Computer needs replacing.
- Thread starter TrollhunterX
- Start date
Upgrading to 16GB is certainly not a bad idea, if you want to stick to the system as such.
The CPU is not really state of the art anymore, but it isn't entirely terrible either. I guess it was solid 10 years ago, but this isn't the 1990s where CPU speeds doubled every 18 months. Upgrading the CPU doesn't make sense imho, as it's a legacy socket, so any processors you get for it will be overpriced.
What that screenshot doesn't tell us is what video card / GPU you have, if any. It might make sense to get a cheap second-hand one, provided the Mainboard has a PCIe slot. Even a GTX 1060 would be severely bottlenecked by the CPU so we're looking for something really low- end that you shouldn't pay more than 50 quid for, if that.
The old crux with upgrading: the components still need to work with each other, and thinking about replacing one usually sets off a cascade and in the end you plug your old hard drive into a completely new system.
To sum up:
The CPU is not really state of the art anymore, but it isn't entirely terrible either. I guess it was solid 10 years ago, but this isn't the 1990s where CPU speeds doubled every 18 months. Upgrading the CPU doesn't make sense imho, as it's a legacy socket, so any processors you get for it will be overpriced.
What that screenshot doesn't tell us is what video card / GPU you have, if any. It might make sense to get a cheap second-hand one, provided the Mainboard has a PCIe slot. Even a GTX 1060 would be severely bottlenecked by the CPU so we're looking for something really low- end that you shouldn't pay more than 50 quid for, if that.
The old crux with upgrading: the components still need to work with each other, and thinking about replacing one usually sets off a cascade and in the end you plug your old hard drive into a completely new system.
To sum up:
- if you get a better video card it will likely be bottlenecked by the old CPU
- Upgrading the CPU basically means you need a new Mainboard, too
- new Mainboard means you also need new RAM (the old modules simply won't fit)
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There's no hurry with it. My daughter seems more enthusiastic about helping, but she's heading off to visit friends in Dunfermline early tomorrow, so it can wait. She had the same experience with the 'cascade' when upgrading her own computer (which uses two monitors).
This is very helpful. I can still run ED, just don't have much time to do more than the semi-AFK MM every couple of months, to keep the carrier budget topped up. I created a new account on the PS4 which was earmarked for Rachel, except that she was getting too tired to watch favourite programmes like The Good Doctor and Blue Bloods, never mind a game that could take up hours to grind. I decided, just before Xmas, to move the Viper I'd brought to the Red X in Ngalinn, but I chanced travelling without a fuel scoop, and got stuck in a nearby system (Demsu? Dempu?). Time IRL and instances allowing, I might be able to buy a fuelling limpet and rescue myself, though self destructing is probably the simplest option.
There's no hurry with it. My daughter seems more enthusiastic about helping, but she's heading off to visit friends in Dunfermline early tomorrow, so it can wait. She had the same experience with the 'cascade' when upgrading her own computer (which uses two monitors).
This is very helpful. I can still run ED, just don't have much time to do more than the semi-AFK MM every couple of months, to keep the carrier budget topped up. I created a new account on the PS4 which was earmarked for Rachel, except that she was getting too tired to watch favourite programmes like The Good Doctor and Blue Bloods, never mind a game that could take up hours to grind. I decided, just before Xmas, to move the Viper I'd brought to the Red X in Ngalinn, but I chanced travelling without a fuel scoop, and got stuck in a nearby system (Demsu? Dempu?). Time IRL and instances allowing, I might be able to buy a fuelling limpet and rescue myself, though self destructing is probably the simplest option.
Oh come on.... just wrote an elaborate reply, then hit the wrong button and lost it all, .
Okay so long story short: your system should be able to run ED well enough. Not at max settings but reasonable. The weakest link actually seems to be the video card. One option might be to upgrade that first, for instance to an RX 6600 which should cost around 200 quid. Then if you get a new PC at some later point, you can simply move the video card over; it will be good for many years as long as you stick to FullHD.
