Personal computing discussed

Moderators: renee, morphine, SecretSquirrel

 
jia1999
Gerbil In Training
Topic Author
Posts: 4
Joined: Sat Oct 13, 2012 8:36 pm

Should I get a "free" upgrade?

Sat Oct 27, 2012 10:06 am

Hi, all

So I currently have a Sapphire Radeon 7850, and though I probably have enough power for my needs, I can't help but consider what is essentially a "free" upgrade.

My current system:

CPU: I5-3570K @4.0GHZ
CPU Cooler: Corsair A50
MB: ASrock Z77 Extreme4
Case: Corsair Carbide 400R
SSD: A-Data 120GB
HDD: Western Digital 320GB
RAM: 4GB DDR3 1333MHZ
PSU: Seasonic M2II Bronze 620W
GPU: Sapphire Radeon 7850
(This one: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Prod [...] 814102986)
Monitor:AOC 1080P @ 60HZ
(http://www.amazon.com/AOC-2436Vw-24-Wid ... roduct_top)

However I can't help to take notice: AMD has quite an excellent deal going on for the 79xx series: 3 games:

Far Cry 3: I really want this game, but If I don't get it as part of a deal, I might have to wait until the price drops to buy it.
Hitman Absolution: I don't know much about this game, but a friend recommended it to me. If I decide I don't like it, I can always sell it on Ebay.
Sleeping Dogs: From what I've seen of it, I like it alot, and as always, I can also sell this too!

The Sapphire 7950 is currently at around $300. If I can sell my 7850 for $160, and sell ALL the games, It could be classified as a "free" upgrade. Even If I didn't sell the games, It'd still be a sizeable performance boost.

I could also get a Sapphire 7970 for $360, which is another large FPS boost.

So, in addition to buying some RAM, here are my options:

1. Keep my current video card

2. Sell my 7850 and buy a 7950

3. The above, and sell the games

4. Sell my 7850 and get a 7970

5. The above and sell the games

6. Sell my 7850 and get another graphics card

There is, as always, a caveat. The 8xxx series are rumored to be coming soon, and I don't think I want to miss out on that.

What'd you think would be the best option for me?

Thanks in advance!

Misc Info:

1. I might be upgrading my Monitor to a Catleap or a 120HZ display.

2. My purchase date is around Black Friday, but I'm in no rush.

3. Games I play: Crysis 1 and 2, Far Cry 2, Civ V, World of tanks, WOWP, and Minecraft w/ Shaders.
 
TheEmrys
Minister of Gerbil Affairs
Posts: 2529
Joined: Wed May 29, 2002 8:22 pm
Location: Northern Colorado
Contact:

Re: Should I get a "free" upgrade?

Sat Oct 27, 2012 10:29 am

For what you play right now, the upgrade just isn't worth it. And I think you'll be fine for FC3, IF you upgrade your RAM. 8 GiB should really be the minimum.
Sony a7II 55/1.8 Minolta 100/2, 17-35D, Tamron 28-75/2.8
 
jia1999
Gerbil In Training
Topic Author
Posts: 4
Joined: Sat Oct 13, 2012 8:36 pm

Re: Should I get a "free" upgrade?

Sat Oct 27, 2012 10:34 am

Yes, but wouldn't buying Far Cry 3 alone set me back $50, let alone the other games?
 
JustAnEngineer
Gerbil God
Posts: 19673
Joined: Sat Jan 26, 2002 7:00 pm
Location: The Heart of Dixie

Re: Should I get a "free" upgrade?

Sat Oct 27, 2012 10:36 am

jia1999 wrote:
Hi, all.
Welcome to the Tech Report!

jia1999 wrote:
I currently have a Sapphire Radeon 7850 2GB
CPU: I5-3570K @4.0GHZ
CPU Cooler: Corsair A50
MB: ASrock Z77 Extreme4
Case: Corsair Carbide 400R
SSD: A-Data 120GB
HDD: Western Digital 320GB
RAM: 4GB DDR3 1333MHZ
PSU: Seasonic M2II Bronze 620W
Monitor:AOC 1080P @ 60HZ

In addition to buying some RAM...
What do you think would be the best option for me?
1. Keep my current video card

In addition to buying another 2x4 GiB or 2x8 GiB of memory for $49 or $75, would you consider replacing that 0.320 TB hard-drive with a 3.0 TB monster? The rest of your system is already in the performance sweet spot. You'll see significantly decreasing returns for the additional money that you spend. If you're satisfied with the way that your games play now, sit tight. When you find new more demanding games or you upgrade to a huge monitor and then find that your games play too slowly on your Radeon HD7850 2GB, that is the time to upgrade, not before.
· R7-5800X, Liquid Freezer II 280, RoG Strix X570-E, 64GiB PC4-28800, Suprim Liquid RTX4090, 2TB SX8200Pro +4TB S860 +NAS, Define 7 Compact, Super Flower SF-1000F14TP, S3220DGF +32UD99, FC900R OE, DeathAdder2
 
jia1999
Gerbil In Training
Topic Author
Posts: 4
Joined: Sat Oct 13, 2012 8:36 pm

Re: Should I get a "free" upgrade?

