PC upgrade tech questions...

[pacifichrono]

My ASUS desktop is ten years old now. It seems pretty slow despite my cleaning/optimizing with system utility apps. I usually have 5-10 Chrome windows open, plus maybe Word, Excel, File Explorer, etc. Sometimes the whirring noises from the case sound like a jet is about to take off. I don't have enough tech knowlege to figure out where the bottlenecks might be. I've been thinking about swapping in a 'modern' CPU, but why waste $200+ if the bottlenecks are elsewhere?

Any PC tech wizards out there who can evaluate my system? Checking 2-3 sources, the following looks to be my current setup:


Device name DESKTOP-SVGBBBN
Processor AMD A10-6700 APU 3.70 GHz 4 cores/4 threads June 2013 intro date with Radeon(tm) HD 8670D Graphics
Installed RAM 12.0 GB (11.2 GB usable) DDR3 1886 mHz
Device ID 38E1B266-7DF8-478F-98ED-578A42BBD988
Product ID 00330-80000-00000-AA168
System type 64-bit operating system, x64-based processor
HDD 2TB
Pen and touch No pen or touch input is available for this display


OS Edition Windows 10 Pro
Version 21H2
Installed on ‎4/‎2/‎2021
OS build 19044.2846
Experience Windows Feature Experience Pack 120.2212.4190.0


Bluetooth 4.0 Adapter
USB 2.0 x 5
Audio AMD HD Audio Device
DVD/CD ASUS SH-224DB RW
Controller Standard SATA AHCI Controller
Network Realtek 8821AE Wireless LAN 802.11ac PCI-E NIC
Integrated LAN 10/100/1000
Universal Serial
Bus Controllers ASMedia USB3.0 eXtensible Host Controller – 1.0 (Microsoft)
Router/Web Speed 300 mbs DL / 11 mbs UL


Any thoughts? Thanks!

[dice]

For system specs, the free version of HWinFO is more than enough in most cases: https://www.hwinfo.com/download/

Before I get on to the specs, it would be good if you had a little more detail about what you use the computer for. You mention having some Office apps open and a handful of tabs. If you could clear up the following that would help me recommend something more appropriate
- Any HD video playing in those tabs? Do you watch HD video in general?
- How many monitors do you use?
- What about leisure/non work? Any gaming or hobby stuff?
- Any other requirements you want to list as either "hard", or "nice to haves".

The CPU you mentioned is very old. Personally mine is getting on at 6 years old, and its just about acceptable considering I reformat Windows every year - yours is even older and on some very old architecture. In my opinion its also overburdened, running Windows 10.

Should be easy to pick something a hundred times better in performance but lets get your use case cleaned up first.

[Rod]

Check the cooling fan, it may be choked with fluff and dust after 10yrs use.
Also you could put a Linux OS on it.
Linux Mint is excellent.

[pacifichrono]

I don't play any games. I use one 22" monitor for general use, set to 1920x1080. Only watch a little video, like IG and YT stuff, plus brief news and sports highlights. I spend a few hours per day on this PC but just general use.

I've read that an SSD can really speed things up, plus upgrading from DDR3 to 4, and maybe a Ryzen CPU. I'd like to keep to a $500 budget.

[pugster]

installing an SSD will speed things up a hell of a lot , also if not done already open the case and use a can of air to blow all the dust out of fan/vents etc (do outside it gets messy)

[pacifichrono]

installing an SSD will speed things up a hell of a lot , also if not done already open the case and use a can of air to blow all the dust out of fan/vents etc (do outside it gets messy)

Yeah, I know! I think my last cleaning was 4-5 years ago.

[T1ckT0ck]

SSD. My old Dell laptop went from 2 min a boot to 25 sec when I switched out the HDD, five years on its still performing well.


Sent from my iPhone using TZ-UK mobile app

[Captain Morgan]

The socket your cpu uses is obsolete & so no new CPU’s will fit it / your motherboard.
Your memory is old by 2 generations & slow.
If you were to find a new old stock / sh cpu it’s unlikely to be much of a upgrade, your current one appears to be towards the high end of the amd fm2 scocket cpu range.

You could throw a $50-60 ssd at it & if that doesn’t give a sufficient uptick then a Linux install might but that would mean moving away from ms office to open office or one of the other open source office suites or using ms office online.

If you go the ssd route I’d suggest a fresh windows install rather than a clone of the current os install.


