Need Help Choosing Some Upgrades

Hello I used to lurk around a lot looking for build information and what not but decided its time to ask for some help as I am having some trouble picking parts to upgrade/build a new PC.

At the Moment I have a prebuilt HP desktop (HP P6230f) it is a pretty decent computer but it is starting to show age in performance. Last month I put in a new GPU and PSU and from a gaming perspective everything runs great. However now things are starting to run a little hot. and its pretty annoying when you have to take your shirt off to game because of the heat this thing generates.

So with that in mind I need a new case and I have been looking at:
cooler master storm enforcer http://www.canadacomputers.com/product_info.php?cPath=6_112&item_id=038223
cooler master haff 922 mid tower http://www.canadacomputers.com/product_info.php?cPath=6_112&item_id=023780

I really just want a case with good airflow and cable management as my current case has neither and looks like a rats nest. That being said the most I will pay for a case is $100.

I have also been considering upgrading my Mobo and CPU. The factory one that came with HP does not allow Overclocking and although I have never done tried it it is an option I would like should I ever need it. In terms of my CPU its not bad but I wouldnt mind some more speed. I just don't know what a significant upgrade would be for my model. My budget for the combo is $500 with no preference over Intel or AMD. My current Mobo and CPU are


CPU- AMD Phenom ii x4 810 2.6ghz

MOBO-H-RS880-uATX (Aloe)


if it helps my PSU is a cooler master extreme powerplus 700 and I have a HIS Radeon HD 6850. I can't find product info on either my ram or HDD so Ill assume its cheap factory crap from HP

I figure at this point if I have to build a new PC i can just use my HP comp for browsing and school. while the new one would be geared towards gaming and entertainment.

Thanks for any and all help if you need more info about my computer just ask. but just in case heres a spec list from HP http://h10025.www1.hp.com/ewfrf/wc/document?docname=c01859865&tmp_task=prodinfoCategory&cc=us&dlc=en&lang=en&lc=en&product=4006068#N1091

 

no one has any suggestions? really just looking for a good mid tower case with good airflow ($100) and a significant upgrade to my mobo and cpu ($500). heck if my cpu is still good ill just go for a new mobo for the time being.

 

Someone will reply to you who is knowledgeable. Keep in mind that it is a holiday in the US and just early evening in the UK.

 

oh damn forgot all about that. thanks haha

 

I would recommend the first case you picked out as your not getting much more for that extra $30 from my point of view, plus I'd recommend the case as I have the equivalent case (Coolermaster 430, same design by the images) which I find very good, only slight flaw is if your using a ATX motherboard it is quite awkward plugging the SATA cables into the motherboard as they sit quite close to the HDD enclosure, cooling wise it should be good as long as you get about 4 fans, the two fans on the front and side should draw air in (so blades spin into the case) and the other two on the rear and top should be exhaust fans (blades spin out of case).
It was a tight squeeze in but you can also add a Corsair H60 (water cooling enclosure, about £50) which would cool the processor much better as well, puts mine idling around 35c.

As for Motherboards, if you went Intel then this would be good - http://www.canadacom...&item_id=049996

Or the AMD route with this, the difference with the Intel Motherboard being the lack of PCI-E 3.0 but it does have more SATA 3 (6Gb/s) ports - http://www.canadacom...&item_id=049784

And for a processor, if you went the Intel route I'd recommend the i5-3570k - http://www.canadacom...&item_id=045425
Bit expensive but worth it for the overclocking ease (since it's an unlocked multiplier) if you wanted to, I've managed to overclock it to 4.5GHz in turbo boost with the temperatures not going above 70c when running a stress test (note though that's with that watercooling solution above).

If you went with the AMD motherboard, then this would be a good processor - http://www.canadacom...&item_id=048750

 

Just wondering at stock speeds which of the CPU's you mentioned will show a significant upgrade over my phenom ii x4 810? just because i more than likely will wait a while before trying to overclock.

 

Both would show good upgrades over your current processor, Intel one runs 800MHz faster (1.2GHz with Turbo Boost) and the AMD one runs 1.2GHz faster (1.5GHz with Turbo).

 

so which ones better for the money at stock? just cause I know speed is not the only important factor for a CPU. I'm hoping to have one that will last me a good 3/4 years like my current one has.

 

The Intel processor has better performance of the two, with the graphics card & PSU you already have the computer should (with some maintenance, cleaning etc) last 3-4 years at least.

 

alright thanks man. I think I might go with Intel then. just waiting for some deals since I don't need to do the upgrade right away.

 

No problem, the choices of hardware above should be up to date for another 5 or 6 months as Intel do minor updates 6 months after the first batch, they've been out a month so far, so you have some time to look for deals.