Guidance requested regarding upgraded configuration of computer

N

Navin Talati

Posts: 81   +3
Dear Friends,

I seek your valuable guidance and help in upgrading my computer system.

I want to upgrade my present desktop system assembled with following Components & Peripherals:

SYSTEM CONFIGURATION:
Motherboard: Asus M4A88T-M
Processor; AMDc Phenom (tm) II X2 555
RAM: 4 GB XMS3 corsair + 2 GB Kingston = 6 GB DDR3
PSU: Cooler Master 800W Silent pro Gold
Graphic Card; GT520 Silent 2GB DDR3 nvidia GeForce.
ODD: LG super multi
HDD: 2X1TB SATA + 2X250GB SATA + 1X250GB SSD
Cabinet: iBall (black tall) of about 47cmX43cmX19cm size
O.S.: I have different operating systems on different HDDs (Win.-XP, Win-7, Win-10, Ubuntu/Linux.
Booting is through UBUNTU 18.04 LTS
Printer: HP LaserJet 1005 MFP
Monitor; Samsung syncMaster 2230

The machine is operative for last about 9-10 years and till almost now it was working very satisfactorily. But recently it has started giving troubles. So I want to upgrade it by keeping some of the Components & Peripherals as such. To make the system more robust I wish to opt for gaming grade key components like Motherboard, Processor, Graphic card and RAM. Usually non-gaming work is predominant but I wish to keep flexibility for gaming which may certainly be very useful for future video editing and rendering etc. also future software will be needed faster and gaming type machine to run them successfully and uninterrupted. Keeping this concept in mind:

I have short-listed key components optimally as under:
Motherboard: Asus ROG Strix B450-f
Processor: AMD Ryzen 5 2600
RAM: DDR4 (suggest the best quality & brand)
Graphic Card (suggest the best quality & brand)

I want to keep following items unchanged:
PSU: Cooler Master 800W Silent pro Gold
HDD: 2X1TB SATA + 2X250GB SATA + 1X250GB SSD
Printer: HP LaserJet 1005 MFP
Monitor; Samsung syncMaster 2230

Have I to replace following Items?
ODD: LG super multi (If YES, suggest the best quality & brand)
Cabinet: iBall (black tall) of about 47cmX43cmX19cm size (if YES, suggest the best quality & brand)

As I am technically a non-computer person, please reply with full detail and if possible with relavent pictures/photos. A pompt and very positive response from your end is eagerly awaited.

Regards to you all.
Navin Talati / 29-09-2019
 
Starting question: budget? How much do you want to spend for the RAM and graphics card?

Answers to the replacement question on the ODD and cabinet: no and no.
 
Budget constraints are as per "value for money" not too much of gaming because most of the use is as office and software learning.
 
Wondering what the performance issues with current system are...just in case one of the reused components might bring its trouble to the renewed system.

My best understanding is that as you are updating CPU and mainboard, you will probably have to reinstall OSs. This may result in some issues.

There are reports that Win-XP may not reinstall as Microsoft has ended support. You will need keys for XP and 7. Win10 may not want to license the new rig - if it comes up, explain that you had a 'failing motherboard' and they may allow it.
 
Dear Cycloid Torus
1.
I have checked through different permutations and combinations and found that MB, RAM and Graphic card may be the culprit. I removed the Graphic card (GT520 Silent 2GB DDR3 nvidia GeForce) and resolved the screen appearance. Now there is a booting problem and may be due to MB and/or RAM. Some time starts and sometimes not. The MB (Asus M4A88T-M) is not available and if I replace, eventhough I shell have to re-install the OSs.

2.
Yes I know that on changing the MB, re-installation of OSs will be required. There are separate partitions for OS. Each OS is on different HDD.

3.
I could not clearly understand the meaning of your statement: "...............Win10 may not want to license the new rig - if it comes up, explain that you had a 'failing motherboard and they may allow it.........." means actually what? ---- please simplify the meaning.

Regards.
 
Navin Talati said:
Budget constraints are as per "value for money" not too much of gaming because most of the use is as office and software learning.
Click to expand...
It is hard to recommend products without knowing exactly how much money one wishes to spend - perhaps we could use the motherboard and CPU you're planning to upgrade to as reference points. For example, for the graphics card, do you want to spend less, the same, or more than you planned to for the CPU?

