[SOLVED] I'm going to upgrade my PC and I need to know what parts are compatible with my motherboard

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Khalil4life

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Hello everyone, so my motherboard is Jetway MI5-G41SGMD3-LF and I'm going to buy new PC parts to replace my current old and weak ones to make my PC better at gaming, my main focus is RAM, Graphics Card and CPU and my budget is around 200 USD to 150 USD (I'm going to buy mostly used parts).
My goal is to have at least 8GB of RAM and a decent graphics card and CPU that can at least play most recent video games, it doesn't have to be ultra graphics and I'm totally fine with putting everything on low.

So I was wondering about what kind of RAM should I get ? and what specific frequency ? also can I install just one stick of 8GB of RAM or do I have to install 2 4GB sticks ? is there anything else I need to know before buying RAM ?

I'm also wondering about what CPU should I have, currently I have Intel Pentium Dual Core E5700 and I'm totally fine with it since it can play most of the recent video games even it's not the best at it but I saw used CPUs for sale for a really good price and so I'm thinking of buying a better one than my current CPU, so which one of these CPUs are compatible with my motherboard and which one of them is the best :
  • Intel Core i5-650
  • Intel Core i3-3220
  • Intel Core 2 Quad Processor Q8300
  • Intel Core 2 Duo Processor E8400
  • Intel Core i3-3110M
  • Intel Pentium Processor E2180
  • Intel Pentium Processor G3220
  • Xeon E5504 : 2.00GHz/4Mc/4.80
  • Xeon E5540 : 2.00GHz/4Mc/4.80
  • Xeon E5506 : 2.13GHz/4Mc/4.80
  • Xeon E5606 : 2.13GHz/4Mc/4.80
  • Xeon E3110 : 3.00GHz/6Mc/1333
  • Xeon E5520 : 2.26GHz/8Mc/5.86
  • Xeon E562 : 2.40GHz/12Mc/5.86
  • Xeon X3440 : 2.53GHz/8Mc
  • Xeon E5335 : 2.00GHz/8Mc/1333
  • Xeon L5420 : 2.50GHz/12Mc/1333
  • Xeon 5140 : 2.33GHz/4Mc/1333
 
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DSzymborski

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The Q8300 will likely perform better on games that require a lot of cores, the E8400 on more single-threaded games.

I would advise you to keep your expectations realistic when it comes to new games. These were midrange CPUs...when they were released, 12 years ago. You would still be below the minimums for many recent games.
 
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Khalil4life

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The Q8300 will likely perform better on games that require a lot of cores, the E8400 on more single-threaded games.

I would advise you to keep your expectations realistic when it comes to new games. These were midrange CPUs...when they were released, 12 years ago. You would still be below the minimums for many recent games.

Yeah, I'm trying to be realistic and acceptable of any result I can get, my biggest problem is the motherboard but If I upgrade it enough I would at least manage to wait for few years until I get enough money to buy a new and way better motherboard.
Anyways, I guess I will buy the Core 2 Quad then, thank you very much.
 

mickrc3

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Isn't the Jetway a motherboard found in HP or Compaq desktops? If you have one of those then you will find that the power supply will bottleneck you as well. Most decent power supplies won't fit in one of those cases so you can't expect to be able to put a power-hungry video card in them. If you need a better system for the short term look at used ones sold by Newegg or Tigerdirect. You would be surprised at what you can get for a few hundred.
 
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Khalil4life

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Isn't the Jetway a motherboard found in HP or Compaq desktops? If you have one of those then you will find that the power supply will bottleneck you as well. Most decent power supplies won't fit in one of those cases so you can't expect to be able to put a power-hungry video card in them. If you need a better system for the short term look at used ones sold by Newegg or Tigerdirect. You would be surprised at what you can get for a few hundred.

No, my desktop PC is a built one, it's not made by HP or Compaq and I bought it used, that's why I had trouble finding out what motherboard I have in the first place.

