So, I got decided to get the Razer Naga mouse (thanks for the help guys).

Next up, I'm considering a small computer upgrade, to be able to run ESO on a better graphics setting. Right now I'm running a kind of medium'ish setting, which works fine, but I like something nice to look at so...

I'm not especially computer-knowledgeable, but I'm sure we have some people here who are.

My system:

GPU: GeForce GT 420

CPU: Intel Core i5 3.20GHz

RAM: 6.00GB DDR3

Disk: HDD 7200rpm

So my question is, where would I win the most, if I was to upgrade one of those? I've thought about moving to an SSD, but with all you smart people out there I thought I'd ask first.

Well upgrading the video card would probably help the most. If you're not looking to spend too much you could go with the 750 ti (superclocked version), probably best bang the buck right now and will give you a lot of graphical improvement over what you have. The SSD will help load times but not give any graphics boost.

Help me here - "superclocked"?

Depends on where you live, if you are in the US the AMD 270x will be your best bet. If you are in Europe then the GTX 770. if you are dead set on Nvidia then get the 770.

If you don't know much about the way Nvidia labels their cards, low end cards are 20-50 (50 can be debated as being mid range), Mid range is 60-70, and high end is 80-90. I think AMD uses the same scaling, but not sure on that. If you don't do any thing that is very graphic intensive then a mid range card is fine, though for games in the mid range I'd still get at least a 70.

Of course all this is assuming you are not on a budget, if you are I'd try and find a 270x. They are around $200, if you need to go cheaper then get a 7850 it's about $50 cheaper.

 The SSD, unless they have improved, I wouldn't bother getting unless you want to just run your OS off it. From what I've read on them when I was building this rig that I use now the SSD wears out pretty fast if you run games on them because of the constant writing and re writing.

Also as a side note, the card will be the best bang for your buck in terms of biggest upgrades, but I'd highly suggest upgrading to 8g of ram. If you are on a 64 bit system then going to 12 would be better.

» Edited on: 2014-03-03 06:51:41

Super clocked is a term used by EVGA to signify that the card is factory overclocked. They sell three types of cards "Regular"- no overclocking done at the factory. This card runs at the clock rates nvidia specified. "Super clocked" this card will have about a 100 MHz or about 10% overclock and may come with a upgraded aftermarket cooler. "FTW" This card will have about a 150-200 MHz overclock and should always come with a aftermarket cooler. Generally speaking FTW cards are overclocked as high as the card should be clocked with air cooling. 

That said you generally get the best bang for the buck with a super clock card.

Here are some ok my personal suggestions:

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814130932 -  the 760 This card is designed for the average gamer. Best all around value in Nvidia's lineup

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814130921 - Here is the 770. It's a bit of a price increase, but still a good value if you have the cash.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814130918 - and finally the 780 this card has almost twice the power of the 760, it's also reflected in the cost. It's a great card if you can afford it, but be sure you have atleast a 650W powersupply. These cards use some juice. 

What do I recommend? get the GTX 760. and if you have the cash get your self a great SDD.

Here is the best SDD on the market: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820147193

DO NOT DOWNGRADE TO THE 128 GB Get the 256 or 512 GB w/e you can afford. 

Also if anyone tell you a different SDD is better for a home gaming user, kindly yet firmly tell them they are wrong.

All the SDD will improve is boot time, load time, and just about anything your system does that used the HDD. (Which is more than you think)

So, GPU first SDD second.

let me know if you have any questions.

Crucial M4 and OCZ Vertex and Agility lines of SSDs are among the best bang for you buck and while bigger is always better, a 128GB drive is plenty to get your OS and current game of the moment running ridiculously fast. That Samsung 840 Pro is a screamer though.

I agree with the video card sentiment here. Your CPU is already in the mid-range while your GPU is low-end. You could double that RAM and grab a GTX 770 for about $500 and see massive improvements in your FPS. Amazon had some kicking deals on the 770 about two weeks ago when I upgraded to the 770 from my faithful 570.

» Edited on: 2014-03-03 07:49:05

Thanks guys, this is a great help.

Yeah, I am a bit on a budget. Mostly because I'm trying to balance some nice graphics vs. gaming time on a casual basis. In other words, I'm not gaming as much as I used to, and don't want to spend too much because of that. I'm thinking my max budget would be around 450 USD, and less would be good hehe.

A quick search on prizes in Denmark shows the following prizes:

EVGA GeForce GTX 760: around 1900 DKK (350 USD)

EVGA GeForce GTX 770: around 2400 DKK (443 USD)

The GeForce GTX 750 ti was also suggested. The FTW version is around 1300 DKK (240 USD).

I like that the 750 is a LOT less money. Reviews are good on it, but I'm guessing the two other cards will be quite a bit stronger?

Also I'd probably need to spend another 60-80 USD on RAM.

Thoughts?

PS On SSDs: Samsung 840 Pro 256GB is around 1400 DKK (260 USD). I'm thinking I might wait with the SSD stuff and let the prizes fall a bit more.

Yes, the 50 would be the low end of the mid range cards. Also, on ram it depends on the speed of the ram. Faster speed = more money. Not sure if you can use Newegg from Europe, but I'm a fan of Ripjaws and you can find deals for them on Newegg all the time. Just remember that when upgrading the ram make sure you get all the same speed and try to get all the same brand name as well, sometimes Ram sticks from different companies don't play well together.

If your budget is 500 USD then I'd look at Ram prices to see what you can get for around 100 or less then use the rest to get a card, which means most likely the 760.

You can get a quick look at GPU comparisons at www.videocardbenchmark.net. You can see there that the difference between the 760 and 770 is quite large (what is that, about a 20% gain I think). It will be much better cost-performance to go with the 770 and it will also last you a lot longer than a 760. If you can stretch your budget for the 770, skipping the RAM, you'll probably be a lot better off now and even three to four years from now. The 760 is a good card and combined with another 6GB of system RAM you should see a huge FPS improvement.

SSD is an expensive upgrade but one that drastically improves your system performance, not just games. Load and boot times become lightning fast! It's not going to improve your FPS like a video card, but you'll spend far less time at loading screens. If I were you, I'd invest in the 770 now and the SSD and more RAM next year (I do my upgrades on the annual "Great American Tax Refund" schedule lol).

It turns out my PSU is only 300W, so I'll have to upgrade that one too, if I want the 760 or 770.

Maybe I'll do what Aalwein said and get the 770 now along with a new PSU. Then upgrade more in a year's time.

Knowing myself and my lack of selfconstraint when it comes to matters like these, I'll probably get the RAM now too. Ripjaws RAM is fairly inexpensive it seems, so I'll look into those.

Thanks everyone! This is a great help (if more expensive than I planned ;) )