I could not clearly understand the meaning of your statement: "...............Win10 may not want to license the new rig - if it comes up, explain that you had a 'failing motherboard and they may allow it.........." means actually what? ---- please simplify the meaning.
Click to expand...
When you install an operating system from Microsoft, and then activate it, the licence for that software is tied to the motherboard used in the PC. So when the motherboard is replaced, the software licence will no longer be valid.

You may be able to just reactivate it, but since Windows XP is no longer supported by Microsoft, it may get reactivated with the new motherboard. Windows 7 and 10 are still supported, so can be reactivated. However, sometimes this doesn't work, and the operating systems may suggest that you need to purchase new licencing keys. You don't need to: you can contact Microsoft and tell them that you just needed a new motherboard, because the old one failed, and they should reactivate the operating systems.
 
  • Like
Reactions: Jeffs0418
Dear Neeyik,

Thanks for the simplified explanation and guidance about the OSs.

Regarding the Graphic card, I prefer to spend less. Or may stretch max up to CPU cost. However, let me know that the captioned MB & CPU (Motherboard: Asus ROG Strix B450-f & Processor: AMD Ryzen 5 2600) are compatible with higher range of graphic card or not so that in future I can upgrade the system predominantly for gaming.

Regards.
 
The limit to what graphics card you could ultimately have in that computer will be determined by the available space inside the case - the power supply will be more than capable of handling the most powerful available at the moment. More powerful graphics cards are larger, in terms of length, height, and weight. It's important to measure how much space is available before buying any high performance graphics card.

Because you listed that the computer case was a iBall brand, may I assume that your location is India? Apologies if this is not the case. I'm not familiar with how PC component prices vary over there but if we assume that they scale just the same as they do in the US/UK, then a Ryzen 2600 will be around $120. For that kind of money, here are the best graphics cards you could pick:

AMD Radeon RX 560
Nvidia GeForce GTX 1050 Ti

If we reduce the budget to $90, then the best choices are:

AMD Radeon RX 550
Nvidia GeForce GT 1030

And reduce this to $50, and the choice becomes just the one:

Nvidia GeForce GT 730

Where there are 2 choices for a budget, there's not a huge difference in gaming performance between them. However, the GeForce 1050 Ti is the best of them listed above and for gaming at a resolution of 1080p, it's pretty good for the money. If budget is important then the Radeon RX 550 is better than the GeForce GT 1030.

As for the choice of RAM, Ryzen processors worked best with fast DRAM modules, so it's case of getting the fastest rated memory you can afford. In the US/UK, you can pick up 16 GiB of Corsair Vengeance LPX DDR4 3200 for around $75, which will be perfect for the Ryzen 2600.
 
I went with
2600 $130
https://www.newegg.com/p/N82E16813157843?Item=N82E16813157843
ASRock B450M PRO4 AM4 $75
https://www.newegg.com/p/N82E16813157843?Item=N82E16813157843
Team T-FORCE VULCAN TUF 2x 8 gig ram 3200 mhz cl16 $71
https://www.newegg.com/team-16gb-288-pin-ddr4-sdram/p/N82E16820331172?Item=N82E16820331172
Radeon 5700 $330 Sapphire has trixx boost software but only a 2 year warranty ( it lets you use resolution between 1080p 1440p and 4k) Not a huge deal.
https://www.newegg.com/sapphire-radeon-rx-5700-100417l/p/N82E16814202342?Item=N82E16814202342
Asrock has a 3 year warranty $330 (Probably a smarter option)
https://www.newegg.com/asrock-radeon-rx-5700-rx5700-8g/p/N82E16814930019?Description=radeon 5700&cm_re=radeon_5700-_-14-930-019-_-Product

If you choose this ram, start it first with one ram stick in the proper slot, it will tell you in the manual. A2 if I remember correctly. Then you can reboot with 2 and and set it to 3200 mhz in Bios with the xmp profile. I looked around about a month ago for the cheapest build and it still sells for the same price. Newegg also has no taxes in my region, which is a factor when comparing prices. For the video card you can always get something cheaper, if you have a 1080p monitor you can upscale it with included VSR to a higher resolution. It's not as good as native, but that's what I'm doing until I get another monitor.

I'm using all my old parts with it np. My PSU\Case\HD are 10 years old.

You can buy windows 10 for like $5 on ebay. It's way easier then fighting with a Windows 7 install. I know I fought it for days DAYS! Then gave up. You can put Windows 10 on a flash drive then install it without the disk.

