So as most of you guys know, I have my computer for sale. The $1,000 cube is the one I'm referring to. There are a few parts that for me, are getting long in the tooth. It doesn't mean slow or old, I'm just a tech junkie and I like the new stuff. My processor is a Core I7 980X extreme edition six core beast. It has plenty of processing power to last me another couple of years. My motherboard on the other hand is a bit dated.
Currently my motherboard does not support USB 3.0, Sata 6g, PCIE 3.0 or EUFI bios (not a huge deal). It also only has three dimm slots for memory. Keep in mind, this is a tri channel system, so a minimum of three memory slots are needed to get the full memory bandwidth. The memory I have populating my board happens to be rare and expensive. They came out in 2010 and still cost $200 for 3x2 (6gb).They are rated at 1866mhz with 7-8-7-20 timings at 1.65volts. The big take away here are the very tight timings. I have these running at 2000mhz at 7-7-7-20 timings which is just awesome.
So with all that said. I found a motherboard (Asus Rampage III Black Edition) for $300 (originally $600 in 2011). It gives me four usb 3.0 ports, 2 sata 6g ports (no raid on sata 6g), but no EUFI bios, and only PCIE 2.0 (not a big deal) I also found 3 more sticks of matching memory that I already have. This newer board has six slots and I can run 12gb instead of 6gb. Total cost is $500
My other option is to go all new with the latest and greatest. Brand new Haswell Core I7 4770k Quad core processor ($340). It trades blows with my 980X... This also requires a new motherboard which I've chosen an Asus Maximus VI Hero ($200). This new motherboard gives me all the latest features I was looking for. 6 usb 3.0 ports, 8 sata 6g ports, PCIE 3.0, EUFI, Ram disk, and $100 cheaper. This also requires me to have new ram which I had already purchased ahead of time.I bought 2x8 (16gb) of Gskill Trident 2400mhz ram. The cost for them are $174.
Should I stick to my current stuff and upgrade memory and motherboard? Or should I go for the new and buy the new processor and motherboard (again I already purchased the memory)? Second question... Should I start 100% from scratch or just replace the old stuff with the new? I can save about $400 keeping my case, fans, and HDD. Graphics cards will be brand new regardless which way I go. Likewise my power supply which I already purchased. I also already purchased a 240gb SSD. I know a lot of you guys may get lost in the sauce, but for some of you who might know what I'm talking about... I'm just looking for a second opinion.
New motherboard: Newegg.com - ASUS MAXIMUS VI HERO LGA 1150 Intel Z87 HDMI SATA 6Gb/s USB 3.0 ATX Intel Motherboard
New processor: Intel Core i7-4770K - Newegg.com
New memory:G.SKILL Trident X Series 16GB (2 x 8GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 2400 (PC3 19200) Desktop Memory Model F3-2400C10D-16GTX - Newegg.com
Current processor: Intel Core i7-980X Extreme Edition Gulftown 3.33GHz LGA 1366 130W Six-Core Desktop Processor BX80613I7980X - Newegg.com
Motherboard for current processor: ASUS Rampage III Black Edition LGA 1366 Intel X58 SATA 6Gb/s USB 3.0 Extended ATX Intel Motherboard - Newegg.com
Current memory: CORSAIR DOMINATOR GT 6GB (3 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1866 (PC3 15000) Desktop Memory Model CMG6GX3M3A1866C7 - Newegg.com