Upgrade Question (old PC)

[videoediting]

Hi everyone,
I want to upgrade an old pc (AMD Athlon X2 64nm, 3GB DDR2 memory, WD Blue HDD, nVidia GTS 450 2GB)
As you may have noticed, the graphics card and the HDD are much "younger" the the rest.
I would like to improve the performance and stability of the PC, but I am not sure which is the best way to do it:
Should I get an SSD (for OS and keep the hdd for data) or
buy a new cpu, mobo and RAM and keep the WD Blue for OS?

Thanks

 

[synphul]

What are the uses of the pc? If as your name suggests, video editing - I'd look into upgrading the cpu/mobo/ram first. I wouldn't get an ssd as the first upgrade to that system unless it's part of a new build. The cpu and ram are holding it back the most, then the gpu and lastly the ssd in my opinion. If you can wait a month or so you could look into upgrading to an intel skylake cpu, new motherboard and ram and the integrated graphics would be stronger than the gts 450.

 

[videoediting]

Thank you for answering!
I agree, I also have thought that the cpu and memory are holding the whole system back. Therefore I consider keeping the PSU, GPU, case and HDD and upgrade cpu and ram (& mobo of course) as you have suggested.
I use the previously mentioned pc for scanning documents and images, image editing, email, browsing, movies etc and a little bit of AutoCAD. (I have a more specialized pc for video editing).
Which cpu would be suitable? (skylake?)

 

[synphul]

What power supply do you have (brand, model number, wattage)? Also what size case is it, is it a micro atx, atx mid tower? What sort of budget do you have for upgrades? Are you from the u.s. or another region (for parts availability/prices)?

Is this a pc you use a lot or just once in awhile? Scanning images and docs, email, browsing, watching movies etc aren't really that demanding of tasks. Image editing can be if you're editing a lot of images, depending what program you're using, if you're doing large batch operations. I assume you meant watching movies since you have a video editing machine. Autocad would likely be the most stressful program and tends to prefer faster/stronger cpu cores so it would be the program held back the most.

 

[videoediting]

I use this pc a lot for non demanding task such as email, browsing, and (watching) movies.
Image editing should not be demanding as well, because I usually create panorama pictures (stitch), crop, and adjust brightness etc. I don't think I need a very powerful cpu to do those simple tasks.
Concerning autocad, I do not expect high performance because I use it for basic tasks only (e.g 2D objects).
I have a 450 Watt PSU (I will check the brand later) and live in europe (currency: euro)
My case is a mid tower and current motherboard is micro atx.
I am thinking of spending 150-200 euro for cpu, ram and mobo.

 

[videoediting]

I was thinking of something like Intel Pentium G3250, Gigabyte H81M-S2PV and 2 or 4 GB DDR3

 

[synphul]

I don't know if these prices compare to your location, I tried to find prices in euro. Something like this would work well for that build. If it's a bit too high budget, you might drop to 4gb ram though I wouldn't go any lower. 8gb is preferred, 4gb would be the bare minimum even for a build that isn't seeing heavy use like your video editing rig.

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: Intel Core i3-4130 3.4GHz Dual-Core Processor (€118.89 @ Amazon Deutschland)
Motherboard: Gigabyte GA-H81M-S2PV Micro ATX LGA1150 Motherboard (€54.90 @ Amazon Deutschland)
Memory: Corsair Vengeance 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory (€56.06 @ Amazon Deutschland)
Total: €229.85
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2015-07-13 12:53 CEST+0200

 

[videoediting]

Thanks for the list! I am going to follow your advice and get at least 4GB RAM.
Do you think that it is worth spending ~60€ more for an i3 (compared to pentium G3250)
(amazon link for pentium: http://www.amazon.de/Intel-BX80646G3250-Pentium-Prozessor-Sockel/dp/B00M0F0PNU/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1436787424&sr=8-1&keywords=Intel+Pentium+G3250)

 

[synphul]

If your usage really is that low then the g3250 will probably work. You could get the g3250 with the h81 mobo and still get 8gb of ram and keep the total around 160-170 euro. Double checked and the corsair vengeance ram I posted is on the approved list for that motherboard so shouldn't be any compatibility issues. Reason I suggest 8gb ram, there are times just surfing the web and doing other light tasks (no cad, gaming or even photo editing) and my usage can hit 5-6gb ram use. If only using 4gb, it would be hitting the swap file on the hard drive and performance would slow down.

 

[videoediting]

Well, I did upgrade the pc using a pentium g3450 (more powerful than the g3250), 4GB RAM (I can add more later if they are not enough) and the gigabyte motherboard.
I am very pleased with the performance of the PC and really thanks for all the advice!