap upgrade, and it's definitely worth it. 

Aside from it will likely do nothing as the recommended minimum requirements are 8GB of RAM and it lists FX and Phenom II in the CPU options. The recommended  resolution being 600x800 with a 2GB or more frame buffer leads me to believe VRAM would be the issue 

[BondiBlue]

10 minutes ago, Imbadatnames said:

Aside from it will likely do nothing as the recommended minimum requirements are 8GB of RAM and it lists FX and Phenom II in the CPU options. The recommended  resolution being 600x800 with a 2GB or more frame buffer leads me to believe VRAM would be the issue 

The key word here is minimum. The developer says that 8GB is the minimum, and they also say that 16GB is the recommended amount. It's a cheap upgrade, and they could pair the extra memory with a better GPU, but not something as overkill as a GTX 1070. You can literally find DDR3 being thrown away in large quantities these days, so there's no reason not to upgrade the RAM, especially if they're also going to upgrade the GPU. There's just no reason. 

[8tg]

23 minutes ago, Imbadatnames said:

and a lot more performance could be had for 200-250 with a GTX 1070

Idk where you are where a gtx 1070 is 250$ but I’d start buying them

 

[Toddg641]

I would look for the highest Core i7 your board can support (probably a 4th gen), upgrade the memory, and even though it'll hurt the wallet a GPU of some sorts is probably in order (a1660 will run you 400 to 600 new), the one you are rocking is now over a decade old I believe.

 

[Octaris]

Thank you so much for all your support!

 

To complete my list of hardware:

Powersupply: Corsair Hx750

CPU Cooler: some bigger Enermax air cooler

Motherboard: Asus P8Z68 VGen3

 

As I understand your comments so far its definitely possible to still upgrade my pc and do some overclocking of the cpu even.

Getting decent performance on newer games.

 

Would you recommend to buy fitting hardware new from a vendor or to go thriftshopping?

I have no experince with used parts and feel a little helpless on when to trust some seller on ebay and when not to ^^"

 

Thanks again!

[Chiyawa]

2 hours ago, Octaris said:

Would you recommend to buy fitting hardware new from a vendor or to go thriftshopping?

With hardware so old (RAM and CPU), you can find it at second hand PC shops or from eBay. Some people may have new old stock, but if the price is high, I don't think it is worth. New old stock definitely is better because the product is brand new and never been used.

 

Ebay (or any online marketplace) is an open market environment where everyone can sell their stuff. You do have to be very careful as many can sell fake products, or sometimes they might sneakily change your product to a cheaper one or broken product. Although eBay has a good buyer's protection policy, sometimes it's a hassle to go with it.

 

Thrift shop... Well, it's a bit complicated, but still, you'll never know what you can find. Who knows, maybe you can find a 2014 Macbook Pro for a good price, or a used PC (4th gen Core i7) for a ridiculous low price? For thrift shop, it purely relies on your luck.

 

If you know PC recycling centre near your area, maybe you can check them out. Most of the time, they have lots of spare parts that you can grab (sometimes for free) like CPU and motherboard that is a few times better than your current one. This, of course, requires you to have deep knowledge on PC components.

[Imbadatnames]

10 hours ago, 8tg said:

Idk where you are where a gtx 1070 is 250$ but I’d start buying them

 

£

[BondiBlue]

9 hours ago, Octaris said:

Motherboard: Asus P8Z68 VGen3

I actually have two of those boards, and they're both still in use - one is in my office PC and the other is in my NAS. If you want to upgrade it a bit without spending as much as you would on an entirely new platform you could consider getting a Core i7-3770 or another similar CPU. Your current Core i5 should be fine, but upgrading to one of the supported Core i7 models will get you Hyper-Threading support. Your current i5 doesn't support it, so you only have four threads. 

[whm1974]

About the DDR3 RAM. The Issue isn't DDR3 but only having a mere 8GG of it. 2x4GB DDR3 shouldn't cost much. The dGPU? Well looking at Today's dGPU Market, an upgrade is likely out of the question for the OP. Would be lucky to find anything in Stock that isn't way overpriced. Aside from really old crap that will be worse.

 

In short upgrading the Memory and overclocking...