[SOLVED] Help upgrade non-gaming Linux system

[abngton]

I would appreciate advice on how to upgrade this non-gaming Linux Mint system without spending a fortune, and which should possibly include adding/upgrading existing HDMI version and adding a Display Port.
Use: general office, streaming movies and sports.

AMD A6 5400K APU with integrated Radeon HD 7540D

Ram - 7.2 GiB Kingston HyperX RED KHX16C9B1RK2/8X is a kit of two 512M x 64-bit (4GB) DDR3-1600 CL9 SDRAM

Mobo - MSI A75MA-E35 chipset FM2 Socket AMD

PSU - Silencer MKIII Series MkIII – 400W PPCMK3S400 80Plus Bronze

Samsung SSD 870 EVO 250 GB

Monitor - Samsung SyncMaster 2333

Thanks in advance.

 

[geofelt]

In what way is your current pc not doing the job?
Do you have a budget?

What parts do you plan on reusing?

 

[The Paladin]

I would get one of those Dell 7010 with an i7-3770 in it for like 50-100$ on a lot of places desperately trying to give it out to someone. Slap a slim GTX 745 (30-45$) and an SSD and you are done, or get one with an i5-3xx and upgrade to I7-3xx (I did that for 29$ ) and you will be happy. clone your dr1ve to the SSD and voila. !

CPU compares (intel I7 would be 40% better ) https://www.cpubenchmark.net/compare/896vs1494/Intel-i7-3770-vs-AMD-A6-5400K-APU
GPU Compared (gtx 745 would be 73% better) https://www.videocardbenchmark.net/compare/2843vs2166/GeForce-GTX-745-vs-Radeon-HD-7540D

PS 7010+745 is what I use for my office, and I do even a lot of remote work on client system and its flawless

 

[abngton]

In what way is your current pc not doing the job?
Do you have a budget?

What parts do you plan on reusing?

It is doing its job ok, given its hardware, but I would like something perkier overall with better visual experience especially when streaming faster action (hockey, football), which has not been that smooth. I am not knowledgeable enough to judge which components would provide the best bang for the money.
Also, I am looking to get a new 27" monitor with higher refresh rate (75Hz) and also possibly higher resolution ( like LG 27QN600-B ) and I gather I will need better version of HDMI (my current one is 1.4 ?) and also a display port to achieve the 75Hz.

I would reuse the PSU and SSD, which means endless possibilities for the rest of components as far as I am able to judge. I have no predetermined budget, and I am not sure what would be a reasonable amount to spend or even whether it is worth upgrading it as such.

I appreciate your interest!

 

[abngton]

I would get one of those Dell 7010 with an i7-3770 in it for like 50-100$ on a lot of places desperately trying to give it out to someone. Slap a slim GTX 745 (30-45$) and an SSD and you are done, or get one with an i5-3xx and upgrade to I7-3xx (I did that for 29$ ) and you will be happy. clone your dr1ve to the SSD and voila. !

CPU compares (intel I7 would be 40% better ) https://www.cpubenchmark.net/compare/896vs1494/Intel-i7-3770-vs-AMD-A6-5400K-APU
GPU Compared (gtx 745 would be 73% better) https://www.videocardbenchmark.net/compare/2843vs2166/GeForce-GTX-745-vs-Radeon-HD-7540D

PS 7010+745 is what I use for my office, and I do even a lot of remote work on client system and its flawless

Thanks again, P.

That is a nice monitor you suggested to me previously, and now I am looking at one with higher resolution, maybe LG 27QN600-B, hoping for better image quality in streaming.

I like your idea of simply getting another PC, such as you recommend here. Yes, there are a few Dell 710s offered with the i7-3770 and comparing the numbers, that
would give me a better PC than possible upgrades of my present machine.

A note: I am simply looking for better quality video streamed to my TV set as well as less sluggishness all around. I can go on living with what I have, but better would be nice after all these yrs.
So thank you guys for taking interest in my petty affair.

Q: What do you mean by "slim GTX..."? Low profile? And I have noticed there are different models of the GTX 745. Some have more ports than others. How do I find out which is supported by the different Dell 710 configurations(mobos)? Or can you recommend a particular one?

 

[The Paladin]

dell 7010 comes in various "sizes case" SFF (slim cases) need a slim video card (mostly speaks of the bracketing to make it fit inside the case)
a 7010 MT for example isn't restricted by space that way...