PC - upgrade or replace?

[longbow]

With apologies to the earlier PC topic that I gatecrashed with this post - I have a 2007 era gaming PC that I have progressively upgraded through the years. Original parts are the 2.4GHz Core2 Quad, 4GB RAM, 500GB HDD and Vista ; newer are a GTX260 GPU, 650W PSU and 2 x1TB HDDs with a pair of 22in monitors.

Any thoughts please on the merits of further upgrading with say a new CPU/mobo/SSD/Win7, or should I just call time and buy a shiny new PC?

[Trev123]

Will look at it this way. The money you spend on upgrading your old PC you could of put it to a new PC.

[37114]

Will look at it this way. The money you spend on upgrading your old PC you could of put it to a new PC.

I can't think of a better argument than that. Totally true. There comes a point.

[AndyB1972]

Well this is a subject pretty close to my heart at the moment having just gone through a similar excercise with my circa 2008 PC.

Sounds like I had the same 2.4GHz Quad Core as you (Q6600) - mine was running on an Asus X38 motherboard. I wanted to upgrade CPU and GPU to modern standards but since I had a nice case (Antec 182) and PSU (Hiper Type 'M' 880W) I was keen on the idea of re-using them. I made a few posts on places like Tom's Hardware and OverclockersUK for advice as I hadn't really done any PC building since 2009 and wanted to make sure the PSU and case would still be compatible with modern motherboards. Since they both complied with the current ATX form factor, they were compatible. Only think I was advised to check was the PSU had 2x 6pin PCI/E plugs since this is what most high end graphics card use (it did). I was also concerned about PSU degradation - it is after all nearly 5 years old. I was advised not to worry about it as my PSU was a good quality one that most likely rarely got used beyond 50% of its capacity, based on the spec of my system. My proposed new spec would use even less power.

I bought this M/B, CPU, & RAM bundle:
http://www.overclockers.co.uk/showprodu ... =BU-162-OE

this GPU
http://www.overclockers.co.uk/showprodu ... ubcat=2294
If you're going to game on 2 monitors, you might want to consider a 4GB GPU.

and a SSD for running my O/S and TS2013 (my first experience of one of these - unbelievable!)
http://www.overclockers.co.uk/showprodu ... =HD-162-SA

I finished putting everything back together yesterday, reconnected my old HDDs (Windows 7 OEM license even let me validate on the new M/B, which was a bonus). Hopefully I'll be good for another 3-4 years! At least for the time being I'm enjoying silky-smooth TS2013 on 1920x1080 with highest detail settings and AA at SSAA 2X2.

All in, cost me a shade over £700 - which is probably the cost of a new PC elsewhere. I don't think I would have got a 'complete' PC with the same spec for that price though. I'm not particularly 'green' minded, but I feel good having recycled the case and PSU too.

Cheers,

Andy

[rkk01]

Some good stuff on hardware in the forum at the mo. Watching with interest!

The OCUK Haswell mb CPU ram bundles had caught my eye, but its a lot to spend in one hit...

[FrankJ]

I totally agree with Andy. The problem with most off the shelf PC's is that you have to accept the compromise of one or two of the components that the manufacturer has included to keep their costs down and which you will eventually have to upgrade anyway. I have always built my own Computers (since changing from a BBC micro which in it's self was upgraded beyond recognition) and it is part of the satisfaction one gets from achieving your goals within a limited budget. The sites listed are very good and I have used them in the past but I also recommend Novatech in Portsmouth ( http://www.novatech.co.uk/) as this is local and is great on Price and I can collect from the store)

Good Luck with whatever you decide to do.

[AndyB1972]

The OCUK Haswell mb CPU ram bundles had caught my eye, but its a lot to spend in one hit...

Let's just say the missus doesn't quite know the true cost... I was particularly drawn to that bundle as it's built around the latest LGA1150 socket - which hopefully extends the 'useful' life of the system.

[rkk01]

Let's just say the missus doesn't quite know the true cost...

Ahh, yes - that approach is familiar to me...

