Should I upgrade this old computer or get a new one?

niguelshores · Jun 21, 2013

Hi All,

My buddy is going to give me his old gaming computer since he just bought a new one. I was wondering if I could just update some of the parts to make it more current or if I should just get a new computer.

I am thinking of more memory, new video card and windows 64 bit.

Is this an ok thing to do, or should I just get a new one?

I have funds available to buy a new computer, but this seems like a cheaper way out since he is giving me something to work with.

Here is a list of what is inside the computer.

ANTEC, Nine Hundred Black Mid-Tower Case, ATX, No PSU

OCZ, GameXStream 700W Power Supply, 24-pin ATX EPS12V, SLI Ready

eVGA, nForce 680i SLI 775 A1, LGA775, nForce 680i SLI, 1333MHz FSB, DDR2-1200 8GB /4, PCIe x16 SLI, SATA 3Gb/s /6, HDA, Gb LAN /2, FW, ATX

INTEL, Core™ 2 Duo Q6600 Quad-Core (SLACR G0 stepping), 2.4GHz, 1066MHz FSB, 8MB (2 x 4MB) L2 Cache, 65nm, 95W, EM64T EIST VT XD

ZALMAN, CNPS9700 Copper CPU Cooler, Socket LGA775/AMD754/939/940/AM2, Blue LED

CORSAIR, 2GB (2 x 1GB) XMS2 Xtreme PC2-6400 DDR2 800MHz CL4 (4-4-4-12) SDRAM 240-pin DIMM, Non-ECC, w/ Heat Spreader

eVGA, e-GeForce 8800 GTS Superclocked 576MHz, 640MB GDDR3 1700MHz, PCIe x16 SLI, 2x DVI, HDTV/S-Video Out

WESTERN DIGITAL, 500GB WD Caviar® SE16 (WD5000AAKS), SATA II 300MB/s, 7200-RPM, 16MB cache

SONY, CRX320EE Black 52x32x52-16A DVD-ROM/CD-RW Combo Drive

MICROSOFT, Windows XP Home Edition w/ SP2b

Thanks for your time.

JPNpower · Jun 21, 2013

Major Upgrade

Get a Z77 motherboard, and i3/i5. GTX 650 ti boost/ GTX 660. 8 gig (4x2) DDR3 1600 RAM. SSD Win7. That should get you a very fast PC

SchizTech · Jun 21, 2013

JPNpower :

At least you can use the case and PSU. That DVD-ROM is IDE so it won't be compatible with new motherboards (but they're cheap, you can pick a SATA DVD burner for $20). The HDD can be re-used as a data drive if you go SSD.

swifty_morgan · Jun 21, 2013

find out what version operating system it is ( 32 or 64bit )

you need more ram:
maybe this. it will default to DDR2-800 but that is all your board will support. Didn't see that on newegg's site.
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820231166

list monitor resolution for suggestion on video card

JPNpower · Jun 21, 2013

SchizTech :

JPNpower :

At least you can use the case and PSU. That DVD-ROM is IDE so it won't be compatible with new motherboards (but they're cheap, you can pick a SATA DVD burner for $20). The HDD can be re-used as a data drive if you go SSD.

Thank you for filling in my blanks

Onus · Jun 21, 2013

One thing you can do is get the new video card first. Depending on your overall budget, a GTX650Ti Boost would be a good lower end, with a GTX770 at the high end. Install this card, and see how the machine performs. If it satisfies you, you're done. If it doesn't, you will move the new card onto the new motherboard you will get, along with a new CPU, RAM, and Windows license. You could add some more DDR2 RAM, except that I'd consider that money wasted, since if it doesn't help, you can't re-use it.

swifty_morgan · Jun 22, 2013

that was sorta my thinking. that's why i asked for monitor/res. The machine is still capable with the right parts.

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Should I upgrade this old computer or get a new one?

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SchizTech

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swifty_morgan

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