Overdue PC update

[tom52]

Hi folks!  

 

I'm not really very up to date with computer hardware, and I'm looking to update my now quite old pc again.  I figured this would be an excellent place to ask what it is I need to do (although most of the other threads on this page are new builds....).  

 

Here's my rig at the moment (let me know if I've missed something obvious and I'll put it up)

 

CPU:  Intel Core 2 Quad 660 @2.4 Ghz

GPU:  AMD Radeon HD 6850

RAM:  3 GB DDR2 (yup,I've got no idea why I have 3GB of RAM.  I've got a slot for a fourth stick though)

PSU:  some XFX thing, I think it's 750W but I'm not sure and I dont want to open up the case.

 

I use it mostly for gaming (most of the total war series, war thunder, Dishonoured and so on) a very little bit of photo editing and uni work (matlab and office, essentially).  The performance doesnt really cut it any more -  I'm running W7, and I've gone through all the software and cleaned the inside of the case, and I dont think there's anything obvious I've missed.  Looks like I might have to spend some cash.  I've got up to £100 to spend, and I can go up to £200 - anything over that and I'll have to consider a diet of bread and water.

 

I'd really like to know what's the limiting factor on my PC's performance.  My thoughts so far have been that for the kind of money I've got I can shove some more RAM in it or buy an SSD - they're the last bits apart from the motherboard which I havent upgraded, and the motherboard I suspect will take more money and competence than I current have.

 

 

Cheers,

Tom

 

[79wjd]

Both your cpu, gpu, and ram are whats holding you back. 

 

But considering your budget, you can't really do a proper upgrade... I'd say try and find some cheap/used ddr2 ram. Or better yet, wait until you can afford a new cpu+mobo+ram. 

 

As for an ssd, it will make a noticeable difference in your pc use, but it wont increase gaming performance -- but rather just make windows boot faster / make programs open faster (but you'd also be limited to sata 2 performance on the ssd, which would still be noticeable over an hdd, but not as fast as benchmarks you might find).....i.e. I wouldn't upgrade to an ssd on such a limitedb budget. 

[Tedster]

Firstly, the DDR2 MUST GO. Also, 3GB RAM isn't much anymore. DDR4 is now out and gaining popularity.

 

The HD 6850 was a solid card but is also old and the core 2 quad it looks like it is almost a decade old.

 

You can't really do much with that budget. Also any HDD you have will probably be also too outdated to use. SSDs won't help with this system, sadly.

 

READ ABOVE POST.

[aidenrelkoff]

u got $400?

 

PCPartPicker part list: http://pcpartpicker.com/p/TxYDmG

Price breakdown by merchant: http://pcpartpicker.com/p/TxYDmG/by_merchant/

 

CPU: Intel Pentium G3220 3.0GHz Dual-Core Processor  ($54.98 @ OutletPC) 

Motherboard: ASRock H81M-ITX Mini ITX LGA1150 Motherboard  ($64.98 @ SuperBiiz) 

Memory: Corsair Vengeance 4GB (1 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory  ($46.55 @ NCIX US) 

Storage: Western Digital Caviar Blue 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive  ($54.98 @ OutletPC) 

Video Card: Gigabyte GeForce GTX 750 1GB Video Card  ($100.98 @ Newegg) 

Case: Thermaltake Core V1 Mini ITX Tower Case  ($37.99 @ Micro Center) 

Power Supply: Thermaltake TR2 500W ATX Power Supply  ($19.99 @ Newegg) 

Total: $380.45

Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available

Generated by PCPartPicker 2014-11-03 12:50 EST-0500

 

wait ill remove the stuff you dont need

 

 

 

there $250, not much

 

PCPartPicker part list: http://pcpartpicker.com/p/GHgLf7

Price breakdown by merchant: http://pcpartpicker.com/p/GHgLf7/by_merchant/

 

CPU: Intel Pentium G3220 3.0GHz Dual-Core Processor  ($54.98 @ OutletPC) 

Motherboard: ASRock H81M-ITX Mini ITX LGA1150 Motherboard  ($64.98 @ SuperBiiz) 

Memory: Corsair Vengeance 4GB (1 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory  ($46.55 @ NCIX US) 

Video Card: Gigabyte GeForce GTX 750 1GB Video Card  ($100.98 @ Newegg) 

Total: $267.49

Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available

Generated by PCPartPicker 2014-11-03 12:52 EST-0500

[79wjd]

 

u got $400?

