Need Help With Upgrade Decisions

[NIGHTDAWG7]

Oh okay; I would love a nice processor but I just don't know what the max is that my mobo could handle...it would've been nice indeed but times are tough so I'm satisfied with doing small upgrades. I have only $200 to play with unfortunately. I'll definitely by a mid tower and 400W psu...I only want to spend about $100 on a gpu so i know i can't get too far with that over the 9500gt.

My main goal is just to upgrade my cpu and gpu BUT b/c of the slim limits I now have to include the new tower and psu I'm only paying $20 for the tower though.

 

[patonb]

Yo can get decent ATI gpus for well under $100. You are US, correct?

You can probably get all 3, psu case and gpu for easily under 200.

You state 20 for case.. g/l it'll cause many other issues due to ventilation.

I'd say 50 for case, 70-80 for the psu, and the rest on a gpu.

 

[NIGHTDAWG7]

So what ATI card would you suggest that would give me a noticeable (doesn't have to be extreme gaming) difference over my 9500GT?

 

[patonb]

Here is the card listings... http://www.techist.com/forums/f76/graphics-performance-list-212331/

Off of newegg, you can get a 4850, for the same cost of a 9600gt.... 100 bucks.. the 4850 destroys a 9600gt.

But for a card comparable to the 9600gt, a 4670, its about 70bucks... now compared to the 9500gt.. Its miles ahead.

 

[NIGHTDAWG7]

So between the 9800GT and regular 4850 you would go with the 5850? How about PSU...can I just use a 500W or would I need more?

 

[Trotter]

500W would be plenty. Just make sure to check the PSU Guide sticky for what brands to look at, though. If you are looking to save money you can go with Rosewill.

 

[NIGHTDAWG7]

what do you think of this PSU from Newegg (COOLER MASTER Elite 460 RS 460-PSAR-J3 460W ATX12V V2.31)? Thanks for all your help so far!

 

[Trotter]

That one looks to be good.

 

[NIGHTDAWG7]

Would my AM2 socket motherboard (well i assume it is) be able to handle an AMD quad processor and if so what would be the cheapest one that is better than the current
AMD 64 X2 6000 3.0 GHz?

AMD Phenom X4 9750 Agena 2.4GHz 4 x 512KB L2 Cache 2MB L3 Cache Socket AM2+ 125W (from Newegg) how would this one stack against my current one (it's going for $99)?

 

[orihS ‪‪‪Shiro]

what do you think of this PSU from Newegg (COOLER MASTER Elite 460 RS 460-PSAR-J3 460W ATX12V V2.31)? Thanks for all your help so far!

Hardware Secrets did a test of that PSU.
It is over rated.
It's stated for 460w, but it actually performs only up to 420w at max load.
I personally would not buy it.

Though you won't even force it to load with the setup you have, if it's in your budget, then go for it.
The HEC 585w offers similar performance for about $5 cheaper, and can power your build with a 4850 added in.

If I were you, I would find out if my motherboard was a standard ATX mATX or uATX and then look for a compatible mid tower case. (I like the Rosewill Blackbone, but I don't know if it would be compatible with your mobo or anything)
Then I would buy the HEC 585w PSU (With power cord) ((Not the ORION, but the OEM HEC 585w for only like 25$ after promo code))
And I would get the Sapphire 4850 for about $100

All in all, you'll probably spend... $150-180 on a very worthwhile upgrade for the time being.
(Compared to what you were using)