Current System - Thinking of upgrading to next-gen

[Northelim]

Here is my current PC (I built it in January 2010)

Processor - i7 920 Quad Core 2.65 GHz
Graphics Card - Radeon HD 5970 2 Gigs
Ram - 8 Gigs
System - Windows 7 64 Bit
Hard Drive - 1 TB
OCZ Vertex Series 2.5" SATA 2 Solid State Drive - 30 GB (Where Windows 7 is installed and nothing else)
Monitor - 24 Inch 1920x1200 Samsung LED
Motherboard - EVGA X58 SLI LE

What I want to upgrade/should upgrade

Graphics Card - I am debating to buy the Nvidia GeForce 590, or wait for their next-gen series... either way I'll be spending 700+ Dollars)

Processor - Should I upgrade my processor, if so to what, and why?

Ram - thinking of maybe upgrading this, not sure if I really need more than 8 gigs?

HDD Space - Probably will upgrade to a 2TB HDD and also use my old one too to get more space, or I can just leave it at 1 TB and save my money

SSD - Want to upgrade to 100 Gigs, have they went down in price?

Monitor - Not upgrading

Motherboard - Do I need to upgrade it?

I did not buy a Sound Card for my previous build, is it worth buying a sound card, does it make gaming better? Sound is important to me, but I am not sure if the cards make a big difference?

I am planning to do this sometime around Fall/Winter, but I want to starting saving up money now.

Thank you all!

 

[Roark]

I am planning to do this sometime around Fall/Winter, but I want to starting saving up money now.

Considering how fast technology moves, any suggestion we make will be pretty much moot by then.

That being said:

Graphics Card - Next gen GPUs are already out, GTX 680 (more to come) and HD 7xxx. By winter/fall there may be more options.

Processor - If its working well for you keep it. Can always get an aftermarket cooler and overclock it for increased performance.

RAM - Same as processor. Really depends what you use your computer for though; gaming 8GB is enough, rendering/encoding/etc and 16GB wouldn't hurt.

SSD - 120GB varieties are moving closer and closer to the $100 mark.

Motherboard - Its a great board for your setup. Only need to upgrade it if you go for a newer processor.

 

[PP Mguire]

Pretty sure he wants to buy a dual GPU card based on the price he wants to pay and how he has a 5970 and is considering a 590.

Might as well wait for 690 as 590s are hard to find unless you go Ebay.

 

[Roark]

The GTX 690 will be available "in limited quantities" starting May 3, and move to a wider distribution from Nvidia's usual add-in card partners (Asus, EVGA, Gigabyte, MSI, and others) on May 7. Pricing for the GTX 690 is $999 list.

Nvidia Announces GeForce GTX 690 Dual-GPU Video Card | News & Opinion | PCMag.com

 

[Druid]

IMO, you don't need to upgrade. You could get a bigger SSD or HDD if you need the space, but why are you trying to upgrade anything else? I don't really see how any game could put a dent in your current system.

Nvidia Announces GeForce GTX 690 Dual-GPU Video Card | News & Opinion | PCMag.com

That price tag is absolutely insane.

 

[Northelim]

IMO, you don't need to upgrade. You could get a bigger SSD or HDD if you need the space, but why are you trying to upgrade anything else? I don't really see how any game could put a dent in your current system.



That price tag is absolutely insane.

I am gonna buy it for Christmas or around that time somewhere. What kind of a power supply would I need for this beast? Also, how much you think I can sell my Radeon 5970 HD for?

 

[PP Mguire]

850w+ and probably around 300.