When to start a new build?

TPSou

I've just got a new job and at my old job I was using my own old PC as a front of class unit as the one the school provided me with was slow and terrible. Now they're giving me back the old one and while the innards are hopelessly outdated the case is decent and spacious so I think I'll start building a new PC. My question is, will there be a big change in prices/performance if I hold on for a few months before I start buying parts?

At the moment my gaming PC is an i52800k, 8GB Ram and a 1GB Nvidia GTX 550Ti I literally can't fit a bigger graphics card into that one as the case is small and the motherboard has an irritating heatsink that the current GPU is pushing right against. I can get a decent 40FPS at 1080p on most new games with everything turned up pretty high, so the new PC will be more a case of future proofing and really getting the most out of some really intensive games. If I was to go out and buy parts now I would be thinking of getting an i7, 16Gb Ram, a SSD and maybe splashing out on a GTX 680, but I don't know how much of a significant upgrade that would be, or whether I should just wait a few months and then something new is in the pipeline that would be better, or if there will be a big price drop anytime soon. Any advice?

Tef

I assume you mean an i5 2500k? There's absolutely no reason to upgrade that in any case.

In terms of upgrades, it would go ssd then GPU, in that order. If you went up to a 650Ti or 7870, you would see a nice bump. Since you were eyeing up the 680, I'd say go with the 670 if you want high end. A 670 (what I use) will run really well, especially at 1920x1080. A 680 is a bit of an overkill imo

TPSou

Ah yeah this will be a whole new PC. The idea is that if I can make something better that would be an upgrade for me, I can still keep the old PC to give to my partner, so it will be a new build from scratch when I do it, new motherboard and everything. Only thing worth salvaging in the case might be the power supply.

Are there any 'new waves' coming through that we already know about? So post i7 or 680 or a new type of Ram/HD. I don't want to splash out on new components if I Could just wait a few months and get something substantially better for similar money.

Varinn

With computers you can ALWAYS wait a couple months and get something substantially better for similiar money, upgrade based on what's available at the time you feel like buying

Foomy

Nothing new is really coming out for another year or so.

Intel: Ivy bridge is only a few months old, Haswell is expected march to june 2013.
AMD : Piledriver just released this month, but it's still not as good as intel's offerings, Steamroller isn't until late 2013
AMD : Radeon Southern Island 7000 series are about 6-12 months old atm, Sea island based 800 series should be mid 2013.
Nvidia: 600 series is fairly new, Maxwell based 700 series expected in mid 2013

So no reason to wait around, unless you really don't want a new computer for another 8-10 months.
Intel doesn't really do price drops as they have such a huge market lead atm and they don't need to. Graphic cards are about as cheap as it will be until the next generation is out. SSD prices are always dropping a little every month, but waiting around for the bottom would take years.

Come stop by the computer build thread and we can get you sorted out with something awesome for your budget.

TPSou

That's exactly what I wanted to know, thank you! Yeah once I get the case back to my house and get started with the new job I'll post in the thread and get buying!

Elimination

i5 2500k is not outdated at all. Your GPU is lacking a bit but that's pretty much it. You wouldn't see a substantial difference getting a different CPU at the moment. I mean if you want to build a new PC because you want to give this one to your parter, that's another story entirely. But really the 2500k is very much still a modern/powerful CPU. Just that 550 may not be the best choice.

mts

if you aren't in a rush i would piece together things as deals come out. you probably could save some cash/get more than you expected

TPSou

Yeah that's my plan I think, Motherboard/CPU/Power supply will be the first thing I think as they don't seem to be changing much and I can use old bits I have to at least get a working PC, but the main thing is having a PC with the space and cooling to be able to upgrade it.

Tav

The only advice I'll give is do everything in one go when you have the cash. If you buy piece by piece, you'll end up with a Frankenstein's Monster of a machine which will just sit around for months on end and never get finished.

Synthesis

Tav wrote: »

The only advice I'll give is do everything in one go when you have the cash. If you buy piece by piece, you'll end up with a Frankenstein's Monster of a machine which will just sit around for months on end and never get finished.

This is sound advice. Plus, the small likelihood of dud hardware will really screw you over, as oppose to just partially, as you'll be testing them months or years later.