[SOLVED] To Upgrade a 2013 PC or Build New?

chankey007

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Hello guys,

I built my first PC in Dec, 2013. Below is the config:
  • CPU: FX-8350
  • Cooler: Hyper 212X
  • GPU: Sapphire R7 370 (2GB)
  • MOBO: Asrock 990FX Xtreme4
  • PSU: Corsair VS550
  • RAM: Corsair Vengeance 8GB DDR3
  • Case: Cooler Master K281
It has been about 6 years now and most of the parts are available at lesser price than I had paid back then.

I am thinking to sell these parts at 30-40% of the current market price and rebuild the PC so that I can get fresh parts (with warranty) and perhaps improve GPU, PSU, Case and RAM. The reason I want to sell them ASAP is because I think they will die anytime now.

I don't play games anymore, too busy with office work and personal life. I would like to use this PC for watching movies (on HD 1080 monitor), programming, create some videos for YouTube and connect to office PC via Citrix. Therefore I would like this new/upgraded build to last another 5~6 years.

What do you guys think?
 
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The system is getting unstable now a days, frequently freezes up. I have to reset RAM and do some random things in order to start it again. It happened 2 days ago and now it doesn't boot. Tried resetting CPU and other parts. Cannot figure out the problem. I sold the PSU yesterday, will sell rest of the items now and start building a new budget PC.

I live in India and my budget is around 50000 INR (about 700 USD)

Hi again, I will drop a list here. Keep in mind that for what you said this PC is for, I listed a very, very, very good one, and it should be a huge update over your old build:

The idea was to make a PC future proof, so you will have a 6 cores / 12 threads CPU which you can update later on for any of the Ryzen 3xxx or...
Hello guys,

I built my first PC in Dec, 2013. Below is the config:
  • CPU: FX-8350
  • Cooler: Hyper 212X
  • GPU: Sapphire R7 370 (2GB)
  • MOBO: Asrock 990FX Xtreme4
  • PSU: Corsair VS550
  • RAM: Corsair Vengeance 8GB DDR3
  • Case: Cooler Master K281
It has been about 6 years now and most of the parts are available at lesser price than I had paid back then.

I am thinking to sell these parts at 30-40% of the current market price and rebuild the PC so that I can get fresh parts (with warranty) and perhaps improve GPU, PSU, Case and RAM. The reason I want to sell them ASAP is because I think they will die anytime now.

I don't play games anymore, too busy with office work and personal life. I would like to use this PC for watching movies (on HD 1080 monitor), create some videos for YouTube and connect to office PC via Citrix. Therefore I would like this new/upgraded build to last another 5~6 years.

What do you guys think?
Well, if 16GB of RAM and an SSD wouldn't be enough, than there's not much more you can do with that system.
You can still do all those things with it albeit slower.
 

chankey007

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Well, if 16GB of RAM and an SSD wouldn't be enough, than there's not much more you can do with that system.
You can still do all those things with it albeit slower.
Which components would you still recommend to replace? For eg the case is very bad, I will definitely get a new case. Other components will die anytime so should I get the same model or something else that you'd recommend?
 

chankey007

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For anything more than what I sugested, you would need to build whole new system. Now it all rests with your budget.
You mean all of the components that I mentioned cannot be reused in a new build (for the usecase that I mentioned)?
watching movies (on HD 1080 monitor), programming, create some videos for YouTube and connect to office PC via Citrix
 
I imagine that the current pc will do the minimal job that needs to be done.
I would not spend a dime on anything that you can not carry forward to a new build.

If you think your pc is about to fail, that is a good reason to get rid of it.
But, do not expect to get anything worthwhile for it.

A pc will often fetch more if it is disassembled and the parts sold individually.
That is because it is unlikely that a buyer will want exactly the same pc.
Find your parts in used condition on ebay.
Then filter on completed auctions,
In green you will see what the part actually sold for.

If you can sell the whole thing locally, do so.
Cases are heavy and shipping costs will eat you up if you sell online.


I would not want to be a long term holder of any of your parts.
The corsair VS units are not considered as good quality.

If you want an upgrade, buy a SSD. Make it large enough to be used in a future build.
 
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As others said, you already need to change CPU, Mobo and RAM, it wont hurt to also change the PSU thats was used since 2013 and mayeb add an SSD to the combo too.

The GPU is ok for working.

But not having a budget and not knowing where you live its a little difficult to make a part list.
 

chankey007

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As others said, you already need to change CPU, Mobo and RAM, it wont hurt to also change the PSU thats was used since 2013 and mayeb add an SSD to the combo too.

The GPU is ok for working.

But not having a budget and not knowing where you live its a little difficult to make a part list.
The system is getting unstable now a days, frequently freezes up. I have to reset RAM and do some random things in order to start it again. It happened 2 days ago and now it doesn't boot. Tried resetting CPU and other parts. Cannot figure out the problem. I sold the PSU yesterday, will sell rest of the items now and start building a new budget PC.

I live in India and my budget is around 50000 INR (about 700 USD)
 

chankey007

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I imagine that the current pc will do the minimal job that needs to be done.
I would not spend a dime on anything that you can not carry forward to a new build.

