Should i upgrade my dell inspiron 530s for gaming?

[angelf331]

I've been thinking to upgrade my desktop to gaming pc but i don't know if it's worth upgrading it or just buying one. If anyone can give me any recomendation on what to do? If upgrading is the better and cheaper way to go i would much appreciate if a list of what items to buy is provided. I know nothing about building pc's since i've never built one. I'm looking to spend no more than $250 maybe depending on what that can get me.

I have a Dell Inspiron 530s
- Windows 10 Home
- Processor
- Intel(R) Celeron(R) CPU 440 @ 2.00GHz
- RAM
- 2.00GB
- Hard Drive
- 138 GB

I know this desktop is absolute garbage so i won't bother with other information since i can't find it.

Thanks in advance!

 

[clutchc]

Is that the slimline or the mini tower?
http://www.01net.com/images/produit/full/dell-inspiron-531-d07517-1.jpg

 

[angelf331]

Is that the slimline or the mini tower?
http://www.01net.com/images/produit/full/dell-inspiron-531-d07517-1.jpg

I have the slim one

 

[Karadjgne]

Get new. At 2.0GHz, games will suffer badly. It's dual core is also going to kill performance and being Dell, you'll run into proprietary issues when upgrading anything but the gpu. You'll also need a good amount of ram, which the board doesn't support and the dimms are prohibitively expensive.

It had a good run, but it's time to put it to pasture.

 

[angelf331]

Get new. At 2.0GHz, games will suffer badly. It's dual core is also going to kill performance and being Dell, you'll run into proprietary issues when upgrading anything but the gpu. You'll also need a good amount of ram, which the board doesn't support and the dimms are prohibitively expensive.

It had a good run, but it's time to put it to pasture.

so what do you suggest I do then?

 

[Karadjgne]

That all depends on your budget and ability. You could do anything from buying a decent pc from Walmart, to ordering one from Dell or ibuypower/cyberpower to building one completely by yourself. Walmart etc will be cheaper for ok systems and will include enough to play moderate games, the Dell can be seriously bumped up, but cost, ibuypower / cyberpower have some very decent specials on gaming systems but can really cost, but right in the middle is where you can build yourself a better pc for less than the custom ones. If you are comfortable building it yourself. But budget will be the major determining factor in just how much of a massive leap you'll see between your current pc and the new one. Sorry, but that's bumping elbows with dinosaurs in techy time.

For a decent max 1080p gaming pc (basically the starter kit) you'll be looking at @ US$900-1100. If building completely from scratch. And that can include a decent 1080p monitor and covers just about any scenario. You can cut the budget to little over $700 without monitor but you'll basically downgrade from an i5 to the i3-6100 which can limit production like rendering and bottleneck some highly cpu intensive games. Same systems at ibuypower etc will run $1300-1700 but they are fully built and tested for you. Walmart could get you $500+ for decent, but will struggle with most modern games at high settings.

Gaming systems are not cheap. The harder you want to immerse yourself in that world, the higher the price.

Sorry for the bad news, but trying to bring your current pc upto gaming minimums would be like trying to outfit a go-cart for a Nascar race. Much as it pains me to say this but for your $250, you'd be far better off investing in a console, it'll be the best gaming experience possible for the cheapest price.

 

[clutchc]

Is that the slimline or the mini tower?
http://www.01net.com/images/produit/full/dell-inspiron-531-d07517-1.jpg

I have the slim one

Not really suitable for upgrading to a gamer. Even a low end one.

 

[Susquehannock]

Agree. has no potential.

You may consider a used Dell precision T3500 system. Ones with the 3.2ghz W3565 can be had for $250. Drop in a good card for $150-200 and you're gaming.

See the set up in my signature. Runs great.

 

[angelf331]

That all depends on your budget and ability. You could do anything from buying a decent pc from Walmart, to ordering one from Dell or ibuypower/cyberpower to building one completely by yourself. Walmart etc will be cheaper for ok systems and will include enough to play moderate games, the Dell can be seriously bumped up, but cost, ibuypower / cyberpower have some very decent specials on gaming systems but can really cost, but right in the middle is where you can build yourself a better pc for less than the custom ones. If you are comfortable building it yourself. But budget will be the major determining factor in just how much of a massive leap you'll see between your current pc and the new one. Sorry, but that's bumping elbows with dinosaurs in techy time.

For a decent max 1080p gaming pc (basically the starter kit) you'll be looking at @ US$900-1100. If building completely from scratch. And that can include a decent 1080p monitor and covers just about any scenario. You can cut the budget to little over $700 without monitor but you'll basically downgrade from an i5 to the i3-6100 which can limit production like rendering and bottleneck some highly cpu intensive games. Same systems at ibuypower etc will run $1300-1700 but they are fully built and tested for you. Walmart could get you $500+ for decent, but will struggle with most modern games at high settings.

Gaming systems are not cheap. The harder you want to immerse yourself in that world, the higher the price.