New for a GPU AMD 570 580 590, to Nvidia 1660 ti. For a used card around $200 I saw some 980 ti's that seemed like the best option. You can also get a Vega 56 used for $230 on Ebay. 570 580 and 590 cards also sell very cheap used.

When looking on ebay search the card, click sort by price lowest to highest with shipping top, click buy it now on the left, skip over sponsored listings they are usually more expensive. Make sure the seller has positive feedback.

A used 570 is $85, new $130.
https://www.newegg.com/powercolor-r...cription=570&cm_re=570-_-14-131-717-_-Product

Windows 7 does not officially support a 2600 CPU.
 
Last edited:
Dear Neeyik,

Thanks for the very clear reply. From that I understand that following items I shell have to select new for my system upgradation:

1. Motherboard: Asus ROG Strix B450-f
2. Processor: AMD Ryzen 5 2600
3. RAM: DDR4
(Suggested:16 GiB of Corsair Vengeance LPX DDR4 3200)
4. Graphic Card
(Suggested: AMD Radeon RX 560 / Nvidia GeForce GTX 1050 Ti / AMD Radeon RX 550 / Nvidia GeForce GT 1030 / Nvidia GeForce GT 730 as per the budget and cost factor.)

Your assumption is very correct that I am from India. Almost all the above items are available online through Amazon India or similar sources and the prices run almost in parity with the US/UK with a little differences for fluctuating as per the availability and demand. I shell search for the costs and let you know in due course. Further, I seek your suggestion in the following matters:

(A). Asus ROG Strix B450 - Gaming Motherboards are mainly of 3-Types : ROG STRIX B450-I GAMING, ROG STRIX B450-E GAMING, and ROG STRIX B450-F GAMING. Being a non-computer person, I am unable to decide which one is bettter?
(Ref: https://www.asus.com/Motherboards/ROG-Republic-of-Gamers-Products/)

(B). Processor: AMD Ryzen 5 2600 comes with Heat sink Fan: Wraith Stealth as a stock cooler. Is it sufficient or should I opt for some more better cooling device like Asus Prisam model or Cooler master or other brand and type is required?

regards.
 
treetops said:
I went with
2600 $130
https://www.newegg.com/p/N82E16813157843?Item=N82E16813157843
ASRock B450M PRO4 AM4 $75
https://www.newegg.com/p/N82E16813157843?Item=N82E16813157843
Team T-FORCE VULCAN TUF 2x 8 gig ram 3200 mhz cl16 $71
https://www.newegg.com/team-16gb-288-pin-ddr4-sdram/p/N82E16820331172?Item=N82E16820331172
Radeon 5700 $330 Sapphire has trixx boost software but only a 2 year warranty ( it lets you use resolution between 1080p 1440p and 4k) Not a huge deal.
https://www.newegg.com/sapphire-radeon-rx-5700-100417l/p/N82E16814202342?Item=N82E16814202342
Asrock has a 3 year warranty $330 (Probably a smarter option)
https://www.newegg.com/asrock-radeon-rx-5700-rx5700-8g/p/N82E16814930019?Description=radeon 5700&cm_re=radeon_5700-_-14-930-019-_-Product

If you choose this ram, start it first with one ram stick in the proper slot, it will tell you in the manual. A2 if I remember correctly. Then you can reboot with 2 and and set it to 3200 mhz in Bios with the xmp profile. I looked around about a month ago for the cheapest build and it still sells for the same price. Newegg also has no taxes in my region, which is a factor when comparing prices. For the video card you can always get something cheaper, if you have a 1080p monitor you can upscale it with included VSR to a higher resolution. It's not as good as native, but that's what I'm doing until I get another monitor.

I'm using all my old parts with it np. My PSU\Case\HD are 10 years old.

You can buy windows 10 for like $5 on ebay. It's way easier then fighting with a Windows 7 install. I know I fought it for days DAYS! Then gave up. You can put Windows 10 on a flash drive then install it without the disk.

New for a GPU AMD 570 580 590, to Nvidia 1660 ti. For a used card around $200 I saw some 980 ti's that seemed like the best option. You can also get a Vega 56 used for $230 on Ebay. 570 580 and 590 cards also sell very cheap used.

When looking on ebay search the card, click sort by price lowest to highest with shipping top, click buy it now on the left, skip over sponsored listings they are usually more expensive. Make sure the seller has positive feedback.