If you think your pc is about to fail, that is a good reason to get rid of it.
But, do not expect to get anything worthwhile for it.

A pc will often fetch more if it is disassembled and the parts sold individually.
That is because it is unlikely that a buyer will want exactly the same pc.
Find your parts in used condition on ebay.
Then filter on completed auctions,
In green you will see what the part actually sold for.

If you can sell the whole thing locally, do so.
Cases are heavy and shipping costs will eat you up if you sell online.


I would not want to be a long term holder of any of your parts.
The corsair VS units are not considered as good quality.

If you want an upgrade, buy a SSD. Make it large enough to be used in a future build.
I sold the PSU yesterday, will sell rest of the items now and start building a new budget PC.
 
The system is getting unstable now a days, frequently freezes up. I have to reset RAM and do some random things in order to start it again. It happened 2 days ago and now it doesn't boot. Tried resetting CPU and other parts. Cannot figure out the problem. I sold the PSU yesterday, will sell rest of the items now and start building a new budget PC.

I live in India and my budget is around 50000 INR (about 700 USD)

Hi again, I will drop a list here. Keep in mind that for what you said this PC is for, I listed a very, very, very good one, and it should be a huge update over your old build:

The idea was to make a PC future proof, so you will have a 6 cores / 12 threads CPU which you can update later on for any of the Ryzen 3xxx or nexts years 4xxx if need it. It adds 16 GB DDR 3200MHz of RAM in dual channel for faster performance with Ryzen CPUs and 2 SATA SSD, so you can instal Windows and programs on the 250GB one and then use the 500GB to put your personal data, videos, music, etc.

You could make a cheaper version by going with Ryzen 5 1600 (first gen Ryzen with 6 cores/12 threads) or the Ryzen 5 2400G (4cores/8threads with integrated GPU) and/or maybe picking one 250 GB SSD or 512GB or a combination of an SSD + 1 TB HDD (like a Western Digital Caviar Blue for example).

PCPartPicker Part List

CPU: AMD Ryzen 5 2600 3.4 GHz 6-Core Processor (₹13002.00 @ Newegg India)
Motherboard: ASRock B450 Pro4 ATX AM4 Motherboard (₹9750.00 @ Amazon India)
Memory: G.Skill Ripjaws V Series 16 GB (2 x 8 GB) DDR4-3200 Memory (₹7542.00 @ Amazon India)
Storage: Crucial MX500 250 GB 2.5" Solid State Drive (₹3457.00 @ Amazon India)
Storage: Crucial MX500 500 GB 2.5" Solid State Drive (₹5050.00 @ Amazon India)
Power Supply: Corsair CXM 550 W 80+ Bronze Certified Semi-modular ATX Power Supply (₹8894.00 @ Newegg India)
Total: ₹47695.00
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2019-11-25 17:40 IST+0530


Cheers!
 
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chankey007

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Feb 22, 2010
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Hi again, I will drop a list here. Keep in mind that for what you said this PC is for, I listed a very, very, very good one, and it should be a huge update over your old build:

The idea was to make a PC future proof, so you will have a 6 cores / 12 threads CPU which you can update later on for any of the Ryzen 3xxx or nexts years 4xxx if need it. It adds 16 GB DDR 3200MHz of RAM in dual channel for faster performance with Ryzen CPUs and 2 SATA SSD, so you can instal Windows and programs on the 250GB one and then use the 500GB to put your personal data, videos, music, etc.

You could make a cheaper version by going with Ryzen 5 1600 (first gen Ryzen with 6 cores/12 threads) or the Ryzen 5 2400G (4cores/8threads with integrated GPU) and/or maybe picking one 250 GB SSD or 512GB or a combination of an SSD + 1 TB HDD (like a Western Digital Caviar Blue for example).

PCPartPicker Part List

CPU: AMD Ryzen 5 2600 3.4 GHz 6-Core Processor (₹13002.00 @ Newegg India)
Motherboard: ASRock B450 Pro4 ATX AM4 Motherboard (₹9750.00 @ Amazon India)
Memory: G.Skill Ripjaws V Series 16 GB (2 x 8 GB) DDR4-3200 Memory (₹7542.00 @ Amazon India)
Storage: Crucial MX500 250 GB 2.5" Solid State Drive (₹3457.00 @ Amazon India)
Storage: Crucial MX500 500 GB 2.5" Solid State Drive (₹5050.00 @ Amazon India)
Power Supply: Corsair CXM 550 W 80+ Bronze Certified Semi-modular ATX Power Supply (₹8894.00 @ Newegg India)
Total: ₹47695.00
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2019-11-25 17:40 IST+0530


Cheers!
Thank you so much. Your list is very helpful. All parts look good. I don't think I need SSDs. I have 1TB HDD. I will use that. Do you think not using a SSD will cause any bottleneck for CPU/GPU?

I'm still confused about the CPU, whether to buy 1600 or 2600? I can afford 2600 but 1600 also looks good.

I have a spare GPU from old build (Sapphire R7 370 2GB). I'll use that for a couple of months until I really want to start gaming again. If I restart gaming, I'll probably buy a 6/8GB GPU in future.

