Help me upgrade my computer! - Page 2

AVGWarhawk · 04-19-07, 11:36 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by bert8for3

Quote:

Originally Posted by Grothesj2

ATX should fit in an ATX slot. A stronger power supply may be longer but width and hieght should be the same. I got a 600w to replace my 300w and it was over an inch longer but still fit quite comfortably in my case. Maybe you can reposition some things in your case?

Tks, but that won't fly 'cause the (new) psu would butt up so close to the DVD drive that it would be impossible to plug in the cables.

You can get a new case. There are some nice ones at very good prices. Hell, everything just screws in anyway. I've switched mine before. Same issue, PS was to large.

bert8for3 · 04-19-07, 12:14 PM

ok, tks much guys. Let's leave it there, I feel I kinda hijacked the thread a bit. Apologies to the first poster.

Sir Big Jugs · 04-19-07, 11:01 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by bert8for3

ok, tks much guys. Let's leave it there, I feel I kinda hijacked the thread a bit. Apologies to the first poster.

No problem!

Sir Big Jugs · 04-19-07, 11:04 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by AVGWarhawk

Remember to look for the X1300 XGE(xtreme gamer edition) 512mb it is overclocked for us knuckleheads

Damn, It seems like I'm going to have a hard time finding that one here in Finland.

greekfire · 04-20-07, 05:23 AM

I'll go ahead and throw in my .02 cents.

You're system is pretty weak and outdated. If I was in your shoes, I would refrain from throwing more money into an outdated system. Stick to upgrading things that will transition into a new system when you get more money. To be honest, any upgrades for your current system are gonna be bottlenecked by the other components anyway. Only smart decision I can see with regards to this setup is investing in a 2G RAM setup. It will give you the best all-around performance increase and RAM tends to hold its value better than anything else and you'll be able to keep it for a few years or sell it on ebay for a really good price if you decide to go 4G later. Another good potential buy would be a good EAX soundcard like Creative Labs X-Fi. They are fairly cheap now and they are the best audio cards in gaming today. They won't be going anywhere for a while. You'll also get a performance increase using a good audio card because it will take the processing load off the motherboard and do it on its own.

If anyone tells you to go upgrading your videocard, considering your current system, I think that would be a big mistake and a waste of your money. You won't get hardly any performance increase and it will be worthless for any future component changes. Your current system is just too weak to really take advantage of a higher end video card.

Your cpu, and probably your power supply too, isn't strong enough to push a good video card. not even mentioning the fact that you would be forced to buy an agp card which are expensive and underpowered by the current standards since PCI-e came out. Any changes to cpu or videocard are going to also require a motherboard and Power supply changeout because of socket changes and u will want PCI-e.

Unfortunately for you, there have been some fundamental changes to PC components in the recent year that require more than just a simple cpu or vcard changeout. You pretty much have to get an entire new rig these days to upgrade anything. By rig, I mean the cpu, motherboard, RAM, Power Supply, and proper cooling for all this stuff. Can't really just do single component changeouts until you get all the new "basics". Good luck

AVGWarhawk · 04-20-07, 08:25 AM

Quote:

If anyone tells you to go upgrading your videocard, considering your current system, I think that would be a big mistake and a waste of your money. You won't get hardly any performance increase and it will be worthless for any future component changes. Your current system is just too weak to really take advantage of a higher end video card.

I beg to differ on this statement. I have the exact same set up but I had a Nvidia 6200 card. This game was unplayable with this card. I purchased the X1300 and the game runs fantastically and looks even better. For someone like myself who does not have $1600.00 to blow on computers, this was the best, least expensive fix for my issues with the game play. It was a darn good choice and I play the game with all the eye candy. Not to mention all the other games I play are even better.

Quillan · 04-20-07, 08:52 AM

Assuming the original poster had the money to replace the system, my advice would be the same, don't upgrade the current one. However, with a spending limit of 200€, you aren't going to be able to build a new computer. You couldn't build a new computer for $400 in the US, much less in Europe where the prices on components tend to be quite a bit higher as I understand it.

The last two Silent Hunter games require pixel shaders, I assume to handle the wave effects of the sea (ever seen screenshots from someone who got the game running on an old Geforce 4 MX card? No water). However, aside from that, the big resource requirements of this game are the processor and memory. The OP has an Athlon 64 processor. Don't underestimate these; processor speed doesn't mean a lot here. I ran SH3 on an Athlon XP 2000+, so that's a massive increase in performance over what I had then. I've found recently that going to 2 gigs of ram really helped my games, much more than I thought. Obviously the big bottleneck in his system is the video card, but unless he want's to run 2048x1536 resolution with 8xAA and 16xAF he really doesn't need something crazy. If the game runs well for AVG, then it should run well for SBJ as well.

Most subsimmers (not all) aren't into a lot of different games that require crazy amounts of video power. For those people, state-of-the-art gaming systems aren't required, and a lot of people can't afford those anyway. I couldn't go out and build a system around a Conroe X6800 with 4 gigs of ram and two 8800GTX video cards in SLI.

