Upgrading vs. New Build (On a budget)

So I am getting my desktop shipped from the USA to Australia.

A couple questions, since I plan on doing a couple new things.


Here is what I have off of memory (it's been 7 months):

ASUS P5QL Motherboard
OCZ DDR2 1066 2GB RAMx2
GTX 260 Video Card
850w PSU (Replace with an AUS PSU?)

The rest is the case, and HD etc... (Let me know if I need to list anything else)

Instead of going the let's get all this new upgrade path, I am going for a cheaper option and upgrading what I already have.

As far as the video cards go, would I be better to purchase another GTX 260 and going the SLi route? I know that the power consumption and heating will go up considerably, if I do SLi.

Or would it be advisable to just get a newer, single card?

Should I upgrade to Windows 7 and track down a couple 4GB Sticks of DDR2 RAM? Or stick with the 4GB I have now.

And lastly, about the Power Supply. Since I plan on staying in Australia, I will need to replace the PSU that is meant for Australian Electricity Currents.

Since using a power converter will eventually fry my insides. Is that correct?


Long story short, what should I do in the long run?

I am currently on a tight budget do to taxes, otherwise I would just buy a new computer. (The less money the spent up front, the better.)

And as far as uses go, I'll be at least tri-boxing. I plan on 5-boxing in the future when finances allow for it.

Cheers and many thanks for all assistance!

If you are going for 5boxing you dont need to buy a new video card. Upgrade your RAM to 8GB min.

Thats all you gotta do actually.

Do not add another card to use in SLI. SLI only hurts your performance. I currently multibox using an eVGA 260 and it's all good so far. Also...what kind of processor do you have?

Oops, I have an intel q6600.

However, I was just informed that it'll cost me $650 without customs to get my computer shipped here. And that's a bit out of my budget.

So, I am looking into building a 5 boxing capable PC with around $1000 (that includes monitor and peripherals)

If you try to build a new system, you will not be able to get much more from it than the system you have now. Possibly with an AMD system, but not all that much better. Any new Intel with all new parts will be around $800 without monitor. That is an i5 with 8 gigs of DDR3 memory.
I think you should upgrade the memory and OS if needed. And then see where you need to go. That shipping is killer

The P5Q boards do not support SLI, only CFX. This goes for all boards with the P45 chipset.