• What Should I Upgrade?
    25 replies, posted
I've never built my own computer, but upgraded some simple parts in the past. I eventually want to start designing my own from scratch, but for now I'd like to hear what you guys think I should do to upgrade my current pc. I bought this computer about 2 years ago and I want to keep up with the times. I think most of my hardware is fine, except my video card. I had an 8800 GTS, but gateway (lol inorite) put some weird shit on it and it overheated 2 months ago. I wasn't sure if it was even the video card, or multiple things, but I went out and I bought a cheap 9500 to see if it would fix the problem and it did. What I want to do is upgrade this summer, first week of june, and have my rig be able to max out most games near 60fps for a year in advance. (Next summer I head to college and I don't think I'll bring my computer). 60 FPS might be setting the bar too high, but I'm not that in tune with current hardware so that's why I'm looking for help. I know I can't secure myself 60 fps and max settings for an entire year in advance, even with top of the line hardware, but I'd like to in a good position. I also have to buy Windows 7 as I'm still on XP so that's going to cost a chunk of change. My price range is somewhere around maybe 200$ including Windows 7, probably more, because I think that price range doesn't cut it. Should I drop standards down to 30fps for a year? Also, on the topic of Windows 7. Say all I upgrade is my graphics card, would it be easier to hook it up, then upgrade to 7 afterwards? What about if I replace some more complex components like my processor or motherboard? [B]CURRENT SPECS[/B] (If you want something more in detail, let me know. I'm not sure if there will be compatibility issues with Windows 7.) CPU[INDENT]-CPU Brand Name: Intel(R) Core(TM)2 Quad CPU Q6600 @ 2.40GHz -Code Name: Kentsfield -Package: Socket 775 LGA -L2 Cache: 8MB [/INDENT]Motherboard[INDENT]-Motherboard Model: Intel OEMD975XBGG1 -Motherboard Chipset: Intel 975X (Glenwood-DG) + ICH7DH -Motherboard Slots: 2xPCI, 2xPCI Express x1, 1xPCI Express x4, 1xPCI Express x16 [/INDENT]Memory[INDENT]-3g of DDR2 (I can look into specifics if you want them) [/INDENT]Display[INDENT]-Resolution: 1920x1080 -Video Card: nVidia GeForce 9500 GT -Video Bus: PCIe v1.0 x16 (2.5 Gb/s) @ x16 (2.5 Gb/s) [/INDENT]Power[INDENT]-700 Watt Power Supply [/INDENT]
A 9500 GT won't get you 60fps, I would know :C Also is that $200 total?
Yeah, upgrade that video card. You can never have enough video card.
No, they are his current specs -.-' [editline]11:11PM[/editline] @bugster
Get 5850.
[QUOTE=gol4z03;21195876]Get 5850.[/QUOTE] That looks dead sexy, but that's 300$ and that plus W7 puts me at 400$ which is a little high. What's a good cheaper card? Thanks
what is your monitors res
[QUOTE=rampageturke;21196650]what is your monitors res[/QUOTE] 1920x1080 I'll add it to the OP
[url]http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814125236&cm_re=4850-_-14-125-236-_-Product[/url] I don't know if you would hit 60 FPS, but you'd still get a good rate.
Are 4850s dx11 capable?
[QUOTE=Sean C;21265973]Are 4850s dx11 capable?[/QUOTE] No, DX11 support came with the 5xxx series.
Is it worth it upgrading to windows 7 64bit? Am I going to run into a lot of situations where I can't find a 64 bit version of a software or driver? Are there necessarily any downsides to 64bit? I'm not sure if my cpu is 64 bit compatible. I think it would be, but on cpu-z it doesn't say 32 or 64 bit anywhere. I tried running the Windows 7 Upgrade advisor and it doesn't give me any hardware red flags when I look at 32 or 64 bit, but I don't exactly trust it.
