64bit939

Distinguished
Jan 19, 2006
19
0
18,510
I am having a hard time trying to figure out what I should do, looking for advice.


Specs

AMD 3500+ 939
Abit KN8 Ultra (I Believe) Non SLI
2 gig's of different kind of memory (non are same speed and non are same make)
x850xt 256mb PCiE
Raptor 72gigs

now I have been at newegg for the best 3 days thinking of what I should do, I am stuck. The memory is so screwed up in what kind and speed I have been tempted to change it to dual 1 gig corsair, not sure the difference I will see there. as of now the slowest one is 2700 so I know it is slower then what I want, but will I really see a difference between 333 and 400? the other thought is upgrading the proc of video, but I am stuck on both of them, I want to wait for AM2, but then that brings me to ddr2 which cancels my memory upgrade. and the video card seems stupid to upgrade before dx10.


any thoughts?

Little more knowledge this computer will retire my wifes computer when I upgrade.
 

gOJDO

Distinguished
Mar 16, 2006
2,309
1
19,780
First of all, AM2 is not an upgrade.
It is just a new socket and the first chips arriving for that socket are the same K8 with the same architecture and the same instructions&technology set.
The DDR2-800 CL3 that will perform a little better, therefore bosting an average of 3% of the overall system performance compared to the s939 K8, costs more than twice per gigabyte compared to the old DDR.
Also, no one know which motherboard is good and performs faster, while the s939 motherboards are tested and it is known whicone is fast and stable fore OC-ing and whichone is not.
So, it is better for you to upgrade your old system, therefore making it faster with less money that you are thinking to spend for any sAM2.

My advice, if you want to wait, do it for Conroe. It is promissing much more performance than the K8 sAM2 for less money.
 

steckman

Distinguished
Apr 21, 2006
234
0
18,680
I purchase DDR 400 (PC 3200) to go with Socket 939 because that always seems to be the motherboard standard. Besides, PC3200 memory always seems to be about the same price as slower memory.
 

steckman

Distinguished
Apr 21, 2006
234
0
18,680
It really depends on why you are upgrading your computer in the first place. It seems like a pretty good setup to me, I don't think I would change anything. Look in the BIOS and see if all of your memory is currently running as DDR 400. If so, there really is no need to replace it. If you really want to replace your memory, then everything else in your computer still looks pretty good to me.
 

64bit939

Distinguished
Jan 19, 2006
19
0
18,510
I guess the main reason would be called "F.E.A.R" it skips on some parts and I dont really want to drop the res to 800x600.... that would be the only reason, the mem is running at 333 as I have some of that in my computer. so I will upgrade the mem to 400 see if that does it for me, if not then we move to video card I guess, although that isnt what I wanted to do.
 
ok, so I will upgrade mem to ddr400, would that be all you would do?

If you want faster frame rates and higher resolution setting then upgrade the video card. Then again this PC will become your wife's correct? So there should be no need.

Don't worry too much about DX10 cards since they are not available. Also DX9 games will be coming out at least for the next 2-1/2 years.

Other than that you should be done.
 

MCGTech

Distinguished
Apr 5, 2006
122
0
18,680
You're in good shape now depending on what you want to use your rig for. I would definately get a matched gig or two of ram, and then drop in a dual core. The 3800+X2 seems to be the "sweet spot" for now with it's overclock ability.

As for AM2 or Conroe, WAIT!!! Wait 'till next year and see how things pan out. Unless you're into paying premium prices and pulling your hair out.
 

64bit939

Distinguished
Jan 19, 2006
19
0
18,510
actually my Wife is a gamer as well I will be upgrading her computer which is a barton 2500, 9800xt, 2 gigs of ram. but this comes out of my budget to do both computers, the price I pay to keep my wife in it :) so I dont want to spend all my money to get this computer perfect and then not have enough for my computer. so I am trying to do smart upgrade.
 
From your choice of words ("none" vs. "both"), I'm assuming you've got four mixed 512KB sticks of RAM. Replacing them with a pair of 1GB sticks will very likely improve performance, at least some. Of course, it depends on where any current bottleneck is. The video card is about the bare minimum you'd want for modern games, but is fine for general and office applications. You've got a fast hard drive.
What will your wife be doing with it? For web surfing, email, and word processing, upgrading anything might be a waste of money. If she wants to nail head shots on you at 200 yds. in the latest shooters, then a new video card would likely be the most sensible upgrade.
If she wants to run lots of things at once, an X2 processor would make her happy. The 3800+ is just under $300 now.
 

64bit939

Distinguished
Jan 19, 2006
19
0
18,510
ya my memory setup doesnt make me proud but its what I got. 4 sticks of 512. 2 are ddr333. 2 are ddr400 it is all running as dual channel 333
 

vimka

Distinguished
Mar 26, 2006
156
0
18,680
Replace your current memory with a 2GB kit of DDR400 (or 500 if you plan to OC this CPU). OCZ is good, I would suggest that brand over Corsair (as good or better performance, and it's cheaper).
 
Ok. If it were me, I'd first replace the video card. I'm currently running a $170 7600GT from eVGA and I'm happy with it, but I'm not anywhere near as twitchy as some of the others here. That's a mid-range card; depending on your budget you can buy a card that pwns the 7600GT for <$300. See the sticky thread on the best gaming cards for the money, available in this forum. Cleeve updates it regularly; I think the last time was last month.
Next, buy that matched pair of 1GB DDR400 RAM; I think I paid around $180 for mine. I'm not overclocking, so I know I didn't buy the best or fastest, but they weren't rock bottom "value" sticks either.
While you're in the case, blow it out thoroughly and check the fans. Now might be a good time to add another one if needed.
Then it sounds like maybe you'd best keep your head down :D