A used 570 is $85, new $130.
https://www.newegg.com/powercolor-r...cription=570&cm_re=570-_-14-131-717-_-Product

Windows 7 does not officially support a 2600 CPU.
Click to expand...


Dear Treetops

Thanks for the well explained components of your computer system. I am pleased to know that you are able to well tune your almost 10 years old parts/items. Actually your case very much resembles with that of mine as I also wants to continue with my existing items like :

PSU: Cooler Master 800W Silent pro Gold
HDD: 2X1TB SATA + 2X250GB SATA + 1X250GB SSD
Printer: HP LaserJet 1005 MFP
Monitor; Samsung syncMaster 2230
ODD: LG super multi
Cabinet: iBall (black tall) of about 47cmX43cmX19cm size

And only wants to change:

1. Motherboard: Asus ROG Strix B450-f
2. Processor: AMD Ryzen 5 2600
3. RAM: DDR4
(Suggested:16 GiB of Corsair Vengeance LPX DDR4 3200)
4. Graphic Card
(Suggested: AMD Radeon RX 560 / Nvidia GeForce GTX 1050 Ti / AMD Radeon RX 550 / Nvidia GeForce GT 1030 / Nvidia GeForce GT 730 as per the budget and cost factor.)

I would like to personally request you that could you please give me the comparison between:

(A). Asus ROG Strix B450 - Gaming Motherboards & ASRock B450M PRO4 AM4
(B). 16 GiB of Corsair Vengeance LPX DDR4 3200 & T-FORCE VULCAN TUF 2x 8 gig ram 3200 mhz cl16

Regards.
 
Navin Talati said:
Your assumption is very correct that I am from India. Almost all the above items are available online through Amazon India or similar sources and the prices run almost in parity with the US/UK with a little differences for fluctuating as per the availability and demand.
Click to expand...
That's interesting to know; thank you for that information.

Further, I seek your suggestion in the following matters:

(A). Asus ROG Strix B450 - Gaming Motherboards are mainly of 3-Types : ROG STRIX B450-I GAMING, ROG STRIX B450-E GAMING, and ROG STRIX B450-F GAMING. Being a non-computer person, I am unable to decide which one is bettter?
(Ref: https://www.asus.com/Motherboards/ROG-Republic-of-Gamers-Products/)
Click to expand...
The B450-I only supports 2 memory DIMMs, up to a total of 32 GiB. The other two motherboards support up to 4 DIMMs, 64 GiB in total. The B450-E has built in WiFi capabilities, but the other two do not have this. The B450-F has more USB ports than the other two motherboards.

If the prices were all the same, then the choice would come down to how important each of the above are. Unfortunately I don't have any hands-on experience with Ryzen systems but if I was building my own, I would go with the B450-F, as I like having lots of USB ports and I already have a WiFi adapter; if I didn't have one, then I would go with the B450-E.

(B). Processor: AMD Ryzen 5 2600 comes with Heat sink Fan: Wraith Stealth as a stock cooler. Is it sufficient or should I opt for some more better cooling device like Asus Prisam model or Cooler master or other brand and type is required?
Click to expand...
This was explored in this article:

https://www.techspot.com/review/1635-amd-wraith-coolers-compared/

You can see that although the Wraith coolers were okay for general use, a simple aftermarket (different brand) cooler was just as good, if not better. Here are our recommendations for coolers currently available:

https://www.techspot.com/bestof/cooling/

Personally I always like to spend a bit extra on CPU cooling, but the standard Wraith Stealth will be good enough until you are able to replace it with something better.
 
Navin Talati said:
Your assumption is very correct that I am from India. Almost all the above items are available online through Amazon India or similar sources and the prices run almost in parity with the US/UK with a little differences for fluctuating as per the availability and demand.
Click to expand...
That's interesting to know; thank you for that information.

Further, I seek your suggestion in the following matters:

(A). Asus ROG Strix B450 - Gaming Motherboards are mainly of 3-Types : ROG STRIX B450-I GAMING, ROG STRIX B450-E GAMING, and ROG STRIX B450-F GAMING. Being a non-computer person, I am unable to decide which one is bettter?
(Ref: https://www.asus.com/Motherboards/ROG-Republic-of-Gamers-Products/)
Click to expand...
The B450-I only supports 2 memory DIMMs, up to a total of 32 GiB. The other two motherboards support up to 4 DIMMs, 64 GiB in total. The B450-E has built in WiFi capabilities, but the other two do not have this. The B450-F has more USB ports than the other two motherboards.

