Worth upgrading or ditch?

O

Orvor

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Please can you guys shed some light on the hardware I have and whether its worth upgrading what I can, or replacing with something new.

I have a pc I built in 2006 that still plays older classic games that I enjoy but is definitely struggling with games like stalker and war in the north (which are not even new). So don't laugh here is what I have:

1. CPU: Core I3-2100 @ 3.10Ghz
2. 4mb RAM
3. Nvidia Geforce 7600 GT.

What about upgrading the GPU and CPU - still possible? And what hardware will be compatible to do this with? I though of getting hold of a second hand Geforce 7900GTX card....

Alternatively I have some cash to buy new if need be - I would still like to upgrade as my wife uses this pc for Autocad.

I am no techie so please cut me some slack :)

Regards

R.
 
Orvor said:
I have a pc I built in 2006 that still plays older classic games that I enjoy but is definitely struggling with games like stalker and war in the north (which are not even new). So don't laugh here is what I have:

1. CPU: Core I3-2100 @ 3.10Ghz
2. 4mb RAM
3. Nvidia Geforce 7600 GT.

What about upgrading the GPU and CPU - still possible? And what hardware will be compatible to do this with? I though of getting hold of a second hand Geforce 7900GTX card....
Click to expand...

Upgrading the CPU & GPU could be a cheap alternative to going all out. You could even go with a second hand CPU (they don't fail) and maybe a GPU.

What motherboard do you have, full make & model#?

Also what PSU do you have in case that need upgrading?

Budget?

Upgrading and then later buying new while giving this one to the wife could be an option.
 
Orvor said:
Please can you guys shed some light on the hardware I have and whether its worth upgrading what I can, or replacing with something new.

I have a pc I built in 2006 that still plays older classic games that I enjoy but is definitely struggling with games like stalker and war in the north (which are not even new). So don't laugh here is what I have:

1. CPU: Core I3-2100 @ 3.10Ghz
2. 4mb RAM
3. Nvidia Geforce 7600 GT.

What about upgrading the GPU and CPU - still possible? And what hardware will be compatible to do this with? I though of getting hold of a second hand Geforce 7900GTX card....

Alternatively I have some cash to buy new if need be - I would still like to upgrade as my wife uses this pc for Autocad.

I am no techie so please cut me some slack :)

Regards

R.
Click to expand...

You sure it's an i3?

i3 was released in 2010 and you say you build the pc in 2006..
 
Apologies had a minor upgrade in 2011 due to a fried motherboard. They replaced my AM2 chipset and AMD Core2 4200+ CPU with the Intel Core I3 and compatible motherboard.

Can't tell you what motherboard it is sorry.

So... 3-4 grand on an upgrade and I'm not sure what guarantees I will have in a big enough gain. Other option is 12 grand on a new machine.

Am I going to notice a BIG gain with an upgraded CPU and GPU or should I shell out the 12+ grand to get what I'd like from a place like wootware. This is what I'd like:

CPU: Core I5 4670k 3.4Ghz Haswell
Motherboard: Z87 PRO4 Intel Haswell
GPU: Powercolor AX7950 3GB Radeon
RAM: Gskill F3 1600 C9D 2x8GB

Plus other goodies adds up to approx R12,700. Should pack a big enough punch.
 
Orvor said:
I have some cash to buy new if need be - I would still like to upgrade as my wife uses this pc for Autocad.
Click to expand...

How much cash do you have to spend on a new PC, it will greatly help your wife with Autocad (render time etc)

The 7900GTX is a really really old card and its price VS performance is very bad.

This is what i would go for:

CPU: I5 2/3/4 Gen (2nd Gen runs cooler)
Ram: 8GB Gskill 1600
GPU: GTX 580 or GTX 660
Mobo: If your current mobo supports DDR3 and socket 1155 skip this, Asus P8Z77-M Pro

Note: Please post the details of your PSU.
 
Orvor said:
P
2. 4mb RAM
Click to expand...

???

Anyway, before you go with "Z87 PRO4 Intel Haswell", compare it to the Asus z87 Gryphon motherboard. There is no noticeable performance difference between the 2 motherboards. Will save you a lot of money as well if you went with the Gryphon. And do you need all the extra features on the board that you want?


Or, looking at your old system, I am assuming that is has a 1156 motherboard. Well, just get an Ivy Bridge i5, 7950, 8 gig kingston ram.
 
CamiKaze and Rickster,

You clearly know your stuff! Do you know who could build me a pc down in CPT? Tell me what parts to buy etc. Not fussy about SSD's and bells and whistles. Something I can play any game on and crank up the resolution/detail/textures with room to spare...
 
Orvor said:
Can't tell you what motherboard it is sorry.
Click to expand...

So opening the side cover of the case and reading the details off the MB is to much hassle?

You want help but you are not prepared to answer peoples questions. Take your R12k, walk into a shop and take what they offer you would be my suggestion.
 
ponder said:
So opening the side cover of the case and reading the details off the MB is to much hassle?

You want help but you are not prepared to answer peoples questions.
Click to expand...

I can't tell you as I am not telepathic. I am at work. My pc is at home. Do the maths.
 
Your card is the big problem there. Check for a 250 / 450 Nvidia card.

I built a simlar pc for my wife and added a NVida gtx 460. Its plays all. Other than that throw another 4gb ram into it :)
 
I built a Beast 2 months ago, will tell you later today when I am at home how much it was.

Asus Gryphon Mobo
8Gig Kingston Beast Series Ram running at 1333MHz to enable Intel XMP, must still play around with this.
AMD Sapphire 7950
Kingston 90Gig SSD (Believe me, you would want an SSD)
i5 Haswell 4760k CPU
CoolerMaster sm2 850w PSU

But hey i will update later to give you the exact price.
 
Orvor said:
I can't tell you as I am not telepathic. I am at work. My pc is at home. Do the maths.
Click to expand...

Something along the lines of "At work now, will check tonight when I get home thx" would make a lot more sense than "can't tell you".
 
ponder said:
Something along the lines of "At work now, will check tonight when I get home thx" would make a lot more sense than "can't tell you".
Click to expand...

Apart from the fact that all his posts contain so many factual and technical errors that I am not sure if he wants to upgrade a PC or his dishwasher....but being rude and sn@tty will help his cause on these forums no end, I'm sure.
 
MightyQuin said:
Apart from the fact that all his posts contain so many factual and technical errors that I am not sure if he wants to upgrade a PC or his dishwasher....but being rude and sn@tty will help his cause on these forums no end, I'm sure.
Click to expand...

Some people speak in tongues and getting any info out of them is like pulling teeth, pulling teeth is actually easier :D
 
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