Opinions.

[Michelin]

Hello guys. I recently purchased a Dell OptiPlex 390 PC with a i3-2100, Intel HD Graphics 2000, 4GB RAM DDR3 1333Mhz.

What I want to do with it is play ETS2 and ATS on maximum graphics with ease, and also emulate PS2 games with PCSX2.

I went to some good PC building stores here in Brazil and what they recommended me was getting a GT1030 Low Profile (2GB DDR5) and doubling the RAM memory (which is also the maximum that the motherboard takes).

I understand some stuff but by no means know what would be the best upgrade to run what I want. Could you guys suggest, hand out opinions, etc?

PS: The PC is small and has a 250W power supply.

 

[sesselpupser]

Well, you're never going to get good results with PS2 emulation on that CPU because emulation needs a strong processor and yours was weak when it released 8 years ago.

As for ETS2/ATS, a GT graphics card probably isn't going to cut it, you'll need a GTX. I still have my doubts about the CPU but a GTX 1050 is the minimum you should be looking at, or a used GTX 960, 770 or 680, but you'll want a better PSU for any of these - I'm sure yours won't have a PCIe connector.

 

[Michelin]

Well, you're never going to get good results with PS2 emulation on that CPU because emulation needs a strong processor and yours was weak when it released 8 years ago.

As for ETS2/ATS, a GT graphics card probably isn't going to cut it, you'll need a GTX. I still have my doubts about the CPU but a GTX 1050 is the minimum you should be looking at, or a used GTX 960, 770 or 680, but you'll want a better PSU for any of these - I'm sure yours won't have a PCIe connector.

I could get more powerful LGA1155 processors, that wouldn't be an issue apart from spending more money.

My motherboard only has a PCI, I think. This is a image of the motherboard the OptiPlex has:

 

[Rallywagon]

The difference between the different PCIs is generally the number of traces. I mean, there of course are more, but that's the important part. As long as the gCard you are using fits, and is compatible with the system, it will work regardless of being on PCI, PCIe PCIx16 etc, they all will just work at different speeds. That said, a quick check shows you have PCIx16 so you are good to go on the front.
I imagine this PC was bought due to its price? If so then yeah, new proc, upgrade the ram, get a new GPU and a PSU around the 500w range. As neema mentions, the biggest issue will the proc. Looks like it can run up to a gen 3 i3 though. If you can get that, you might be able to muster enough power to run a PS2 emulator.

 

[Imari]

I question how much value you're going to get building on top of such a computer. It could be a case of throwing good money after bad.

http://www.logicalincrements.com/

Maybe just figure out what your budget is for upgrades, and compare what you would get building from scratch for that to what you'd get upgrading your...thing. It's a six year old computer that was a basic budget business machine designed to run Office when new. It's going to struggle to do much of gaming anything in 2018.

Sorry if that's negative. But I suspect to be gaming comfortably you'll be upgrading basically everything, at which point you might as well start afresh.

 

[Rallywagon]

I question how much value you're going to get building on top of such a computer. It could be a case of throwing good money after bad.

http://www.logicalincrements.com/

Maybe just figure out what your budget is for upgrades, and compare what you would get building from scratch for that to what you'd get upgrading your...thing. It's a six year old computer that was a basic budget business machine designed to run Office when new. It's going to struggle to do much of gaming anything in 2018.

Sorry if that's negative. But I suspect to be gaming comfortably you'll be upgrading basically everything, at which point you might as well start afresh.

While I dont inherently disagree. I wonder about the budget. The best i3 proc this can take costs only about 25 bucks, which is probably close to what the optiplex should have cost as well. All told, this build shouldnt see more than $250 bucks and should have no issues at that point playing the games listed. Might struggle with PS2 emulation, might not get all the way to the highest graphics on the other two, but would certainly work well enough for them. It certainly wont be a multitasking powerhouse.
At the price this costs, your barely getting a new proc and mobo.