Need to upgrade card for Starcraft 2, $200 budget , old comp

[Guest]

Hello, I k600now there is a format to posting articles like this, but I was just hoping to make it a bit simpler in my request overall.

my computer is a little less than 6 years old, I know, its time for a new one, I just dont have the cash right now.

Specs:
DFI Infinity 875 motherboard
Intel Pentium 4 3.2 ghz processor with hyper threading technology
3.5BGB of DDR Ram, all with heat spreader on them
Radeon 9600 128mb (this is what i need to upgrade). I dont want to spend more than 200 dollars. I dont care about overclocking or cross firing etc, I just want a card that can last me about 2 years.

Also, is my CPU good enough? it seems better than the minimum? is there a cheap, but worthwhile upgrade I can do for it?

thank for your itme

 

[jeffredo]

Even with a graphics card upgrade you're barely going to meet the minimum specs (your mobo is 8X AGP only). You could get an HD 4670 AGP card for it, but I would hesitate to invest anything in such an old machine.

 

[tuesday0180]

Just for reference. I used to run starcraft 2 beta on my e5200 2.5ghz, gtx260 and was able to run the game maxed out 1680x1050.

Not sure how a e5200 2.5ghz matches up against a p4 3.2ghz though. You definitely need a better video card though.

 

[jonpaul37]

Starcraft will be a slideshow with that Pentium 4 CPU regardless of what Video Card you have. You need to at least have a Core 2 Duo 2.4 GHz or higher to be able to play starcraft 2 and actually run a decent video card.

 

[borisof007]

Yeah sorry to say Iskandr, you're probably better off building a cheapy setup.

Just for giggles, I put this together for you, should be plenty for some SC2 fun:

Motherboard
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813135233

CPU
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819103687

Video Card
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814161315

RAM
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820134218

Granted it's only 2 gigs of RAM, but you can add more later if you get more money. Also, these four parts are 250 plus tax, which I know is a little high. Good thing about it is the low power consumption. 65 watt dual core CPU with a low, low low TDP video card means you might be able to get away with your current PSU and just transfer it over.

 

[Guest]

mhhh, borris, i think i already have the ram taken care of. PNY 1GB PC3200, DDR400/333/266 3.5gb worth
you think I should go ahead with those other pieces maybe?

 

[Helltech]

mhhh, borris, i think i already have the ram taken care of. PNY 1GB PC3200, DDR400/333/266 3.5gb worth
you think I should go ahead with those other pieces maybe?

No because that motherboard is DDR2, if you get a new motherboard your going to need to get new ram as well. As I don't think Newegg has DDR1 motherboards, and if they did they wouldn't be worth investing in.

The cheapest realistic solution that would save you from upgrading for a long time would be to spend about 400 dollars and get an AM3/DDR3 motherboard, a AM3 Quad-Core CPU, 2Gigs of DDR3 Ram, and a decently cheap ATI GPU.

 

[Guest]

I have a second computer in my home, these are the similar specs of it, except I am actually at 4gig, would this be better, the video card is shared memory/integrated, would I have to upgrade it?

http://www.amazon.com/Pavilion-M8000N-Desktop-Processor-SuperMulti/dp/B000O58Q2U

 

[jyjjy]

That computer is much better that the first one you listed. Add an HD5670 and it should be alright for low resolutions(1280x1024 and below.)

 

[MrMeth]

The cheapest Solution would be to pick up a 4670 put it in the HP machine and go enjoy your starcraft , I personally would go with borisof007 idea and for 50$ more then you were willing to spend on your video card you would have a 2nd system that would kick the crap out of your current P4 system. The only thing i would change from borisof007 suggestion is the mobo , I really dont trust Ecs , here is my suggestion for mobo.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813131595

That with the other parts boris suggested will give you a good system to build on when the 2nd Starcraft expo comes out lol !!

 

[megamanx00]

Yeah, that HP is miles better even though it's a bit low end by today's standards )

If you still wanted to use your old P4 it would need a pretty heavy overclock, which of course means better cooling. Even then it would be slower than the HP, not to mention that a 4670 AGP is alot more expensive than the PCI-E version. Still, since that HP probably has a weak PSU go with this card

XFX HD-567X-YNFC Radeon HD 5670
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814150466

You could get a new PSU and a Radeon 5750. Not much of a point getting anything faster than that without a better CPU

 

[jyjjy]

The only thing i would change from borisof007 suggestion is the mobo , I really dont trust Ecs , here is my suggestion for mobo.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813131595

Don't forget the combo with that CPU;
http://www.newegg.com/Product/ComboDealDetails.aspx?ItemList=Combo.436267
The ram and card he linked are also more expensive than necessary imo.

 

[Guest]

whoa jyjjy,
should i put that in the second HP newer computer, or my old one?

 

[mohamads9000]

I would agree with the above posts. There is little point in upgrading an outdated system. Its better to save up some more money and get a new motherboard, which means a new CPU, and also new RAM, along with an updated video card. You may also need a new power supply with all these new additions, but this is depending on your current one. What you can keep is your computer case, keyboard, mouse, monitor, speakers, cd drive, hard drive, and any other peripherals.

 

[jyjjy]

whoa jyjjy,
should i put that in the second HP newer computer, or my old one?

That would be to upgrade your Pentium 4 system.
Another option would be this for slightly more;
http://www.newegg.com/Product/ComboDealDetails.aspx?ItemList=Combo.436340
It is a triple core processor but that chip is actually a quad core with one core shut off. That motherboard allows you to unlock the fourth core. Occasionally the 4th core will be defective so it wont work but the large majority of the time you'll end up with a quad core processor for less money.
You would need some DDR2 ram to go with either of the combos. 2 gb will get you by for now but adding another two at some point in the future is a good idea;
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820148235
You will probably want a new power supply as well. You haven't mentioned what you have now but it is likely old and was never particularly good to begin with. This would be a very good choice at a good price;
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817139008
That's basically a decent new computer for $200 after the rebate. You can use the case and drives(hard/cd/dvd)from you old system. If you would like a new case this one is just $22 shipped after the promo code;
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811147073
It's nothing special but it will do the job.
Now you still need a video card but with the new processor and power supply the limit will be how much you want to spend rather than the rest of your system.