Upgrading my current system

[prateek76]

Hi all

I have a few years old build consisting of:
- CoolerMaster generic case with Gigabyte 460W PSU
- Phenom II X2 845 with MSI 785GM-E65 motherboard
- 2x2GB GSkill DDR3 RAM
- NVidia 8400GS graphics card
- Enough Hard drives and Optical drives

Planning to upgrade to a new one and here's the delimma:
1. Build a new one from scratch with
- Intel i5 2500K with Asus P8Z68 PRO V motherboard
- 4x4GB RAM
- A decent graphics card
- Decent (HAF 922 or similar) case with PSU
- reuse existing storage media
approx £500+
OR
2. Apply some upgrades like Phenom X6 + 4GB RAM + graphics card on existing one.
(approx £250)

What would you all suggest for a decent upgrade to work for next 3 years.
I am not a hardcore gamer, but tend to use photo editing software quite a lot.

Thanks

[CAT-THE-FIFTH]

I assume you have a Phenom II X2 545?? If this is the case have you tried core unlocking??

TBH,I would just upgrade your current computer and re-install the OS on an SSD.

There are some 95W Phenom II X6 CPUs worth considering:

http://www.scan.co.uk/products/amd-p...che-95w-retail

http://www.overclockers.co.uk/showpr...source=froogle

It does look like your motherboard will run 125W TDP CPUs so a Phenom II X6 1090T looks a decent upgrade.

I would look at a better PSU too. There are a few suggestions in this post:

http://forums.hexus.net/pc-hardware/...ml#post2150586

Regarding a graphics card this is card is fantastic for the price:

http://www.aria.co.uk/Products/Compo...roductId=47153

It usually is around £75 to £85! A better card would be this one:

http://www.scan.co.uk/products/1gb-x...layport-2x-dvi

The alternative is a GTX460 1GB.

I would look at this SSD:

http://www.scan.co.uk/products/128gb...-s-new-version

[prateek76]

Thanks Cat. These are excellent suggestions.
Not just to finalize my main dilemma ... upgrade or build new --- leaning towards a new build and having convinced Missus @ home, lets shoot for a kicker i5 !