Sat Oct 27, 2012 10:45 am

Yes, I'm thinking (and probably will) get 2x8 gigs of ram, just not the ones you posted. I've heard things about their tall heatsinks. I'd be more comfortable with LP ram. I probably will also get a new HDD, but not 3TB! That is way overkill for my needs. The only real problem I have with not upgrading are the free games, I mean, how can I miss out on a free copy of FC3? Try to convince me that I really don't need to upgrade at all.

Thanks again!
 
steel-the-deal
Gerbil
Posts: 27
Joined: Wed Dec 05, 2012 11:55 am

Re: Should I get a "free" upgrade?

Wed Dec 12, 2012 10:35 am

I guess I'll give it a shot!

The free games are not physical copies. So you might have a tough time selling them, let alone at retail price.
 
frumper15
Gerbil XP
Posts: 380
Joined: Mon Jan 18, 2010 3:25 pm

Re: Should I get a "free" upgrade?

Wed Dec 12, 2012 12:34 pm

I wouldn't base an upgrade purchase on games that are included - as steel indicated, selling the games for anything close to retail is optomistic at best, as is selling your current 7850 for close to what someone can buy a new one for. If your current setup is giving you all the performance you need (and I think you indicated it has) and you want to buy Far Cry 3, wait for the best deal on FC3 within the first month it is released and buy it then - you'll be money ahead with far less headache.

Maybe some math will help.
Best Case scenario: Buy 7950 on sale for $290 after rebate and you actually get the rebate. Sell 7850 for $160 (net after shipping/ebay/paypal fees) used on CL or Ebay. Sell all three games for $44 each. "free" upgrade.

Worst Case scenario: Buy 7950 for $309 and don't get rebate. Sell 7850 for $160 on ebay, but after shipping and fees, have $140 left. Sell all games as bundle on ebay for $75 and net $67 on the sale. Then you would be paying $102 to upgrade from the 7850 to the 7950 that you arguably don't need anyways because your current games and monitor don't demand any more.

The reality would probably lay somewhere between Best and Worse case scenarios, but in both scenarios you don't end up with the game that you want, FC3, because you will have sold it to try to subsidize your upgrade cost. I would guess you'll be able to get FC3 for $40 or so within a month of its release if you watch the sales, it will most likely play just fine on your current system and that will leave you that much longer to save up for whatever the next gen sweet spot GPU is or a new monitor, at which point you could sell your monitor, buy the new GPU (possibly with more included games), sell your 7850 and games and while possibly not as "free" as you view the current update, would be a significantly better experience. After all, you will have been enjoying FC3 for a number of months at that time, and who can really put a price on that?
i7-8086K | Z370 AORUS GAMING WIFI | 32GB DDR4-2400 | EVGA GTX 1080 Ti | 512GB 960 Pro | 27" Dell 2560x1440 Gsync | Fractal R6 | Seasonic Focus Plus 850W | Win10 Pro x64.
 
lilbuddhaman
Gerbil First Class
Posts: 140
Joined: Sat May 10, 2008 8:23 pm

Re: Should I get a "free" upgrade?

Mon Dec 24, 2012 1:47 pm

You won't get full retail, or anywhere close to it for the games. Every title included is already on sale for at least 50% on Steam / GoG / GmG. So you "at best" pricing is more like $20-30 each title. And remember, you're not the only guy doing what you're doing.
I am jaded. I am cynical.
 
MadManOriginal
Gerbil Jedi
Posts: 1533
Joined: Wed Jan 30, 2002 7:00 pm
Location: In my head...

Re: Should I get a "free" upgrade?

Mon Dec 24, 2012 1:56 pm

For selling bundled games, the best way to get a fair market value imo is check eBay 'completed listing' sales. Don't consider outliers as realistic, but if you find 5-10 recently completed listings for around the same price you can judge the actual market value.

Who is online

Users browsing this forum: No registered users and 1 guest
GZIP: On