Can I Upgrade?

[noman]

Was Curious to know if I can upgrade this CPU without upgrading the MOBO. Would like to upgrade to an i7 7700 if possible. Any help is appreciated!


     Time of this report: 11/25/2017, 22:20:44
             Machine name: MIKE-PC
         Operating System: Windows 10 Home 64-bit (10.0, Build 10240) (10240.th1.160104-1507)
                 Language: English (Regional Setting: English)
      System Manufacturer: Alienware
             System Model: Aurora
                     BIOS: Default System BIOS
                Processor: Intel(R) Core(TM) i7 CPU         930  @ 2.80GHz (8 CPUs), ~2.8GHz
                   Memory: 16374MB RAM
      Available OS Memory: 16374MB RAM
                Page File: 3281MB used, 29477MB available
              Windows Dir: C:\Windows
          DirectX Version: 12
      DX Setup Parameters: Not found
         User DPI Setting: Using System DPI
       System DPI Setting: 96 DPI (100 percent)
          DWM DPI Scaling: Disabled
                 Miracast: Available, with HDCP
Microsoft Graphics Hybrid: Not Supported
           DxDiag Version: 10.00.10240.16384 64bit Unicode
---------------
Display Devices
---------------
          Card name: NVIDIA GeForce GTX 970
       Manufacturer: NVIDIA
          Chip type: GeForce GTX 970
           DAC type: Integrated RAMDAC
        Device Type: Full Device
         Device Key: Enum\PCI\VEN_10DE&DEV_13C2&SUBSYS_19723842&REV_A1
     Display Memory: 12245 MB
   Dedicated Memory: 4058 MB
      Shared Memory: 8187 MB
       Current Mode: 1920 x 1080 (32 bit) (60Hz)
       Monitor Name: Generic PnP Monitor
      Monitor Model: VG248
         Monitor Id: ACI24A5
        Native Mode: 1920 x 1080(p) (60.000Hz)
        Output Type: HDMI
        Driver Name: nvd3dumx.dll,nvwgf2umx.dll,nvwgf2umx.dll,nvwgf2umx.dll,nvd3dum,nvwgf2um,nvwgf2um,nvwgf2um
Driver File Version: 23.21.0013.8813 (English)
     Driver Version: 23.21.13.8813
        DDI Version: 12
     Feature Levels: 12.1,12.0,11.1,11.0,10.1,10.0,9.3,9.2,9.1
       Driver Model: WDDM 2.0
Graphics Preemption: DMA
 Compute Preemption: DMA
           Miracast: Not Supported
Hybrid Graphics GPU: Not Supported
     Power P-states: Not Supported
  Driver Attributes: Final Retail
   Driver Date/Size: 11/18/2017 09:57:46, 18917192 bytes
        WHQL Logo'd: n/a
    WHQL Date Stamp: n/a
  Device Identifier: {D7B71E3E-5082-11CF-9F79-7F391BC2DA35}
          Vendor ID: 0x10DE
          Device ID: 0x13C2
          SubSys ID: 0x19723842
        Revision ID: 0x00A1
 Driver Strong Name: oem30.inf:0f066de3ad0bda5c:Section109:23.21.13.8813:pci\ven_10de&dev_13c2
     Rank Of Driver: 00D12001

Mainboard Model      04VWF2 (0x00000189 - 0x004D8240)

LPCIO
-------------------------------------------------------------------------

LPCIO Vendor         Fintek
LPCIO Model         F71882F
LPCIO Vendor ID         0x1934
LPCIO Chip ID         0x541
Config Mode I/O address      0x4E
Config Mode LDN         0x4
Config Mode registers   
      00 01 02 03 04 05 06 07 08 09 0A 0B 0C 0D 0E 0F
   00   FF FF 00 FF FF FF FF 04 FF FF FF FF FF FF FF FF
   10   FF FF FF FF FF FF FF FF FF FF FF FF FF FF FF FF
   20   05 41 20 19 34 00 00 30 44 00 40 60 08 0F 00 00
   30   01 FF FF FF FF FF FF FF FF FF FF FF FF FF FF FF
   40   FF FF FF FF FF FF FF FF FF FF FF FF FF FF FF FF
   50   FF FF FF FF FF FF FF FF FF FF FF FF FF FF FF FF
   60   0A 00 FF FF FF FF FF FF FF FF FF FF FF FF FF FF
   70   00 FF FF FF FF FF FF FF FF FF FF FF FF FF FF FF
Register space         LPC, base address = 0x0A00

[Bizman]

I suppose you could safely upgrade to i7-975 Extreme Edition since it's of the same microarchitecture (Bloomfield). That means upgrading from 2.8 to 3.33 GHz, 19% more power. It's negotiable if you could see the difference, however that might get you over some "magic" edge.

I7-990X @3.47GHz (Gulftown) fits to the socket, too, and it's not much newer, so it should fit, too. Read this for more information about the two models: http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/core-i7-980x-efficiency,2575-2.html

[Skuzzy]

Might want to check with Dell about the upgrade possibilities.  They have a tendency to only support the CPU which came with the motherboard, by hard coding the support in the BIOS.

[noman]

Will another GTX-970 Card do me any good or should I just stick to the 1?

[Skuzzy]

I would not go SLI.  NVidia is dumping support, for that feature, in the very near future.

And it really does not get you much, if any, performance gains due to the really poor SLI profile they supply.  The NVidia SLI profile for Aces High is for Aces High 2, and it was never right either.  It really is messed up for Aces High III.

[100Coogn]

I feel you may be bottle-necked by your CPU.  You might want to check into a Motherboard/CPU combo on NewEgg.
They usually have some good deals.

Edit: I'm also using a single 970 and AHIII rarely draws more than 25% from the card. 

Coogan

[noman]

I would not know where to even start looking for a motherboard and a CPU. I am smart enough to change stuff out and do small stuff but figuring out what to get and what will fit in the case I have I am totally ignorant. I am willing to spend about $300-400 to upgrade but wouldn't know what would be the best use of that to get the biggest bang for my bucks.
Also if Dell did hard code the BIOS will changing out the motherboard and CPU get me around that?

[Bizman]

If Dell has hard-coded the BIOS it's in the motherboard. Change it and the rest will follow. However, you may have to change the RAM and PSU too, leaving you only an old hard disk and a pretty good video card.

[noman]

I have a 750 watt PSU and have already changed the HD and added a SSD drive as well. I also have bumped up the ram to 16 gigs of Corsair Vengeance DDR3 RAM.

[Bizman]

If I read right somewhere that CPU likes RAM in triplets. I.e. 3x2 GB, 3x4GB etc. The difference in performance may not be noticeable in real life, though. Maybe a hiccup here and there, who knows?

Since you already know that a standard PSU works with that motherboard, getting a second hand i7-975 for $100 might not pose too big of a risk of mismatch and might very well give you the boost you want.

[100Coogn]

I have a 750 watt PSU and have already changed the HD and added a SSD drive as well. I also have bumped up the ram to 16 gigs of Corsair Vengeance DDR3 RAM.

I'd hate for you to waste your money on an extra GPU, when it's not needed.
Research a motherboard & CPU that will fit your needs.  You'll probably get it cheaper than buying a new GPU.
I can't stand Intel, but this is your rig, so do what fits your needs.

Coogan

[noman]

Thanks for the Help Gentlemen!! My machine runs Aces High pretty good  Solid 59 FPS usually with a stutter every once in awhile, was just curious if I could make it any better. Just got a new ASUS computer monitor that has really boosted the graphics over the LCD TV I was using 

[Bizman]

 

Don't fix if it ain't broken!