If the prices were all the same, then the choice would come down to how important each of the above are. Unfortunately I don't have any hands-on experience with Ryzen systems but if I was building my own, I would go with the B450-F, as I like having lots of USB ports and I already have a WiFi adapter; if I didn't have one, then I would go with the B450-E.

(B). Processor: AMD Ryzen 5 2600 comes with Heat sink Fan: Wraith Stealth as a stock cooler. Is it sufficient or should I opt for some more better cooling device like Asus Prisam model or Cooler master or other brand and type is required?
Click to expand...
This was explored in this article:

https://www.techspot.com/review/1635-amd-wraith-coolers-compared/

You can see that although the Wraith coolers were okay for general use, a simple aftermarket (different brand) cooler was just as good, if not better. Here are our recommendations for coolers currently available:

https://www.techspot.com/bestof/cooling/

Personally I always like to spend a bit extra on CPU cooling, but the standard Wraith Stealth will be good enough until you are able to replace it with something better.
 
  • Like
Reactions: treetops
Many thanks for very crystal-clear opinion about my doubts. I, being a non-computer person, have much importance of an opinion of an experienced technical person like you. This creates some higher degree of self-confidence in me. One more thing I want to know is:

1.
If I go for one of the Asus ROG Strix B450 - Gaming Motherboards, is it essential to purchase a suitable Graphic Card (from one of you suggested I.e. AMD Radeon RX 560 / Nvidia GeForce GTX 1050 Ti / AMD Radeon RX 550 / Nvidia GeForce GT 1030 / Nvidia GeForce GT 730 etc.) since the beginning of the upgraded system? If it is not essential, then I may add it later on at my convenience ( just to optimize my budget!) and till then I may continue with my normal desktop computing work. Do these M.B.s have on-board normal graphic facilities?

2.
What is your opinion about Asus ROG Strix B450 - Gaming Motherboards & ASRock B450M PRO4 AM4 Motherboard? Do they both type suitable for AMS Ryzen 5 2600 ? Of course there is a substantial delta in cost but what about the Quality?


Regards.
 
The AMD Ryzen 2600 processor has no built in graphics chip, so a graphics card is absolutely required. However, to maximise your budget potential at the moment, you could continue to use the GeForce GT520 - it will continue to be okay for office applications, but in modern games, it will be slow. Even a GT 730 will outperform it by quite a large margin.

I had forgotten that we had explored B450 motherboards in this article:

https://www.techspot.com/bestof/amd-b450-motherboards/

As you can see, the Asrock motherboard is rated best for the category of "Ultra cheap"; none of the B450 motherboards from Asus are rated in any category, so for the same price as the ROG STRIX B450-F GAMING, you could get an MSI B450 Gaming Pro Carbon, which is rated best in the "No Compromise" category.

For the price, the Asrock motherboard seems really good - well featured, with appropriate cooling for stability. The MSI motherboard is better, but it's also quite a lot more expensive. If you're not planning on trying to overclock the Ryzen 2600 and just use it under normal conditions (but still expect the best from it), then the Asrock motherboard will suit your needs.

Edit: I had also forgotten that you have quite a few hard drives and an ODD. The Asrock motherboard only has 4 SATA ports - so that means you will only be able to use 3 hard drives and the ODD, or 4 hard drives and no ODD.

However, the MSI motherboard has 6 SATA ports, so you can have up to 5 hard drives, and still use the ODD.
 
Last edited:
Your conclusive reply is really narrowing my confusions. Thanks for the same.
You have really opened an issue which was in fact out of my thinking! As you have said: "........If you're not planning on trying to overclock the Ryzen 2600 and just use it under normal conditions (but still expect the best from it), then the Asrock motherboard will suit your needs........", I am initiated to have clarity about this term "Overclocking the CPU". Please let me know that:
1.
In normal use of office and gaming activities, overclocking is required?
2.
Overclocking is set through bios or CPU acquires that state automatically?
3.
I understand that overclocking reduces the life of hardware and peripherals. Is it true?
4.
Normal higher-end games ( and not extreme higher-end games) requires the overclocking to set?

From your analysis in thread #15, I usually prefer to have more SATA ports to accomodate more HDD + ODD. However, I prefer to optimize balanced factors of quality & cost. I.e. in real sense "Value for Money".

Regards.
 
Lots of good questions!

