Construct CompleteCore2 Quad Q9650 into a Ryzen 5 7600 setup, grandma required a fresh machine
Construct CompleteCore2 Quad Q9650 into a Ryzen 5 7600 setup, grandma required a fresh machine
Like so many others in the USA, the looming threat of tariffs spurred me into action concerning computer upgrades. The plan was to wait until late summer/ early fall of this year when Microsoft's support for Windows 10 will end but in the interest of avoiding overinflated prices, the upgrade had to happen now. My dear sweet gray haired grandma has been running my old Core 2 Quad Q9650 for a good 11 years. It was installed on an Asrock mATX motherboard with 8GB DDR3 1,333, a GeForce GT 1030, and the best sound card I ever owned, my cherished Sound Blaster X-Fi Xtreme Gamer Fatal1ty Pro. All of this is in a Rosewill FBM-01 mATX which will be reused to keep costs down. She uses the rig primarily for email, jigsaw puzzles, mahjong, word processing, and occasional youtube.
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View: https://imgur.com/L1yOKyX
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View: https://imgur.com/a9h9avD
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View: https://imgur.com/0FwHtq6
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View: https://imgur.com/SRdmtle
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View: https://imgur.com/NZGIuiw
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View: https://imgur.com/HckUuXA
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View: https://imgur.com/80uAw2C
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View: https://imgur.com/MzhP9i9
My prized SoundBlaster
https://imgur.com/Oq9Qz0T
View: https://imgur.com/Oq9Qz0T
Now in with the new. The heart of the beast this time will be a Ryzen 5 7600. It will be pulling double duty as her GPU and run the stock cooler. Asrock is supplying the motherboard again in the form of a B650M-H/M.2+. RAM is a 16GB kit of Kingston DDR5 5200 that I left running at the base JEDEC speed of 4800 Mhz. Something tells me she won't notice. Finally, the power supply is upgraded to a 600 watt 80+ Gold from EVGA. The old power supply could've ran this just fine but it is years out of warranty.
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View: https://imgur.com/fDpChxJ
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View: https://imgur.com/A4EMvwk
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View: https://imgur.com/IoDsWmO
The computer back in it's kennel.
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View: https://imgur.com/k8pBntz
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View: https://imgur.com/BHur8RV
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View: https://imgur.com/UrgaAEf
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View: https://imgur.com/aMSVvll
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View: https://imgur.com/JIOTc2T
After making certain every last detail about the desktop, taskbar, and web browser were precisely identical to how it was last time, I handed over the reigns. Godspeed on your jigsaw puzzles grandma!
Excited to see Grandma using the Ryzen 7000!
I really miss the sound cards from back then. Sometimes I thought Creative made a mistake by stopping support, even though updating drivers could have kept their cards useful.
The only thing missing is a good bristle brush and vacuum for cleaning the inside. I’d probably chosen PWM fans for cooling but that’s just my opinion.
Overall, great build!
I actually purchased two replacement Bequiet! fans and planned to install them if her existing fans were too loud. When I couldn't hear them clearly, I decided to return the new ones for a refund and to lower the overall cost.
She reached out to me today because I forgot to set up her printer. While I was there, I checked her fan speed in the BIOS—both were set to silent mode at 300 rpm. I switched them to full speed to test their condition. The rear fan was spinning at 2,200 rpm, while the front was only at 400 rpm and made a buzzing sound. That confirmed it; both fans needed replacement.
The front model, a Rosewill 120mm included with the case, was discarded and replaced with a Bequiet! Shadow Wings 2. The rear was an 80mm Vantec Stealth SF8025L, which still functioned adequately, so I opted for a 92mm Pure Wings 2 instead. Now both fans are running at full speed because they operate silently—front at 1,200 rpm and rear at 2,000 rpm.
The images:
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View: https://imgur.com/tzpY9fD
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View: https://imgur.com/pKyv7r3
I’m a bit frustrated I didn’t bring my zip ties and velcro straps for cable management. Since we live four hours apart, I’ll need to remember next time. The positive side is that even though it looks a bit messy now, the airflow remains unobstructed.
During a similar upgrade from a Phenom 955 to a Ryzen 5600X, I kept the GT 1030 card installed. The additional power and video RAM might help in Photoshop, but I’m not sure there’s a significant performance gap between today’s CPUs and older GPUs. I haven’t moved from Windows 10 to 11 yet, and I know it won’t be widely adopted.
I often face complaints about dust buildup! When changing systems, I move the empty case outside using a vacuum, but I’m more careful around printed circuit boards. Many people post in forums about damaged parts after too vigorous cleaning.