Time for an Upgrade or Replacement?

[RedLancerYT]

Last September, I started to take interest in the PC world. I looked up benchmarks for everything from case dimensions to what RAID meant to how many frames the newly released GTX 1080 could push in the Witcher 3 at 4k. I was fascinated by all of this and I still am. I'd build a PC for myself, but I don't have the funds to do so.

 

BACKGROUND INFO!

In 2008-10 my dad bought a fairly nice at the time desktop XPS 630 PC. We used it for StarCraft and Ages of Empire with the occasional windows game. I had my Xbox to game on so I was happy (woe is me for my less than redeeming history). I began playing more games, at least more consistently around 2012. We got a 17" XPS Laptop "i7/ Nvda 6(4/6?)0M" that I could play games like Portal 2 or Planetside 2 to on, but because I didn't know about such a thing as "FrameRates" back then, I was happy. I started to notice how slow the laptop was and so I drifted more towards playing Xbox 360 or One games for the smooth experience. Recently my sister and I got Laptops (Lenovo Y700, i7 6600HK, R9 375M graphics(don't work but that's another problem)120gb ssd) for schoolwork and basic use, but I wanted to use mine for gaming. As I was learning about computers and their parts, I started to notice I couldn't play some of the games I wanted to play because I didn't have enough graphics power to push them. Instead of settling for under-par PC Gaming experience, I continue to use my Xbox primarily.

 

TL;DR I WAS ENLIGHTENED BY THE PC MASTER RACE AND REALIZED MY PARTS KINDA SUCKED AND THERE IS SOMETHING OUT THERE BETTER THAN CONSOLE GAMING.

 

XPS 630 Spex: Core 2 Quad Q6600 / 4gb ddr2 / Dual 8800 GTs / (Basic Setup as far as I know) / Dual 900p 60hz monitors

 

A while back (2-4 years maybe) the computer died. We were able to solve the problem by installing a new instance of Win10 over XP. I stopped using this computer and mainly used the Laptop for my daily use. Years later (2016) I decided to open up the PC, research the parts and see if I could reboot it and see what it could do. When I connected everything together, I could get windows to boot, but there would be times when I would get a BSoD but with huge pixel-ated red lines down the monitor. I switched ports on the video card, and it seemed fine after the first boot, but on the second, it did the same thing. We tried all four DVI ports and all did the same thing. I concluded that the graphics card could just be dead, seeing how it is so old. I know that the new 1050 and 1050ti aremade almost for this purpose. Upgrading to one of these would allow my dad to do what he needs to do, and it would allow me to play the games I've always wanted to play on PC: Witcher, Doom, Skyrim. However, this PC is sporting almost a ten year old processor and only four gigs of ram. I don't think my gaming experience would be to great with that, and I also think that the lack of an SSD in the pc will inhibit my dad's productivity. 

 

TL;DR CRAPPY COMPUTER, VIDEO CARD DIED. COULD GET 1050(TI?) BUT 10Y/O PROCESSOR & 4GB RAM W/ NO SSD COULD HAMSTRING EXPERIENCE

 

My dad is open to the idea of upgrading the video card, but does not like the idea of getting a new computer all together because of this argument:

"It does everything I need it to (web/office/light gaming) and I doubt I would really notice the difference"

 

MY OPINION RIGHT NOW:

My stance is even a $450 G4560/RX 560/8gb Ram with an SSD, will run laps around the old computer with a noticeable difference.

 

WHY I'M POSTING / MAIN QUESTION

 

Is it time for us to just buy a new computer?

If not,

What parts should we upgrade?

 

If we should get a new PC (I intend to build myself), how do I convince my dad of doing so?

 

Sorry for the long post, but I trust this community and thank you for all of the help!

[Colin Donoghue]

full replacement no room for upgrade for modern games

 

[genexis_x]

IMO, you should upgrade. G4560 is much faster than the old quad core.

 

I agree with you. Get G4560, a good GPU, 8GB RAM, SSD, a good PSU and you're good. If you can wait and spend more, get a Ryzen 3 system.

Edited May 20, 2017 by ZM Fong