To Upgrade Or Not to Upgrade?

[ComradeTaco]

I built my system way back in 2009 as a mid-range system. As more and more modern games, I can feel it starting to chug along.

System Specs:

Operating System: Windows 7 Home Premium 64-bit (6.1, Build 7601) Service Pack
System Manufacturer: Gigabyte Technology Co., Ltd.
System Model: GA-MA790GPT-UD3H
BIOS: Award Modular BIOS v6.00PG
Processor: AMD Phenom(tm) II X4 965 Processor (4 CPUs), ~3.4GHz
Memory: 12288MB RAM
Available OS Memory: 12286MB RAM
DirectX Version: DirectX 11
Graphics Card: Radeon 5770
Power:650w TX

So my budget is around $600 for upgrades and I'm looking at 3 things:
-SSD
Intel 335 Series SSD 250gb
-Graphics Card
GIGABYTE GV-R787OC-2GD Radeon HD 7870
-A New Primary Display Screen
Asus VE228H 21.5"

Thoughts?

 

[PP Mguire]

What is your current screen?

Rest of your system seems fine besides the GPU.
I would get this SSD:
Newegg.com - Corsair Force Series GS CSSD-F240GBGS-BK 2.5" 240GB SATA III Internal Solid State Drive (SSD)

 

[ComradeTaco]

Right now I've got a SyncMaster 930B 12"-by-15".

Intel: $170 500 Read 450 Write 240GB
Corsair: $200 555 Read 525 Write 240GB

So is the Corsair worth it on performance?

 

[PP Mguire]

You only want to upgrade to 21"? I would make a bigger jump to 23 or something. You can find good 23" 1080p LCDs for around 150.

Yes. Sequential speeds aren't everything in an SSD. Compare the IOPS. The Corsair is about 40-50k faster there. Intel drives are more known for superior reliability in the toughest situations much like the Samsung 830, but in my experience people don't nearly come that close to actually killing without a previous fault in the hardware.

 

[jasonalwaysready]

agree with pp. the only thing really holding you back for gaming is the gpu. you'll notice loading times significantly decrease with the ssd and you'll appreciate having the screen real estate of a 23-24" screen in 1920x1080.

 

[Bregadon]

Get a 24" 1080P, Get a Samsung 830 Series, Get a 680, Get a nice cooler and overclock the **** out of your CPU.

Just my 2 cents.

 

[PP Mguire]

Samsung 830 SSDs are slowly starting to go away due to them wanting to sell their 840 series sadly. I believe the Corsair he wants is better performance wise anyways.

The rest isn't necessary. A 670 or even a 660ti would be perfectly capable for anything.