That said depending on the cost of s/h desktops in the US it might be better to buy a gen8 + intel system, plenty of options (at least in U.K.) for ex business systems from dell/hp/Lenovo

E.G.
https://www.ebay.com/sch/i.html?_fro...h+gen&_sacat=0

https://www.ebay.com/itm/Dell-OptiPl...edirect=mobile

https://www.ebay.com/itm/Dell-OptiPl...edirect=mobile

[Skier]

I think you'd be throwing good money after bad trying to improve the performance of your current machine; it's simply too old and the main limiting factor is your motherboard. However, if you change that you'll need to change processor and RAM at a minimum. Yes, you could install a SSD but why not build a new machine or, if you're not comfortable doing that, buy a barebones machine and add the components you need.

[Alansmithee]

I would just buy an off-the-shelf desktop for your $500 - it's not worth trying to upgrade a system that old.

[pugster]

by going the SSD route if you are not happy with the performance you can just take it out and put it in your next machine or buy a HD caddy and use it like a USB stick. (Basically it wont be wasted money)

[jjjamie]

Agreed, I suspect it's time for a new machine. The CPU is far more ancient than the other parts but definitely worth going new everything.

[dice]

Don't know about the retailer, but a machine of this spec is under £400 pre-built and would be far more than adequate for your use case: https://www.awd-it.co.uk/elite-intel...pc-system.html

You have the option of going for a laptop or ultra small form factor machine to replace yours, but these will cause the cost to rise.

[hogthrob]

Before spending too much money, it's definitely worth having a look at the spinny bits and seeing if you can identify the source of the noise.

The noise could be from the CPU fan, or maybe the power supply fan. I'm assumimg there are no case fans. I think it's fairly unlikely the noise is coming from the hard disk. A good clean / blow out might do the trick. A new CPU fan would be very cheap. A replacement CPU would need careful selection to ensure it had the correct connectors.

[pacifichrono]

Thank you all! I will investigate all these avenues and see what makes sense for my budget.

[pacifichrono]

So, doing a little shopping, I came across the 'bare bones' new HP...$429.00. How much of an "upgrade" would this be? Components OK?




HP 405 G8 DM Specs

Operating System	Windows 11 Pro
Model Year	Early 2022

Performance

Chipset	AMD PRO565
Processor	AMD Ryzen 5 5650GE
CPU Socket	AM4
CPU	3.4 to 4.4 GHz 6-Core
L3 Cache	16 MB
Graphics Type	Integrated
GPU	AMD Radeon
Memory Type	3200 MHz DDR4
Total Installed Memory	8 GB
Memory Configuration	1 x 8 GB (User-Replaceable)
Maximum Memory Capacity	64 GB
Memory Slot Type	260-Pin SO-DIMM
Memory Slots	2 (1 Available)
Buffered Memory	No
ECC Memory	No
vPro Support	No

Storage and Expansion

Total Drive Bays	1 x 2.5" (Internal)
SSD Slots	1 x M.2 2280 (In Use) 1 x M.2 2230 (In Use)
Total Installed Capacity	256 GB
Solid State Storage	1 x 256 GB M.2 NVMe PCIe
PCI Expansion	None
Optical Drive	None

I/O

Ports	4 x USB-A 3.1/3.2 Gen 2 2 x USB-A 3.0 / 3.1/3.2 Gen 1
USB Type-C	1 x USB 3.1/3.2 Gen 2
Display	1 x HDMI 1.4 1 x DisplayPort 1.4
Audio I/O	1 x 1/8" / 3.5 mm Headphone/Microphone Input/Output
Built-In Speakers	None
Built-In Microphones	None
Media/Memory Card Slot	None

Communications

Ethernet	1 x RJ45 (Gigabit)
Wi-Fi	Wi-Fi 6 (802.11ax)
MU-MIMO Support	2 x 2
Bluetooth	5.2
NFC	No

Keyboard & Mouse

Keyboard	Full-Size Keyboard
Pointing Device	None

General

Security	Power-On Password
Power Supply	65 W with Barrel/Proprietary
Dimensions	6.97 x 6.89 x 1.34" / 17.7 x 17.5 x 3.4 cm
Weight	2.74 lb / 1.24 kg

[Skier]

"How much of an upgrade would this be?" Night and day. However, from the spec it's not clear to me what is included as far as 'hard drives' go. The SSD and NVMe slots are your hard drive interface options and it suggests that it will come with a 256GB NVMe drive installed; is that large enough for you? It will be lightning fast.

The small form factor PCs are excellent (I own a Intel NUC 11 Enthusiast that has been superb). What I would also add is that you're using a 22" monitor. Your interfaces with your computer are your monitor, keyboard and mouse - don't scrimp on these items.

[pacifichrono]

"How much of an upgrade would this be?" Night and day. However, from the spec it's not clear to me what is included as far as 'hard drives' go. The SSD and NVMe slots are your hard drive interface options and it suggests that it will come with a 256GB NVMe drive installed; is that large enough for you? It will be lightning fast.

