Old spare parts

[TheAssistant]

If upgrading components in the pc, what do you do with the old ones?
I mean Mainboards, CPU, Graphic cards, memory, etc...

 

[Lutfij]

I tend to box them up in their package and hold them for posterities sake, if they are worth any emotional/milestone(ish) value. If not and the question of funds comes in, I tend to sell them off on a e-marketplace or with the aid of a friend who works at the computer store.

It's not a bad idea to hold onto parts for troubleshooting sake. It also helps to hold onto some parts, if you want to start a PC repair business.

 

[CountMike]

Depends which and how old they are. If possible and not very old I try to put together a PC and give it to somebody dear. My turnaround is 2-3 years.

 

[USAFRet]

Sell
Repurpose into something else
Build up a new system and gift it to someone

Eventually, though...electronics recycling.
I have a knee high stack of old laptops in the garage, awaiting their demise.

 

[TheAssistant]

The parts are still good, but I don't think I can sell it. I could give the whole PC to someone and get myself a new tower, but I actually like my tower and would rather just replace the parts who are old. In my case motherboard, CPU and maybe RAM. I want to get Windows Pro 11 ready, since I get pestered that support will end soon.

 

[USAFRet]

The parts are still good, but I don't think I can sell it. I could give the whole PC to someone and get myself a new tower, but I actually like my tower and would rather just replace the parts who are old. In my case motherboard, CPU and maybe RAM. I want to get Windows Pro 11 ready, since I get pestered that support will end soon.

Now 2 years later?

You're building a whole new PC, except for the case.

 

[TheAssistant]

... plus 2 years later. I got sidetracked and never did my upgrade. Now it's time to seriously think about it again. My tower is a midi tower I think, the mainboard is a Z97-P, so I think that needs replaced as well as the CPU and the RAM.

It's really difficult to make the right decision - new PC or just replacing the outdated parts...

 

[DSzymborski]

... plus 2 years later. I got sidetracked and never did my upgrade. Now it's time to seriously think about it again. My tower is a midi tower I think, the mainboard is a Z97-P, so I think that needs replaced as well as the CPU and the RAM.

It's really difficult to make the right decision - new PC or just replacing the outdated parts...

I mean, it's even easier now since the PC is now 10 years old instead of eight. A 10-year-old GPU is probably inadequate and almost every power supply is EOL after 10 years. And, of course, you've only just told us the motherboard's chipset. At the rate we're being informed of the parts, we may be able to give you specific recommendations sometime around the year 2040.

 

[USAFRet]

... plus 2 years later. I got sidetracked and never did my upgrade. Now it's time to seriously think about it again. My tower is a midi tower I think, the mainboard is a Z97-P, so I think that needs replaced as well as the CPU and the RAM.

It's really difficult to make the right decision - new PC or just replacing the outdated parts...

Replacing the outdated parts IS a new PC (minus the case)

There is pretty much nothing compatible with a Z97 board that is also compatible with anything worthy of the term "upgrade".

CPU/RAM/motherboard.
Probably GPU.
PSU if it is of the same age as the Z97 motherboard.

How are you fixed for storage devices? Maybe an upgrade there as well.

 

[TheAssistant]

@DSzymborski: 2040 okay I take that point.

@USAFRet: Let me list what I have. I could send you a screenshot of my syteminfo, but some stuff is in German and I am not sure if you speak that language.

- Z97-P motherboard
- Intel Core i5-4690K CPU 3.50 GHz
- 16 GB RAM
- 250 SSD for OS
- 2 TB SATA HDD for files
- HL-DT-ST BD-RE BH16NS40
- Sound onBoard
- NVIDIA Quadro NVS 295 with additional DP card to attach 2 monitors
- Network onBoard with additional WiFi card

I also still have a Floppy drive, but it's not working although it's correctly connected and should work. I was thinking if there is an option to keep it, but I already hear you laughing.

I would like Bluetooth/USB-C on my new one.

Can you do something with that? I was thinking of a budget of around £1500.

