Black Ops pc cpu recommendations

[reqhjack24]

Hi. It's been too long since I started struggling in order to play Black Ops on my 4 yr old dell pc. I have upgraded some parts since and here's my spec.

CPU: Intel Pentium D 2.8GHz dual core
RAM: DDR2 3GB
PSU: 500 watts
GPU: Nvidia GeForce 9500 GT 1GB

After contacting Activision support and looking at several forums, I understand that my cpu is as useless as it can get. I'm thinking about upgrading my cpu in a not too expensive price range. My cpu socket is LGA 775, so I think I gotta pick from the Intel Core 2 series. Can anyone give me some good recommendations for buying a new cpu. I mostly use my computer for gaming and for school sometimes. Since I have a dell, I can't overclock from the BIOS... I realize there can be a "bottleneck" if the cpu or the gpu is better than the other. Can someone explain that more please and take it into consideration when recommending a cpu for me? So far, people said that games will eventually benefit from multi-core processors, so it's a good idea to buy a quad core now. But they are indeed more expensive than the dual cores, and I'm worried if a quad core with lower GHz would perform badly on applications that can't use all the cores. Thank you for reading and please recommend a good one. . I recently installed FIFA 11 and it has low fps. (its a soccer game.....)

P.S.- only store I have access to is Best Buy. and wal-mart. no credit card...(no online ordering)

 

[AntiZig]

Well, the best quad you can get, without going into i-7 series is the Q9550. After that probably dropping down to Q6600. Don't take my word for it, there might be better options out there, I'm not very big on desktop business.

But, that is such old technology, I mean Q6600 launched in 2007, and as you may know typically 4 year old is considered pretty outdated in computer market.

 

[kashifme21]

Your GPU isnt really ment for gaming. I would first recomment a GPU upgrade above everything else.

infact that entire system needs a replacement. Let us know your budget so we can help you with this.

 

[reqhjack24]

I'm aware that my gpu is not that good, but upgrading to a new gpu would mean a new psu as well, wouldn't it? When Black Ops came out, I bought 9500 GT and 500 watt psu. So, it would be just wasting the old hardwares Also, I'm unable to replace the entire system due to my parents' disagreement....
If it is possible, please recommend a cpu that would be compatible with my system and won't bottleneck my gpu. I'm not such an extreme gamer. I find Black Ops on 1024*768 resolution, shadow on, and high texture quality to be enough good looking. I have about 300 dollars to spend. Also, please tell me if I should purchase a high Ghz dual core or a lower Ghz quad core cpu.
My current decision is Intel Core 2 Quad q8400 or q9550, but q9550 seems a bit TOO expensive. please help

 

[kashifme21]

TBH buying the 9500GT when Blackops came out was a waste of money. if you have 300usd to spend, i would recommend adding few 200more in there. i could recommend you a CPU but it wont help your gaming performance since that GPU just isnt ment for gaming.

keep the same casing, just change the motherboard, cpu, gpu. trust me your parents wont even know, been there myself lol.

500watt PSU should be enough for a while, casing should be good too, you already have the HDs and dvd drives present. So all you need is CPU, motherboard, GPU and DDR3 ram. i think we could get those for 300usd.

 

[Mousemonkey]

I'm aware that my gpu is not that good, but upgrading to a new gpu would mean a new psu as well, wouldn't it? When Black Ops came out, I bought 9500 GT and 500 watt psu. So, it would be just wasting the old hardwares Also, I'm unable to replace the entire system due to my parents' disagreement....
If it is possible, please recommend a cpu that would be compatible with my system and won't bottleneck my gpu. I'm not such an extreme gamer. I find Black Ops on 1024*768 resolution, shadow on, and high texture quality to be enough good looking. I have about 300 dollars to spend. Also, please tell me if I should purchase a high Ghz dual core or a lower Ghz quad core cpu.
My current decision is Intel Core 2 Quad q8400 or q9550, but q9550 seems a bit TOO expensive. please help

Does your motherboard support the 45nm Quads?

 

[kashifme21]

Edit:

His motherboard is a LGA 775, which means a quad core should be supported.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819115057

you could go for the q8400 cpu which will cost you 184 usd and can be clocked to 3.5ghz easily that should last you a while.

Add in a GPU like the 6850, and u will have a good rig for quite alot of time to come, 6850 should cost you 170usd, so thats very close to your budget of 300usd.

 

[Mousemonkey]

This isn't the build section so turning this into a build thread is not a good idea.

 

[simon12]

1st there is no way you should spend that much on a 775 CPU when an i3 2100 is $124.99 and an i5 2500K is $219.99 + a cheap motherboard $60 or cheap Z68 board $100. If you have a good make 500W PSU then you can run most mid-high cards like up to a Radeon 6870. I suggest as long as your PSU is a good brnad you get an i3 + a cheap board + 4Gb DDR3 RAM and the best graphics card you can with the money left.

 

[kashifme21]

@simon

I was initially about to recommendt he I3 2100, however q8400 wins hands down. Since I3 2100 is dual core and is clock locked (cant be overclocked).

He said he currently only has a budgent of 300usd. keeping that in perspective a q8400 along with a 6850 or 6870 will be a perfect upgrade.

no point getting a q8400 then trying to run games with a 9500gt, it just wont work.

 

[reqhjack24]

I'm not a real expert in computers so I can't change the mobo.... the gpus u guys are recommending. are they the standards of a high quality gaming or a decent one. i know alot of ppl out there go for really high resolutions and stuff. but to me. 1024*768 is just fine. i also know spending alot of money on a cpu for lga 775 is a waste. but i wont be getting a new computer within the next few yrs. so ill be stuck with this one for like 3 yrs. i think its not too bad. will q8400 bottleneck my 9500 GT? what gpu would go well with q8400. PS (I HAVE DELL. I CANNOT OVERCLOCK THROUGH BIOS!!!)

