Gaming Desktop UPGRADE - Dell XPS 710 H2C

[SoDifficult]

Hi all!

So I have an old Dell XPS 710 H2C that I would like to upgrade as much as possible and don't know where to begin. The thing is pretty old (2007), and has slowed down quite a bit over the years and has been used mostly for basic office work as of late. I'd like to change that and get it back in gaming condition.

This site has pretty much all the details of my machine: [urlExt=http://hothardware.com/Reviews/Dell-XPS-710-H2C-Performance-Gaming-System/?page=1]http://hothardware.com/Reviews/Dell-XPS-710-H2C-Performance-Gaming-System/?page=1[/urlExt]

Here are the specs; any suggestions on what can be replaced would be much appreciated. Thank you all in advance:

- Intel Core2 Extreme processor QX6700 (3.20GHz,Overclocked) w/Dual Core Technology and 8MB cache
- 4GB DDR2 SDRAM at 667MHz
- Dual 768MB NVIDIA GeForce 8800GTX
- Serial ATA2 RAID 1 With Dual 500GB Hard Drives
- No Floppy Drive
- Vista
- 16X DVD-ROM and 16X DVD+/-RW
- X-Fi PCI Sound Card
- Ageia PhysX Processor
- Dozer Chassis
- Motherboard 7-slot BTX
- 750-watt Power Supply
- Copper Heat Sink
- Two 120mm x 38mm front fans


- SoDifficult

UPDATE:

I never got rid of this PC, and I realize it won't be worth the time to try to sell it at this point. That said, I'm going to rebuild this and at least reuse the case and whatever else I can. Will anything inside this machine be worth keeping? Or should I literally gut the whole things and start with the case?

 

[sammy sung]

The issue lies in the fact that pretty much everything would need to be replaced in order to most aptly make this a gaming tower again. Going down the line with the current components compared to standard stuff now

Processor:

While this was an overkill extreme processor when released, it's now a really really really outdated four core processor. It's actually very much comparable to a first generation i3 in terms of overall performance. It would be a pretty sizable bottleneck on most decent graphics cards out today.

RAM:

First off you're working with a lot less than what's more or less considered the cardinal standard today. You'd want at least 8GB of system memory. That could be upgraded if not for the fact that your old DDR2 memory is horribly underclocked. Even basic 1333MHz DDR3 would feel wildly faster than this.

GPU:

While 8800 GTX SLI'd was a powerhouse for quite a crazy long time, they've since seen the end of their dominant days. Video memory for one is a significant issue. Sporting a usable memory below 1GB is horrible these days. A GTX 295 in terms of raw performance is similar to an R9 270 but falls so much shorter in overall performance as it only has 896MB of video memory to fall on. Something as simple as a GTX 750 TI or the upcoming GTX 950 would be way more suitable to gaming than dual 8800 GTX's. Not to mention there's various games that won't even play on them as they're not DirectX11 or 12 compatible

HDD/SSD:

Old under performing hard drives. Makes little difference in gaming, but assuming they're probably working with 16MB caches I'd wager load times will be noticeably longer than on a standard 64B cache 1TB HDD. Also the lack of a nice SSD to make your boot drive would just make me cry

Optical Drive:

I mean nothing really wrong with this, aside from it most likely needing an IDE belt. Ugly.

Power Supply:

Old and probably doesn't give close to it's stated wattage anymore. The most imperative upgrade

CPU Cooler:

I'd almost say to keep this, assuming it supports 1150/2011/2011-3. But you can pick up something new and wildly more effective for $20-30. So why not?


Moral of my speech is that you're better off building from scratch. POSSIBLY sell your old rig on EBAY/Craigslist for a small sum to help fund the new build.

 

[Kevin_Smith]

I agree with Sammy sung, if you could give us your budget I am sure we can help you select the best parts for that budget, I'd usualy suggest $750 for your first build, but that remains entirely up to you. Pay more=Get better parts that will save you cash in the future of upgrading. Pay less= your going to find yourself not being able to run future games sooner that you would expect.

 

[FALC0N]

Power Supply:

Old and probably doesn't give close to it's stated wattage anymore. The most imperative upgrade

Contrary to popular belief, PSU output doesn't really drop much over time. How stable and clean the power output is, that's another story.

 

[Speedstang]

Basically, it's the same as buying a new system, everything needs to be upgraded. You're better off buying a new computer.

 

[FALC0N]

Nice system though. Not really anything you can do to make it a high end gamer anymore, but it has plenty of life left.

 

[Speedstang]

Nice system though. Not really anything you can do to make it a high end gamer anymore, but it has plenty of life left.

That's true, it's still a good system for things like watching Youtube videos and surfing the web. You could probably sell it, and put that towards a new system.

 

[SoDifficult]

Hey all. So I know it's been a while since my post, and thank you all for the answers; especially sammy sung for the detailed breakdown, but I'm finally ready for a new gaming PC.

Today I bought a new laptop for work, and while I was at it I was almost added an XPS 8910. Before I pull the trigger I want to consider building my own...

Since I still have this old XPS 710 (details above) should I use this as the base? At least the case and fans? Or should I just trash it and start over?

I don't game nearly as much as I used to, but I still play ESO and a few others, and also need something for just daily home personal use. I only want to spend between $1k-$1,250.

Is it worth building my own for this amount, or should I stick to a pre-built?

Thanks in advance!