When to get a new computer.

[the boar]

Except that doesn't work. If you want/need a new CPU most likely you'll need a new Mobo and possibly different ram.

this opens the question up though, what counts as a "new computer"

the cool thing about a pc is you don't need to buy brand new everything very often, if ever in your life, barring some horrible disaster or some-such. you can swap bits out. cpu/mobo/ram is usually the biggest change, but if you have the same case, psu, graphics card, peripherals, is it really a new computer

i don't think there is a right or wrong answer to the above? maybe when you get to the point that your broom has had 15 new handles and 12 new heads, maybe then it is a new pc.

[Logwyn]

When you are playing a new game or using a rendering software sometimes you PC gets stuck. Sometimes it says that PC is not responding. At that, you should change your PC.

No.... no your shouldn't.

[Kellhound]

I never said you could, nor does that have anything to do with what I was saying. However, if you want to discuss RAM compatibility... you can find AM3+ MBs that support both DDR2 (usually unbuffered) and DDR3, for example; useful if you have some old DDR2 RAM and didn't feel like forking over $50 bucks for new RAM. The fact that you can't mix DDR2 and 3 isn't relevant to backward compatibility. Yes, you have to know what you're buying, but it's not that complicated. I honestly don't understand why people in this thread seem to be arguing against piecemeal builds (some even going so far as to say it doesn't even work, all evidence to the contrary) when it's blatantly obvious that a great many of us have been doing it for decades with great success.

Most boards are NOT backwards compatible between RAM types. CPU/MoBo/RAM are generally best replaced together.

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this opens the question up though, what counts as a "new computer"

the cool thing about a pc is you don't need to buy brand new everything very often, if ever in your life, barring some horrible disaster or some-such. you can swap bits out. cpu/mobo/ram is usually the biggest change, but if you have the same case, psu, graphics card, peripherals, is it really a new computer

i don't think there is a right or wrong answer to the above? maybe when you get to the point that your broom has had 15 new handles and 12 new heads, maybe then it is a new pc.

Often times you can get a better bang for your buck by upgrading your GPU and mass storage than your CPU. If you go with Microsoft's view, a new MoBo = new computer.

[Holofernes]

Laptops dont age well, and I dont discard old desktop parts. So your comments are nonsensical.

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DDR2/DDR3/DDR4 are not compatible with each other.

many motherboards for upgraders have different ram slots, so u can still use your old ddr2 sticks, and upgrade to ddr3 later a year later or so. I used such a motherboard, it cost 50 Euro and it supported up to amd 8 core cpus. And oh: up until march this year, i used the case of my old pentium 90.
I still use a power supply from 2008.
Buying a new pc systems if you already have one that is less than 15 years old, is not a good decision for people who can read a little bit up on the pc stuff. Buy the parts u need / want, and u are cheaper in the long run by a LOT.

The only hassle i currently have is not having enough IDE slots for all the old drives and stuff, and i still have some ISA stuff lying around.

[Kellhound]

many motherboards for upgraders have different ram slots, so u can still use your old ddr2 sticks, and upgrade to ddr3 later a year later or so. I used such a motherboard, it cost 50 Euro and it supported up to amd 8 core cpus. And oh: up until march this year, i used the case of my old pentium 90.
I still use a power supply from 2008.
Buying a new pc systems if you already have one that is less than 15 years old, is not a good decision for people who can read a little bit up on the pc stuff. Buy the parts u need / want, and u are cheaper in the long run by a LOT.

Yes, there are a few, but not most. I still have an IBM AT case for fun builds, but cases are just boxes. I have 6 computers newer than 2008 in my house, and none of them are worth upgrading, at best I can reuse the case, CD-RW drives, and maybe the PSU if I am building a lower power system. The rest is all junk or not worth relying on (old HHDs).

[DSRilk]

Most boards are NOT backwards compatible between RAM types. CPU/MoBo/RAM are generally best replaced together.

I really don't understand why you're arguing points I never made and that aren't relevant. For one thing, you're ignoring the fact that DDR3 came out what, about a decade ago? Thus you could safely upgrade (and I have) with the same RAM for the last decade or so if you had DDR3 back then without (generally, especially in the AMD world) worrying about the MB at all.

I've been upgrading machines like this for almost 30 years. I've had the same RAM in both my boxes for the last 3 or 4 MB/CPU upgrades. I've replaced CPUs without updating the MB several times and even occasionally updated the MB without upgrading the CPU or RAM in order to change up the number of SATA ports and update the USB ports. I've also replaced virtually the entire internal workings at once before, but it's certainly not necessary in every situation.

