PC Rebuild - Advice or help, please.

[crab]

My PC was built for me some 12 years ago and has given good service. Now the motherboard seems to be dying. The box and several components are great, and it carries 5 internal hard drives. It needs (at the least) a new motherboard, CPU & RAM. And an SSD would be good.

 

I don't do any serious gaming, but I torrent 24/7, do simple video editing and multi-task like crazy. Intel i-5 or Ryzen 5 perhaps (e.g Ryzen 5600G); 16GB DDR4. Connectivity for several USB external drives and 1 or more external SATA bays.

 

I am not computer savvy and I don't consider myself capable of doing any of the work myself. I need help too selecting the various components.

 

I live in Pattaya. Can anybody suggest a suitably competent and honest person to do the job. Thoughts and suggestions about specs are also very welcome.

 

[ukrules]

You need a completely new system, everything has changed and got far better over the last decade.

 

I suggest you just buy a new one and then copy over what data you want to keep.

 

[ozimoron]

Toss the entire computer (except maybe the power supply). Get another one built. I live in Pattaya and am quite happy to help you organise it (free). I actually recommend a mini computer like the ASUS PN51 or Intel NUC series where can choose your own memory and drive unless you really want a full sized desktop. If you're not planning on high end gaming there's not much point in a full sized desktop these days. Everything you have is totally obsolete.

[transam]

If you are happy with it, just go on Lazada and buy a second hand motherboard. That's what I do, I can buy one for mine for about 800bht....

[KannikaP]

7 minutes ago, ozimoron said:

Toss the entire computer (except maybe the power supply). Get another one built. I live in Pattaya and am quite happy to help you organise it (free). I actually recommend a mini computer like the ASUS PN51 or Intel NUC series where can choose your own memory and drive unless you really want a full sized desktop. If you're not planning on high end gaming there's not much point in a full sized desktop these days. Everything you have is totally obsolete.

NUCs are really good. 

[ozimoron]

Just now, KannikaP said:

NUCs are really good. 

So is my ASUS PN51.

[KannikaP]

14 minutes ago, crab said:

but I torrent 24/7,

What does that mean please? You download stuff from P Bay etc, movies & apps.

Do that overnight.

[KannikaP]

2 minutes ago, ozimoron said:

So is my ASUS PN51.

Agreed. Beelink also get good reviews and are quite a bit cheaper.

But I would stick with names like Intel NUC and ASUS.

[NotEinstein]

I do everything you do on a few raspberry pis.

[ozimoron]

2 minutes ago, KannikaP said:

What does that mean please? You download stuff from P Bay etc, movies & apps.

Do that overnight.

The limiting factor for torrenting is the speed of the internet and not the computer. I gather you know this but it's worth pointing out to the OP.

 

Just now, NotEinstein said:

I do everything you do on a few raspberry pis.

Except very slowly unless it has an SSD which I believe some new ones do. They are also prone to overheat and die if left on for extended periods of time. At least mine did. Not a good recommendation for someone not computer savvy.

[NotEinstein]

6 minutes ago, ozimoron said:

Except very slowly unless it has an SSD which I believe some new ones do. They are also prone to overheat and die if left on for extended periods of time. At least mine did. Not a good recommendation for someone not computer savvy.

Did I recommend?

I have been using raspberry Pis for 10 years, with the only failure (apart from sd-cards) being the hdmi output not producing a picture after running Kodi 24x7 for 8 years (3 Pi 1s). They are now re-purposed as ip cams and working well.

The newer  Pi 3s and 4s have heatsinks and fans to cope with the extra heat dissipation.

 

[ozimoron]

1 minute ago, NotEinstein said:

Did I recommend?

The topic is specifically a request for recommendation

 

1 minute ago, NotEinstein said:

I have been using raspberry Pis for 10 years, with the only failure (apart from sd-cards) being the hdmi output not producing a picture after running Kodi 24x7 for 8 years (3 Pi 1s). They are now re-purposed as ip cams and working well.

The newer  Pi 3s and 4s have heatsinks and fans to cope with the extra heat dissipation.

sd card failure means total data loss.

