Keep or Replace...how do you know when?

[texasnightowl]

I'm struggling with whether to throw about $250 into my existing system for RAM and a video card OR whether to upgrade board, cpu, RAM and video.

My current system (built in 2003) is:

Abit NF7-S v2
Barton 2500+ (not OC'd)
512 RAM (2x256 Corsair) in dual channel mode
nVidia FX 5200
Antec SL400 PSU
2 hard drives (1 SATA, 1 IDE)
2 optical drives (1 DVD/RW, 1 CDRW/DVD)

Until 3 days ago it had literally not crossed my mind that I might need to upgrade. I am not a "gamer"...I do spreadsheets, documents, a bit of Dreamweaver, and web surfing. I hadn't bought a new PC game in maybe 2 years. But I bought Caesar IV last weekend and though my system meets minimum requirements it is not as enjoyable as it could be...graphical enhancements turned off, still slow and a bit jerky when placing buildings, etc.

So, maybe I need to do something. I am torn between:

1) replacing my 2x256 PC2700 with 2x512 PC3200; upgrading video card; and maybe overclocking my cpu since I have never done that (even though this board and chip supposedly are great for it).

2) replacing board, cpu, RAM, and video...I am assuming I will also need a new PSU.

What factors do you consider in making a decision to upgrade or replace? If I were to replace, which boards/cpu's are current but cost effective? I haven't kept up. Comments/opinions on my situation? On the one hand I would rather spend less right now...on the other hand if I buy another AGP card right now I'm throwing money away since I'll have to go PCI-E in a year or so. Then again, I love how rock solid stable my system has been the last 3 years. So far I haven't come up with a reason to sway me one way or the other for sure.

 

[slashzapper]

since you are not a gamer, it would make no sense to waste money on a unecessary upgrade .

I would suggest just buy a new video card in the 150 $ Range and you should be fine .

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16814161064

This is a good deal

 

[1Tanker]

I'm struggling with whether to throw about $250 into my existing system for RAM and a video card OR whether to upgrade board, cpu, RAM and video.

My current system (built in 2003) is:

Abit NF7-S v2
Barton 2500+ (not OC'd)
512 RAM (2x256 Corsair) in dual channel mode
nVidia FX 5200
Antec SL400 PSU
2 hard drives (1 SATA, 1 IDE)
2 optical drives (1 DVD/RW, 1 CDRW/DVD)

Until 3 days ago it had literally not crossed my mind that I might need to upgrade. I am not a "gamer"...I do spreadsheets, documents, a bit of Dreamweaver, and web surfing. I hadn't bought a new PC game in maybe 2 years. But I bought Caesar IV last weekend and though my system meets minimum requirements it is not as enjoyable as it could be...graphical enhancements turned off, still slow and a bit jerky when placing buildings, etc.

So, maybe I need to do something. I am torn between:

1) replacing my 2x256 PC2700 with 2x512 PC3200; upgrading video card; and maybe overclocking my cpu since I have never done that (even though this board and chip supposedly are great for it).

2) replacing board, cpu, RAM, and video...I am assuming I will also need a new PSU.

What factors do you consider in making a decision to upgrade or replace? If I were to replace, which boards/cpu's are current but cost effective? I haven't kept up. Comments/opinions on my situation? On the one hand I would rather spend less right now...on the other hand if I buy another AGP card right now I'm throwing money away since I'll have to go PCI-E in a year or so. Then again, I love how rock solid stable my system has been the last 3 years. So far I haven't come up with a reason to sway me one way or the other for sure.

Well, the old standard always was "don't upgrade unless you can double your current speed/power". I think in your case, that's a very real scenario. Of course, the other (equally important) factor is....can you afford it now? Granted, you have a very low powered graphics card now, and a new one(even AGP) will be a huge improvement, and the extra RAM will smoothen things out as well. You're probably looking at $200 for video, and another $100 for RAM...$300 anyways. That CPU is a very good overclocker, but it still isn't going to match the new stuff. You can probably get a new setup for ~$700, and it will rock. Bottom line...only you know if you want to spend the extra money now, or later(and sooner or later you'd have to upgrade anyways). Sorry if i'm no help, but if you were using a PII or PIII... i could say "upgrade", without thinking twice. GL

 

[monkeymanuk]

You should also ask whether you WANT your machine to be any quicker?

A new CPU based on AMD or Intel will provide better memory bandwidth which has a significant effect on overall system performance with the added bonus that you get a snazzy dual core system too. Dual core really does make a difference.

