Question Workhorse Desktop PC

[newtechuser]

Hello
I currently have a Full size Cooler Master HAF X case with the following build components
ASUS P9X79 Pro motherboard
Intel i7 3820 3.6 GHz. CPU - Socket 2011 LGA
NVIDIA GeForce GTX 760 gpu - 2 GB
2 X 4 GB sticks of Kingston DDR3 RAM - 799 MHz
1 TB Western Digital Hard Drive - old and tired
Running windows 10 64 bit OS

The system is slow and cranky
Applications take too long to start and respond

I am not at all hardware savvy or software savvy

I do NOT have any security software protection at all

I run Registry Mechanic and Glary Utilities often

I am NOT a gamer - do NOT play at all

But I use my computer a lot for business and surfing

I need it to be very very RELIABLE and FAST

I DO use graphics software like Corel Draw and sometime Adobe graphics products to fix graphics files

I use a lot of office productivity tools and Customer Relations Management software

I use Acrobat Pro to create and edit pdfs and a lot of graphics file edits

I surf a lot with literally 30 windows open all at once

BUT my computer seems very tired and I think I need an upgrade

I am very confused about whether I should change my entire system or just upgrade

PLEASE advise with detail suggestions on specific hardware

I do NOT mind USED components

I am on a BUDGET

Thank you

Yacob

 

[daveybrat]

That's not a bad system still for what you do with it.

I'd upgrade the ram with either an 8GB or 16GB kit. Then replace that old 1TB mechanical drive with a new 1TB SSD. It'll be a night and day difference.

 

[newtechuser]

Thanks Davey
Also system is in a very dusty environment
Could this be the cause of it rebooting on its own at times - due to static electricity ?

Yacob

 

[daveybrat]

Probably not static electricity but how dirty is it inside? Do you clean it with an air compressor once in a while?

Also, that cpu is a 130 Watt beast. Are you still using the stock Intel cooler or an aftermarket?

 

[newtechuser]

After Market

 

[newtechuser]

I have an aftermarket cooling fan and I do sometime use compressed air to blow out the dust from the system
I really do not mind spending some money
Maybe to change the CPU ......
But then I thought that it might be best to get a newer motherboard and newer CPU and better RAM - like DDR4 ???

Not sure if this will all make a lot of difference for what I do ?

 

[Steltek]

If by "rebooting" you mean powering off and turning back on, I'd immediately suspect the PSU. This is especially true for a PSU model with a fan being operated in a dusty environment.

When blowing out the case, have you specifically blown the dust out of the PSU? Also, if you are using compressed air from a compressor, make sure you have an inline water filter installed on the pressure hose. Otherwise, you very well may be spraying water or water/oil mist into the case with the pressurized air which itself can cause issues.

 

[MalVeauX]

Hi,

That system should be fast for basic web-browsing and document prep in PDF. My guess is you have a lot of bloatware or other software running in the background and just bogging this thing down.

You could upgrade in the sense of buying a new motherboard, new latest gen CPU, faster DDR4 memory (16Gb or more) and get onto some NVMe SSD storage and maybe have a faster experience on your software loads. But it's going to be like $1k to bother (and that's if you can get the parts). DDR4 memory and SSD on a fast architecture (latest gen AM4 or Intel) would probably give you the biggest change in heavy PDF processing and multi-tab browsing (RAM intensive).

From an AMD perspective, a Ryzen 5600x ($299) on an appropriate board (x570; around $150), a 1TB NVMe SSD ($150 +/-) and 32Gb DDR4 RAM ($250 +/-). You can re-use your PSU, GPU, Case. So that's about $750 to start. You'd probably want a 2nd SSD (1TB or 2TB) for working from instead of your OS drive for intensive file processing (PDF, content, etc).

Didn't notice your budget somewhere?

Very best,