I was particularly drawn to that bundle as it's built around the latest LGA1150 socket - which hopefully extends the 'useful' life of the system.

That's the way I have built my PCs in the past. Latest possible motherboard, with a lower spec cpu that can be upgraded as the "latest & greatest" come down in price!

[jimmyshand]

Well this is a subject pretty close to my heart at the moment having just gone through a similar excercise with my circa 2008 PC.

Sounds like I had the same 2.4GHz Quad Core as you (Q6600) - mine was running on an Asus X38 motherboard. I wanted to upgrade CPU and GPU to modern standards but since I had a nice case (Antec 182) and PSU (Hiper Type 'M' 880W) I was keen on the idea of re-using them. I made a few posts on places like Tom's Hardware and OverclockersUK for advice as I hadn't really done any PC building since 2009 and wanted to make sure the PSU and case would still be compatible with modern motherboards. Since they both complied with the current ATX form factor, they were compatible. Only think I was advised to check was the PSU had 2x 6pin PCI/E plugs since this is what most high end graphics card use (it did). I was also concerned about PSU degradation - it is after all nearly 5 years old. I was advised not to worry about it as my PSU was a good quality one that most likely rarely got used beyond 50% of its capacity, based on the spec of my system. My proposed new spec would use even less power.

I bought this M/B, CPU, & RAM bundle:
http://www.overclockers.co.uk/showprodu ... =BU-162-OE

this GPU
http://www.overclockers.co.uk/showprodu ... ubcat=2294
If you're going to game on 2 monitors, you might want to consider a 4GB GPU.

and a SSD for running my O/S and TS2013 (my first experience of one of these - unbelievable!)
http://www.overclockers.co.uk/showprodu ... =HD-162-SA

I finished putting everything back together yesterday, reconnected my old HDDs (Windows 7 OEM license even let me validate on the new M/B, which was a bonus). Hopefully I'll be good for another 3-4 years! At least for the time being I'm enjoying silky-smooth TS2013 on 1920x1080 with highest detail settings and AA at SSAA 2X2.

All in, cost me a shade over £700 - which is probably the cost of a new PC elsewhere. I don't think I would have got a 'complete' PC with the same spec for that price though. I'm not particularly 'green' minded, but I feel good having recycled the case and PSU too.

Cheers,

Andy

I've just bought my new PC from Overclockers. Cost me £800 for a very similar spec machine but I went for a complete 'built by them' rig with new PSU and HDD etc. For the extra hundred quid it was worth it, built and tested by their technicians, all I had to do was switch it on and install Windows 7 from my old disc.

I decided to go with a conventional HDD rather than SSD. I had installed an SSD on my last rig and it completely failed after just over 1 year! I've since read that they don't have a particularly long lifespan and having now had first hand experience of this, I'm steering clear. They are advantageous in terms of loading speeds and boot up times but in-game TS2013, I've not seen any significant difference in performance between an SSD and a standard HDD. A HDD failure is potentially devastating and costly in terms of lost programs and operating system etc so I'm sticking with tried and technology for this part now. I lost my Microsoft Office suite which was installed on the SSD and due to the one-off license, I've now got to buy it again.

[AndyB1972]

Well this is a subject pretty close to my heart at the moment having just gone through a similar excercise with my circa 2008 PC.

Sounds like I had the same 2.4GHz Quad Core as you (Q6600) - mine was running on an Asus X38 motherboard. I wanted to upgrade CPU and GPU to modern standards but since I had a nice case (Antec 182) and PSU (Hiper Type 'M' 880W) I was keen on the idea of re-using them. I made a few posts on places like Tom's Hardware and OverclockersUK for advice as I hadn't really done any PC building since 2009 and wanted to make sure the PSU and case would still be compatible with modern motherboards. Since they both complied with the current ATX form factor, they were compatible. Only think I was advised to check was the PSU had 2x 6pin PCI/E plugs since this is what most high end graphics card use (it did). I was also concerned about PSU degradation - it is after all nearly 5 years old. I was advised not to worry about it as my PSU was a good quality one that most likely rarely got used beyond 50% of its capacity, based on the spec of my system. My proposed new spec would use even less power.