Do you think my old case (Cooler Master K281) can be resued for this new build?

Regarding PSU: The PSU that you mentioned is not available in India. Can I use this one instead (to avoid the shipping fee?) https://mdcomputers.in/antec-ne-550m.html
 

chankey007

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At minimum, it would be CPU, MB and RAM. GPU would do for elementary things only and your PSU is not of best quality either. Case you say you would change anyway so that leaves only HDD eventually but only for storage, SSD is practically a necessity nowadays.
What do you think of below list?


Spare parts:

  • GPU: R7 370 2GB
  • Case: K281
  • HDD: Western Digital Blue 1TB

Do you think I should get a new case?
 
As for the SSD, no they will not bottleneck the CPU and GPU, but it will help on with system responsiveness.

The R5 1600 and 2600 are indeed pretty close in performance. If the savings are important yeah go with the 1600, if not I would choose the 2600. Any of those will be an upgrade over the FX-8350.

The case is fine, don't worry about it.

The Antec PSU is not bad, not the greatest either, but is not bad for the componentes youre going to use with. But I would pick a 620W~650W PSU if you plan to upgrade the GPU to some powerhungry beast like the Radeon RX580.
 

chankey007

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As for the SSD, no they will not bottleneck the CPU and GPU, but it will help on with system responsiveness.

The R5 1600 and 2600 are indeed pretty close in performance. If the savings are important yeah go with the 1600, if not I would choose the 2600. Any of those will be an upgrade over the FX-8350.

The case is fine, don't worry about it.

The Antec PSU is not bad, not the greatest either, but is not bad for the componentes youre going to use with. But I would pick a 620W~650W PSU if you plan to upgrade the GPU to some powerhungry beast like the Radeon RX580.
Thanks again. BTW the motherboard Asrock B450 Pro4 will only support Ryzen 1x and 2x, is it? What if after some years I want to upgrade to let's say 3600 or something new?
 

chankey007

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The Asrock B450 does support Ryzen 3xxx,like the Ryzen 3600 or 3700X.
It will probably support Ryzen 4xxx If Asrock keep Bios updates when it launch next year.
Thanks. I see that the price diff between 1600 and 2600 is same as between 2600 and 3600 in my country. I can afford 3600 if I increase my budget a little bit. Should I do that? That way I'll have all the best parts, except GPU which I can upgrade later.

If I go with 3600, should I use the same Mobo (Asrock B450 Pro4)? Also, will my current 2GB GPU work fine with 3600?
 
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That Asrock Mobo should be able to handle the R5 3600 without issues. I run my R5 3600 on a Gigabyte B450 Gaming X ("huge" name but its really an entry level B450 mobo with a basic VRM design).

Your current GPU will work fine with any CPU you choose since is PCI-E, keep in mind that no matter what CPU you choose (Ryzen 5 1600, 2600 or 3600), you wont see a huge performance diference.
 
Are you sure? I noticed on techspot's benchmark that 3600 is 45% faster than 1600 and 28% faster than 2600.

lol you quoted only 1 part of the sentence: "Your current GPU will work fine with any CPU you choose since is PCI-E, keep in mind that no matter what CPU you choose (Ryzen 5 1600, 2600 or 3600), you wont see a huge performance diference."

So to be clear, even the R5 1600 will be able to extract all the power your current GPU can deliver.


Now, in the furture, if you change your GPU later on, yeah the R5 3600 will be the one that will give you the best FPS.
 

chankey007

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lol you quoted only 1 part of the sentence: "Your current GPU will work fine with any CPU you choose since is PCI-E, keep in mind that no matter what CPU you choose (Ryzen 5 1600, 2600 or 3600), you wont see a huge performance diference."

So to be clear, even the R5 1600 will be able to extract all the power your current GPU can deliver.


Now, in the furture, if you change your GPU later on, yeah the R5 3600 will be the one that will give you the best FPS.
Oh I see. Yes I do plan to upgrade my GPU in future, will probably get 1660ti.
 
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chankey007

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One of my friend who lives in Texas is coming to India next month. I have made a list of below items which I can ask her to order for me.
Do you think below items are compatible? These products are about 50% cheaper in US than India.

Also 3600 is 194$ whereas 3600X is 199$. Which one to buy?
 
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One of my friend who lives in Texas is coming to India next month. I have made a list of below items which I can ask her to order for me.
Do you think below items are compatible? These products are about 50% cheaper in US than India.

Also 3600 is 194$ whereas 3600X is 199$. Which one to buy?


All of those can work togheter, as long as you get atleast a B450 AM4 socket motherboard* to conect them all (like those we already mention).

As for the cpu choice, if its only +5$ go with the R5 3600X, it comes with a much better stock cooler.

* Keep in mind that you need a motherboard with a BIOS that suppot 3rd gen Ryzen out of the box, like the MSI B450 Tomahawk MAX. Or you need to ask the seller to update the BIOS before sending the motherboard to you. Also there are some motherboards that support BIOS flashback, which can be used to update BIOS without having a CPU installed:
 
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