New graphics card

...perhaps as a "fund-saving" option (for a new monitor as well ) I found on ebay
VTX3D X-Edition AMD Radeon HD 7950 3GB - VX7950 3GBD5-2DHXV2 4715409180401 | eBay

The vtx HD7950 X-edition uses the same core as the R 270 , though the R 270 has a new and a bit better memory-inferface.
But this vtx is a rather silent air-cooled RADEON and nicely to the a-bit-more-than-modest-overclocker, to the modest ofc as well

As your MB has PCIe x16 version 2.0 you wont get full value of an PCIe ver. 3.0 card (statistics wont match) - I am sure it will perform well, but MB is rather old (2009)
If you plan to update MB in near future i would go for a new graphics card. If not I would consider keeping that one you have - Hardware has same age.

Hello,
I read somewhere that PCIe 2.0 bandwidth is more than enough for all current graphic cards and also ones that come out in the nearest future, if you use them just for gaming (not calculations), so you don't need to worry about slot version at all.

My own PC has a PCIe 3.0 card (Sapphire Radeon HD 7750 Ultimate) in a 2.0 slot (ASUS P7P55D), haven't had any problems so far. Can do some benchmarks for you

By the way, what can become a bottleneck in your system is probably the CPU - AMD processors are known to be slower in games than Intel ones, especially if only 1 core is used, so in some cases your CPU might not be able to fully load such a powerful graphic card.

- Wanderer -

Update: about PCIe versions, have a look at this: Impact of PCI-E Speed on Gaming Performance - Puget Custom Computers

@(IOC)Wanderer good article and in that case statistics should be correct -> AnandTech | Bench - GPU14

Depends a bit on what you're doing with your PC (for CF only your rig is already sufficient ).
But for Xrebirth, ED or even SC .........

However, look for a mobo, that offers some OC-potential already (the reviews of the Gigabyte GA-Z97-D3H about that are not soo enthusiastic) as "built-in" options. The AS-rock mobos aren't too bad on that and more the "bargain" category for some decent OC.

I found it always easier to tweak my mobo and processor to "keep on track" with the development of requirements for -esp.- gaming.
The requirements for the graphic cards evolve much faster, imo.

stick with the Z97. I've recently bought a i7-920 and a mobo that has the fitting socket for around 80 euros. Used of course. The mobo was 20€ because the sound card was faulty.

Actually, as I'm writing this it's the equivalent of a i7-920. It's actually a Xeon CPU. I have no idea as I can't check at the moment, not home.

Anyhow. The Z97 will suit your needs if you're going for the i5. You might want to go for something stronger (maybe an i5-4690k) since the price difference is not as high. As for a GPU, you might want to wait for NVIDIA to release the GTX960 which will be under 200€ but will provide you with an awesome card that's absolutely lovely. Overclockers dream

Anyhow. Save your money for now. Buy when you get discounts. Check Amazon, eBay and Newegg on a daily basis for those three (once the GPU releases, on the 25th of January). That's it.