Upgrade existing desktop to get 4K or is it time for a new machine?

[indigo]

I've had the below desktop for a few years now and it is still going strong in terms of my day to day use (general web browsing, office apps and email etc.), however, I'm now keen to upgrade my monitor to 4K.

I'm currently using a 32 inch display with a 2560 x 1440 resolution and I think this is the best I can get with the current setup (at 60hz).

Is there an easy way for me to upgrade this existing PC (i.e. could I just buy an entry level GPU that supports 4K, and if so what one?) or is this starting to get a bit old and would I benefit from a whole new machine?


Case
COOLERMASTER SILENCIO 452 QUIET MID TOWER CASE
Processor (CPU)
Intel® Core™ i5 Six Core Processor i5-8600K (3.6 GHz) 9 MB Cache
Motherboard
ASUS® TUF Z370-PLUS GAMING: ATX, LGA1151, USB 3.1, SATA 6GBs - RGB Ready
Memory (RAM)
16GB Corsair VENGEANCE DDR4 2666MHz (2 x 8GB)
Graphics Card
INTEGRATED GRAPHICS ACCELERATOR (GPU)
1st M.2 SSD Drive
256GB SAMSUNG SM961 M.2, PCIe NVMe (up to 3100MB/R, 1400MB/W)
1st Storage Drive
2TB SEAGATE BARRACUDA SATA-III 3.5" HDD, 6GB/s, 7200RPM, 256MB CACHE
Power Supply
CORSAIR 450W VS SERIES™ VS-450 POWER SUPPLY
Power Cable
1 x 1.5 Metre UK Power Cable (Kettle Lead)
Processor Cooling
CoolerMaster Hyper 212X (120mm) Fan CPU Cooler
Thermal Paste
STANDARD THERMAL PASTE FOR SUFFICIENT COOLING
Sound Card
ONBOARD 6 CHANNEL (5.1) HIGH DEF AUDIO (AS STANDARD)
Wireless Network Card
WIRELESS 802.11 Gigabyte GC-W867D-I AC 867Mbps + BT4.0 + Intel Wi-Di PCI-E CARD
USB/Thunderbolt Options
MIN. 2 x USB 3.0 & 2 x USB 2.0 PORTS @ BACK PANEL + MIN. 2 FRONT PORTS
Operating System
Windows 10 Home 64 Bit - inc. Single Licence
Operating System Language
United Kingdom - English Language
Windows Recovery Media
Windows 10 (64-bit) DVD with paper sleeve
Office Software
NO OFFICE SOFTWARE
Anti-Virus
NO ANTI-VIRUS SOFTWARE
Browser
Google Chrome™
Warranty
3 Year Standard Warranty (6 Month Collect & Return, 1 Year Parts, 3 Year Labour)
Delivery
STANDARD INSURED DELIVERY TO UK MAINLAND (MON-FRI)
Build Time
Standard Build - Approximately 5 to 7 working days

Unique URL to re-configure: https://www.pcspecialist.co.uk/saved-configurations/intel-z370-pc/QrZuTNzWhY/

 

[SpyderTracks]

What do you use the pc for exactly that requires the gpu? You haven’t mentioned any need for a dGPU?

 

[indigo]

I'd just like to be able to use a 4K monitor.

 

[SpyderTracks]

I'd just like to be able to use a 4K monitor.

On board graphics works fine for 4k display output.

It’s only hardware accelerated apps that require a physical GPU for processing.

That cpu has UHD 630 Graphics which can do 4k @ 60Hz

 

[indigo]

Ah okay, it was just that I had checked the connections off the motherboard I have and saw that it was HDMI 1.4b which can only do 24Hz at 4K which I read is basically un-usable for day to day activities.

So I was wondering if I needed to get something with HDMI 2.0 or DisplayPort to then get proper 4K output?

 

[SpyderTracks]

which I read is basically un-usable for day to day activities.

Up until very recently, TV and movies were 24Hz.

I'd suggest trying it before writing it off, don't think it would necessarily be any issue for basic output.

You don't need any kind of high refresh rate for basic output.