[Furioso]

No way would I replace it until I knew exactly what was wrong with it..I'd take it to the shop and have them diagnose the problem. 

[Mickeymaus]

What problems do you get? Any errors? 

[transam]

Is high temps an issue, looks like it might be....Speccy download  will reveal all....

[OneMoreFarang]

You have to change about 90% of the PC.

Buy a new one.

[transam]

Just now, OneMoreFarang said:

You have to change about 90% of the PC.

Buy a new one.

My PC is like my old cars, keep it going and upgrade if possible with stuff found searching....

I sort out laptops for friends, to find my old PC is much quicker...????

[ozimoron]

5 minutes ago, OneMoreFarang said:

You have to change about 90% of the PC.

Buy a new one.

Yeah, he wants to replace the only expensive parts anyway.

[NotEinstein]

33 minutes ago, ozimoron said:

sd card failure means total data loss.

Not if it is only a boot partition....

[KannikaP]

Just now, NotEinstein said:

Not if it is only a boot partition....

Boot partition on an SD card?

[ozimoron]

Just now, KannikaP said:

Boot partition on an SD card?

yup, waste of time for normal users.

[Furioso]

30 minutes ago, transam said:

Is high temps an issue, looks like it might be....Speccy download  will reveal all....

My best guess is the CPU thermal paste is old and not doing it's job. Easy fix. 

[transam]

1 minute ago, Furioso said:

My best guess is the CPU thermal paste is old and not doing it's job. Easy fix. 

Indeed, plus the inside of the PC looks a bit overcrowded with little visible cooling/air flow...

[NotEinstein]

7 minutes ago, KannikaP said:

Boot partition on an SD card?

Yes, the initial boot sequence needed to run from the sd-card, which points to the actual system on whatever usb device you want. The pi 4 can boot direct from usb now, so no sd-card required.

 

A Pi 4 would be perfect as a 24x7 torrenting device. I have a pi3 doing that as well as hosting and processing the pictures from the 12 motion triggered ip cams.

[KannikaP]

2 minutes ago, NotEinstein said:

Yes, the initial boot sequence needed to run from the sd-card, which points to the actual system on whatever usb device you want. The pi 4 can boot direct from usb now, so no sd-card required.

 

A Pi 4 would be perfect as a 24x7 torrenting device. I have a pi3 doing that as well as hosting and processing the pictures from the 12 motion triggered ip cams.

Why would you need 24/7 torrenting. What are you downloading?

I can download at least 10 1080 movies in a couple of hours, depending on the speeds the seeders are working at, and your own personal internet speed. 

[ozimoron]

Just now, KannikaP said:

Why would you need 24/7 torrenting. What are you downloading?

I can download at least 10 1080 movies in a couple of hours, depending on the speeds the seeders are working at, and your own personal internet speed. 

He's probably serving as well.

[OneMoreFarang]

23 minutes ago, transam said:

My PC is like my old cars, keep it going and upgrade if possible with stuff found searching....

I sort out laptops for friends, to find my old PC is much quicker...????

A lot depends on how much you need your PC or a PC.

I have several PCs and my important data is in the cloud. If one PC fails, I can use another one. And for me and my job it's essential like that.

If someone doesn't have a problem if the PC doesn't work for a week that is a different situation.

 

[NotEinstein]

3 minutes ago, KannikaP said:

Why would you need 24/7 torrenting. What are you downloading?

I can download at least 10 1080 movies in a couple of hours, depending on the speeds the seeders are working at, and your own personal internet speed. 

The Op said he was 24x7 torrenting. Some torrent sites operate on seeding quotas. Some torrenters need to seed, or else the torrenting model of sharing wouldn't work!

[Stocky]

 

Looks like a box of snakes.

 

[BigStar]

5 hours ago, KannikaP said:

I actually recommend a mini computer like the ASUS PN51 or Intel NUC series where can choose your own memory and drive

The NUC chant begins. OK, how would he fit his 5 drives into a PN51 or NUC?