 

[DSzymborski]

Ich spreche mittelmäßiges Deutsch.

Sorry for the joke, but sometimes it's the best way to get an answer that moves forward a conversation!

I'm going to assume a PSU will need to be replaced. What case do you have? One this old *could* still be useful, though the front USB ports may be an issue. What do you use this PC for? If you're not gaming and don't need a high-end GPU, you can come in way below this budget.

 

[USAFRet]

@DSzymborski: 2040 okay I take that point.

@USAFRet: Let me list what I have. I could send you a screenshot of my syteminfo, but some stuff is in German and I am not sure if you speak that language.

- Z97-P motherboard
- Intel Core i5-4690K CPU 3.50 GHz
- 16 GB RAM
- 250 SSD for OS
- 2 TB SATA HDD for files
- HL-DT-ST BD-RE BH16NS40
- Sound onBoard
- NVIDIA Quadro NVS 295 with additional DP card to attach 2 monitors
- Network onBoard with additional WiFi card

I also still have a Floppy drive, but it's not working although it's correctly connected and should work. I was thinking if there is an option to keep it, but I already hear you laughing.

I would like Bluetooth/USB-C on my new one.

Can you do something with that? I was thinking of a budget of around £1500.

Start here:

*How to Ask for New Build or Upgrade Advice*

How to Ask for New Build or Upgrade Advice First off, respect where respect is due - this is an adaptation of the Animal's *How To Ask For New Build Advice* Sticky. I created this because there's a lot of posts nowadays asking for upgrade advice both on here and on the CPU forums, and I feel...

forums.tomshardware.com

Post in the Systems forum, and people will be along to recommend a parts list.
£1500 is indeed a whole new PC.

 

[TheAssistant]

The PSU was replaced about 2 years ago. But it's a box standard, nothing special.
I use it for Adobe Illustrator, Office stuff, some podcast and YouTube. No big gaming etc.

 

[JeffreyP55]

If upgrading components in the pc, what do you do with the old ones?
I mean Mainboards, CPU, Graphic cards, memory, etc...

I use to use old parts to build PC's for my wife's assisted living home. TPM 2.0 killed the future of cheap dates for residents.

 

[DSzymborski]

The PSU was replaced about 2 years ago. But it's a box standard, nothing special.
I use it for Adobe Illustrator, Office stuff, some podcast and YouTube. No big gaming etc.

I gotta be honest, I'm not sure you need any upgrade for this. What are you unable to do now that you would be able to with an upgrade? If performance is more sluggish than it used to be, then you may simply be overdue for a wipe-and-reinstall of the OS drive.

 

[hotaru.hino]

If upgrading components in the pc, what do you do with the old ones?
I mean Mainboards, CPU, Graphic cards, memory, etc...

The only hardware I upgrade piecemeal is video cards, though I've done a CPU upgrade once. If I feel like I need to upgrade my CPU, I just build a new system. Why?

A video card by itself tends to be in higher demand, especially if it was a higher end one. But I find it much easier to sell a whole computer system than trying to sell individual components from the old computer. The CPU upgrade I did had a cascading effect though: It was a Ryzen 7 3800X to a Ryzen 5 5600X (for my use-cases, yes this was considered an upgrade), but I still had my then-previous build which had a Ryzen 2700X. So I upgraded that build then sold the 2700X on eBay.

Other than that I tend to keep old storage drives and turn them into external drives.

 

[TheAssistant]

I gotta be honest, I'm not sure you need any upgrade for this. What are you unable to do now that you would be able to with an upgrade? If performance is more sluggish than it used to be, then you may simply be overdue for a wipe-and-reinstall of the OS drive.

You are right actually. It's just the OS upgrade I would like and the option to add 1 or 2 more monitors. Since Microsoft extended the support for Windows 10 up to 2025 or even 2030 I don't need the upgrade. And when it comes to the additional monitor option, I can just update the graphics card.

Means, I will most likely wait for another 2 years, before I replace my PC.