Analogue TV and movies are still broadcast at 25Hz

What is PAL? The video format explained

PAL is a popular video format standard that is currently used in many European, African, Asian, Middle Eastern and Australian countries.

www.trustedreviews.com

 

[indigo]

Okay sure, I guess I can give it a go, but that will mean buying the 4K monitor first and just hoping I find it acceptable at 24Hz.

I had read this page on this very topic which really didn't sound very positive: https://forums.guru3d.com/threads/4k-at-24hz.420200/

If I did want to run 4K at 60Hz with my current desktop as a starting point, could I just add in the most basic GPU and then connect through that? Any specific GPU models I should consider that would work well with the rest of the machine I already have?

 

[SpyderTracks]

Okay sure, I guess I can give it a go, but that will mean buying the 4K monitor first and just hoping I find it acceptable at 24Hz.

If I did want to run 4K at 60Hz with my current desktop as a starting point, could I just add in the most basic GPU and then connect through that? Any specific GPU models I should consider that would work well with the rest of the machine I already have?

Do you find terrestrial broadcasts too slow?

You could add a GT1030 or something if you really found the need. It only draws off the PCIe port so doesn’t need any extra power. It has HDMI 2.0

 

[indigo]

I'm not sure why you feel the need to be quite so passive aggressive about my desire to run a monitor at 60Hz rather than limiting it to 24Hz just because that is all my current hardware can handle.

I'm just going off the feedback from several people who have actually tried to use 4K at 24Hz (read the comments from the link in my last comment), and I am totally open to solving the issue by either replacing the whole desktop or upgrading or adding elements if that is all it takes.

Thank you for the suggestion on the GT 1030, that is exactly the information I am looking for so this will help me research this a bit better. I've never had a GPU on my desktop before so am a real novice here - I appreciate this advice.

 

[SpyderTracks]

I'm not sure why you feel the need to be quite so passive aggressive about my desire to run a monitor at 60Hz rather than limiting it to 24Hz just because that is all my current hardware can handle.

I'm just going off the feedback from several people who have actually tried to use 4K at 24Hz (read the comments from the link in my last comment), and I am totally open to solving the issue by either replacing the whole desktop or upgrading or adding elements if that is all it takes.

Thank you for the suggestion on the GT 1030, that is exactly the information I am looking for so this will help me research this a bit better. I've never had a GPU on my desktop before so am a real novice here - I appreciate this advice.

I was merely pointing out that all broadcasting was at that refresh rate for decades. Perhaps your friends weren’t aware of that.

But thank you for pointing out my passive aggressiveness, that’s good to hear it came across.

 

[indigo]

But I'm not asking about watching TV - I am talking about using the monitor for working/browsing etc. The people who wrote those comments were specifically talking about that, which is a very different use case (dragging windows around the screen etc.)

In any case, I'll figure something out myself, or find another forum to get some feedback from.

 

[SpyderTracks]

But I'm not asking about watching TV - I am talking about using the monitor for working/browsing etc. The people who wrote those comments were specifically talking about that, which is a very different use case (dragging windows around the screen etc.)

In any case, I'll figure something out myself, or find another forum to get some feedback from.

That kind of use makes no difference though for basic display output, that's rather the point. Hz is simply the amount of times the frame refreshes per second, otherwise known as Frames Per Second, if anything with TV you've got constantly changing frames whereas on desktop it's only part of the desktop that's changing and often it's not changing much at all, just a bit of text. You're simply talking basic desktop use, or documents, none of that is going to benefit at all from 60Hz.

So the advice would be the same, try it first as it currently is, as that takes no update requirement, if it doesn't suit you, buy a GT1030, it's next day delivery, it's not as if you have to wait for months or anything.

Also that link you pointed to, the one person who said it was unusable was talking specifically about gaming when the OP stated he was only using it for desktop use. Of course in gaming it wouldn't work, but that's a given, the guy talking about moving windows around, that's not something anyone does, that's the whole point of his statement, he's saying it will be perfectly fine.

You stated that it's not something you've experienced, so try it. Don't waste £60 unnecessarily just because someone has told you it's going to be poor, you're not losing anything by trying it. But I think you'll be very surprised FROM EXPERIENCE.