What you need to replace depends entirely on what you currently have and what you want to buy. I never said otherwise. My point is it's totally feasible to only replace one or two parts at a time (again, depending on what you own and what you want to upgrade to), NOT that it's the only way to do it or that you don't sometimes want or need to update more than one component at a time. Yeesh!

Maybe I just give people more credit than you do. I assume they know that if their MB only supports AM3 and the CPU says it requires AM3+ that at the very least they should look up whether or not they can put an AM3+ CPU in the AM3 socket on their current MB. I assume that if I (and many others) could figure this stuff out without too much difficulty in the era before the Internet was a place where you could efficiently look things up in 3 seconds like you can today, that surely modern users can use Google to find answers and won't just start jamming parts together and hoping for the best.

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Yes, there are a few, but not most. I still have an IBM AT case for fun builds, but cases are just boxes. I have 6 computers newer than 2008 in my house, and none of them are worth upgrading, at best I can reuse the case, CD-RW drives, and maybe the PSU if I am building a lower power system. The rest is all junk or not worth relying on (old HHDs).

I often keep old parts for troubleshooting. It's nice to have an extra PSU or graphics card lying around so you can test things out and know what you really need to replace. I also like old parts because I can let the kids rip them open to see what the inner workings actually look like on some of the old mechanical pieces.

<edit>Apologies for sounding (and being) grumpy - I'm writing this while taking a break from debugging something and am in a bit of a mood apparently. Sorry </edit>

[Deleted]

I'm a little bit of a thrifty person and my last PC lasted 7 years before I decided to replace it, but I think a good way to see if you need to change your PC is to check the FPS that you get on games you currently play. For me, I was playing GTA IV at 12 FPS on the lowest setting, the game was not enjoyable at that point and I knew I had to upgrade.

[CastletonSnob]

If I just want to use my computer for going online and doing work, should I just keep it until it stops working?

[Deleted]

If I just want to use my computer for going online and doing work, should I just keep it until it stops working?

While it's doing everything you need from it, it's still offering value. Be mindful that a fully updated version of windows is more secure for your average internet user, and this may come with a hardware overhead. Outside that consideration, a 256gb ssd for your boot drive would probably be money well spent, and can go into a new build when you've had enough with the current.

[Deleted]

I really don't understand why you're arguing points I never made and that aren't relevant. For one thing, you're ignoring the fact that DDR3 came out what, about a decade ago? Thus you could safely upgrade (and I have) with the same RAM for the last decade or so if you had DDR3 back then without (generally, especially in the AMD world) worrying about the MB at all.

I've been upgrading machines like this for almost 30 years. I've had the same RAM in both my boxes for the last 3 or 4 MB/CPU upgrades. I've replaced CPUs without updating the MB several times and even occasionally updated the MB without upgrading the CPU or RAM in order to change up the number of SATA ports and update the USB ports. I've also replaced virtually the entire internal workings at once before, but it's certainly not necessary in every situation.

What you need to replace depends entirely on what you currently have and what you want to buy. I never said otherwise. My point is it's totally feasible to only replace one or two parts at a time (again, depending on what you own and what you want to upgrade to), NOT that it's the only way to do it or that you don't sometimes want or need to update more than one component at a time. Yeesh!

Maybe I just give people more credit than you do. I assume they know that if their MB only supports AM3 and the CPU says it requires AM3+ that at the very least they should look up whether or not they can put an AM3+ CPU in the AM3 socket on their current MB. I assume that if I (and many others) could figure this stuff out without too much difficulty in the era before the Internet was a place where you could efficiently look things up in 3 seconds like you can today, that surely modern users can use Google to find answers and won't just start jamming parts together and hoping for the best.

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I often keep old parts for troubleshooting. It's nice to have an extra PSU or graphics card lying around so you can test things out and know what you really need to replace. I also like old parts because I can let the kids rip them open to see what the inner workings actually look like on some of the old mechanical pieces.

<edit>Apologies for sounding (and being) grumpy - I'm writing this while taking a break from debugging something and am in a bit of a mood apparently. Sorry </edit>

in what way does "you may need a new MB. However, everything else (usually including RAM, as most boards are backward compatible) can stay the same." not imply your claimed RAM to have at least some backward compatible.

[DSRilk]

in what way does "you may need a new MB. However, everything else (usually including RAM, as most boards are backward compatible) can stay the same." not imply your claimed RAM to have at least some backward compatible.

The RAM you bought 10 years ago (DDR3) works with most boards built today. When a new tech comes out, the new boards often support both (which you can see from older and even some current MBs that still support both DDR 2 and 3). From a pragmatic perspective, it's common to be able to keep your existing RAM when upgrading. I used the term backward compatibility to mean both things; I can see the confusion that could cause, perhaps it was a poor choice of phrase. My point, however, remains the same and still accurate.