Planning on upgrading my build.

[Park99katz]

Hello, I am looking to get a plan set up for upgrading my computer in the near future. I live in Colorado for reference for shipping stuff and I will be going off to college next fall. I would like to invest some money into my computer in the next coming months to get some more power and future-proofing out of it. 

Here are my current specs:
Motherboard: Dell XPS 8700
Cpu: Intel Core i5-4440 @ 3.10 Ghz
Ram: 2 * 4gb DDR3 SDRAM PC3-12800 [ 800 Mhz ]
2 * 4gb DDR3 Corsair Vengeance Ram [ 1600 Mhz ] 
Graphics Card: Asus 660 Ti  
 -- Notes I haven't put in the Vengeance Ram yet. There are a pair 800 Mhz 4 GB ram sticks in the system right now. I have been too neglectful to switch out them and now want to wait.
I am not 100% sure on what my power supply system is. I plan to buy one of those nifty computer case working sets that Linus uses a lot and switch out to the higher Mhz ram and clean out my system. When I do this I will figure out what kind of power supply I have in there. 

My benchmarks from PerformanceTest 9.0 are:
Passmark: 2749 [68th Percentile]
CPU mark: 6968 [63rd Percentile]
2D Mark: 727 [74th Percentile]
3D Mark: 4973 [81st Percentile]
Memory Mark: 2352 [80th Percentile]

     Some notes: I keep the side panel off. I do this mostly because I've been lazy and secondly because I don't think it being on will do a whole lot. I may be misled in my thoughts. Please tell me if I am for all help is appreciated.  I also am not sure if benchmarks from Performance test should be what I look for graphics cards from. This was the way that I chose the graphics card I will discuss later. I looked at their score and price and found some sweet spots. Is there another benchmarking software or system that I should use for finding a graphics card in the future?
-----Part Outlook
Case:
     I plan to buy a new case in the near future. The case that it is in is too small for my 660ti to fit comfortably and looks horrendous. It is the original Dell Xps case. My plan is to wait on new egg or eBay or even Amazon and wait for a sweet deal on a good case. 
-----
Plan for Graphics Card:
I want to be able to play games in 1080 with high frames (possibly 144 Hz) and possibly 2k. I am not totally set on what I want in the computer's future. I just know that I want to upgrade a little more. With the prices of upgrades coming down I feel like it's a good time. There is one thing that I know that I want from my computer upgrade and that is to be able to support two monitors. I am pretty sure that my current set up is beefy enough. I haven't tried it out, though. And not two monitors for gaming, but two monitors for browsing the web and watching youtube videos at the same time.

My Research For Graphics Cards:
     What I have looked at so far for graphics cards is the 1060s and the 1070 families so far. In the 1060 family, I am looking at both 3gb and 6gb ones. This is where I would like most of my help. What should I invest in? Would it be better to bulk up and save up another $100 or $200 for a better card?
-----
Motherboard:
I am also wondering if I need to update my motherboard. I have recently watched Linus's video on motherboard upgrades and feel like my current one should be enough for a little while longer.
-----
Cpu and SSD:
I believe that my CPU is enough for gaming. And my SSD is good enough for me right now. 
-----
Ram:
I believe my current setup is enough. Tell me if it isn't efficient to have two different types of ram in the system at once. I believe not, but I am new to upgrading my PC. This is my first time for a major upgrade since I started gaming.
-----
Peripherals: 
I am looking at buying a new keyboard and mouse. I want my these to last a long time so I don't have to rebuy them in the future. My current ones are about 3 years old and I feel like they are about to fall apart. Not to mention the membrane keyboard isn't a very pleasant experience anymore. I will be in a dorm with other people next year so the sound is a little bit of a consideration for me. I have researched a little on switches and I believe that blues would be worth the sound that they produce. The reviews that I have heard are that people love them and they are great for typing. Which will be an extra plus because I will be typing a lot next year. My price range for my keyboard is from $30 - $100. I have picked some out, but don't know what kind of features I should really be looking for specifically so I haven't bought them yet. Here is a link to the one that is my top picks (I have Amazon Prime too so these are a good % off):
More Expensive Keyboard, but still not Mx Blue Switches
Cheap Waterproof Keyboard With "Blue" switches

For my mouse, I plan to get a Razor DeathAdder Elite. If there are any other good alternatives I would be open. I use a G9x mouse (claw grip) right now.