However, you mentioned accumulating problems in your entry post. What kind of problems are these? Sometimes it's a faulty hardware component, then of course only exchanging that component will help. More often though it's software problems; Windows systems accumulate all sorts of crap over the years. Also, if it's loading times you're bothered about, installing the game on an SSD makes a gigantic difference, if you haven't yet done so.
--
As for your Viper: I'm not sure a cross-platform instance is possible? For all I know the console versions haven't been updated in a while. Anyway, you could just call the Fuel Rats, that's exactly what they are for. And since you're in the Bubble, it should only take a few minutes.
Okay so long story short: your system should be able to run ED well enough. Not at max settings but reasonable. The weakest link actually seems to be the video card. One option might be to upgrade that first, for instance to an RX 6600 which should cost around 200 quid. Then if you get a new PC at some later point, you can simply move the video card over; it will be good for many years as long as you stick to FullHD.
However, you mentioned accumulating problems in your entry post. What kind of problems are these? Sometimes it's a faulty hardware component, then of course only exchanging that component will help. More often though it's software problems; Windows systems accumulate all sorts of crap over the years. Also, if it's loading times you're bothered about, installing the game on an SSD makes a gigantic difference, if you haven't yet done so.
--
As for your Viper: I'm not sure a cross-platform instance is possible? For all I know the console versions haven't been updated in a while. Anyway, you could just call the Fuel Rats, that's exactly what they are for. And since you're in the Bubble, it should only take a few minutes.
I'm on a 1080 GTX and a i7700 (from 2017) 32GB and it runs Odyssey fine at 1080p - I just scale the graphics options to get a decent frame rate.
More memory will help a lot. And maybe a 4060 graphics upgrade or Radeon 7600 cards (~£300 from scan). Both would be a big upgrade over your current card.
More memory will help a lot. And maybe a 4060 graphics upgrade or Radeon 7600 cards (~£300 from scan). Both would be a big upgrade over your current card.
GPU: This is the main thing holding your system back. Secondhand cards you can find cheaply (eg: Geforce GTX 1080 or RTX 2060), or even lower end cards you can still get retail (Arc A750, Radeon RX 6600, Geforce RTX 3060) will leave that GTX 1050 in the dust.
RAM: Having only 8GB total memory could definitely be hamstringing your system. A memory upgrade is relatively inexpensive and should be helpful. You probably don't need another 32GB but 16GB would help a lot. Just ensure the memory modules are always installed in evenly spaced pairs. Installing an odd number will work but they'll run at half bandwidth which is bad for games.
CPU: Not amazing but if you're on a budget it'll manage. Faster GPUs will be held back a bit by your CPU, but a better GPU will improve performance a lot all the same.
RAM: Having only 8GB total memory could definitely be hamstringing your system. A memory upgrade is relatively inexpensive and should be helpful. You probably don't need another 32GB but 16GB would help a lot. Just ensure the memory modules are always installed in evenly spaced pairs. Installing an odd number will work but they'll run at half bandwidth which is bad for games.
CPU: Not amazing but if you're on a budget it'll manage. Faster GPUs will be held back a bit by your CPU, but a better GPU will improve performance a lot all the same.
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The RAM arrived yesterday, but it was 2 times 8GB, totalling 16GB. That wasn't the impression got from my daughter as the goal, so I'm waiting for her to text me back, to clarify.Apparently, 16GB (and even 32GB) is a thing, so it's a possibility that was what she meant, and typing 2 x 16GB (or similar) into Amazon gave me what I got, and I skipped the critical, need to know, information. Haven't had the chance to turn the computer off and check what I've got, currently, and might wait until she gets back. The cards may want returning/exchange, though.
Memory is normally sold in kits of 2 modules that have been pre-tested to run properly together, and the advertised capacity is always for the entire kit. So a 16GB kit will be a pair of 8GB.
