What part should I upgrade?

[cmeche]

My Comp is about 10 years old. I recently starting 5 boxing and frame rate was alright until I made it to Boralus. All setting are on low and it is unplayable while in this hub.

Just wondering if there is any cheap upgrade to my old computer running Win7?





ASUS P6T Intel X58
HIS Radeon HD 4870 Dx 10.1
6GB DDR3 corsair XMS3
Intel i7-920 Bloomfield Quad-Core 2.66 GHz





Thanks for the help.

[MiRai]

"Upgrading" any of that is probably going to be like putting a band-aid over a gushing wound, but a 980X is going to be the best CPU you can put into that motherboard, along with 24GB of triple channel RAM. However, I would double check that your motherboard's BIOS supports both of those.

https://www.ebay.com/sch/i.html?_nkw=Intel+980X

https://www.ebay.com/sch/i.html?_nkw=DDR3+triple+channel+24GB

I don't know how much that will all cost you, but it looks like a few hundred dollars, at minimum. After that, buy a new GPU and see how it all works out, but if you want to go this route, I would expect that you may not be able to re-sell any of this hardware because it's so old. So, you might be throwing money at it for no reason since it may continue to perform below the level that you desire.

[cmeche]

Well crap!

OK, thanks for that info.

[cmeche]

I think I'm just going to build a new computer. I would need this computer to fit in a new "space" next to my desk. Looks like maximum size of the case would be 21x11x18(H W D).
I found 2 cases that fit this size:
https://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811853061

https://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811553030

Now the big question, is there hardware that will fit in these cases that will let me 5 box very smoothly on average-low setting? I am currently running 5 on the lowest setting and the visuals really don't bother me. Its the frame rate that cant keep up....even not being in a hub it stutters at times.

[WOWBOX40]

To 5box with decent fps and visuals (added bonus) 1080p, 60 fps or better on main, 30 fps on slaves (you may try 20), i would get:

I7 8700k, 6 cores/12 threads. Overclock it.
2 or 3 fan aio cooler.
32gb ram.
500gb ssd or even better, a nvme sdd.
Gtx 1070(or a ti) with 8gb vram, or better.
650watt+: 80+ gold rated or better powersupply.


This will be one of the cheapest ways to get decent gameplay for years to come. Atleast were i live.

[Kayley]

8700k is a really REALLY good chip, it loves to be pushed hard so definitely get an AIO loop or do your own watercooling setup.

If your Mboard has 4 DIMM slots just get 16gb RAM and upgrade later if needed. If it only has 2 DIMM slots i'd do what WBOX40 suggested and get 32gb.
5 accounts really doesn't need much RAM. I'd also stick to a regular high capacity SSD as an NVME ssd offers no gaming benefits at all.

btw I think the MX330-G case is nice. Everything that has been suggested will fit inside it :) supports ATX full sized motherboards so go nuts!

[MiRai]

If your Mboard has 4 DIMM slots just get 16gb RAM and upgrade later if needed.
Recently, there has been no shortage of people coming into the ISBoxer Discord with performance issues, only to realize that 16GB of RAM is not enough for their setup. We saw this becoming an issue in Legion, and since then I've always recommended 32GB for 5-boxing, because if you want to turn up settings, use a bunch of add-ons, and/or keep a bunch of browser tabs open in the background, then you're going to need more than 16GB of RAM.

Also, I would also not recommend mixing and matching sets of RAM since it can lead to issues, especially when it comes to using XMP.

[Kayley]

Recently, there has been no shortage of people coming into the ISBoxer Discord with performance issues, only to realize that 16GB of RAM is not enough for their setup. We saw this becoming an issue in Legion, and since then I've always recommended 32GB for 5-boxing, because if you want to turn up settings, use a bunch of add-ons, and/or keep a bunch of browser tabs open in the background, then you're going to need more than 16GB of RAM.

Also, I would also not recommend mixing and matching sets of RAM since it can lead to issues, especially when it comes to using XMP.

I would never suggest mixing RAM, I just meant buying more of the same at a later date.
Just figured 2GB of RAM per client, 4GB for a bloated windows install and we're good. However, I won't make the same mistake and disagree with you like last time haha; you've done the homework. 32GB is it :D

[MiRai]

I would never suggest mixing RAM, I just meant buying more of the same at a later date.
I'm not trying to jump on you about this, but that's still mixing RAM.

For a long time, I was under the impression that RAM "kits" were nothing more than just RAM sold together for the sake of marketing so that they could charge more money, and maybe it is when it comes to certain low-end manufacturers. However, Asus has a sticky post on their X99 forum (https://rog.asus.com/forum/showthread.php?57038-Don%92t-combine-memory-kits!-The-meat-and-potatoes-overview) talking about why mixing any RAM sets is bad—regardless of manufacturer/speed/timings/etc—and it's because the RAM kits are specifically binned and tested together to guarantee compatibility at the speed, timings, and density at which they're sold.

An additional side note with "buying more at a later date," is that there's no guarantee that you'll be able to find that particular set of RAM at a later point in time. You may be purchasing 14-14-14-32 3000MHz RAM, in white, but later when you want to buy the same white colored kit, it may be EOL and have been replaced with another kit with a slightly different set of timings, and therefore now you're SOL.

To be fair, this is really only an issue when people want to overclock their RAM (i.e. use XMP), because all RAM should just work together when at the bone-stock speed, but after what Asus posted a few years ago, I will always recommend that people buy the amount of RAM, in one kit, at the time of purchase.

[Kayley]

Well, shit. Makes a lot of sense.

I think I have personally avoided a lot of trouble because I manually adjust the voltage/timings of my memory. When I add a second kit (with what I thought was the same, clearly not) I would loosen timings and settle on a middle ground. Not actually knowing there was a small difference between the two 'identical' kits which could cause me issues. I appreciate the read.

*edit*
I won't be buying now and then later, i'll be getting it all in one go from now on.

[cmeche]

I just installed a gtx 1070 that made a huge difference to my old system, but I still want a new build. I going with the 1070, 32gb, and an asus z390 board. I was recommended to get either an i5-9600 or i7-9700......6 or 8 core.
My question, can I do the i5 now and upgrade the cpu about a year down the road? Will the i5 be good for now?

[WOWBOX40]

The 1070 is ok for a 5man. Its a bit similar to the 980ti.
Keep that and upgrade to the best you can afford later on, with a system like this. It will play a 5man very nicely.

https://pcpartpicker.com/list/BrKXq4


The motherboard can have 64gb ram. So if you want to 10box later, add another set of 32gb. Or buy the entire 64gb kit if you can afford it now.

I wouldnt buy a 6 core etc without hyperthreading. Rather save a little bit longer and buy a i7 or i9 ideally.