Need any upgrade but the gfx-card?

[The_I]

The question is whether it would be a good idea to upgrade just the gfx-card. The alternative is an expensive full-out upgrade, upgrading the cpu-mb-ram-system to 3.2 GHz levels would cost me about 700 dollars in Denmark where I live.

Alternatively I could just double my ram for 100 dollars and upgrade my gfx-card to something like a 6600 gt, even a 6800 gt.
Would that work? I know there are similar threads, but none of them concerning systems with both mediocre single-channel ram and relatively low-GHz CPU’s. I want to be able to play most games with good fps and some details and my goal with upgrading the system was try for once having something relatively cutting edge. I really don't want my upgrade to make my pc just able to 'limb along', in that case I'll be building a whole new system.

I guess the idea with waiting to upgrade the rest of my system should be waiting for the dual-cores to come out, that'd mean that setup should last 1-1,5 years, how good will it hold up?

I use my desktop mainly for games (often with winamp playing music in the background), I'm not the type that buys all the new games all the time, but I want to be able to handle hl2/doom3-generation games.

 

[Unolocogringo]

Since we dont know what you have noone can answer.

Post your system specifications.

I aint signing nothing!!!

 

[endyen]

It would help to know what the rest of your system looks like. Any agp graphics card would be outdated the next time you upgrade.

 

[The_I]

lol, sorry everyone, it seems that while copy-pasting my post to word for spell-checking and back again I must have misclicked loosing the part of my post containing my system specs, here they are:

Proc: P4 nw a 2.0 ghz 400 mhz fsb
Mobo: chaintech 9ejl intel 845e
Ram: 512 mb hyniz pc2100 (cas 2.5 I think)
Gfx: chaintech gf4 ti4200 agp x 8
case: chieftech dragon workstation tower.

 

[endyen]

The nw-a chip @2ghz is pretty minimul. Certainly for HL2, getting a faster NWb would help more than ram. While your mobo may support chips as fast as the 3.06 P4b, that may be overkill, if you are on a budget. If it was me, I would get the 6600GT (if I could find one in agp) and a new chip in the 2.5 range, with the 133/533 fsb. Then again, the Radeon 9800pro is fairly cheap, and not much worse than the 6600GT.

 

[Schmide]

An 845e running a 400mhz bus with a nw 2.0a. You just won the need to overclock that CPU award.

Go look in the <A HREF="http://www.cpudatabase.com/CPUdb/" target="_new">CPU database</A> and see that that chip did very well. (133 operation will yield 2.666). From what I understand that board likes its timings relaxed a bit. (Probably 3 4 4 7 with your crappy ram). It’s worth a shot.

Yeah and get a new video card.

Dichromatic for your viewing plesure...

 

[The_I]

But what you're saying is that I have to upgrade the cpu? I can get a 2,8 ghz nwb for about 210 dollars. But will that run with pc2100 memory or do I have to change that to?
And if I start switching my processor I'm only about 350 dollars from what it would cost to buy a new motherboard, new memory and a 3,0 ghz pressie or an a64 3000+.

I don't HAVE to upgrade, I can afford to build something new, the question is whether it would be a good idea not to.