thinking of upgrading

[nekofreak44]

so this is what I have now for a computer

 

mobo intel dh61be

cpu i3 2100 dual

memory 4gb ddr3 ram

using intel igpu

and you don't want to know about storage

I got ripped off on this computer and can't do much about it now

 

I want to upgrade and I am thinking about this build

 

http://pcpartpicker.com/p/3jtmVn

and yes I do plan on keeping the mobo

 

I am only a light to moderate gamer and a heavy streamer but thats about it so far

 

please tell me what you guys think^^

 

[Mark77]

Looks good to me.  With an appropriate BIOS upgrade (before you install the new chip), your board should support Ivy Bridge CPU's as well.  So you don't need to limit your shopping to just Sandy Bridge SKU's.

[HPWebcamAble]

• 650 W is overkill for that system. 550 W would be fine
• The R9 380 is slightly better (but more expensive in some cases) than the 960
• Go with the 850 EVO series, you don't need a PRO SSD
• Do you have a retailer in mind for the 2600k? It's a great CPU, but PC Part Picker doesn't seem to think it's selling anymore.

[Fattedd]

This looks great. However, when buying a new motherboard why wouldn't you get a z170 chipset?

[nekofreak44]

I am actually keeping the mobo I have now for the new build and switching out everything else

[nekofreak44]

also would it be better to just get one 8gb stick of ram instead of the two 4s for expantion to 16 gigs later because with the proper bios updates board will support 16

 

[Mark77]

3 minutes ago, Fattedd said:

This looks great. However, when buying a new motherboard why wouldn't you get a z170 chipset?

 

Looks like he's just doing a CPU/RAM/SSD/GPU upgrade, as opposed to a whole new system build.  Which is perfectly fine. 

 

SSD and GPU would be re-usable.  i7-2600's (wouldn't even need the "k" part on that board since there's not really any overclocking options) are like $130 these days.   So for the cost of a z170 board and change, basically he has a refreshed mobo/CPU/RAM. 

[nekofreak44]

this is the case I am picking too^^ really excited about the case^^

 

http://www.amazon.com/Computer-Silver-Aluminum-Integer-Computers/dp/B00S3ZV6DY/ref=sr_1_5?s=electronics&ie=UTF8&qid=1459553997&sr=1-5&keywords=micro+atx+case+mini+tower&refinements=p_36%3A3000-15000

 

 

[Sportmax8]

20 minutes ago, nekofreak44 said:

also would it be better to just get one 8gb stick of ram instead of the two 4s for expantion to 16 gigs later because with the proper bios updates board will support 16

 

yes, 8gb sticks are always better because of the option to add more ram, but 16gb is usually enough and anything over that is overkill for this build. so yeah go with 1 or 2 8gb sticks  

[filledk]

35 minutes ago, Mark77 said:

Looks good to me.  With an appropriate BIOS upgrade (before you install the new chip), your board should support Ivy Bridge CPU's as well.  So you don't need to limit your shopping to just Sandy Bridge SKU's.

how does one update (upgrade) bios without the CPU installed? is theree even a way to do that?

[Mark77]

40 minutes ago, filledk said:

how does one update (upgrade) bios without the CPU installed? is theree even a way to do that?

OP appears to have the machine already running.  So he does the upgrade before he tears into it. 

 

Some newer boards have enough of a micro-controller/SoC in them to upgrade through the USB without a CPU installed. 

 

Of course, there's the option of removing the BIOS (firmware) chip and flashing it in an external burner.  Or using a "hot-flashing" technique.