I checked out the power supply and I think it had something around 440 watts so I'm pretty sure that it can handle the new parts I'm gonna get, my friend's PC had a processor that is Intel core i3 I think and 4GB of RAM and an Nvidia Geforce GT 630 2GB and his power supply was 220 watts I think, so that's why I think my power supply won't be an issue.

Thanks for your suggestion though, I will consider selling my PC if I can't upgrade it and adding the money to the budget I have and follow your suggestion.
 

mickrc3

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That motherboard supports only DDR3 1066. Current US prices show 8Gb (2x4Gb) at $35-$40 (new). The motherboard may or may not allow that in a single DIMM. You are better off with two 4Gb sticks of matched RAM as the motherboard supports dual-channel memory access.
 
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DSzymborski

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Yeah, if I was trying to build a basic, ultra-budget gaming PC and, I'd probably buy something like this refurbished PC:

https://www.newegg.com/p/1VK-0001-0HNG6?Item=9SIA8WV95Z4568&quicklink=true

That's $130. Slap in a used 1050 Ti that doesn't require a supplementary power connector and away you go.

As for the power supply, decisions need to based on the specs it has, not the specs you think it has. The power supply either has 440W of maximum output or it doesn't; if you only think it's 440W, you need to confirm it so that you know.
 
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mickrc3

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No, my desktop PC is a built one, it's not made by HP or Compaq and I bought it used, that's why I had trouble finding out what motherboard I have in the first place.

I checked out the power supply and I think it had something around 440 watts so I'm pretty sure that it can handle the new parts I'm gonna get, my friend's PC had a processor that is Intel core i3 I think and 4GB of RAM and an Nvidia Geforce GT 630 2GB and his power supply was 220 watts I think, so that's why I think my power supply won't be an issue.

Actually, Jetway makes most of their motherboards for mass-market PCs. Only a few trickle down into DIY systems. I've fixed a few Gateway and Compaq systems with Jetway motherboards long ago. Compaq mostly used MSI boards in the mid-2000s.
 
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Khalil4life

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That motherboard supports only DDR3 1066. Current US prices show 8Gb (2x4Gb) at $35-$40 (new). The motherboard may or may not allow that in a single DIMM. You are better off with two 4Gb sticks of matched RAM as the motherboard supports dual-channel memory access.

Yeah, I wanted to be safe and already planned on getting 2 4GB sticks but is it okay if the stick have a higher frequency ? I googled about it and I found that it will work but not at that high frequency and only at the frequency that the motherboard supports.
 

Khalil4life

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Yeah, if I was trying to build a basic, ultra-budget gaming PC and, I'd probably buy something like this refurbished PC:

https://www.newegg.com/p/1VK-0001-0HNG6?Item=9SIA8WV95Z4568&quicklink=true

That's $130. Slap in a used 1050 Ti that doesn't require a supplementary power connector and away you go.

As for the power supply, decisions need to based on the specs it has, not the specs you think it has. The power supply either has 440W of maximum output or it doesn't; if you only think it's 440W, you need to confirm it so that you know.

The power supply is 450 watt, I just took a look at it now, here is a picture of it : View: https://imgur.com/a/z1sdmTR
 

Khalil4life

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Actually, Jetway makes most of their motherboards for mass-market PCs. Only a few trickle down into DIY systems. I've fixed a few Gateway and Compaq systems with Jetway motherboards long ago. Compaq mostly used MSI boards in the mid-2000s.

I guess I'm one of those few, the only thing I can get about my PC is that on the case it's written Qmax and they sell PCs in my country but I have taken a look at their websites and I didn't find anything that is similar to what I have, when I boot my PC it says ES35D series before the logo of American Megatrends appears and I have also made some googling about ES35D and it's the same result, nothing similar to the PC I have, so I guess the guy I bought from built the PC, I bought it 8 or 6 years ago.
 
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