Thinking about updating My pc for games 2013 and beyond

[Bells]

My PC rig is starting to show it's age, so i'm planning to update either my video card or Processor next year. I only wanna do both if it's totally necessary.

This is my curret Specs

CPU Info AMD Phenom(tm) II X4 810 Processor
CPU Speed 2594,0 MHz

Memory (RAM) 8192 MB

Display Adapters NVIDIA GeForce 9600 GSO 512 (Zotac Video card)

Motherboard ECS A785GM-M


So, when i purchased this machine i made a small mistake. The motherboard is ATI Ready with CrossfireX, but my videocard is Nvidia. So i couldn't make use of the CrossfireX stuff that would pair up my onboard video with the video card to give it a little boost.

The motherboard has ATI™ Radeon HD 4200 graphics IGP, which includes AMD Hybrid Crossfire technology and DirectX 10.1. So that went unused mostly...

However, the videocard itself can use my spare ram to boost it's memory, so i added Ram to spare and it worked pretty well. I would remain with Zotac if i could (awesome card, Real cheap) but it's Nvidia only from what i understand... on the other hand, if the crossfireX stuff is obsolete, i don't have to lean towards ATi then...

The motherboard uses the AM3 Socket line, so i can work with that range of processors, but my processor (for my limited knowledge) is decent enough, and i wouldn't want to trade a new motherboard just to get a new processor right now. So i'm looking to stay in the same Chipset family.

What i'm divided right now about is if it's better to put some more cash into a new video card next year, or a new processor or if i should split and get 2 Decent new ones instead of a single pretty good one.

This is mostly for gaming, as my PC handles everything else i do like a champ pretty much... i wouldn't touch it otherwise.

So, some suggestions are greatly appreciated since it's been a while since the last time i looked into hardware stuff.

[Azisien]

CPU vs. Video Card and your main use of gaming? This is a non-issue.

Upgrade the video card. Your CPU and RAM are beyond fine for gaming.

Are you multi-monitor or running resolutions greater than 1900x1200? If not, no need for dual GPU solution.

Grab a Radeon HD 7970 and you'll be golden for all of 2013.

[Bells]

yeah the bad news is that i live in a bullshit country that thanks to currency conversion makes that Radeon 7970 cost for me about $1460 bucks!!

I don't do dual screen, but it's something i've considered, specially adding in a Tv-Monitor to my room, for movies and stuff...

Also the ATI webpage tells me the Radeon 69xx series is CrossfireX compatible, so maybe that's the way to go? I'm not sure if the leap of quality between the 69 and 79 series is big enough o justify the bloated price

[Azisien]

The 6900 series is still quite good if that's more affordable for you. Your video card appears to be your weakest component by far based on the ones you listed, especially if this is for gaming. You should be sitting pretty for 2013 with the 6900 series. I'm not sure if you'll run all games at max at 1080p and 60fps, but they'll run great. A 6970 is in the neighbourhood of the GTX570. It's nothing to scoff at, but there is a noticeable performance and power consumption difference.

Things to be sure of before your upgrade, though:

a) Power Supply. Can yours handle the new upgrade? Cards are getting more efficient with that. My new card is actually much less power-drawing than my old one, but this isn't always the case.

b) Can it fit in your motherboard and case? Despite efficiency upgrades, damn some of these newer video cards are bulky.

c) And back to the PSU, will you have the proper power cables to hook it up?

Sucks about the conversion rate and import taxes and whatever else makes a 7970 that friggin' expensive. Maybe someone in Texas can bike it down to you on the cheap!

[Bells]

i can tell ya this, anybody running a racket to ship cheap eletronics as "gifts" (so they won't get taxed) will have a huge market in all of South America. Import taxes can be as high as 80% over Item+shipping value, and shipping can by itself get pretty ridiculous!!

As for the questions,

A) I bought my PC piece by piece and had a budget for each section. I sliced my Graphics card to get X4 processor instead of an X2, and then i got the Zotac version which is cheaper and used that to upgrade my Power Supply. It's a beefy one but not a powerhose (500W true if i recall, or above that) worth it just for the fact that my PC runs 100% silent.

B) Probably so, the motherboard reserves the bottom section for the video card and there is nothing else under it, so it should fit just fine...

C) As for Cables... that's something i'll have to read up on. I actually have a "Cable Drawer" out of frustration from the fact that sometimes i wanted to connect something to something else and i didn't have the proper cables for it... now i literally have a drawer full of connectors and adapters as a weird ass hobby. Need HDMI? Normal, Mini or Micro? Usb extentions? Audio Splitters? RCA to USB? RJ45 Ethernet spliters? HDMI to DVI? I hav'em all!

[Azisien]

For a 6970:

- PCI Express® based PC is required with one X16 lane graphics slot available on the motherboard

- 550 Watt or greater power supply with one 150W 8-pin PCI Express® power connector and one 75W 6-pin PCI Express® power connector recommended

[akaSM]

Wow, those prices are pretty ridiculous O_o

Let's see, I can get an XFX 7970 (XFX FX-797A-TDFC) for 6,705 MXN, which is around 515-520 USD or 1,088-ish BR.

Newegg has the same card for 380 USD.

Also, for your PC, look at the cables you're already using and, which cables will you need, I just got a new GPU and, I had to disconnect a couple things to use it . I'll eventually get a new PSU though, with more cable-y goodness.

And, if, you somehow find that getting your card from here (Mexico) is somehow cheaper for you than getting it from the US, I'd be glad to scam you help :3

Also, the PCIe connectors, my PSU has two 6 pin connectors, my card uses both 6 and 8 pin connectors and, putting a 6 pin cable into the 8 pin connector makes my card sad and, won't boot at all (even if the reference model has 2 6 pin connectors).

Before I forget...

Which games are you gonna play?
At what resolution?

The 7970 might be a bit of overkill if you'll play only Source games in 800*600(*) but, you might need it for stuff like BF3 and stuff like that.

*my HD 5670 can handle them at max settings at 1080p. It barely lets me play SMNC on the lowest settings and 720p though.