AVGWarhawk · 04-20-07, 09:19 AM

@Quillan

Agreed! I was thinking of putting in more RAM first but the 6200 card was outdate by a long shot. I thought I should go here first. Reason, the card is tuned like lawnmower. Originally I watched Neals first movie and it looked great. Game play for Neal look smooth in his video. Most, if not all, inquired as to his system. It was not much unlike mine, I think the processor was a bit slower. Neal said he purchased a X1650 (I believe) and that was all to get his game running very well. It was at that time I thought the vid card was the way to go. It worked nicely. Now, I do have to say, once the game is loaded and rolling, my hard drive settles down, I cache all the screens and I can bounce around from screen to screen effortlessly. Sure, TC sometimes studders or I get a slowdown on VERY heavy action but it is certainly still very playable. Convoys are not issue with the system. The game can throw fog/rain/heavy seas and a convoy at me and my machine runs it very well.

As far as RAM, I wait until they are selling it for a song and they do often. That is when I get the RAM. At this point, I do not think additional RAM with the 6200 card would have satisfactorly handled the game. I'm just glad Neal posted his video and specs....definitly sent me to the store for the correct piece of hardware and at a price I could budget.

ijozic · 04-20-07, 10:50 AM

I'd suggest to the orginal poster to buy a used graphics card. Surely he can find a used (but still under warranty) X1800XT or X1900XT or 7900GT for under 150 EUR and he can get another 1 GB of RAM for under 100 EUR. He would notice considerable gain in performance in games.

JSF · 04-20-07, 11:09 AM

My experience with SH4 was unsatisfactory even with the system I was running. I have a Dell XPS 600, 2 yrs old. Specs (were) duo core 3 gig, 2 gig ram, 160 gig ATA 10K rpm HD, Audigy SB, Nvidia pci-e 6800, 650w pwr supply, 19" digital flat panel.

Even with this setup I was experiencing mouse lag (unacceptable) with the game set at medium settings. However, I just installed a Nvidia 8800 GTS and and all video issues are gone. I know this may not be an option for some but I mention it here so others can have a bench mark.

All of my kids are grown and out of the house.....Now it's my turn....heheheheeeeee....It's good to be da king.......

greekfire · 04-20-07, 02:53 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by AVGWarhawk

Quote:

If anyone tells you to go upgrading your videocard, considering your current system, I think that would be a big mistake and a waste of your money. You won't get hardly any performance increase and it will be worthless for any future component changes. Your current system is just too weak to really take advantage of a higher end video card.

I beg to differ on this statement. I have the exact same set up but I had a Nvidia 6200 card. This game was unplayable with this card. I purchased the X1300 and the game runs fantastically and looks even better. For someone like myself who does not have $1600.00 to blow on computers, this was the best, least expensive fix for my issues with the game play. It was a darn good choice and I play the game with all the eye candy. Not to mention all the other games I play are even better.

I definitely see your point and you are right... it would play better. The intent of my statements are simply that it wouldn't play anywhere near the cards capabilities and that the card would be a waste in the fact that it wouldn't be able to carryover into future upgrades. Sort of like being forced to buy a european sportscar because it is only car for sale that will get you to the grocery store (not sure that made sense even to me

) . It just seems to me that better long-term options would be components that would carry-over into newer systems and last for a few years. If he goes out and buys a new vcard, he will get a performance increase, probably enough to play, but it is an expensive short-term investment with rapid resell decay. Don't get me wrong, I see your point that a videocard would get him up and running, but in the long-term I think it is the most expensive option. This game uses a ton of RAM and I think that would probably help out just as much as purchasing a bottlenecked vcard. It's a very tough call and if I were in his shoes I would probably go out and buy a videocard too because I would want the instant fix regardless of the long-term consequence of wasting considerable money to get a minor performance increase but I would be angry at myself for making that decision. lol

04-20-07, 08:52 AM	#22
Quillan Samurai Navy Join Date: Apr 2005 Posts: 579 Downloads: 2 Uploads: 0	Assuming the original poster had the money to replace the system, my advice would be the same, don't upgrade the current one. However, with a spending limit of 200€, you aren't going to be able to build a new computer. You couldn't build a new computer for $400 in the US, much less in Europe where the prices on components tend to be quite a bit higher as I understand it. The last two Silent Hunter games require pixel shaders, I assume to handle the wave effects of the sea (ever seen screenshots from someone who got the game running on an old Geforce 4 MX card? No water). However, aside from that, the big resource requirements of this game are the processor and memory. The OP has an Athlon 64 processor. Don't underestimate these; processor speed doesn't mean a lot here. I ran SH3 on an Athlon XP 2000+, so that's a massive increase in performance over what I had then. I've found recently that going to 2 gigs of ram really helped my games, much more than I thought. Obviously the big bottleneck in his system is the video card, but unless he want's to run 2048x1536 resolution with 8xAA and 16xAF he really doesn't need something crazy. If the game runs well for AVG, then it should run well for SBJ as well. Most subsimmers (not all) aren't into a lot of different games that require crazy amounts of video power. For those people, state-of-the-art gaming systems aren't required, and a lot of people can't afford those anyway. I couldn't go out and build a system around a Conroe X6800 with 4 gigs of ram and two 8800GTX video cards in SLI. __________________ We, the unwilling, led by the unknowing, are doing the impossible for the ungrateful. We have done so much, for so long, with so little, that we are now qualified to do anything with nothing.