The small form factor PCs are excellent (I own a Intel NUC 11 Enthusiast that has been superb). What I would also add is that you're using a 22" monitor. Your interfaces with your computer are your monitor, keyboard and mouse - don't scrimp on these items.

Yes, a 256GB SSD would be great! My current 2TB HDD is now using 208GB, but I have tons of HR photos stored on it that I'd like to offload onto one of my two external storage drives.

Would there be room in this HP box to add my 2TB HDD as LT storage?

[hogthrob]

Yes, a 256GB SSD would be great! My current 2TB HDD is now using 208GB, but I have tons of HR photos stored on it that I'd like to offload onto one of my two external storage drives.

Would there be room in this HP box to add my 2TB HDD as LT storage?

It says 1 x 2.5" drive bay free, and your 2TB HDD is probably 3.5", so probably not. Windows is installed on the 256GB M.2 format drive, and will probably use about 20GB of that. If you use your external drives for most of your storage, then you should be fine.

What connectors does your monitor have? This doesn't have any of the older D-Plug connectors.

[pacifichrono]

It says 1 x 2.5" drive bay free, and your 2TB HDD is probably 3.5", so probably not. Windows is installed on the 256GB M.2 format drive, and will probably use about 20GB of that. If you use your external drives for most of your storage, then you should be fine.

What connectors does your monitor have? This doesn't have any of the older D-Plug connectors.

HDMI

[pacifichrono]

I'm seriously thinking about this Beelink PC for $329.00 at Amazon:

https://www.amazon.com/Beelink-GTR5-...link=true&th=1





Beelink SER5 Mini PC,AMD Ryzen 7 5800H(8C/16T,up to 4.4 GHz),Mini Computer 16GB DDR4 RAM/500GB M.2 2280 NVME SSD Graphics 8 core 2000 MHz Wifi6/BT5.2/HDMI+Type-C,Support Three-Screen Display

[Skier]

That small form factor PC looks to be excellent value and will blow away your current machine in terms of performance. When you mention offloading your photographs onto an external drive remember - BACK-UP! Keep at least two copies of them on different drives.

Also, when it comes to building/setting-up your new PC, you can get Microsoft Windows and Office licences extremely cheaply from HERE. Used them for years and never had an issue. See THIS thread amongst several others.

[pacifichrono]

...you can get Microsoft Windows and Office licences extremely cheaply from HERE. Used them for years and never had an issue. See THIS thread amongst several others.

I'm nervous about using one of these VERY low price Office apps. A local PC consultant set me up a few years ago and I'm constantly getting notices on my screen that my app is not genuine. The consultant does some "magic" through AnyDesk and it's solved for about three months...then back to MS notices!

[Skier]

I can only comment on my experience with theunitysoft and that has been entirely positive. I've never had an issue on my machines or those I've built for others where I've installed software from this site. It's your call, but Microsoft Office Professional Plus 2019 for £27 what is there to lose? The answer is obviously £27 (or dollars in your case) but there is, in my experience, zero risk.

[pacifichrono]

^^^Excellent points!

[dice]

That Beelink machine looks excellent. The only drawback is you can assume the majority of components are not replaceable ot upgradeable. If you had your last PC for 10 years though and use this in a similar manner that should not be a problem - replace it with another similar unit when the time comes around.

Microsoft Office can be had legitimately for a lot less, as others have mentioned. Microsoft would have you believe you can only purchase it from them at RRP, but the reality is when old PCs are thrown away there are valid licence keys on them. Some of these companies simply go through the trouble of obtaining the key, going through the process of deregistering it with Microsoft, and reselling. TheUnitySoft look reputable https://uk.trustpilot.com/review/theunitysoft.com

[pacifichrono]

That Beelink machine looks excellent. The only drawback is you can assume the majority of components are not replaceable ot upgradeable. If you had your last PC for 10 years though and use this in a similar manner that should not be a problem - replace it with another similar unit when the time comes around.

Microsoft Office can be had legitimately for a lot less, as others have mentioned. Microsoft would have you believe you can only purchase it from them at RRP, but the reality is when old PCs are thrown away there are valid licence keys on them. Some of these companies simply go through the trouble of obtaining the key, going through the process of deregistering it with Microsoft, and reselling. TheUnitySoft look reputable https://uk.trustpilot.com/review/theunitysoft.com

Thanks for that. I also checked out the Beelink on Trust Pilot and saw a 4.7/5.0 rating.

Unless I hear more concerns, I think I'll pull the trigger.

