Upgrading a computer

[zynx33]

I have a gateway 5200s with 1GB of ram, a intel pentium 4 3.0ghz, and a Asus ATI Radeon HD6450 Silence 1GB DDR3, what would I have to do to this computer to get it to run games like arma 3, arma 2, diablo 3, minecraft etc. I only have 200$.

 

[zynx33]

.

 

[Uther39]

Sell it on ebay and save money for a complete new build, or rescue some parts out of it like HDD and DVD, sell the rest, and again save up, your going to need at least $500 to buy the components to play those games even at high settings.

You will need new , CPU, MB, RAM, GPU, PSU & case.

 

[AntiZig]

what resolution and settings do you want to run those games at?

 

[DM186]

Here are the min and recommended system requirements to play Diablo 3, Arma 3,2, and Minecraft. It is looking like maybe a CPU and a stick of RAM might just cover it. I don't know how good your GPU is or is it a remarked 5450 if it is then you will have to upgrage your GPU as well. Good luck to you.

OS: Windows® XP/Vista/7 (latest service packs) with DX 9.0c
CPU: Intel Pentium® D 2.8 GHz or AMD Athlon™ 64 X2 4400+
Video: NVIDIA® GeForce® 7800 GT or ATI Radeon™ X1950 Pro or better
RAM: 1 GB RAM (XP), 1.5 GB (Vista/7)
Hard Drive: 12 GB available HD space
Disc Drive: DVD-ROM (required for retail disc versions only)
Monitor: 1024×748 minimum resolution

These are the recommended system requirements for Diablo 3

OS: Windows® Vista/7 (latest service packs)
CPU: Intel® Core 2 Duo 2.4 GHz or AMD Athlon™ 64 X2 5600+ 2.8 GHz
RAM: 2 GB RAM
Video: NVIDIA® GeForce® 260 or ATI Radeon™ HD 4870 or better

Arma 3 system requirements: If you meet these requirements will work for Arma 2

•OS – Windows 7 / Vista
•CPU – Intel Core i5 or AMD Athlon Phenom X4 or faster
•GPU – Nvidia Geforce GTX 260 or ATI Radeon HD 5770, shader Model 3 and 896 MB VRAM, or faster
•RAM – 2 GB
•HDD – 15 GB free space
•DVD – Dual Layer compatible
•DirectX® – 10

Minecraft System Requirements

CPU/Processor: Intel Celeron 430 1.8GHz / AMD Athlon 64 3500+
Video Card Required: Nvidia GeForce 9400 GT / ATI Radeon HD 3470
Minimum RAM (Memory): 1 GB
Hard Drive Space Required: 1 GB
DirectX Version Needed: 9

 

[wombat_tg]

Pentium D is a dual core, P4 is single core. Big difference. Especially with multi-threaded engines.

Going to agree with uther here- except for MineCraft or old legacy gaming this machine is LONG past its useful life. You can always TRY to get whatever game to run on it if you're in for giggles. Don't expect much.

5200S hardware specs:

http://support.gateway.com/s/PC/5200Series/1008291/1008291sp3.shtml

As for upgrading... well. If the mobo is 775 (some P4s were 775) you MIGHT be able to get somewhere. Some more RAM... how much effort do you want to put into it? Because these aren't parts you'll buy off NewEgg. You'll be looking for used and hoping for the best. Unless you like the idea of doing it for FUN (and don't care if you get a usable machine out of it) I wouldn't bother. It's a sinking ship.

Another thing to consider is you didn't mention if you had already purchased Win7 for it. If you are still using the original XP that came with it, you'll need to budget another $120+ for a copy of Windows. You can TRY to run games on XP, but again, if they crash/glitch/lag/do stupid things you are running on an unsupported platform.

"Unsupported" doesn't mean it won't necessarly work, it just means you can't cry when it doesn't.

 

[Koenigsegg]

You can sell your PC then you can build a new one

 

[zynx33]

I have windows 7, but if I do sell it idk if I can buy a new one, I have 200$ plus whatever I can get out of this computer...

 

[zynx33]

.

 

[DM186]

I hate to say it but you are not going to get to much or anything at all for your rig. It is kinda outdated. You would have to sell it to a friend or family member unless you get really lucky and some dad buys it for his kid.

If you can upgrade your CPU to a 4 core and some ram plus a better GPU you might be able to do one of the games. But by the time and money you spend you might as well buy a new system

I am going ot link you to tigerdirect they have these systems called barebone kits so when you click on this link you will see what I am talking about. They start at low proces. Good luck to you.

http://www.tigerdirect.com/applications/Category/category_tlc.asp?CatId=31

 

[zynx33]

http://www.tigerdirect.com/applications/SearchTools/item-details.asp?EdpNo=1742213&CatId=31

Would this be good? I only have 200$ and whatever I can get out of that machine, I would also buy a used computer.

 

[DM186]

That one would work and here is another one to look at. Plus you can check out the GPU hierarchy chart and see which on board grapics is better but you can always transfer your hard drive and of course your GPU.

Anyway you decide both will work. Just this one is cheaper. The one I am linking you to has a 4 core CPU and a 700w PSU. Good luck

http://www.tigerdirect.com/applications/searchtools/item-Details.asp?EdpNo=3242200&sku=B69-0576&SRCCODE=WEM3154AC&cm_mmc=email-_-Main-_-WEM3154-_-tigeremail3154&utm_source=EML&utm_medium=main&utm_campaign=WEM3154

http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/gaming-graphics-card-review,3107-7.html