Another 'what to do/what to upgrade?' post

[canadien]

I'll list my current computer with extra parts listed at the bottom. I am not sure if the extra parts should be salvaged into a 2nd computer or sold to add money for other components or towards something else like another build or towards a laptop (something I've been wanting for a while).

Here's the current build:

P35 Gigabyte EP-GA-P35-DS3R
Mushkin 4GB DDR2 RAM PC-6400
Audigy 2ZS Soundcard
EVGA GeForce 7950GT
Corsair HX520W PSU (modular)
Samsung DVD Burner
WD 320GB HDD
Samsung 500GB HDD

Extra components:
Coolermaster 500W PSU
Crucial Ballistix PC-8500 DDR2 2GB (2x1GB DDR2)
Asus P5Q P45 mobo

I was going to build a 2nd computer with the other components but I was wondering if it is a good idea to switch the motherboards and then sell the extra parts. For the P35 mobo, 2 sticks of RAM and the power supply, could I expect to get any decent return? What is the value of those parts?

Or am I better off buying a used 775 cpu and building the 2nd computer? Why another desktop? Well, only because I have the parts already. They're not being used at the moment and possibly a finished system could also be sold, in theory?

I thought of upgrading the video card and buying a SSD so then the current video card can be moved to the 2nd computer or also sold.

Any advice/recommendations?

I'm saving for a laptop but that's going to take a while and I do have a couple of laptops already but they're slow, older Thinkpad Centrino M machines. I'd like a more modern i5 laptop but I'll need to save up much more. I thought a SSD would make my current system faster and more responsive? Also, the video card is getting a bit old in the tooth although I'm not a hard-core gamer or anything. But, lots of this hardware is high on power consumption and I could lower it a bit with some new hardware?

My other idea would be to sell everything either together or part it out but I thought that might be a bit stressful waiting to sell this stuff. I haven't done that before so I was hoping someone could comment on that. How successful have you been and did you get good prices/value on selling your stuff?

I asked about buying a used 775 cpu in another thread but I thought my analysis of options has gone in all sorts of other directions (than just a used processor upgrade/purchase) and I thought I should post my own thread than crap further on the OP's thread. Hope that is an acceptable move.

One final note: I'm impressed by the price/performance with decent temps/power consumption of the i3 and i5 systems. It makes me want one if I can't afford Sandy Bridge. I'm inclined to lean more towards an Intel system for that reason but I'm open to suggestions. Either to hang on to most of what I have or plan selling these components to upgrade.

Thanks for any advice.

 

[jellyrole]

What CPU do you have in your current rig?

 

[micropage7]

its kinda cool when you take the newer chipset (p45) coz it offers better performance, support and feature than p35 then take the ram to the max
for psu i guess its up to you since both of them is nice, so the rest is on

about notebook, is back to what do you do with that, most laptop is for daily needs, just some of them that pointed for gaming and of course you have to pay on "gaming price"

if you like to upgrade something and you dont mobile much, i guess its better the desktop
but if you mobile much, want something that could follow you wherever you go take the laptop
the disadvantage of laptop is there are limit on upgrade, you just can upgrade on HDD, ram, battery (if available) just it..

 

[canadien]

What CPU do you have in your current rig?

Oh yeah, that would help wouldn't it?!?

The CPU is a Q6600, G0 stepping.

its kinda cool when you take the newer chipset (p45) coz it offers better performance, support and feature than p35 then take the ram to the max
for psu i guess its up to you since both of them is nice, so the rest is on

about notebook, is back to what do you do with that, most laptop is for daily needs, just some of them that pointed for gaming and of course you have to pay on "gaming price"

if you like to upgrade something and you dont mobile much, i guess its better the desktop
but if you mobile much, want something that could follow you wherever you go take the laptop
the disadvantage of laptop is there are limit on upgrade, you just can upgrade on HDD, ram, battery (if available) just it..

I have two old Thinkpads, T41 and R51. Each has its own defects. The T41's usb ports are stuck at 1.1 but I bought a card adapter to give me USB 2.0. I also think the HDD is failing or shouldn't be counted on for any amount of time. The R51 needs a re-install and is sluggish but it's stock and there's a screen problem. I was going to replace the assembly or the LCD but I'm not sure it's worth investing much into it. Anything I would invest could be used towards something else.

I wanted a more modern laptop that I could use a SSD in for speed and neither laptop can have a 64-bit OS so....

I figure a half decent laptop is going to be $600 to $800, minimum, and upgrading the current desktop will cost anywhere from $100 to $300 depending on what I upgrade. Simply buying a 2nd cpu to build a 2nd computer will cost about $100 to $150, at least. So, I am trying to decide which route to go.

The other option of selling most of my hardware *might* be enough to buy/build a completely new system so it would get me a more recent generation and I figure even after any sales, I probably will need $200 at least. I say, *might* because I am not sure what the demand for my older hardware would be. I guess other people might have the same idea to hang onto their stuff and replace/upgrade a current 775 cpu and/or mobo.

I know the laptops aren't as upgradeable. I think the cpu is upgradeable to an extent, maybe add more RAM and of course, a SSD to replace the stock HDD. That's about it, right? I'm okay with that. I prefer to have at least one desktop, if I can, besides the laptop. I don't need the laptop for gaming. I think it's better to use a desktop for that. So, I just need basic tasks particularly with video. I guess it'd be used for multimedia stuff. I prefer Intel-based laptops with either Atheros or Intel wifi cards. I also don't want the Optimus-based laptops since I also use Linux and it's not supported so far.