That price is about what I would expect for 16GB of that brand and model. It has good timing characteristics for latency. Their 32GB kit costs a little less than double that price.
"No problems" is going need some qualifiers, as I have systems that are dramatically faster that have what I would consider 'problems' with more demanding on foot CZs.
The i5-8400 is an LGA-1151 part, so that board should have a CPU upgrade path, but the CPU still isn't the weakest link in the system. That GTX 1050 is. Only 8GiB of system memory is also a problem.
On my main AM4 system I went from a 3900X to a 5800X to a 5800X3D (which was a significant upgrade for gaming at each step), with the replaced CPUs upgrading other builds.
This motherboard has been used with those three CPUs, four different pairs of memory, and three different GPUs since I originally bought it.
You can run a utility like CPU-Z (extract it, run the x64 exe, post the 'Memory' and 'SPD' tabs) to get the current settings and part numbers of what you've already got. Depending on what you have the most straightforward solution may be to add a single compatible DIMM, or it may be to replace what's already installed.
The only serious problem I've got with my computer is that it doesn't seem to recognise my phone when I plug it in, so I can't upload photos and videos. My phone also needs replacing, though, so that might be a simpler solution.
The other problem is literally rgew* hard-drive being stuffed with files I haven't time to do anything about, so extra storage might be a temp solution. I did buy a Sandisk SSD with 2TB of space, but I don't want to use it til I'm registered, and something is preventing me (or my daughter) from doing that...
*Was this supposed to be 'my'? I oiftren (see?) commit typos, and just use the spellchecker to fix them after. bit (but) rarely that spectacularly. Doesn't help that my monitor isn't right in front of me as I type.
Thanks. None of this is time crucial (beyond the prospect that I might just drop down dead tomorrow). Everything seems to work for basic MMs, I'm just looking to the future, or trying to. I'd just like to feel that my 'puter is more or less future-proofed mad task capable.
But now the cats need food, so a run to Asda is required. And by luck, son's new computer chair has just been dropped off.
Motherboard incompatibility has primarily been an Intel thing. Usually two CPU generations and then the Intel chipset's no good anymore even if the socket hasn't changed.
Meanwhile a B350 AM4 board from 2017 can accept a 5600X with a BIOS update. It still remains to be seen if AM5 will hold out just as long though.
Daughter did mean '16 gig in total', so that's a relief.
That link may well be individual to users of Amazon, it'll be much better to link the individual systems and add a budget.
That kind of money would get you an RTX 3060 Gigabyte NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4060 WINDFORCE OC Graphics Card - 8GB GDDR6, 128-bit, PCI-E 4.0, 2475MHz Core Clock, 2x DP 1.4, 2x HDMI 2.1a, NVIDIA DLSS 3 - GV-N4060WF2OC-8GD https://amzn.eu/d/0lwgg5g
Or
RTX 3060 v2 ASUS Dual NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3060 V2 OC Edition 12GB GDDR6 Gaming Graphics Card, PCIe 4.0, 12GB GDDR6 memory, HDMI 2.1, DisplayPort 1.4a, 2-slot design, Axial-tech fan design, 0dB technology, and more https://amzn.eu/d/02FUyYj
Or this one from AMD Powercolor Radeon RX 6700 XT Fighter (12GB GDDR6/PCI Express 4.0/2581MHz/16000MHz) https://amzn.eu/d/3n0EAEr
Any of those plus the RAM that you have bought should play the game at a fairly decent clip at decent settings.
Plus, if / when you jump to a new generation build they'll still fit right in.
I think I only mentioned to my daughter and son that there were only two slots on the motherboard. She's going to have a look when she gets back from Scotland, and I'm not going to argue with that.
I did switch the existing card for one of the new ones, but I don't know if I can put both in. Waiting on daughter again. Should be possible, shouldn't it..?
Good to know.
