AthlonXP 2600+ cheap upgrade to last a year or so...

[hakonpca]

My Questions...
Is an Athlon64 3200, 3500, or 3800 that much better than an AthlonXP 2600? I like to play RTS, and FPS (medium quality is fine for me)
Will I get a huge difference in my system with a slightly better CPU and PCI-E or should I just OC my AthlonXP and put in a new GPU until next year? Please post a link on how to OC an XP if you have a good one.

Will by 2600+ bottleneck very much in my lower/mid computer setup?

What I've got:
AthlonXP 2600+
AGP 9600 AIW 128MB
Biostar MB
1GB single channel DDR400 Ram (2 sticks)
160GB Seagate HD
Dell 20" Widescreen 2007 fpw

I want to hold off for 12-18 before my next major upgrade.

Right now I can get a 939 MB with PCI-E and an Athlon64 3500 or 3800 for about $110 on ebay, or course I'll need a new graphics card but PCI-E is cheaper that AGP so for about $250 I can do a decent upgrade before I shell out $1500 in 18 months for a great new computer.

Or... I can simply upgrade to a good AGP. I'm looking at the x800xt AIW because it has GDDR3 and 16 pipes and TV tuner. That will set me back about $100-125 on ebay, but I can save $150 or so for my big upgrade later and still get a very good GPU for now.


Thanks

 

[ThaCriminal]

If it has lasted for you until now then it will last you another year.

 

[exit2dos]

You could go with the Asrock 775Dual-VSTA mobo and a E6300 CPU.

It will run you about $250 for both, but it takes DDR and DDR2 RAM so you can still use your old RAM. It has PCIe & AGP slots, so you can use your old graphics card for now, and upgrade to a PCIe later.

This looks like a great transition board, I don't know if there is a version for the AM2.

I wouldn't go for a 939 board or an AGP card as your really just throwing your money away if you plan on upgrading later.

 

[tekbro]

Funny, I have a similar CPU, and I was wondering what kind of performance I could expect from a system I'm trying to put together as well:

DFI AZ30-TL
AMD Athlon 2600 (AXDA2600DKV4D)
Jet Cooler Master fan/heatsink

(Of course I'll need Ram and a HDD, etc.)

Is it worth it to build a system around this, or should I just file these away for spare parts and step up to a socket 939 bundle?