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PC Upgrade Suggestions

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  • 18-11-2021 12:17pm
    #1
    Dave_White
    Registered Users Posts: 134 ✭✭


    Hi,

    I have this pc, witch is a year old by now:

    AMD Ryzen 3 3200G X4 ,8GB , Radeon Vega, 1TB , WIFI , W10 , MiniTower PC


    And I was planning to upgrade it. What would you suggest to upgrade first?

    RAM, obviously, but how much?

    Any ideas for budget friendly video card?


    Dave



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    #2
    Spear
    Moderators, Computer Games Moderators, Technology & Internet Moderators, Help & Feedback Category Moderators Posts: 25,305 CMod ✭✭✭✭Spear


    What's in being used for? When we know that we can better target any upgrades.

    And there's no such thing as a budget friendly GPU still. The market for these remains a mess.



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    #3
    Dave_White
    Registered Users Posts: 134 ✭✭Dave_White


    Gaming oriented. I realize that new GPU might not be in the books, but seeing what I could squeeze out of it while keeping costs low. Probably SATA SSD and RAM is only ones it would be easy to do and easy on the wallet.

    Would 16 GB total RAM total would suffice? Any advice on totally green guy on SSD installation ? OS Transfer etc.



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    #4
    minitrue
    Registered Users Posts: 739 ✭✭✭minitrue


    More complete details of the PC would also be needed, it sounds like a pre-built so you can probably provide a link? The case and power supply would dictate the graphics card options without having to change them which might not even be possible without also replacing the board. The board and current ram layout would dictate if you could just throw in another 8GB (and if that's 2*4 more or 1*8) or if you would have to replace what you have.

    On face value of what's posted alone I'm guessing that is not a 1TB ssd so for me adding an ssd would be the first thing I would do regardless of all of the above. As Spear says though the use case (and what has you feeling you need to upgrade) is vital for anyone to sanely try and recommend the best course for you.



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    #5
    Dave_White
    Registered Users Posts: 134 ✭✭Dave_White


    Thanks guys.


    It is this PC: https://www.custompc.ie/catalog/product/view/id/1654317/s/amd-ryzen-3-2200g-x4-8gb-radeon-vega-1tb-wifi-w10-minitower-pc-0249b00009/



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    #6
    Spear
    Moderators, Computer Games Moderators, Technology & Internet Moderators, Help & Feedback Category Moderators Posts: 25,305 CMod ✭✭✭✭Spear


    Various points in no particular order:

    the datasheet for it, doesn't give the precise motherboard or RAM details, which means somethings are still hard to pin down.

    Upgrading the RAM:

    So it's 1 stick of 8GB at 2666MHz. Upgrading this is a good clear simple upgrade. You'd want to match the new stick to the old one, which means you'd need to properly identify the current one. There's various programs to do that if you don't want to pull the stick out to check the label. Because you're also using system RAM for the onboard video, an upgrade to 16GB would provide more than simply doubling the amount of RAM actually usable by programs.

    Upgrading the CPU:

    without the exact details of the motherboard, it's hard to know what options exist in terms of supported CPUs. It's an AM4 socket, so it could possibly support the Ryzen 5xxx series, but it may not, and would very likely need a BIOS update first. As your CPU is providing the GPU, you'd need a model that also has an onboard GPU. Again you'd need to confirm the board make and model before doing any of these, and again various info programs exist to provide these details.

    Upgrade to a discrete GPU:

    prices are nuts and availability still remains low. Plus any serious current GPU would be wasted with the weak CPU and RAM combo you currently have. You could go for something second hand or refurbished though.

    Upgrade to SSD:

    as before you'd need to identify if the board, to find if it has an NVME m.2 slot as an option. If not, then you could opt for a 2.5 inch SSD. A lot of them come with tools to mirror a pre-existing install over to one.



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    #7
    Homelander
    Registered Users Posts: 4,412 ✭✭✭Homelander


    It would probably be easier just to sell that and buy a new mid-range PC pre-built from the likes of Currys or wherever you can get one in stock.

    If you're looking to play fairly modern games, you need a CPU, RAM and Graphics card upgrade. With parts as they are now that's not even feasible.

    You'd also need a new power supply to support a graphics card because Custom PC use absolute junk in their machines. They're a brutally bad company and you should stay well clear of them.

    For example something like this would run your latest games like Battlefield 2042 without a sweat.

    https://www.currys.ie/ieen/gaming/pc-gaming/gaming-pcs/hp-omen-25l-gaming-pc-amd-ryzen-5-rx-6600-xt-1-tb-hdd-256-gb-ssd-10230793-pdt.html

    With your current PC you would need a new PSU (€40-50), new CPU (200-300), more RAM (50) and a graphics card (around €500 for a half decent one at today's market rates).

    It's honestly less pain to just sell that one for a few quid and buy a new one.



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