 

[reqhjack24]

I'm not familiar with radeon gpu model names... if i keep my 9500 GT and upgrade to a q8400, will there be a bottleneck??

 

[AntiZig]

yes, your GPU will be the bottleneck as it's not a gaming gpu. You can upgrade the CPU to q8400 only and see how the performance is, if it's not great, you pick up the 6850. As somebody mentioned above, both should fit into your 300 budget.

 

[kashifme21]

Replacing the motherboard isnt hard, you can check some videos on youtube for guidance. I first took the step when i was 15 ;-) my parents didnt like me buying new hardware either.

Little did they know that old looking casing had a monster of a rig within it lol.

You should definetly upgrade the GPU, otherwise it will be a waste. You can go with the latest high end CPU however equipping it with a non gaming GPU wont make you see any result.

 

[reqhjack24]

I see. well my entire family doesn't like me "wasting" money on computers either so I HAVE to try to minimize the costs. so q8400 and 6850 will work? is radeon better than nvidia? if not, can someone recommend me a nvidia gpu for the q8400??
MAJOR QUESTION: my current cpu's ghz is 2.8. even though Intel Core2 quad is exceptionally better than the Pentium D. wouldn't upgrading to a lower Ghz cpu have a negative effect on applications that can't use all 4 cores? is 2.66ghz a fast speed? will q8400 be good enough to top off the Pentium D 2.8GHz dual core on non-multicore using applications?

 

[reqhjack24]

hd 6850 or gtx 460. specs say they require 6 pin connectors? ill have to check if my psu has it. 6 pin connector is a connect with 6 boxes right? ...


http://www.bestbuy.com/site/olspage.jsp?_dyncharset=ISO-8859-1&_dynSessConf=-2293998646944209592&id=pcat17071&type=page&st=gtx+460&sc=Global&cp=1&nrp=15&sp=&qp=&list=n&iht=y&usc=All+Categories&ks=960

from this link, which product do u guys recommend?

 

[cbrunnem]

have you even checked best buy in stores to see if they have these cpu's your talking about cause i know mine close to me doesnt.

also as generations of cpus evolve cpu's can do more with the same clock speed. for example, i have a 2630qm cpu. it is an i7 laptop cpu with a base clock of 2.0 ghz. in pure cpu speed it is faster then most desktop cpu's to date. i have never had a cpu bottleneck on it and my laptop will play most games on high. that is an example of how newer generations of cpu's can do more work with the same or lower clock speeds.

now to you thread question. like others said if you can get some more money then you would be in a much better position but i recommend not upgrading anything for the sake of your grades lol. if you cant play games you cant blow off your homework lol.

 

[kashifme21]

I see. well my entire family doesn't like me "wasting" money on computers either so I HAVE to try to minimize the costs. so q8400 and 6850 will work? is radeon better than nvidia? if not, can someone recommend me a nvidia gpu for the q8400??
MAJOR QUESTION: my current cpu's ghz is 2.8. even though Intel Core2 quad is exceptionally better than the Pentium D. wouldn't upgrading to a lower Ghz cpu have a negative effect on applications that can't use all 4 cores? is 2.66ghz a fast speed? will q8400 be good enough to top off the Pentium D 2.8GHz dual core on non-multicore using applications?

Core2quad due to its superior architecture will be much faster then the pentium D clock for clock. Plus it has 4 cores id say its a win win situation. Nvidia and AMD are both good, AMD usually provides better value for your money, i would say go for the 6850 or 6870 both are really good.

 

[reqhjack24]

I'm planning on ordering it to the store. I chose Intel Core 2 Quad Q8400.
Nobody has clearly explained about bottlenecks to me. If I keep my 9500 GT and upgrade my cpu to Intel Core 2 Quad Q8400, will the result be worse than not upgrading? Or will the result be better but just not performing at its best with the bottleneck?
I play Black Ops on 30 fps on average. Would I get worse fps or better fps if i ONLY upgraded my cpu to Intel Core 2 Quad Q8400?
Now about the gpu's. Are these recommendations for hardcore gamers or average gamers. I DO play the newest games, but I don't play on the highest resolutions. If I set it past 1024*768, the screen looks distorted and weird, so I always use 1024*768. I'm sure I don't have to upgrade it that far. If the bottlenecking is bearable, I might not upgrade at all, but just in case, more suggestions?

 

[simon12]

At your low resolution you could get a cheaper card but lower cards you always seem to get alot more for not much more money until you get to 6850-6870 level when you start paying alot more for less and less return. Read this article for more guidance http://www.tomshardware.co.uk/best-graphics-card,review-32225.html . Also the i3 2100 is a mile better than any core 2 quad or duo for gaming.

 

[reqhjack24]

i know.. but I can't change my motherboard, so my only cpu option is Intel Core 2.
should i upgrade my cpu to Intel Core 2 Quad Q8400 first and see how much bottleneck there is? because i dont think i can afford upgrading BOTH cpu and gpu at the same time. can anyone give me an estimate of how much bottleneck there will be for Intel Core 2 Quad Q8400 and 9500 GT. if i DO upgrade my gpu also, what gpu should i buy? (enough to reduce the bottleneck to the minimum)

 

[reqhjack24]

Best answer selected by reqhjack24.

 

[Dark Lord of Tech]

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