Upgrade Advice

Hyzepher

Hi, I'm looking to upgrade my CPU/Mobo/Ram to a more modern spec. I'm not a heavy gamer on the PC so I don't think I need a GPU upgrade. I do use it for Photoshop, After Effects etc and after upgrading to CS6 I feel it's struggling a bit

Currently no OC'ing

Intel Core 2 Duo E8400
Gigabyte GA-P35-DQ6
Crucial Ballistix 6GB (2x1GB & 2x2gb) DDR2
ATI HD 5770 1gb
Corsair HX 520W
Arctic Cooling Freezer 7 Pro CPU Cooler

The parts I am looking at are
i5 - 3570k
Gigabyte Z77-D3H or Asrock Extreme4 (not sure about which is better)
Corsair Vengeance 8gb Low profile
No idea if I need a new cooler
Corsair 500R case

I don't plan on OC'ing but I'd like the option. I also have no plans for SLI or XFire but again the option would be nice just in case.

I'd also like some advice on whether I should upgrade the GPU and PSU

thanks

Monotype

I'd say to try overclocking. Many people get towards 4GHz with that CPU.

If you feel the 30% boost really isn't enough, then go for the upgrade.

Hyzepher

OK thanks - am I just putting off the inevitable though? Seems like a good time to upgrade in terms of value.

Monotype

Well you know yourself how much of an upgrade you need. The 3570K would be a big jump. On the other hand, if you waited 6 months, Intel would have new CPUs.
Maybe what you might need is an SSD to boost the opening times of these programs.

Hyzepher

SSD, good idea.

Would I get the most of an SSD out of that motherboard? Pretty sure it doesn't have SATA6

Monotype

No, but you do get the biggest benefit which is the fast access times. You could take it to a new system too.