[QUOTE=Sean C;21268628]Is it worth it upgrading to windows 7 64bit? Am I going to run into a lot of situations where I can't find a 64 bit version of a software or driver? Are there necessarily any downsides to 64bit?[/QUOTE] Nope.
I think for 1080 resolution, going for as close to 60fps as possible, you need at least a 1gb card of ATI 4870 or 5770 level performance(or whatever is Nvidia's equivalent). I think the 4850 has a sweet spot at 16801050. It would probably be fine at 1080 for a lot of people, but not the ones looking for 60fps.
I think I might go with the 5770 because it's a good price and has dx11. I'm not sure where my cpu falls ont he spectrum anymore though. How good is it? Is it W7 64 bit compatible? I think it is.
[QUOTE=cecilbdemodded;21269531]I think for 1080 resolution, going for as close to 60fps as possible, you need at least a 1gb card of ATI 4870 or 5770 level performance(or whatever is Nvidia's equivalent). I think the 4850 has a sweet spot at 16801050. It would probably be fine at 1080 for a lot of people, but not the ones looking for 60fps.[/QUOTE] 60FPS is nice, but I have no problem playing games at 40FPS either. After 60FPS the human eye can't notice the difference.
Technically it makes no difference because the monitor refreshes 60 times a second, so the difference is unnoticable
[QUOTE=Sean C;21294721]I think I might go with the 5770 because it's a good price and has dx11. I'm not sure where my cpu falls ont he spectrum anymore though. How good is it? Is it W7 64 bit compatible? I think it is.[/QUOTE] Oh yes, your PC can handle Windows 7 easy. It's still a fairly nice computer to spite the low-end GPU.
[QUOTE=ghostofme;21297058]Oh yes, your PC can handle Windows 7 easy. It's still a fairly nice computer to spite the low-end GPU.[/QUOTE] Yeah, the gpu is what I need to upgrade since the 9500 I have was bought as a quick replacement. I'm still not sure how my CPU compares to other top of the line CPUs. Is it still a higher-end cpu?
[url=http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16832116754]Windows 7 Home Premium 64-bit ($99)[/url] [url=http://www.newegg.com/Product/ProductList.aspx?Submit=Property&Subcategory=48&Description=&Type=&N=2010380048&srchInDesc=&MinPrice=&MaxPrice=&PropertyCodeValue=679:46813]NVIDIA GeForce GTS250 ($89-$150)[/url] You can pretty much pick any of the cards on the list, but I personally find EVGA, XFX and PNY to be the best brands.
[QUOTE=n0cturni;21312015][url=http://www.newegg.com/Product/ProductList.aspx?Submit=Property&Subcategory=48&Description=&Type=&N=2010380048&srchInDesc=&MinPrice=&MaxPrice=&PropertyCodeValue=679:46813]NVIDIA GeForce GTS250 ($89-$150)[/url][/QUOTE] no
[QUOTE=reapaninja;21312152]no[/QUOTE] It's essentially a more efficient 9800GTX+ There are probably ATI cards that are more powerful for the same price, but I don't have much experience with them and it's harder for me to tell which is better than the other.
I was looking at [url]http://www.cpubenchmark.net/cpu_lookup.php?cpu=Intel+Core2+Quad+Q6600+%40+2.40GHz[/url] and it seems my cpu is still pretty decent, but what do you guys think? Also, how much more ram do you think I should pick up especially with me upgrading to Windows 7.
Your CPU and RAM are both fine. Get a 5770. [url]http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814161317[/url]
I'm going to go with the 5770, but I was taking another look at my cpu and everywhere I look it doesn't say 32 bit or 64 bit, just "x86 family". Does this mean that it can run 32 or 64 bit?
[QUOTE=Sean C;21396301]I'm going to go with the 5770, but I was taking another look at my cpu and everywhere I look it doesn't say 32 bit or 64 bit, just "x86 family". Does this mean that it can run 32 or 64 bit?[/QUOTE] It's 64-bit.
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