1. For normal use, a modern CPU like the Ryzen 2600 will be more than powerful enough in office applications, gaming, and even specialist applications such as CAD or Photoshop.

2. The overclocking of a CPU can be done through the motherboard BIOS or through software, once the operating system has fully launched. The general preference is to do it in the BIOS, and some motherboards allow a simple 'one click' system to overclock the CPU.

3. Yes, it does but only if the increase in heat caused by overclocking is not accounted for. Even then, low levels of overclocking (e.g. increasing the CPU clock speeds by 100 MHz) won't have any noticeable effect on the CPU lifespan.

I personally ran an Intel Core i7 chip at 4.5 GHz (normal clock speed was 4.0 to 4.4 GHz) for nearly 5 years, without a single problem. However, I used the best cooling system I could afford and every year, I would replace the thermal compound, between the cooler and CPU.

Now, I don't overclock any more. The CPU I use is perfect for my needs, without needing to overclock it, and this is true for the majority of people using a modern CPU.

4. Have a look at this review of the Ryzen 2600:

https://www.techspot.com/review/1614-ryzen-2600/page3.html

In particular, look at the result for Assassin's Creed: Origins. The graphics settings were put to their highest values but you can see that the Ryzen 2600 is only a little bit slower than the Intel 8700K - that CPU has the same number of cores as the Ryzen, but it was overclocked to 5.2 GHz.

The difference between them is larger in other games, but the Ryzen 2600 still performs perfectly well in high end games. The reason for this is that such games use lots of complex visual effects, and this work is done on the graphics card, not the CPU.

That Ryzen chip is really good, and more than enough for most uses - now and for the future. Only people with specific needs, such as complex rendering for 3D art or heavy calculations for compute work or professional workstations/small servers, really need anything better.
 
Gradually I am acquiring clarity in the matter. From the above discussions:

(1).
I have following options of Motherboard for AMD Ryzen 5 2600 (Wraith Stealth as a stock cooler):

**Asus ROG B450 gaming type:
ROG STRIX B450-I GAMING
ROG STRIX B450-E GAMING
ROG STRIX B450-F GAMING

**Other options of B450 motherboards:
MSI B450 Gaming Pro Carbon AC (Best No-Compromise)
Asrock B450M-HDV (Best Ultra-Cheap)
MSI B450 Tomahawk (Best Value All-Rounder)
Asrock B450M Pro 4 (Best Micro ATX)
MSI B450I Gaming Plus AC (Best Mini-ITX)

Out of that, presently I would prefer ROG STRIX B450-F GAMING on the basis of your opinion and considering my constraints.

(2).
......And following options for Graphic Cards:
AMD Radeon RX 560
Nvidia GeForce GTX 1050 Ti
AMD Radeon RX 550
Nvidia GeForce GT 1030
Nvidia GeForce GT 730
Sapphire Radeon RX 5700
PowerColor RED DRAGON Radeon RX
Nvidia GeForce GT 520
Nvidia GeForce GT 730

Out of these, I would prefer to go with Nvidia GeForce GTX 1050 Ti (First preference) or AMD Radeon RX 550 .

As I have said earlier that I want to use my existing system CABINET which is iBall (black tall) of about 47cmX43cmX19cm size (approx.). I am attaching its some of the pics for your ready reference.

Can I accommodate that above preferred Motherboard & Graphic Cards in that?

Back side view.jpegFront view.jpegInside view.jpegRight side view.jpegRegards.
 
Because we know what your current motherboard is and what motherboard you would like to install, it's easy to compare sizes:

Asus M4A88T-M
24.4 cm x 24.4 cm (micro ATX form factor)

Asus ROG STRIX B450-F GAMING
30.5 cm x 24.4 cm (ATX form factor)

So the B450-F motherboard is the same width as your current one, but 6 cm longer. Looking at the images of your PC case suggests that this will not be a problem.

The next thing to look at is the graphics card. You currently have what looks very much like an Asus ENGT520 SL/DI/2GD3(LP. According to the Asus website, it has these dimensions:

18.8 cm x 12.2 cm x 4.1 cm

Now it looks like you have around 10 cm, at maximum, between the end of the graphics card and the bottom HDD - let's reduce that to 5 cm of available extra space, to be on the safe side.

If you go with an Nvidia GeForce 1050 Ti, you'll want to keep the length under 24 cm to ensure it will fit. Something like the ASUS Phoenix GeForce GTX 1050 Ti 4GB is only 20 cm in length, so that will fit quite nicely.

