GPU vs CPU

[Rucus]

Hello there Tom's Hardware regulars. I've been reading through all the articles here for nigh on a year now, and I've recently come across a question. All the benchmarks I find here for GPUs, are generally a set of Graphics Cards, put up on a single high end system. I agree it's the best for reliable benchmarks, but I've always wanted someone to put up a 'rough' guide that would answer 'Should I upgrade my GPU or my CPU?'. I'm trying to figure out this very question. Money is an issue in the way I want to get the most of it, ie, no GeForce 3 Ti 500s or Radeon 8500s, and likewise no XP 1900+ either. I currently have an PIII 866 with a GeForce 2 GTS 32MB, 256MB PC133 SDRAM.

I'm trying to decide whether to upgrade to a low-mid end AMD XP and a new motherboard, or a new graphics card, probably a GeForce 3 (Normal).

Question: Would it really be worth putting a GeForce 3 in an old 866, or would I get more out of a new CPU?

Any remarks, or guidance greatly appreciated =)

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[AMD_Man]

Yes, the PIII 866MHz is still a very high performance processor for games. You don't need a new processor. A GeForce3 + PIII866MHz will be an excellent combination and will provide excellent performance in games.

AMD technology + Intel technology = Intel/AMD Pentathlon IV; the <b>ULTIMATE</b> PC processor

 

[Rucus]

Thanks very much for your help! I wonder if anyone has put up a CPU shootout against specific Graphics Cards...

 

[OldBear]

If you will notice on Tom's reviews the real bottleneck is with the graphic cards. I put a new Gforce 3 ti 500 in my P3-933 before upgrading my whole system.(used the new card of course) I could tell a big difference with the new graphic card on the P3. (I had a gforce 2 GTS w/64ddr.) Some may disagree but for me I saw a bigger difference in the graphic card than the new cpu XP 1800+. It seems most of the games I play are made for the GPU performance. Newer games, I'm sure. will take advantage of both.

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