Please help a noob and karma may reward you! :) I need suggestions for potential upgrades to my 4 old school core 2 duo PCs:

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DirkDiggler10000

DirkDiggler10000

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Jul 17, 2016
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What is the best GPU, CPU and RAM my old school Lenovo can upgrade to? In summary I have a 4gb ram Lenovo core 2 duo with integrated Q45/G43 graphics that I am really trying to upgrade to its full potential (as a project). Yes I know there are better computers out there but I'm really trying to find out how far I can upgrade this specific computer (or 4 of them actually; I got a good deal from a friend) PLEASE give me some suggestions for how to improve this computer (I've already upgraded the RAM from 2 to 4gb and upgraded to a 2tb HDD). I'm basically turning them into media players and for GoPro picture sorting/edits since I have tons of pics.

Here's the specs: (wish I knew how to post pics of my Speccy screenshots but I'm new to these forums sorry in advance)

Motherboard:
Lenovo LGA 775, Intel chipset Q45/Q43
Southbridge 82801JB
Bios: Lenovo 5CKT77AUS
PCI Data:
PCI Slot 1, "slot usage available", Bus Width 32 bit;
PCI Slot 2, "slot usage available" 32bit;
PCI-E x16 (data lanes x16) "slot usage: unknown",
PCI-E x1 (data lanes x1) "slot usage: unknown"

CPU:
Intel Core 2 Duo E7300 @ 2.66GHz
(I also have 2 of the same computers with E7500 @ 2.93GHz)

RAM: total slots 4; used slots 2; free slots 2
DDR3 Dual Channel
Number of SPD Modules: 2 (slot 1 & 2)
 
Solution
Ak74Egy
I would get an i3 Haswell or Broadwell (last 2 generations) because the latest which is Skylake requires DDR4 RAM, and an AMD RX480 If you have the money if not go with a Nvidia GTX 750Ti, the main issue here would be the power supply because those come packing just enough power to run the machine so I don'y know if it has enough watts, if it has less than 300 then you might have an issue if it's 350-400W than it's optimal even for a X60 Nvidia GPU (GTX 660, 760, 960, etc.), I don't think it would be able to run more than that tbh and stick with an i3 for the power consupmtion and the money, it's a great value for what you're looking to do, and please since you're a beginner (no shame), have a pro take a look at everything to check if...
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Ak74Egy

Ak74Egy

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Jun 4, 2016
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I would get an i3 Haswell or Broadwell (last 2 generations) because the latest which is Skylake requires DDR4 RAM, and an AMD RX480 If you have the money if not go with a Nvidia GTX 750Ti, the main issue here would be the power supply because those come packing just enough power to run the machine so I don'y know if it has enough watts, if it has less than 300 then you might have an issue if it's 350-400W than it's optimal even for a X60 Nvidia GPU (GTX 660, 760, 960, etc.), I don't think it would be able to run more than that tbh and stick with an i3 for the power consupmtion and the money, it's a great value for what you're looking to do, and please since you're a beginner (no shame), have a pro take a look at everything to check if your motherboard, Case space, and PSU connection (6 pin. 8 pin, etc) and Wattage is compatible with an i3 and a x50 or x60 Nvidia GPU or that AMD RX480.

If you need further assistance I'll be happy to help out :)
 
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Solution
DirkDiggler10000

DirkDiggler10000

Commendable
Jul 17, 2016
7
0
1,510
Thanks for your help. I would love to have a computer guy inspect my PC in person but that is simply not an option for me right now. I wish there was a way to post my Speccy stats and show everything about my computer so that we could figure out my options. I am enjoying obsessing about tinkering with these 4 computers and making them the best they be (on a budget...so far I've got them all USED 2Tb Hitachi HDDs). I really want them to run better with my GoPro pictures and videos and I want to see what cheap graphics cards I can install to improve if only slightly. I also want to know if it would be possible to fill in the 2 remaining ram slots even though I have "dual channel" ram in there now. I want to figure out what mods are compatible for my 4 lil beasties and gain some experience before I build a REAL gaming PC (I've been researching like a busy noob bee) :) Any cheap upgrade recommendations will be much appreciated...from anyone. Thanks guys!

PS: I was actually looking into a 970 graphics card or better for when I build a REAL gaming PC later this year. I'm wanting to tinker with these computers a bit and see what experience I can build on. I'm loving getting addicted to this computer tinkering tho. I've modded PS2s and various gaming systems b4 but haven't owned any high-end PCs yet.
 
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Ak74Egy

Ak74Egy

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Ok as for cheap graphics card goes the 750ti or the 950 (the gigabyte one that has one fan can't really remember the model) should be really good and they have a small form factor and they do not draw lots of power, I think those should fit quite nicely, as for the future though the 970 would be a waste of money you could get an RX480 8GB model for cheaper than the 970 or you could get the GTX 1060 6GB model (faster core clock than rx 480 so practically the same) and also cheaper than the 970, and both of these cards are as fast as a GTX 980, and for the RAM you can go ahead and install another Dual channel kit, but make sure they are the same model, because mixing RAM kits could be.....well "problematic" to say the least
 
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DirkDiggler10000

DirkDiggler10000

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Jul 17, 2016
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cool thanks. As for the future gaming rig I'm gonna build, I actually saw Newegg was having a sale on EVGA GeForce GTX 970 SuperSC ACX 2.0+ for only $255 after rebates. I think the sale ends today or end of the month I can't remember. I bought it! so far I got a GPU for my bulid LOL...its a step in the right direction
 
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DirkDiggler10000

DirkDiggler10000

Commendable
Jul 17, 2016
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1,510


^^He was saying I shouldn't get Skylake bc its DDR4, then he mentioned I should get an RX 480 as well as the CPUs he mentioned first
 
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Ak74Egy

Ak74Egy

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Jun 4, 2016
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You probably read it wrong, I said:
1-he should get a broadwell or haswell i3 because skylake requires DDR4 RAM
2-he should get an AMD RX 480
 
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Ak74Egy

Ak74Egy

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Jun 4, 2016
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yes it is, I've got a 960 and it's running everything at Ultra at 30 FPS or on Medium at 60 FPS, so your card should not have any issues at all for the next say 3-5 years :)
 
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