So if you pick the right graphics card, then you should have no problem getting everything to fit in your current PC case.

There is one last thing to consider, though, and that's the size of the Wraith Stealth cooling unit. It has the following dimensions:

12.7 cm x 11.2 cm x 10.2 cm

From your pictures, I am going to guess that the current cooling unit is the standard retail one, that gets shipped with that particular Phenom CPU. I don't know the exact dimensions of it, but you may find that the Wraith Stealth is larger.

This could make it quite a tight fit between the top of the cooler and the metal bracket that holds the power supply unit. However, without exact values for sizes, and the positions of everything, it is difficult to know for certain.

My guess (and I must strong emphasize that while this is going to be a reasoned guess, it is still a guess) is that it should fit okay because standard retail components, such as CPUs and their coolers, are usually designed to not overlap the edges of an ATX motherboard.
 
Dear Neeyik and All;

Merry Christmas to you all friends.

Please forgive me for being away for about last 2 months. The reason is that in my existing system, the Motherboard : Asus M4A88T-A has gone off! This time I am before you through some one else’s machine. Very difficult to get that regularly. So my appearing in the forum will remain flashy!

For my Asus M4A88T-A motherboard, I am not getting the substitute here. So presently I have no means to remain regularly connected` with you all. If I replace the MoBo with some other chip set I shell have to go for fresh installation which is a very rigorous process in my case being existing multiple O.S.s! So I am confused what to do?

Can any one suggest me a suitable Chaper MoBo which can accommodate my remaining peripherals as mentioned in #1
I.e.
Processor; AMDc Phenom (tm) II X2 555
RAM: 4 GB XMS3 corsair + 2 GB Kingston = 6 GB DDR3
PSU: Cooler Master 800W Silent pro Gold
Graphic Card; GT520 Silent 2GB DDR3 nvidia GeForce.

Before I proceed for investing in assembling a new machine, I must have to make the existing one live!

Regards. - Expecting your positive response.

Navin Talati / 25-12-2019
 
  • Like
Reactions: Cycloid Torus
Sorry Sir,
Please correct that my existing but failed MoBo is ASUS M4A88T-M and not ASUS M4A88T-A as mentioned in above post #20
Secondly, if I use opted ASUS M3A78-CM, the existing DDR3 RAM with me will not work and I shell have to go for DDR2 RAM - is it right?
Then speed will be compromised?
Regards.
 
Many apologies for that - I'd hadn't realised that the Asus M4A88T-M used DDR3; I had assumed that since that motherboard and the M3A78-CM both supported the Phenom II processor, they would be using the same RAM.

I think it's going to be a case of going through the likes of eBay to find something that supports the Phenom II processor (so it will need an AM2+ or AM3 socket) and supports DDR3 RAM too:


Something like the Gigabyte GA-78LMT-USB3 would work:

www.gigabyte.com

GA-78LMT-USB3 (rev. 6.0) Overview | Motherboard - GIGABYTE Global

Lasting Quality from GIGABYTE.GIGABYTE Ultra Durable™ motherboards bring together a unique blend of features and technologies that offer users the absolute ...
www.gigabyte.com www.gigabyte.com

www.ebay.com

GIGABYTE GA-78LMT-USB3 AM3 AMD Motherboard for sale online | eBay

Find many great new & used options and get the best deals for GIGABYTE GA-78LMT-USB3 AM3 AMD Motherboard at the best online prices at eBay! Free shipping for many products!
www.ebay.com
 
There are two things to note with that motherboard:

(1) It's an ATX sized board, whereas your current Asus M4A88T-M is a Micro-ATX board.

ATX - 12 inch x 8.2 inch ( 30.5 cm x 20.8 cm )
Micro-ATX - 9.6 inch x 9.6 inch ( 24.4 cm x 24.4 cm )

So it may not fit into your current PC case.

(2) The motherboard chipset (the processors that handle the RAM, SATA ports, etc) is the old Nvidia nForce 630a. The drivers for it were last updated in 2009, whereas the current Asus board you have uses AMD's 880 chipset and those drivers are fully up to date.

If these aren't a problem for you, then it's probably your only option. Otherwise it will be a case of getting a motherboard shipped from another country.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.

Similar threads

P
Help me build budget PC suitable for home audio recording & editing
Replies
13
Views
5K
Rage_3K_Moiz
Rage_3K_Moiz

Latest posts

Back