Computer Troubleshooting

I have a custom-built computer that I built myself about 5 or 6 years ago. Over the last year or so it has begun bogging down. I have wiped the drive and re-installed a few times just to have a clean slate. However it has a hard time running a lot of stuff now. An example, I used to be able to watch YouTube videos in full-screen at 1080p. Now I can't even watch them non-full-screen at 320p with out it being very choppy and laggy. I know it is not the internet connection, speed, or router as my girlfriend's laptop that is only a year old can go full-screen at 1080p flawlessly. I believe I did memory tests. I tried swapping my graphics card out with one that is a year newer than mine and it made no difference. The processor when playing the videos tops out at 100%, which I don't understand why. I have two ethernet ports but switching to the other made no difference. My guess is that the components overall are just too worn out now but I don't know. Any help is greatly appreciated as this has gotten very frustrating.

System
Motherboard: ASUS A8N32-SLI Delux
Processor: AMD Athlon 2.2GHz Singlecore
Ram: 2GB OCZ DDR PC3200 Dual Channel
Video: nVidia GeForce 7600 GS
Power Supply: Apevia 500W
OS: Windows XP 32-bit with SP3

Really, 60 something views and no one can help me...?

First off, this sin't the computer help forum.

Second, if you think your computer has just been worn out from nearly six years of use, than why don't you make another custom one?

Everything with your rig looks incredibly outdated, even for 5/6 years ago. You could use an entire replacement, but for now I'd recommend getting that CPU swapped out, as it's probably the issue based on what little you've told us. I mean, it's a single core; that hasn't been standard for longer than your rig has been built. You could use an OS update, but that's not related to your issue. The RAM is good brand, but minimal; anything 4 GB+ is recommended. And last is your GPU and PSU; both archaic and in need of updating. While you mentioned using a GPU a 'year younger' than the one you posted, this model is on-par with the one that came with my eMachine back in 2004.

A good rig will cost you in the ballpark of 1k-1400, depending on how wisely you use online resources. Given your issue, the CPU seems the likely culprit, but you are working with dated components and if you intend to upgrade, replacing everything would not be a bad idea. You will definitely need more RAM and a new PSU if you intend to ever game anything new, that's for sure.

Get a Mac

Singlecore? New computer!

Originally posted by Bardock42
Get a Mac

Originally posted by Stealth Moose

Why do you want people to suffer?

Originally posted by drewklq
I have a custom-built computer that I built myself about 5 or 6 years ago. Over the last year or so it has begun bogging down. I have wiped the drive and re-installed a few times just to have a clean slate. However it has a hard time running a lot of stuff now. An example, I used to be able to watch YouTube videos in full-screen at 1080p. Now I can't even watch them non-full-screen at 320p with out it being very choppy and laggy. I know it is not the internet connection, speed, or router as my girlfriend's laptop that is only a year old can go full-screen at 1080p flawlessly. I believe I did memory tests. I tried swapping my graphics card out with one that is a year newer than mine and it made no difference. The processor when playing the videos tops out at 100%, which I don't understand why. I have two ethernet ports but switching to the other made no difference. My guess is that the components overall are just too worn out now but I don't know. Any help is greatly appreciated as this has gotten very frustrating.

System
Motherboard: ASUS A8N32-SLI Delux
Processor: AMD Athlon 2.2GHz Singlecore
Ram: 2GB OCZ DDR PC3200 Dual Channel
Video: nVidia GeForce 7600 GS
Power Supply: Apevia 500W
OS: Windows XP 32-bit with SP3

On top of that your PC is seriously lacking in power even when it was still new, in 2008 (when dual cores were already popular in laptops). 2GB RAM and a single CPU core won't give you much to work with in the first place.

General verdict I'd say is to e-shop for a new rig. If money is an issue there's quite a lot of budget-oriented builds out there on the internet.

Originally posted by ThorinWoofer
First off, this sin't the computer help forum.

Second, if you think your computer has just been worn out from nearly six years of use, than why don't you make another custom one?

First, I am aware of that but my brother is a member of this forum and quite a few people gave him some computer suggestions and advice before we built his new one a few months ago or so.

Second, I would like to but I don't have enough money at the moment and I wanted to get other opinions and thoughts to make sure I didn't miss something before I just go spend money.

Thank you all for your replies. I see your points. I never witnessed a computer die out like mine is so that is probably part of my problem. Thanks again for the suggestions.