Upgrading

[Donkeigh]

Hi all, was thinking of updating my pc a little, as some games im getting low fps (WoW). Yes i do want to run everything pretty much on high to make it look good, i have fairly good knowledge of hardware just looking for some pointers and advice. These are my current pc specs: Gefore 9800GT AMD Athlon x2 Duel Core processor 4600 2gb Ram Do you think i should just upgrade my graphics card, or upgrade all or other hardware. Kind regards

 

[tecmo34]

Depending on your MOBO, you may be able to upgrade your CPU to the AM3 Phenom II X4 955 and upgrade to either a 4870 or 4890 and get a good boost in performance for less than $400.

A full upgrade you are lookning at close to or a little above $1,000. Depending on your budget, it really will dictate your options

 

[Donkeigh]

Thanks for the reply, ill reply back shortly with more of my system specs and mobo. maybe it will help you help me . My budget isnt over 1,000 so looking for a little less

 

[Donkeigh]

Mobo -

ASUSTek Comp INC.
Crosshair
nVidia SPP190 (C51xe)
nVidia Nfore 570 SLI

Gcard

Zotac 9800GT Synergy Edition 512MB DDR3 Dual DVI TV Out PhysX and Cuda ready PCI-E Graphics Card

 

[tecmo34]

I'm going on the basis this is your MOBO... ASUS M2N-SLI Deluxe and Google to see what I can find out on supported CPU's. Based on ASUS website/forum, they only recommend going with the AM3 Phenom II X4 940 (AM2+) over the newer AM3 chips.

Since your board is a SLI board, I would go with a GTX 275 over ATI, so you can add an additional card later (if your PSU can support it). Your board is pretty old, so a newer AM3/AM2+ board would be a good idea.

What is your max budget for the upgrade/build??

 

[Donkeigh]

Thanks for your reply again.

My max budget is about 450-600 pounds (English).

Thanks for the advice so far, keep it coming

 

[Donkeigh]

Oh, and i have an Antec 900 PC case, and maybe wrong but i think my PSU is 950w

 

[tecmo34]

For about 400 pounds, you can purchase these three items and get a good performance increase and still be able to use your original components...

GPU: http://www.overclockers.co.uk/showproduct.php?prodid=GX-124-XF

CPU: http://www.overclockers.co.uk/showproduct.php?prodid=CP-244-AM

MOBO: http://www.overclockers.co.uk/showproduct.php?prodid=MB-199-GI

 

[Donkeigh]

Thanks for the reply

I have looked the links and was thinking, would i be able to use the card i have now in that motherboard you have advised, the reason i ask is after christmas i might have abit more high budget to spend on a graphics card? Or do you think graphics card you have linked would do the job as far as gaming goes?

Thanks

 

[tecmo34]

1) Your old card will work on the new motherboard.

2) The ATI 4890 will play on high settings most games or max them out on a monitor resolution at or below 1920x1080. It is a huge improvement over the 9800GT. Your next options up are the 58xxx series cards and you are looking at over $100 (US $) more.

Depending on how much more your budget may be after Christmas, it might be the better option to do a complete upgrade on your system (DDR3 RAM, DDR3 MOBO... etc.) at that time.

 

[Donkeigh]

To be honest i will have about 500 pounds to spend after christmas on upgrades, i was thinking of purchasing the mother board right now and upgrade bit by bit. But as you said Tecmo, is it worth waiting and buying a DDR3 MOBO ? i mean would 500 pound be enough to get ddr3 ram. ddr3 mobo, gcard and processor

 

[Scottk517]

The 9800GT is more than enough for WoW, you are CPU limited. While upgrading your graphics card in addition to your cpu, mobo and ram will give you better FPS, the GPU should be last on the list to upgrade, but if you have the money, newer is better...

 

[tecmo34]

For 500 pounds you can get this after Christmas or buy everything now except GPU and upgrade after Christmas.
■GPU: listed previous
■CPU: listed previous
■MOBO: http://www.overclockers.co.uk/showproduct.php?prodid=MB-366-AS
■RAM: http://www.overclockers.co.uk/showproduct.php?prodid=MY-043-GS
■HDD: http://www.overclockers.co.uk/showproduct.php?prodid=HD-081-SA (updated for a faster/newer SATA drive)

 

[obsidian86]

or Intel Core i5 750 2.66GHz Socket LGA1156 8MB L3 Cache Retail Boxed Processor

http://www.ebuyer.com/product/172755

MSI P55-GD65 iP55 Socket 1156 Gigabit Lan 8 Channel Audio ATX Motherboard

http://www.ebuyer.com/product/172654

Samsung SpinPoint F3 500GB Hard Drive SATAII 7200rpm 16MB Cache - OEM

http://www.ebuyer.com/product/146252

Corsair 4GB (2x2GB) DDR3 1600MHz/PC3-12800 XMS3 i5 Memory Kit CL8(8-8-8-24) 1.65V

http://www.ebuyer.com/product/173129

£427.70 delivered used with the 9800gt this will make fun of Wow

 

[Donkeigh]

Thanks for the replys, going to buy the CPU and the MOBO now before i spend the money and buy the rest after christmas. And now i am tempted to buy a new case and new monitor so i can chuck all the hardware i am using now into a new case.

Am i wrong in saying that a monitor can have a part in low FPS and performance in games?

 

[Donkeigh]

Ok, think im going to go for

http://www.overclockers.co.uk/showproduct.php?prodid=MB-366-AS

and

http://www.overclockers.co.uk/showproduct.php?prodid=CP-244-AM&tool=3

then buy the ram, HDD and gcard after christmas, any recomendations on the CPU cooling ? at the moment i just have a normal fan and heatsink on mine

 

[Donkeigh]

Just ordered http://www.overclockers.co.uk/show [...] =MB-366-AS

and

http://www.overclockers.co.uk/show [...] -AM&tool=3

will order ram next week and see how it goes

 

[tecmo34]

It looks like a good start!!

For cooling, I would recommend either the Cooler Master Hyper 212+ or Sunbeam CCF for an AM3 socket.

 

[Donkeigh]

Just a quick update

Tecmo34 i brought the motherboard and processor, the ram is in the mail atm. I have about 300-350 to spend a video card, do you still recommend the one you said or another now?

Regards

 

[tecmo34]

Just a quick update

Tecmo34 i brought the motherboard and processor, the ram is in the mail atm. I have about 300-350 to spend a video card, do you still recommend the one you said or another now?

Regards

If you have 300 to 350 pounds for a video card, I would go with an Sapphire ATI Radeon HD 5850 or pick up the XFX version if available. This is a nice step up from the ATI 4890. If you don't want to spend that much money, I would go with the original video card I recommended.

 

[Donkeigh]

Ordered the Sapphire ATI Radeon HD 5850, using the new motherboard and ram with my graphics card i already have and i can tell the difference straight away, it's amazing.

Now tecmo, i have an old 19" LCD monitor, ive heard from alot of sources that a monitor can make a difference in gaming aswell, if that is true could you point me in the right direction of a monitor?

Regards

 

[obsidian86]

hmmm a monitor issue thats a whole other story but for starters you cant go wrong with a 1920x1200 or 1920x1080 display of at least 24" to complement that 5850 i have a liking for samsung but there are a few other great ones like LG,ASUS,BENQ,DELL,NEC or PHILIPS and HANNS G on a budget

 

[Donkeigh]

Yeh, i just dont know whats good and whats bad about a monitor, i dont really have a budget atm wanted to see what you guys picked see if i could save up to that

 

[obsidian86]

i currently have 2 of these and very happy with them
http://www.ebuyer.com/product/173827