Sorry for the bad news, but trying to bring your current pc upto gaming minimums would be like trying to outfit a go-cart for a Nascar race. Much as it pains me to say this but for your $250, you'd be far better off investing in a console, it'll be the best gaming experience possible for the cheapest price.

Wow thanks for the help! I just plan on playing older games than newer ones since I usually play on console with my friends

 

[angelf331]

Agree. has no potential.

You may consider a used Dell precision T3500 system. Ones with the 3.2ghz W3565 can be had for $250. Drop in a good card for $150-200 and you're gaming.

See the set up in my signature. Runs great.

do you own one?

 

[Susquehannock]

do you own one?

Yes. It came with a Xeon W3565 CPU originally. Updated to the X5687 for extra speed, and to allow my RAM to run 1333mhz.

 

[angelf331]

do you own one?

Yes. It came with a Xeon W3565 CPU originally. Updated to the X5687 for extra speed, and to allow my RAM to run 1333mhz.

Can you send me a link to both? just to make sure I find the exact one

 

[Susquehannock]

Do not know where you are located. If you do not mind Ebay. Here is a complete T3500 with 3.20Ghz CPU, 24Gb of RAM, and Windows 7 for $224 shipped.
http://www.ebay.com/itm/182288978876

Add a 1060 or RX 480 GPU and you have a very competent gaming machine. That is what I did.

Processors:
(note that updating to latest BIOS is required to run the X5687)

W3565
https://ark.intel.com/products/39721/Intel-Xeon-Processor-W3565-8M-Cache-3_20-GHz-4_80-GTs-Intel-QPI
X5687
https://ark.intel.com/products/52578/Intel-Xeon-Processor-X5687-12M-Cache-3_60-GHz-6_40-GTs-Intel-QPI?q=x5687

 

[clutchc]

Speaking of inexpensive old Dell workstations, I have a T3500 also. Xeon W3670, 24GB, and GTX 1060 3GB.
Plays Doom 2016 at 1080p on Ultra at over 100 fps. They do indeed make a decent inexpensive poor-man's-gamer.
https://www.google.com/search?q=dell+precison+t3500&ie=utf-8&oe=utf-8#q=dell+precision+t3500&tbm=shop

 

[Susquehannock]

^^ similar results here. And switching to the Vulkan API really makes this rx 480 zing in Doom.

Started a T3500 thread in another forum. Couple people found some for $54 - free shipping. Lower end CPU of course. Easily rectified with a faster Xeon.

 

[clutchc]

^^ similar results here. And switching to the Vulkan API really makes this rx 480 zing in Doom.

Started a T3500 thread in another forum. Couple people found some for $54 - free shipping. Lower end CPU of course. Easily rectified with a faster Xeon.

The W3670 seems to be nearly on a par with my FX-8350 @ stock clocks. I dropped a SSD in it to go along with the WD Black that came with it. I even moved my GTX 980 to it for a bit for testing. (Had to leave the drive cage down) Picked up a Dell 875W PSU in place of the 525W that comes with it. But I guess I am getting a bit off topic...

 

[angelf331]

Do not know where you are located. If you do not mind Ebay. Here is a complete T3500 with 3.20Ghz CPU, 24Gb of RAM, and Windows 7 for $224 shipped.
http://www.ebay.com/itm/182288978876

Add a 1060 or RX 480 GPU and you have a very competent gaming machine. That is what I did.

Processors:
(note that updating to latest BIOS is required to run the X5687)

W3565
https://ark.intel.com/products/39721/Intel-Xeon-Processor-W3565-8M-Cache-3_20-GHz-4_80-GTs-Intel-QPI
X5687
https://ark.intel.com/products/52578/Intel-Xeon-Processor-X5687-12M-Cache-3_60-GHz-6_40-GTs-Intel-QPI?q=x5687

thanks alot man i appreciate it

do you think it would better to buy a lower end version of the T3500, and upgrade it's processor or no?

 

[Susquehannock]

thanks alot man i appreciate it

do you think it would better to buy a lower end version of the T3500, and upgrade it's processor or no?

Great question.

The T3500 come in many configurations. Most of the cheaper ones may be missing parts, have the older aluminum CPU cooler, and low end processors. Anything below 3Ghz will likely bottleneck the system for gaming.

One reason I chose that particular item for you. Has everything, including a running operating system. You may be able to save money buying a cheaper one, then upgrading parts. More time & effort.

 

[angelf331]

thanks alot man i appreciate it

do you think it would better to buy a lower end version of the T3500, and upgrade it's processor or no?

Great question.

The T3500 come in many configurations. Most of the cheaper ones may be missing parts, have the older aluminum CPU cooler, and low end processors. Anything below 3Ghz will likely bottleneck the system for gaming.

One reason I chose that particular item for you. Has everything, including a running operating system. You may be able to save money buying a cheaper one, then upgrading parts. More time & effort.

I'll most likely end up getting the higher end version since i don't know anything about building pc's.

 

[clutchc]

+1^ Get the highest end version you can afford. But have a sturdy desk/table to put it on. Or the floor. They weigh a ton.