CPU upgrade time?

[Shax84]

Some parts in my computer is starting to get old. I have an Asus P5Q-Pro with 8GB 800Mhz @950Mhz DDR2 and Intel Core 2 Duo E8400 3,0Ghz @ 4,3Ghz.

It has been able to run Age of Conan reliable and well, however, I have started to get more random crashes lately, and some graphics are bugging sometimes. http://youtu.be/YdyywVPNkng

Also, when I boot my computer, I nearly always has to reboot because my monitors do not get signal, though I can see both BIOS and the Windows loading screen. It all turns black and goes to standby when the computer supposes to show the logon screen in Windows. I have two monitors, and sometimes only one of them are getting signal. Sometimes, the image on the main monitor is blurry and pixelated. The resolution does not change though, it is 1920x1200 on both monitors all the time.

My graphics card is a HD7950 and I have tested with a HD7870 as well, but the monitor detection and in game graphics glitches are still there with both cards. I have tried a lot of drivers without any luck of fixing this. Powersupply is Corsair AX850, should be good enough.

This leads me to... Most likely the PCIe port on my motherboard being FUBAR. The motherboard being outdated, and not able to properly support my Intel 520 SSD with its SATA 2 ports anyway, is ready to be replaced for an upgraded motherboard. And when was DDR2 released anyway, like 2005? My motherboard is a dinosaur.

So, for any of you who cared enough to read the above, what I'm after is input on what processors that give the best performance in Age of Conan. Haswell (i7 4770K) has just been released, and I don't expect anyone to have that one already, but it is perhaps my favourite so far. I am also thinking of the LGA2011 platform, though that becomes a fair bit more expensive. The girlfriend has a i5 3570 in her rig that I built for her last autumn, that seems to work fair enough though I want *more* in mine. Sharing your experiences with i7 3770K or i7 3930K is welcome

[Misiuggah]

I had similar issues with FX5600 and 470. Crashing/glitching and I couldn't get past self-test before BIOS shows up. I had got no beeps, though taking out the gfx would make it bleep normally.

If I didn't shutdown the PC, it would run for few days - booting up would usually take a few resets before I got the gfx up and running.

It was definitely a gfx issue. Both cards died 1-2 weeks after that stuff started happening. I've replaced the 5600 with a new card and it still runs after 6 years. 470 was replaced by 560Ti and it's running flawlessly since over a year.

If you've tested with another gfx, then I have no idea though.

[Invino]

That gfx card is way overpowered for the rest of the system. Basically everything else is a bottleneck for it. Especially on 1900x1200 resolution.

If you can stump up for a 7950 and SSDs .. get a new MoBo and CPU.

I don't do Intel ... I like to upgrade things without having to throw everything out each time.

For high res - just go for the best you can afford really. If you were using AMD, could buy the best ASUS mobo and fastest CPU and upgrade CPU next year - for the price of Intel CPU alone For Intel ... just get what you are going to throw away in next upgrade.

[yuisoku]

I'm also thinking to upgrade my i7 860 for new haswell i7 4770k.

860 bottlenecks my gtx 680 on some games.

Only problem i have is that i dont want to buy new RAM, i got 8gb ddr3 1333 already but with bad luck they wont fit in new motherboard then

[Shax84]

Haswell uses 1600Mhz ram, I think...

AMD.. Have not concidered that since I had Athlon XP 2000+. Don't really care about cost as long as I'm certain the parts will last as long as the current parts have. I had in mind to spend €700-€1500 for this upgrade, depending on LGA1155/1150/2011.

[Invino]

Oh bloody hell .. its you Shax .. talk to me tonight before raid

Probably better to get the latest edition .. with a bit of luck, Intel may release a new CPU in the same socket again.

Dark .. by the looks .. 4770k is 1150 socket and 860 is 1155 ... which would suggest incompatibility. Got to love Intel's lack of upgrade paths.

http://www.hardocp.com/ has reviews on Haswell and new Asus mobo.

Intel will offer two "K" series processors with the overclocking enthusiast in mind, much like we saw with Sandy Bridge and Ivy Bridge architecture. Along with that comes the new Z87 chipset and these new CPUs will require a socket LGA 1150 motherboard.

[yuisoku]

Yeah know that socket part, was about to buy that Asus mboard also, just wonder if i can use my old RAM with new motherboard

Haswell supports 1333 and 1600 mhz, so maybe it works, need to try and cry if it wont fit

[Invino]

It will work with 1333mhz no problems. A bit wasted speed overall tho.

Most rams will overclock to 1600 with minor tweaking, but for new RAM get faster then 1600.

[Shax84]

Oh bloody hell .. its you Shax .. talk to me tonight before raid

Probably better to get the latest edition .. with a bit of luck, Intel may release a new CPU in the same socket again.

Dark .. by the looks .. 4770k is 1150 socket and 860 is 1155 ... which would suggest incompatibility. Got to love Intel's lack of upgrade paths.

http://www.hardocp.com/ has reviews on Haswell and new Asus mobo.

Yep, the LGA1150 socket will fit both Haswell and Broadwell (next years tick of Haswell). It performs around 10% better than Ivy Bridge i7 3770K, that again has 10% better than Sandy Bridge i7 2600K. I know this would be a safe "bang for buck" CPU for Age of Conan, but I am also interested in if people with LGA2011 can reply with experiences, if Age of Conan can make use of those extra memory channels in a positive way.

I have read the reviews yesterday, and it seems like the same "sickness" as Ivy Bridge, meaning it runs quite hot if you OC. I don't care at all about the integrated graphics solution, I wish I could deactivate that.

I had a few Asus motherboards failing me lately, so I will most likely get a MSI motherboard.

[Shax84]

By the way... AMD is quite good on launching new sockets as well

Socket AM2 may 2006
Socket AM2+ march 2008
Socket AM3 february 2009
Socket AM3+ october 2011
Socket FM1 july 2011
Socket FM2 september 2012