Headphones are not as of concern right now. I have some cheap ones I got off amazon that is stereo and plugs in via USB. They are adequate. I have a few thoughts in the back of my head if a sound card is a worthy upgrade in the future. I plan to research this topic a little more by myself, though. If anyone wants to throw some free help my way I would appreciate it in this too.
-----
 Thanks for the help if you read all that, it was quite a bit, and I hope I didn't leave any information out that is required to help tell me if I did.

[genexis_x]

1080p 60hz - gtx1060 (6gb variant, not 3gb)
1080p 144hz - gtx1070

Your CPU may bottleneck a bit. Go for i5 6500/7500 if you can afford.

[DocSwag]

If you get a GTX 1060 or rx 480 you won't need to upgrade your CPU but if you want a 1070 you will need to or there will probably be bottlenecking.

[Silver47]

Most of your stuff is still very viable I'd say.

1 hour ago, Park99katz said:

When I do this I will figure out what kind of power supply I have in there. 

Your PSU most likely is a generic 460W Dell unit. They used to be manufactured by Delta, and their quality is actually sufficient for most normal application scenarios.

1 hour ago, Park99katz said:

Motherboard:
I am also wondering if I need to update my motherboard. I have recently watched Linus's video on motherboard upgrades and feel like my current one should be enough for a little while longer.

True, you won't be overclocking a Haswell i5 with locked multi anyways, so there is really no point in getting a different mainboard.

1 hour ago, Park99katz said:

Plan for Graphics Card:
I want to be able to play games in 1080 with high frames (possibly 144 Hz) and possibly 2k. I am not totally set on what I want in the computer's future. I just know that I want to upgrade a little more. With the prices of upgrades coming down I feel like it's a good time. There is one thing that I know that I want from my computer upgrade and that is to be able to support two monitors. I am pretty sure that my current set up is beefy enough. I haven't tried it out, though. And not two monitors for gaming, but two monitors for browsing the web and watching youtube videos at the same time.

My Research For Graphics Cards:
     What I have looked at so far for graphics cards is the 1060s and the 1070 families so far. In the 1060 family, I am looking at both 3gb and 6gb ones. This is where I would like most of my help. What should I invest in? Would it be better to bulk up and save up another $100 or $200 for a better card?

A GTX 1060 6GB is a fine choice. If you plan to stick to 1080p for your main monitor resolution it absolutely suffice your needs for now. You could also look into buying a RX480 8GB. Most RX480 models are quite a bit cheaper than a 1060 6GB cards, while only being marginally slower. If you plan to step up your monitor game to lets say 1440p I'd recommend buying nothing less than a GTX 1070. While still being able to game in 1440p with a 1060 you won't be able to max out your games or hit 60fps most of the time. Getting zhe right GPU always is a tough choice, it heavily depends on the games you play and your attitude towards graphics in general.

1 hour ago, Park99katz said:

Cpu and SSD:
I believe that my CPU is enough for gaming. And my SSD is good enough for me right now.

Agreed. Don't upgrade from your Haswell chip just yet.

1 hour ago, Park99katz said:

Ram:
I believe my current setup is enough. Tell me if it isn't efficient to have two different types of ram in the system at once. I believe not, but I am new to upgrading my PC. This is my first time for a major upgrade since I started gaming.

If you only play games and don't use resource-intensive apps, like Cinema 4D, Blender, SketchUp, etc. 8GB will be fine.

1 hour ago, Park99katz said:

Case:
     I plan to buy a new case in the near future. The case that it is in is too small for my 660ti to fit comfortably and looks horrendous. It is the original Dell Xps case. My plan is to wait on new egg or eBay or even Amazon and wait for a sweet deal on a good case. 

This absolutely depends on your budget... But I'd always recommend the Bitfenix Shinobi Core. Roomy with good airlfow and a lot of cable management options. If you want to spend under 50$ I'd recommend the Sharkoon S25-S.

 

1 hour ago, Park99katz said:

Peripherals: 
I am looking at buying a new keyboard and mouse.

I'd blinldy recommend the Logitech G403 mouse and the G610 keyboard.