does cpu help graphics card

[jjknoll]

I know this is probably a silly question but I am upgrading my current system form a p4 630 w/ 1g 533 ram and 7200rpm sata hd to an e6600 with 1g 800 ram and 10k raptor. I am keeping my x1600xt and putting in the new system. As I have not yet recieved my new system, I am curious will I see much improved graphic perfomance from the surrounding hardware? Thanx.

 

[raven_87]

With that paticular setup, I"m afriad your bottleneck *for lack of better word* would be your x1600xt.

 

[shinigami304]

yes and no... your CPU does help when loading new video settings and does little work processing data that is recieved through internet games... your GPU doesnt directly recieve data from your modem / network card. your CPU still tells what data needs to go where. so boosting your CPU and ram will help load stuff faster, but using the same videocard your quality of graphics will only go up to what it can currentle handle. the X1600 isnt a bad card... it still uses the same engine as any of the other X1000 series even though clock speeds maybe slower then the X1900 but for the most part it is almost using the same technology.

 

[Mike995]

Its a hard question to answer, as it depends on many different factors such as: Game resolution, gfx settings, also some games are more cpu bottlenecked then others such as Far cry or HL2. But the bottleneck in that system would be your x1600.

 

[PX7800GT]

i`m agree with the others & one more thing is that a P4 630 (3GHz ,2Mb Cache) is still a good CPU...so i don`t think a P4 630 is a bottleneck...by the way just like the other said you will see a performance boost but much...if you upgraded your graphic card to a 7900GT or even a 7600GT...
i think it would be better for you if you OC your P4 630 to 3.6GHz & upgrade your video card...

 

[jjknoll]

while it is too late for working with myold system because I have all ready purchased my new one however, I think the overclocking solution would have been difficult for me. I have no experience with it but moreso that I have a Dell (8400) and when I looked into trying some stuff, it seemed as I couldn't find where to do such things as oc'ing. This may just be my inexperience though. I do appreciate the replies. I am going to upgrade my card after shader model 4 is available and those card prices come down a little.

 

[jjknoll]

Another thing also is I only had a 350w power supply and would not be able to push a high end card. Also no pci-e power connection. By the time I thought about upgrading my ps and still have an "older" system I decided to upgrade with something a little more expandable. (600W ps and sli motherboard, dual core) But I still have the other system and I may play around with it a little more, if the wife lets me!