10 yr old desktop: upgrade or replace?

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vot4pedro

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Mar 20, 2017
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Hi All
Sorry for re-post as I initially posted in wrong thread.

Below are specs of my 2007 desktop that either needs replacing or upgrading. Boot time is a slow +4min, Vista is no longer supported, and the CPU fan runs extremely loud. Initially, I was going to replace the current mechanical HD with a new SSD PCIe 240gig, install Windows 10 Pro, and replace the CPU fan with a CRYORIG H7 Tower Cooler. However, after further review, the current X58 MB doesn’t support PCIe SSD boot up so perhaps settle for SSD with SATA III even though current MB only supports SATA II. Also, not sure if Windows 10 Pro will run on the current MB.

Must haves: fast boot-up time via M.2 SSD, casual gaming at 1080 graphics (perhaps only use integrated graphics), and light family video editing. Any suggestions on upgrading below current build to save money with $300-400 budget?

-Current build-
OS: Vista Home 64bit
Motherboard: ASUS P6T DELUXE (LGA1366)
CPU: Intel Core i7 920 @ 2.67GHz
CPU fan: Standard provided fan
RAM: 6.00GB DDR3 @ 1333MHz
Graphics: Sapphire Radeon HD4870 512MB DDR5 Dual DVI / TVO PCI-Express Graphics Card
HDD: WDC WD10EADS-00L5B1 (1TB SATA II)
PSU: Corsair TX750W
Tower: Antec Nine Hundred Black Steel ATX Mid Tower Computer Case

Thanks
 
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Thanks for the input. The MB looks ideal for my simple build. The description states USB3.1 but I dont see a port for this or does this infer USB3.1 ready via pci card?

The CPU fan is the noise culprit. I have already cleaned out all the dust from the case and re-greased the CPU but it doesn't help. The case came with 4 various size fans so I doubt the CPU is running hot. In fact, the noise level hits max level right after the +4min boot-up🙁 Correct. I didnt OC the i7 because I simply didnt want to stress the CPU... so I thought. However, looks like these days overclocking is the norm so I'm willing to give it a go.
 
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I greatly appreciate everyone's help. Its really cool to get so much feedback so quickly. So after reviewing all the suggestions, below is my plan of attack.

I will replace my existing system bootup drive with a SATA SanDisk SSD PLUS 480GB Solid State Drive (Amazon $130), replace the cooling stock fan with below Cryrig H7 fan, and perform a clean install of WIN10. If these "upgrades" fail to meet my expectations for any reason, I will then move forward with the below build which I compiled using board member feedback, and the newly purchased Sandisk SSD Plus drive will be redirected towards our old 2008 MacBookPro laptop (yes, another aging piece of hardware).


The build is a combination of inputs from LucoTF, Rogue Leader, logainofhades, and of course all who encouraged me to retire my current pc:) So, the only reused parts are the case and PSU. Please let me know if below build has any glaring issues outside of not having a dedicated GPU.

New Build (argh, cant figure out how to paste pc part picker output):
Intel Core i5-7600K 3.8GHz Quad-Core Processor $233.89 Outlet PC Buy
CPU Cooler CRYORIG H7 49.0 CFM CPU Cooler $34.89 OutletPC Buy
Motherboard Gigabyte GA-B250M-DS3H Micro ATX LGA1151 $68.99 SuperBiiBuy
Memory Corsair Vengeance LPX 16GB (2 x 8GB) DDR4-3000 $109.99 -$13 discount Newegg Buy
Storage Intel 600p Series 256GB M.2-2280 Solid State Drive $108.89 OutletPC Buy
Windows 10 Pro (OEM key) $31.75 Kinguin
Rosewill 802.11N, N900 PCI Express Wi-Fi Adapter Card $23.00 Amazon
Base Total: $569.65
Promo Discounts: -$13.00
Total: $611.40



Thanks again!
 
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Don't buy the B250 board you cannot overclock with it, you need the Z270 board from my build.

And Don't buy a Windows 10 key from kinguin, theres a reason its cheap many times they are stolen or otherwise improperly obtained and we have had members have their windows deactivated on them because of that. It costs more yes, but buy a genuine copy.
 
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Rogue Leader/LucoTF
Doh. Glad I asked the experts! Ok. Updated the build with the ASRock Z270 Killer SLI/ac ATX LGA1151. It has onboard wifi plus 2 M.2 slots.

Thanks!
 
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As noted, build updated with Z MB and much appreciate the help with overclocking my old i7 once I make the upgrades.... stay tuned.

Thanks!
 
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I don't remember it was some time ago, and the system has moved on. 256gb Samsung I believe. Yes it was the boot disk.


 
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I would think you could use different antennas, if you would like.
 
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vot4pedro,

The $300-400 budget should be invested in a system that is a couple of generations newer.

Assume that the current system is worth $100 plus you have $400 to spend for a total of $500. I'd say:

Dell Optiplex 990 MT Intel Core i7- 2600, 3.40GHz 8GB RAM* NO HHD > Sold for $168.50 (12 Feb, 2017)

Add to that:

MSI GTX 770 2GB Video Card > $75

SAMSUNG 850 EVO 2.5" 250GB SATA III 3-D Vertical Internal Solid State Drive (SSD) MZ-75E250B/AM > $100

WD Blue 1TB Desktop Hard Disk Drive - 7200 RPM SATA 6Gb/s 64MB Cache 3.5 Inch - WD10EZEX > $50

> and that totals about $400.

