Need help planning an upgrade/eventual replacement of old PC

Jan 29, 2019
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Hi,
I'm hoping to get some advice on some upgrades that I am planning over the next couple weeks.
Here's what we're working with (try not to laugh):
Intel Core i5 650 @ 3.2 (...yeah...)
Acer H57M01
8gb DDR3@1.3
Zotex GTX 950 2gb
Samsung 850 Evo 250Gb
Seagate Barracuda 500gb
Power Supply 80+ Bronze, 500w peak, 360 on 12v rails
Windows 10 Home 64

Here's the why: My kids are using my PS4 all the time. I don't want to buy another PS4, so I need to cheaply turn this PC from terrible to not terrible so I can play racing sims and stuff on it. Right now I'm mostly just playing Farming Simulator 19 and Spintires Mudrunner on the PC.

Here's the plan:
Step 1 - Ryzen 5 2600X + B450 + 8gb DDR4 3000 for a start
Hoping this will make a difference in what I'm playing now. Maybe enough to run iRacing at a playable level?
Step 2 - Upgrade PS and GPU (Thinking something like a 1080 or 2070?) to be able to start dialing up settings. Maybe VR stuff if the system will handle it? (I'm trying to buy adoration from my kids)


I realize I don't have much storage, but that's not something I really need help with since if I need a bigger drive I'll just go buy a bigger drive.

Here are my main questions:
-I need a new monitor (working with 2x 1680x1050 monitors that are about 10 years old...), and I need one big enough for racing games (30" minimum). Do I buy a 60hz for now then upgrade along with the new GPU, or would I be better off just using the crap I've got now and buying a 32" 144hz when budget allows?

-Am I putting the cart before the horse by tying a 2600X to this old GTX 950? Am I going to see any benefits from that upgrade at all on games, or am I better off waiting and collecting parts until I can get all the hardware together and just do it all at once?

-Is there a obviously better way to do this?

-Will I need to buy a copy of Windows 10? I bought the PC 2nd hand a couple years ago for $180 (without the GPU), and I don't believe I have any of the product keys or numbers or anything else that you're supposed to hang onto.

I do not know much about PC's, so I'm trying to figure this stuff out on my own, but I think I'm at a point where I could use some input.
I've got a few hundred bucks to work with at the moment, but if there's nothing productive to be done with it, I'd appreciate your advice on where to go from here.

 
If you need it now, you're smart to wait on the GPU since the remainder of the 2.5 year old stalwarts are being phased out in the next couple months.

Upgrade to a 32" 1440p 144Hz FreeSync monitor when you get a new GPU.

Your CPU+mobo+RAM is right on target.