Old pc upgrade for niece question.

Hulluck

I have a I3 530 desktop with a fairly unused new psu and hd7770.  Would it be worth putting an i7 860 and an evo 212 in for $100 for my niece to use. I tlaskwd about doing this a year or two ago and never did.  But woyld it be worth it now?  Think they could even lightly game on that also?  They are most certainly cash strapped. They arent buying anything new and ill fork out for the cpu off of ebay. I assume an evo 212 will work on that socket. Lga1156 i think it is.  

Grunty

The first question that needs answering is, can the motherboard accept an I5 or I7 processor? If this is a manufactured computer the answer is most likely not. We'll need the motherboard model number and/or the PC's model number to determine that.

Hulluck

Im not at the house atm.  In the va hospital as soon as i get home ill post it which mobo it is. . I think its a gigabyte board.  Quizzical helped me out with the gpu and psu. So i know both of those are ok. But shelfed the machine shortly after buying those and built my current one for obvious reasons. Ill post back in a few hours. 

Edit. Sorry just wanted to say thank you. 

Ridelynn

Well, I think the first question really is - what would your niece do with the machine?

If it's web browsing, social media, and homework, it's already plenty powerful enough.

I think, I would give the computer as-is, and then see what needs to be upgraded based on how they are using it. It doesn't do anyone any good, upgraded or not, just sitting on a shelf.

Hulluck

Motherboard. H55M-S2H.   PSU is a CX430.  Brand new But I only have a HD 7770 in it for a GPU

That I3 530 really is crappy. No hyper threading or anything. I think the later gen I3's are way better. Not even comparable to this I3?  If they don't even want it I might set it up as a another station for someone to use. Here.  I mean if it had a better GPU with that I7 860. It would be pretty dang decent even for modern games no?

Maybe it's a stupid idea. I've been pretty doped up since wed after surgery. I just know that 530 was painfully slow. If gains were good from it to that I7 and that I7 might be comparable to my I5 4670k.  I'd be pretty happy about that upgrade for $100. CPU and cooler. Maybe it is a waste of money. I dunno.

Ridelynn

Well the only computer that is worse than an i3, would be having no computer at all.

Hulluck

Ridelynn said:

Well the only computer that is worse than an i3, would be having no computer at all.

true. I cant argue with your logic. It is sound.  i don;t know why i want to toss an i7 in it.  i guess i just do. Just not sure its worth $100 to do. Which i guess is good reason not to. 

Vrika

It's not worth paying 100$ to upgrade CPU unless you also upgrade the GPU. Assuming it's meant for gaming, either upgrade both CPU and GPU, or keep the computer as it is.

Are you sure that I3 530 doesn't have hyperthreading. I think it has: http://ark.intel.com/products/46472/Intel-Core-i3-530-Processor-4M-Cache-2_93-GHz

Hulluck

Vrika said:

It's not worth paying 100$ to upgrade CPU unless you also upgrade the GPU. Assuming it's meant for gaming, either upgrade both CPU and GPU, or keep the computer as it is.

Are you sure that I3 530 doesn't have hyperthreading. I think it has: http://ark.intel.com/products/46472/Intel-Core-i3-530-Processor-4M-Cache-2_93-GHz

Nah, im not sure. Maybe i am thinking of boost. Been a long time since read anything about that cpu.  That pc has literally been a shelf next to my desk.   Im pretty stoned on drugs , post operation legal kind. So my minds not been all there past few days. Not that i was that smart to begin with. I'll just chaulk this up to bad idea. Use as is or not at all.  Thank you guys.

Side note. My dam muscles are sore as shit from that muscle relaxer they give when they put you under.  Just lifting my legs. My calves cramp up. Extremely painfull.  Been under before but never felt this. 

Quizzical

Core i3 anything from Intel generally has hyperthreading, and I'm not aware of any where it doesn't.  Core i3 has meant dual core with hyperthreading but no turbo right from the start.  Add turbo or more cores and it's a Core i5; take away hyperthreading and it's a Pentium or Celeron.  It is just a dual core, though, which isn't ideal.

Because the Clarksdale Core i3 (what you have now) is actually newer than the Lynnfield Core i7 (what you're considering upgrading to), and they use the same processor socket, it's extremely unlikely that a motherboard that accepts the former won't work with the latter.  

Quizzical

Ridelynn said:

Well the only computer that is worse than an i3, would be having no computer at all.

I'll agree with that.  The general rule of upgrading is, don't until you find some reason why the old computer isn't good enough anymore.

Loke666

I honestly would keep the CPU and get a new GPU instead unless she is using it for something really CPU heavy. Most things regular people use their computer for is pretty light on the CPU unless you do video rendering or compile code or similar.

The HD 7700 was a fine card once but it is a worse stinker then the I3 CPU today. Sadly do a good GPU cost more then a $100 (you have to pay twice that too get something acceptabler) so my advice is to check around with people you know, it is not that unlikely that someone recently upgraded and have a better GFX card lying around. A CPU is rarer, people update their GFX card pretty often but when they change CPU they usually get a new computer altogether. Still, even one of the better $100 cards will perform better then a 7700.

Now, if she mainly is using it for social medias and such, then keep both the CPU and GFX card and get a SSD instead. They are cheap and boost that kind of performance far more for the price, even a pretty old computer feels fast when you boot and surf if it have an SSD.

Ridelynn

The SSD idea is a very good one - that would probably be the best $100 spent on any computer, period.

I don't know that $100 will get you a GPU that is that much faster than a 7770 though. The $100 new card today is the R7 360 (rebadged 260 which was a respin of the 7790, which wasn't that much faster than a 7770), or a 750Ti (the first Maxwell release). Yes, they are faster cards, but I don't think it's the typical "twice as fast" metric for upgrading.

http://www.anandtech.com/bench/product/1130?vs=1079

You may be able to do better used though for a GPU.

Hulluck

I thank yall. Just woke up. I was pretty well stoned all morning. Not gonna say that im not now but i can hardly move enough to tell. I just wanted to make it better for whatevwr reason.  I did notice that hd7770 was half the size or 1/3rd of my gtx 770. Crazy tiny.    Ill save the upgrading for my main pc when needed.  If i keep it for myself. I will stick an ssd in it. If for them.  As is. Thank you my minds not all there. But in general had a pretty good day.

My veterans affairs officer sat with me and we rebuilt my claim paperwork for an hour.  Most never spend more than 15 minutes with me. So amazing.   VA hospital rebuilt the mechanics in my ear last wed 6th.   They actually gave me enough narcos and strong enough for the pain.  Usually very stingy with pain meds since crack down on perscription drug abuse.  Got new tools to put in a tool box in my jeep.  In crase of break down  while trailing or crawling. NICE TOOL SET!  Va is gonna do some other stuff for me that i didnt expect them to do which will be life changing. For the better.

 Hope everyone who gave input has had a week as amazing as mine. Not had one like this in a long time.    Shit just went right this week.  

Thank you everyone for the input. Saved me from blowing $100.