I bought this M/B, CPU, & RAM bundle:
http://www.overclockers.co.uk/showprodu ... =BU-162-OE

this GPU
http://www.overclockers.co.uk/showprodu ... ubcat=2294
If you're going to game on 2 monitors, you might want to consider a 4GB GPU.

and a SSD for running my O/S and TS2013 (my first experience of one of these - unbelievable!)
http://www.overclockers.co.uk/showprodu ... =HD-162-SA

I finished putting everything back together yesterday, reconnected my old HDDs (Windows 7 OEM license even let me validate on the new M/B, which was a bonus). Hopefully I'll be good for another 3-4 years! At least for the time being I'm enjoying silky-smooth TS2013 on 1920x1080 with highest detail settings and AA at SSAA 2X2.

All in, cost me a shade over £700 - which is probably the cost of a new PC elsewhere. I don't think I would have got a 'complete' PC with the same spec for that price though. I'm not particularly 'green' minded, but I feel good having recycled the case and PSU too.

Cheers,

Andy

I've just bought my new PC from Overclockers. Cost me £800 for a very similar spec machine but I went for a complete 'built by them' rig with new PSU and HDD etc. For the extra hundred quid it was worth it, built and tested by their technicians, all I had to do was switch it on and install Windows 7 from my old disc.

I decided to go with a conventional HDD rather than SSD. I had installed an SSD on my last rig and it completely failed after just over 1 year! I've since read that they don't have a particularly long lifespan and having now had first hand experience of this, I'm steering clear. They are advantageous in terms of loading speeds and boot up times but in-game TS2013, I've not seen any significant difference in performance between an SSD and a standard HDD. A HDD failure is potentially devastating and costly in terms of lost programs and operating system etc so I'm sticking with tried and technology for this part now. I lost my Microsoft Office suite which was installed on the SSD and due to the one-off license, I've now got to buy it again.

Fair enough Jimmy, I did consider buying a complete, pre-built system vs modernising my old one but when I checked all the boxes or upgraded to match what I was building myself, the checkout rang at much closer to £1000. Everyone has their own preferences but I'm much happier building my own PCs since the first (and only) time I paid someone to build one for me, I had a very poor experience. It failed twice and had to be returned on both occasions, leaving me without a PC for over a week each time. When it was finally returned the second time, I discovered the so-called technician had permanently damaged one of the case panels after trying to jam it shut before checking the cable routing. Shortly afterwards, the company disappeared, as did my warranty - shortly to be followed by the RAID adapter and all my OC settings. I have no doubt OCUK and others are far more professional than this but I've had my fingers badly burnt. To be honest, I quite enjoyed the project anyway.

I guess I'll find out myself what happens with the SSD - I did read about them potentially failing and performance degradation. To hopefully reduce the chances of this, I've followed a lengthy "SSD optimisation" guide from one of the forums that instructs you to switch off a lot of Windows features that waste SSD space and in some cases are harmful to its longevity. I will only use the SSD for the O/S and TS2013 - family photos etc are stored on HDD. For now anyway, I think it's a fantastic piece of kit and I love how a TS2013 scenario loads up in about 10 seconds instead of anywhere between 30 seconds to a minute like before.

Andy

[Squatch]

You might just about get a steady 60FPS with one of these........

http://www.overclockers.co.uk/LP/8pack_supernova.php

[adburgess1992]

http://uk.pcpartpicker.com/b/Fnx

Not a specific build but something similar or cheaper to this will do pretty much everything these days.

If i had the time i would have picked the parts out for you but I was to lazy so I just looked up a completed one.

But with some cuts here and there could probably get one for around a good mid to high end one for £600+ just depends what you want really.

[rededge]

You might just about get a steady 60FPS with one of these........

http://www.overclockers.co.uk/LP/8pack_supernova.php

I wonder how many they've sold?

[Squatch]

Have you seen the size of the thing in the Youtube video. There'd be no hiding that from the missus........

[rkk01]

There'd be no hiding that from the missus........

Might have to pass on that one then...