04-20-07, 09:19 AM	#23
AVGWarhawk Lucky Jack Join Date: Jun 2005 Location: In a 1954 Buick. Posts: 28,300 Downloads: 90 Uploads: 0	@Quillan Agreed! I was thinking of putting in more RAM first but the 6200 card was outdate by a long shot. I thought I should go here first. Reason, the card is tuned like lawnmower. Originally I watched Neals first movie and it looked great. Game play for Neal look smooth in his video. Most, if not all, inquired as to his system. It was not much unlike mine, I think the processor was a bit slower. Neal said he purchased a X1650 (I believe) and that was all to get his game running very well. It was at that time I thought the vid card was the way to go. It worked nicely. Now, I do have to say, once the game is loaded and rolling, my hard drive settles down, I cache all the screens and I can bounce around from screen to screen effortlessly. Sure, TC sometimes studders or I get a slowdown on VERY heavy action but it is certainly still very playable. Convoys are not issue with the system. The game can throw fog/rain/heavy seas and a convoy at me and my machine runs it very well. As far as RAM, I wait until they are selling it for a song and they do often. That is when I get the RAM. At this point, I do not think additional RAM with the 6200 card would have satisfactorly handled the game. I'm just glad Neal posted his video and specs....definitly sent me to the store for the correct piece of hardware and at a price I could budget. __________________ “You're painfully alive in a drugged and dying culture.” ― Richard Yates, Revolutionary Road

04-20-07, 10:50 AM	#24
ijozic Bosun Join Date: Aug 2006 Posts: 61 Downloads: 47 Uploads: 0	I'd suggest to the orginal poster to buy a used graphics card. Surely he can find a used (but still under warranty) X1800XT or X1900XT or 7900GT for under 150 EUR and he can get another 1 GB of RAM for under 100 EUR. He would notice considerable gain in performance in games. __________________ I'm a bit slow at first, but by the time the crew starts screaming "Captain, we're all gonna die!", I'm in complete control.

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04-19-07, 12:14 PM	#17
bert8for3 Ace of the Deep Join Date: Dec 2005 Location: Canada Posts: 1,124 Downloads: 110 Uploads: 0	ok, tks much guys. Let's leave it there, I feel I kinda hijacked the thread a bit. Apologies to the first poster.

04-20-07, 05:23 AM	#20
greekfire Bosun Join Date: Apr 2007 Location: Atlanta, Ga Posts: 68 Downloads: 16 Uploads: 0	I'll go ahead and throw in my .02 cents. You're system is pretty weak and outdated. If I was in your shoes, I would refrain from throwing more money into an outdated system. Stick to upgrading things that will transition into a new system when you get more money. To be honest, any upgrades for your current system are gonna be bottlenecked by the other components anyway. Only smart decision I can see with regards to this setup is investing in a 2G RAM setup. It will give you the best all-around performance increase and RAM tends to hold its value better than anything else and you'll be able to keep it for a few years or sell it on ebay for a really good price if you decide to go 4G later. Another good potential buy would be a good EAX soundcard like Creative Labs X-Fi. They are fairly cheap now and they are the best audio cards in gaming today. They won't be going anywhere for a while. You'll also get a performance increase using a good audio card because it will take the processing load off the motherboard and do it on its own. If anyone tells you to go upgrading your videocard, considering your current system, I think that would be a big mistake and a waste of your money. You won't get hardly any performance increase and it will be worthless for any future component changes. Your current system is just too weak to really take advantage of a higher end video card. Your cpu, and probably your power supply too, isn't strong enough to push a good video card. not even mentioning the fact that you would be forced to buy an agp card which are expensive and underpowered by the current standards since PCI-e came out. Any changes to cpu or videocard are going to also require a motherboard and Power supply changeout because of socket changes and u will want PCI-e. Unfortunately for you, there have been some fundamental changes to PC components in the recent year that require more than just a simple cpu or vcard changeout. You pretty much have to get an entire new rig these days to upgrade anything. By rig, I mean the cpu, motherboard, RAM, Power Supply, and proper cooling for all this stuff. Can't really just do single component changeouts until you get all the new "basics". Good luck

04-20-07, 11:09 AM	#25
JSF Engineer Join Date: Jul 2002 Posts: 208 Downloads: 3 Uploads: 0	My experience with SH4 was unsatisfactory even with the system I was running. I have a Dell XPS 600, 2 yrs old. Specs (were) duo core 3 gig, 2 gig ram, 160 gig ATA 10K rpm HD, Audigy SB, Nvidia pci-e 6800, 650w pwr supply, 19" digital flat panel. Even with this setup I was experiencing mouse lag (unacceptable) with the game set at medium settings. However, I just installed a Nvidia 8800 GTS and and all video issues are gone. I know this may not be an option for some but I mention it here so others can have a bench mark. All of my kids are grown and out of the house.....Now it's my turn....heheheheeeeee....It's good to be da king.......