Bottleneck for pentium 4 3ghz dual core

[bobbe23]

Hey, i know this is a very lame question to ask BUT what is the best gfx card that will not be a bottleneck for a pentium 4 3ghz dual core? i know this cpu is very outdated but i can get this cpu, mobo and casing cheap from a family member. my second option would be to get a e5300 but then i would have to wait 2 months to have a fully working pc again. thanx

 

[flyin15sec]

A good match for that system would be an HD4670, HD 4770 or NV 9600GT, 9800GT.

 

[bobbe23]

If i were to overclock that cpu for example to 3.6ghz, would it bottleneck an 4850?

 

[hunter315]

What resolution are you going to be playing at? If you are going to be at higher resolutions then the CPU bottleneck will be less of a factor and would allow you to get a higher end GPU and crank up the details. Just make sure to leave particle effects and physics as low as they can go as those will affect the processor and the GPU.

 

[flyin15sec]

I think overclocking to 3.6ghz would help, but not significant like moving on to a Core2 E8x00 processor.

you should look at your upgrade path of your motherboard, PSU, and the type of games you want to play.

If your motherboard supports up to E8x00 and Q9xx0, than getting a higher end video card would work, since you can later complement the GPU with a new CPU.

check your PSU power rating to see if a higher end video card will work.

Some games will run fine on mid range video cards, if you don't need to have high end, then save money for your next system.

 

[bobbe23]

Thanks for the help guys

 

[bobbe23]

What resolution are you going to be playing at? If you are going to be at higher resolutions then the CPU bottleneck will be less of a factor and would allow you to get a higher end GPU and crank up the details. Just make sure to leave particle effects and physics as low as they can go as those will affect the processor and the GPU.

I'm basically playing games on 720p resolution depending on how graphic intensive it is, otherwise I crank it up to 1080p on my 26inch LCD.