[pacifichrono]

Well, I pulled the trigger last night on this Beelink mini Ryzen 7 from Amazon, which should be delivered by Sunday 10:00 p.m. on their Prime 2-Day Shipping. Now, if I can just get it to run with all my apps!

[Skier]

Well, I pulled the trigger last night on this Beelink mini Ryzen 7 from Amazon, which should be delivered by Sunday 10:00 p.m. on their Prime 2-Day Shipping. Now, if I can just get it to run with all my apps!

I'd be interested to hear your thoughts on this once you've got it up and running. If you need assistance in doing so, post here. Are you going with Windows 10 or 11?

[pacifichrono]

I'd be interested to hear your thoughts on this once you've got it up and running. If you need assistance in doing so, post here. Are you going with Windows 10 or 11?

It's loaded with 11 Pro. I guess there's software to dumb it down if I can't adapt to it. I'll certainly take you up on the offer of assistance.

[Skier]

There are some interface/menu elements of Windows 11 that I don't like but all can be altered with either a straightforward menu selection, registry tweak or small app. For example, I use Stardock Start 11 to switch the start menu back to how it was under Windows 7 as I dislike the offering for both Windows 10 and 11. Another useful app for all versions of Window is Winaero Tweaker.

[pacifichrono]

Thanks. I'll check them both out.

[pacifichrono]

Whoa...I got it today (Sunday) at 2 pm!

How can something this tiny perform 10x of my Asus tower

[wileeeeeey]

You could probably strap that to the back of your monitor with Velcro assuming keyboard and mouse are Bluetooth.

[pacifichrono]

You could probably strap that to the back of your monitor with Velcro assuming keyboard and mouse are Bluetooth.

I could! I'll probably put it under the monitor pedestal to better access the front ports. One downside: no memory card reader.

[xxnick1975]

Have you got it working yet. I'm thinking about replacing my laptop, but something like this would make a lot of sense. Although it's quite a bit more expensive in the UK

Sent from my M2101K6G using Tapatalk

[Alansmithee]

Have you got it working yet. I'm thinking about replacing my laptop, but something like this would make a lot of sense. Although it's quite a bit more expensive in the UK

Sent from my M2101K6G using Tapatalk

If the laptop is a junker - trade it in for 20% off this? Less than £500 for a very decent spec:

https://www.lenovo.com/gb/en/p/deskt...el)/11u10005uk

[dice]

If the laptop is a junker - trade it in for 20% off this? Less than £500 for a very decent spec:

https://www.lenovo.com/gb/en/p/deskt...el)/11u10005uk

That's a handsome deal, its making me consider it!

For ref, the Beelink is still excellent. You shouldn't feel like you need to swap it out for the Lenovo. Only advantage I can see would be the desktop-class processor vs the laptop one in the Beelink. However, judging from the workload you're running on it you won't come anywhere close to the thermal throttling limit so you should be good.

[chicaneuk]

Just about to put together a basic Ryzen system for a friend with 16GB RAM and a 1TB NVME SSD drive for the princely sum of £365.. never been a better time to build a decent PC for absolute peanuts as SSD drives are super cheap and everyone is going crazy for DDR5 so DDR4 memory costs nothing.

I would just replace the whole system. Those old AMD APU’s are pretty Jurassic now.

[Skier]

One downside: no memory card reader.

You can pick up a USB memory card reader for very little. These mini PCs don't have optical drives either but I purchased a USB optical drive for the sole purpose of ripping DVDs/Blu-rays*. Gone are the days of installing utilities via CD/Blu-ray.

*I refuse to purchase films via, for example, iTunes with the DRM issues when a DVD/Blu-ray is often cheaper and offers far more flexibility when ripped to mp4 format.

[xxnick1975]

If the laptop is a junker - trade it in for 20% off this? Less than £500 for a very decent spec:

https://www.lenovo.com/gb/en/p/deskt...el)/11u10005uk

Thanks, but how is it less than £500?

Sent from my M2101K6G using Tapatalk

[Tickeros]

These little 1Ltr HP boxes are available all over eBay and good value.

https://youtu.be/ZPX3A7YS-6Q

[pacifichrono]

Got my new Beelink Ryzen 7 up and running in no time this morning. Still have a lot of ancillary and secondary tasks to complete, but it's running fine!

I turned off my monitor for this shot to avoid light overexposure.

[Alansmithee]

Thanks, but how is it less than £500?

Sent from my M2101K6G using Tapatalk

20% of £580 is £116 = £464.

[xxnick1975]

20% of £580 is £116 = £464.

Brilliant - it was £840 yesterday when I clinked the link but now it has 30% off that to start with. Great, cheers

Sent from my M2101K6G using Tapatalk