 

PCPartPicker part list: http://pcpartpicker.com/p/TxYDmG

Price breakdown by merchant: http://pcpartpicker.com/p/TxYDmG/by_merchant/

 

CPU: Intel Pentium G3220 3.0GHz Dual-Core Processor  ($54.98 @ OutletPC) 

Motherboard: ASRock H81M-ITX Mini ITX LGA1150 Motherboard  ($64.98 @ SuperBiiz) 

Memory: Corsair Vengeance 4GB (1 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory  ($46.55 @ NCIX US) 

Storage: Western Digital Caviar Blue 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive  ($54.98 @ OutletPC) 

Video Card: Gigabyte GeForce GTX 750 1GB Video Card  ($100.98 @ Newegg) 

Case: Thermaltake Core V1 Mini ITX Tower Case  ($37.99 @ Micro Center) 

Power Supply: Thermaltake TR2 500W ATX Power Supply  ($19.99 @ Newegg) 

Total: $380.45

Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available

Generated by PCPartPicker 2014-11-03 12:50 EST-0500

 

He can probably reuse the case, psu, and hdd. Also keep in mind European prices are usually quite a bit higher than US prices. Also, considering a G3258 is like $10 more than another Pentium, not getting one is just silly. 

 

/Also, a 260x/750Ti would make much more sense than a 750. 

[aidenrelkoff]

He can probably reuse the case, psu, and hdd. Also keep in mind European prices are usually quite a bit higher than US prices. Also, considering a G3258 is like $10 more than another Pentium, not getting one is just silly. 

 

/Also, a 260x/750Ti would make much more sense than a 750. 

I updated my post

 

and for his budget, a 750 is fine, he can get a 750Ti if he wants.

[TomvanWijnen]

Buy stuff second hand, cheaper and better performance.

[tom52]

That's cracking - cheers guys.  I think I'll probably hold on to my GPU for the moment, and I'll certainly hold on to the case and PSU.  I'll hold on to my HDD for the moment, and probably go for the new chipset and DDR4 ram, then there's a decision to be made about SSD or GPU.... sound sensible?

[Mefoga]

That's cracking - cheers guys.  I think I'll probably hold on to my GPU for the moment, and I'll certainly hold on to the case and PSU.  I'll hold on to my HDD for the moment, and probably go for the new chipset and DDR4 ram, then there's a decision to be made about SSD or GPU.... sound sensible?

No DDR4, the technology is very expensive right now, even if gaining popularity. Go with a Pentium dual core, preferably a G3258 for the unlocked overclocking paired with a cheap mATX B81 board and 4-8 GB of DDR3 RAM. This lets you have the potential to upgrade to an i5 later with more money and then after, a better board. Then I would start looking at better GPU/Storage.

[Mistersprinkles]

http://uk.pcpartpicker.com/user/mistersprinkles/saved/wgWmP6

 

^BUY THIS! 244 GBP. It's slightly over budget but what you get is amazingly powerful. Much more powerful than anything else anybody has suggested so far.

You get an i5, 4th gen. About 300% more powerful than your Q6600.  You get 8GB of DDR3 1600. You get PCIE 3.0.

Combined with your current GPU you should get higher performance right off the bat. Where this system will really sing is when you upgrade the GPU down the road to something like a GTX 970 4GB.

 

I URGE you to go with my suggestion. It's the best one in this thread so far. It doesn't get you a new SSD and it doesn't get you a new GPU, but it lays the foundation for a kick ass system down the road. You don't want that Pentium G3258. It's only dual core and a few games won't even run without a quad core. You want to go from your current quad to another quad. Don't go down to a dual. 

 

Later on, you can get  yourself an SSD and a new GPU, but for now, get the i5 the motherboard, and the RAM. 

 

BTW you have Win XP 32 bit I'm guessing? That's why you can only see 3GB of RAM. You'll need a 64 bit operating system. Not just to let you see over 4GB of RAM but also so that you can take advantage of DX 10, 11, and upcoming 12. Get your hands on Windows 8.1.

 

DDR4 is VERY expensive right now btw. Don't plan a system with DDR4. It's out of your price range. Even when Skylake comes out DDR4 will still be super expensive. That's why they're making it compatible with DDR3 as well. 

[Norman_the_Owl]

That's cracking - cheers guys.  I think I'll probably hold on to my GPU for the moment, and I'll certainly hold on to the case and PSU.  I'll hold on to my HDD for the moment, and probably go for the new chipset and DDR4 ram, then there's a decision to be made about SSD or GPU.... sound sensible?

What if you just get an SSD for now, maybe swap your CPU if it's possible, and fill that fourth ram slot? 

It'd be barely any money at all, a small 120gb SSD is probably around 40 pounds.

You could just wait for skylake at this rate, save up some cash.

Q1 2015 is far enough away to save up enough cash for an I3/I5 maybe, but still close enough to where it's not so hopelessly far away