After having a Stream Deck and then installing Linux on an old laptop for my wife, I decided to try and resurrect an old desktop I built in 2016. Wondering if it worth upgrading the graphics card, or is the whole thing too old to be of much use.
Parts
| Type | Item | Price |
|---|---|---|
| CPU | AMD FX-8350 4 GHz 8-Core Processor | - |
| CPU Cooler | Cooler Master Hyper 212 EVO 82.9 CFM Sleeve Bearing CPU Cooler | - |
| Motherboard | Asus M5A99FX PRO R2.0 ATX AM3+ Motherboard | - |
| Memory | Corsair Vengeance Pro 16 GB (2 x 8 GB) DDR3-2133 CL9 Memory | - |
| Video Card | Sapphire 100292L Radeon HD 5450 1 GB Video Card | - |
| Case | Cooler Master HAF XB EVO ATX Desktop Case | - |
| Power Supply | EVGA 700 B1 700 W 80+ Bronze Certified ATX Power Supply | - |
| Generated by PCPartPicker 2025-12-31 21:26 EST-0500 |
In case the above is not viewable
PCPartPicker Part List: https://pcpartpicker.com/list/BVTxh7
CPU: AMD FX-8350 4 GHz 8-Core Processor
CPU Cooler: Cooler Master Hyper 212 EVO 82.9 CFM Sleeve Bearing CPU Cooler
Motherboard: Asus M5A99FX PRO R2.0 ATX AM3+ Motherboard
Memory: Corsair Vengeance Pro 16 GB (2 x 8 GB) DDR3-2133 CL9 Memory
Video Card: Sapphire 100292L Radeon HD 5450 1 GB Video Card
Case: Cooler Master HAF XB EVO ATX Desktop Case
Power Supply: EVGA 700 B1 700 W 80+ Bronze Certified ATX Power Supply
Generated by PCPartPicker 2025-12-31 21:33 EST-0500
Edit to add: No Man’s Sky is my most played game. And I was looking at an 8gb Radeon card as an update, if that upgrade would make the system usable, then I will do that. Otherwise I will save for a Steam Machine.
Edit 2: I knew I had a better graphics card, when I got home from work I found it. It is a [ASUS GeForce GTX 970 4GB GDDR5 PCI Express 3.0 SLI Support Graphics Card STRIX-GTX970-DC2OC-4GD5](https://www.newegg.com/asus-strix-gtx970-dc2oc-4gd5-geforce-gtx-970-4gb-graphics-card-double-fans/p/N82E16814121899?item=N82E16814121899)
Wasn’t the 5500 XT competitive in performance with the RX 580/590 last time I thought, though? And it has better API support.
Keeping that in mind, the 5500 XT is the highest I would go in terms of a GPU for an FX build. Let’s just ignore the 6500 XT because it would get slaughtered by its four lanes of PCIe bandwidth on a PCIe 2 platform like AM3+.