Is my P4 2.0GHz really slow?Slower than P4 1.3GHz?

[ChuChu]

My Dell Dimension 8200
Pentium 4 2.0GHz (Northwood 0.13micron, Family 15 model 2 level 4)
GeForce4 MX420 64MB AGP
512MB PC800 RDRAM

My computer has very limited upgradibility, and I was told that my processor is slower than a P4 1.3GHz (don't remember if it could've been a P3 the guy said). Also, my video card is outdated and is losing support fast. What is the best video card that will not be bottlenecked by the processor? The guy also said that in rendering Direct X 9 mode, my games would get very low FPS even on 800x600 at Lowest settings. If that's the case, what is the best card that does not use Direct X 9?

 

[DCB_AU]

Your P4 2GHZ CPU is faster than the P4 1.3 which is slower than a P3 1GHZ.

The MX420 is a slow GC in real terms ie. even a MX440 trumps over it.

You've been sucked in like many others buying Dell and other propriety PC's that are lowsy if not impossible to upgrade in some circumstances.

My suggestion is to build your own with of the shelf components which upgrade easily. You can save hundreds, even a thousand $$.

Why not use DX9? Most games require it.

ATI or similar brand 9550 is a good DX9 card and cheap. Ensure ram nsec is lowest possible for best results.

<font color=red>DCB</font color=red><font color=white>_</font color=white><font color=blue>AU</font color=blue>

 

[endyen]

(don't remember if it could've been a P3 the guy said).

It was a P3 1.3. The P4 1.3 Willy was way slower than yours.

What is the best video card that will not be bottlenecked by the processor?

The one you have. Why worry about the cpu bottleneck? Sure it will hold you back some, but you will still gain from a better card. Get a 98pro, or even a 6600gt, it will help a lot.
If someone gave me a system like yours, I would toss the mobo and case , get an IS7 mobo and a 6600gt, and a decent new case. Then I would OC the chip. (Unless it had Rambus ram ofcourse, then it would be better just to start over) One of your big problems is the bios on your mobo. Dell likes to slow things down, to keep things stable. I like stable to, but Dell takes too much performance, just in case.

 

[jammydodger]

The MX420 is basically just an overclocked Geforce2. This means it it a directX 7 card. If you want some idea of the quality difference between directX7 and directX9 I suggest you look here:
<A HREF="http://www.anandtech.com/video/showdoc.aspx?i=2281&p=9" target="_new">http://www.anandtech.com/video/showdoc.aspx?i=2281&p=9</A> Put your mouse over the first picture.

I would consider daving up and getting a new motherboard and RAM, the CPU is still usable.

 

[ChuChu]

I don't have alot of money currently and am looking for a quick solution. So you recommend a 9550? I've looked at some benchmarks and I'm not sure whether a 9600 XT, 9500 Pro, 9700 Pro would be good for me. Even though in rendering DX9 mode games such as Half Life 2 may not run very well...

 

[peteroy]

9600pro with 2Ghz processor will run HL2 at DX9 perfect.

That guy who told you DX9 is slow doesn't know what his talking about.

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[jammydodger]

If it dont run too well you can always turn down the graphics detail. Even if you turn down the detail quite a lot it will still look better than directX7 and it will play better.

 

[jammydodger]

If it dont run too well you can always turn down the graphics detail. Even if you turn down the detail quite a lot it will still look better than directX7 and it will play better.

 

[jammydodger]

If it dont run too well you can always turn down the graphics detail. Even if you turn down the detail quite a lot it will still look better than directX7 and it will play better.

 

[ChuChu]

Wow, triple post...

How many games nowadays are able to switch between DX9 to DX8 & 7 modes?

 

[DCB_AU]

Sell your Dell in the newspapers, then build your own.

There's nothing difficult in building a PC. If you don't no how, buy one of those PC build magazines from the newsagents or do a little study - read books form bookstores for free

With the money you get from the sale, plus if neccessary a little of your own you'll have a powerful PC.

I sold a P111 1GHZ PC (tower only- kept monitor keyboard and mouse) and built new from the following.

New Parts - CPU, MB, Ram, PSU and Case.
Secondhand Parts - HD, FD, DVD/CDRW, SC, GC, Fans.

Shop around for prices as they vary heaps as ripoff merchants are everywhere. Make sure new components are in sealed boxs or wrap! - especially the CPU and MB.

Once you build your own, you'll probably never buy prebuilt again.

<font color=red><b>DCB</b></font color=red><font color=white><b>_</b></font color=white><font color=blue><b>AU</b></font color=blue>

 

[ChuChu]

I know it's not hard to build a computer as I built one for my cousin alongside him (my first time). Although now for some reason it broke down after awhile (either bad MGE PSU, motherboard touching non-existant metal on the case which has none, or some other thing).

I don't know if my parents will allow me to sell my computer anyways, all I want is an answer to my last question.

If I was to sell it, what would be a reasonable price?
Pentium 4 2.0GHz
GeForce4 MX420 64MB AGP
512MB PC800 RDRAM
Maxtor 7200RPM 80GB HD
Integrated Sound

 

[DCB_AU]

In Aus, a secondhand PC tower with your specs, sell in Sunday's paper for about $450. Any more and it then becomes a new PC option, but you might get someone with more money than sence to pay more $550.

Does your BIOS allow for OC? If not try CPUcool and OC to 2.4GHZ or 2.6GHZ. Instal Motherboard Monitor or similar, if you have no temp monitoring programs and watch the temps under full load - gaming.

Maybe for now just fit a better GC and upgrade the rest later - transfer your better GC into the new PC and fit the mx420 into the old to sell.



<font color=red><b>DCB</b></font color=red><font color=white><b>_</b></font color=white><font color=blue><b>AU</b></font color=blue>

 

[Spitfire_x86]

It's a Dell, so he can't overclock.

I think if he replaces his GF4 MX420 with a 128 MB Radeon 9600 Pro, this system will serve him quite well for a while.

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