With a 2nd Generation i7-2600 (4-core @ 3.4/3.8GHz) and GTX 770 2GB, it should quite good at gaming and certainly do all other kinds of home work. Having a Dell has a lot of advantages as you have a manual and can upgrade the BIOS and drivers from a single source. I've had quite a few Dells and they're also typically very reliable and quiet-running.

Cheers,

BambiBoom



 
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I can't imagine why you would recommend replacing his 10 year old system with a used 6 year old system...... No way I would trust a power hungry 770 on a used OEM dell PSU either.
Go new or upgrade, and I think you are leaning new. That said Bambi brings up a good point you can sell your current setup/or parts for more budget. The i7 920 and Mobo look like they go on ebay for $100-150.



 
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gillhooley,

When a person prominently mentions a limited budget, that is the governing factor. The query was, in effect, what is the best performance possible for $300-$400.

The suggested build by logainofhades has some very smart choices, but at $630, it is more than 50% above the quoted maximum of $400 and didn't include the OS. In that, the query was not answered except to infer that what is requested can't be done for that cost.

But it can.

And, in my view, the OP request for M.2 is capricious as there is no suggestion that large datasets need that kind of speed. Also, while Intel IG is much better than one expects, the top Passmark 3D rating of the HD 630 using an i-7600K on a Gigabyte GA-B250M motherboard is 1311. The same figure for a GTX 770 is 7074 and that will be much better for gaming. The I7-2600 has a top clock speed of 3.8 and a Passmark single-thread average of , which is not fantastic, but still practical as I do 3D modeling with a similar single-thread score (1930) to that.

As for the age of the system and processor, my office has systems from 2007 to 2015 and in 22 years, we have never had a single component failure in a used system. The office server uses a 2004 Quadro FX580 and we lent the 2010 Dell Precision T5500 to an aerospace firm that ran a series of flight dynamics (turbulence) problems lasting two days each continuously and returned perfect results from Xeon X5680's of 2010. Our rendering system has two Xeon E5-2690 8-core 2.9/3.8Ghz CPU's purchased for a total of $310 -( $2,050 each new) and those have a MTBF of 170,000 hours- that more than 19 years continuous running.

Good discussion!

Cheers,

BambiBoom
 
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A lot of times, PC manufacturers such as Dell provide a PSU with just enough power to power the system they sell you. Adding a GTX 770 to that Optiplex may require a new PSU (additional cost).

I do have to say, though, I have a system with an i3-2100 and a GTX 960 that does better than any modern-day console with gaming. You just can't crank all the details.
 
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Why yes, it is bad advice.

Thank you for pointing that out as not to allow confusion by the OP and other legitimate participants with a threadcrap.

 
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I'm late to the game, but if you have $600 definitely buy new and there were plenty of good suggestions so I won't bother adding to that. I'm kind of amazed that an NVME option actually made the budget.

All that said I don't like to discount all used parts though as especially things like last gen GPUs rarely go bad and you can get more power for the $; I bought a GTX 970 a week ago for $120 that works perfectly for my nephew. CPUs rarely fail before 8 to 10 years. Motherboards, drives and Power Supplies are generally bad ideas to buy used.
 
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An I7 with 6gb of ram should still have life in it. If you have the install disk for Vista or the restore disks you can go
back to a factory install. It should boot much faster that way. You could also go to Linux because it will run fast with
your CPU. Mint or Zorin are good. You could take it to a shop and see if it will load Windows 10 and if it does then you can make recovery disks for it as a backup. It may also boot slow because the hard drive needs to be defragged.
Your computer could also have malware or viruses on it which slows it down. A computer shop can fix that.
You can replace the whole computer if you do not care about cost. The best out there for a CPU is still an I7.
 
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Suggest you price Antec water cooling kit as your CPU can be overclocked to around 3.8 GHZ. Also if this works for you then you could up speck your ram to 1600 MHz modules and gain a boost there as well. Google over clocking Intel Core i7 920 on a ASUS P6T DELUXE you will find all the settings for 3.8 GHZ. ASUS Supports your Motherboard with drivers up to Windows 8.1 so no problem with Win 7 or Win 10 for that matter as Vista was more demanding than either Win 7, Win 8 or Win 10. I have done the same to my Q9550 and it handles Win 10 64 bit pro no problems. You also could get a 2.5 SSD as a boot drive and keep you WD Drive as a storage drive. Much cheaper than a new computer.
 
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Your advice is very good . Anybody with an IQ exceeding that of a garden vegetable can see you are very experienced and knowledgeable in this field .

Saying a big manufacturers systems have been very reliable and worth considering has no place on these boards even if it's 100% true .

Thank you bambiboom.


 
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Non-garden veggie here, I suggest you do more research into the posts you follow. Spending $400 on used 4 generation old equipment is NOT a good way to spend your money.

The user had certain requests and requirements for a build between price and performance. This Dell build fails that in all aspects except for price range. The GPU would work poorly with the Dell factory PSU if at all, the parts have no upgrade path as they are so old, and they can't nearly perform as well as the new equipment that can be purchased for only a little more money.

Now that said the OP has found his answer here, so this thread has run its course. vot4pedro please private message me if you want it reopened.
 
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