- Case is fine even if a little dated. ATX is called a standard just for these types of things.
- Monitor and peripherals are good, power supply could use a refresh and the SSD, HDD I would relegate to secondary drives and just get a new SSD.
- You could look for a used PC, some of the local shops have some decent deals but I personally would avoid any office PC unless you're just going for a very budget PC or just want to get a cheap CPU. All that proprietary parts and usually non-standard, underpowered PSU isn't going to be great.
this post was submitted on 15 Jun 2025
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I've been bitten before by these non standard things.. thanks for the reminder.
Honestly, anything you spend on that PC is a waste. You can get a 5 year old computer for under $100 and move your updated parts over.
Search Amazon for a Lenovo Thinkcentre, Dell optiplex or anything with an Intel Core i7-4770. This is by far the cheapest route.
Alternatively, if you are looking for the adventure of getting back into PC building, check out the build guides at pcpartpicker.com.
This is very practical advice, thanks for the point in the right direction.
I'd be resistant to reuse the power supply. Its long overdue to fail, and if it fails and takes out your brand new stuff, you'll be a bit unhappy.
Hardisks also. Dont store important data, they are due to fail eventually.
Decide your budget first, everything after that follows. Most likely like others have said ignore that old pc, you get get something much better second hand for very cheap.
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Yes ATX is a standard. That said airflow and build ability have dramatically changed in the last 20 years. I would probably find a new one.
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Yes ATX is a standard.
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Depending on what you’re going for it would be cheaper to buy just a whole ass PC. Used office PCs or ancient gamer computers can be pretty cheap.
Honestly I’d keep it for playing older games if that’s your jam. Then find something new because you wouldn’t want to reuse almost any of it.
The problem is the motherboard has some blown caps and in general the system is not very stable as is.
From the other advice it sounds like I should get a used PC and just use a USB floppy drive if I ever need one.
You could replace the caps if you wanted to keep that board around. Through hole caps are SUPER easy to replace. Just spend some time identifying the specs of all of the blown ones. The replace all of them (including the non blown ones) as long as they’re all the same manufacturer. I used to do this to old machines and it’s honestly quite fun.
Otherwise if you wanted a retro machine I think those machines are still getting thrown out. But maybe they’ve already reached the bottom of their value curve and are starting to go up. I’ve seen some whack ass prices.
- Likely, yes. The mounting holes and rear connectors on any ATX motherboard should line up with the standoffs and slots on any ATX case. Just make sure the new board isn't too large for the case. Plan ahead for the size of your new CPU cooler, too.
- For the most part, yes. Pay attention to the new motherboard's power connector and that of your old power supply. If they don't match, you might want to get a more modern power supply (even if it's a used one).
- It depends on the prices you find. Bear in mind that if you go for a new motherboard, it doesn't have to be the latest generation. A socket AM4 motherboard might make sense, since new CPUs are still being made for them, and they're likely to be cheaper than latest-generation stuff.