I have a friend running a barton 2500+ with 1.5GB ram, he also has an unlocked 9800pro. Which he purchased to play Never Winter Nights 2, but despite all the extra he put into his system he still got jumps and glitches in his game.

A new Video Card will provide a significant improvement in your gaming experience and you can probably get 20% overclock on your system. But that probably wont be enough to get the most out of your new game. One of the features of Ceaser IV is very high graphical detail. This relies on a powerful GPU as well as a powerful CPU.

I would be worried about spending $250 on hardware that you could not use if you needed an upgrade in the short term. Don't forget that you pay a premium now for older generation RAM and AGP video cards.

You could get a really fast system just buying a low end C2D cpu and overclocking the hell out of it. You would then double the power of your system. An AMD might be cheaper and you can overlcock a new 4000+ to near 3Ghz. So you have plenty of choice.

:roll:

 

[Valrath]

If you continue to see yourself doing mostly text stuff, there's no real reason to spend a lot to upgrade. Boosting your RAM from 512MB to 1024MB will help a lot. I went from a system with 256MB of RAM (stop laughing, please) to 768MB of RAM, and the performance boost is very noticeable, esp running 2+ apps at once.

If you do want to start playing more games like Caesar IV at a playable level with some graphical eye-candy, you may need a full system upgrade. That usually doesn't coast as much as it sounds. You could get a cheap Core 2 Duo system for ~$500 if you shop around and pick cheap parts. It'll be even easier past April 22nd with Intel cutting its CPU prices a noticeable amount.

Going from 2x256 to 2x512 MB of DDR RAM will cost about $70. You can get faster DDR2 RAM in the same capacity for about the same price. If you were to compare the performance boost of spending $X on a PCIx16 gfx card and the same $X on a AGP gfx card, you'll notice a huge boost with the PCI x16 card. AGP equivalents of PCI x16 cards are more expensive and have weaker stats, so you spend more money for a weaker card. Over time, that extra money adds up and you could have switched to a pci x16 mobo with the money you wasted. Plus, I can't find any CPU's that'll fit into your CPU slot, so you're stuck with what you got.

To sum it up, if you keep doing what you're doing now, a cheap upgrade in RAM and a cheap gfx card will help alot with what you do, costing about $250. If you want to adding gaming to your computer tasks, you at least want to consider upgrading to a newer system. It might be expensive at first, but pci x16 gfx cards are cheaper and better than AGP, and you have room for more future upgrades.

I found this mobo. It has both DDR and DDR2 RAM slots, so you can recyle your old RAM, it supports C2D CPU's and has a pci x16 slot. Newegg is offering a combo special with a e4300 for $224, saving $5. You can get a gig of cheapo DDR2 for $70. Then, you can get a GeForce 7600GS for $99. It's open box, so it won't come with any software, but you should be able to find it online. This new system will cost about $400. It'll help you do light gaming, and is upgradeable if you change your computer habits. I don't know how well a mobo with bopth DDR and DDR2 RAM works, but I assume it'll be good enough for light gaming work. Reviews are mixed on newegg. I found some others that use DDR2 RAM for $50-70, but are not very upgrade friendly, you'll be stuck with 2x1 gig of RAM, but really, you won't need more. If you do, you should have a higher budget by then to get a bigger mobo. Here's the list I found on newegg: Some mobo choices

 

[sailer]

So, maybe I need to do something. I am torn between:

1) replacing my 2x256 PC2700 with 2x512 PC3200; upgrading video card; and maybe overclocking my cpu since I have never done that (even though this board and chip supposedly are great for it).

2) replacing board, cpu, RAM, and video...I am assuming I will also need a new PSU.

You love your nice, stable, old machine. unfortuantely, because it is so old, it just isn't at all capable of running modern games. As to the options you list:

1) replacing the PC2700 ram with PC3200 isn't going to do much of anything. Overclocking the cpu will help a bit. Nice thing is that this doesn't cost a cent. Replacing the video card will help a bunch. But none of these things will really solve the problem of an outdated total package, and the problems of an outdated machine will only get worse during the next year.

2) This is the best option, and yes, you will need a new psu. Bad thing is if your budget is only $250, that won't buy all the hardware. If you can afford more, then by all means get the new stuff. Another alternative is to look for a used, one year old machine if you're short on money.

In the end, the greatest problem is money, how much can you afford to spend. I think that updating your old machine is money wasted in the long run, but if that's all you can afford, then a better video card and an overclock will help a bunch. If you have more money available, then update to the newest,most powerful hardware you can afford. This will last you the longest.