Which part

[craqon]

Hi all, some advice please

I have a pretty descent hardware base, but my next upgrade is coming up, what do I get?

My stuff:
Asus M2N - SLI
AMD AM2 64/4000
2x 512 Kingston 800mhz
XTC 7600GT

Should I get more ram, or another 7600, or flog some parts completely and get replacemants?

I use the PC allround, and may stick with Vista, also the games I play varies.

 

[Mondoman]

It all depends on:
1) Exactly what use(s) you want to improve.
2) Your budget.

 

[craqon]

Hi Mondoman

I want to make the PC more slick, ie windows must open quicker, things must just happen quicker.

I don't want to click on a movie and wait for it to open, or searching for files.

But then again I want to be able to play a nice game as well, now and then.

For a "jack of all trades PC" where is my biggest bottle- neck?

 

[jonkc]

Hi all, some advice please

I have a pretty descent hardware base, but my next upgrade is coming up, what do I get?

My stuff:
Asus M2N - SLI
AMD AM2 64/4000
2x 512 Kingston 800mhz
XTC 7600GT

Should I get more ram, or another 7600, or flog some parts completely and get replacemants?

I use the PC allround, and may stick with Vista, also the games I play varies.

Well I am not sure about the Proc, but I have a 7600gt and it is fine for now until you are ready to go dx10. I would say since you mentioned Vista go with another 1gig of ram at least... Or get a 2gb kit so you can run dual channel if your MB supports it...

 

[craqon]

I was thinking the same - luckily I have Kingston SLI approved memory already, now just to get another 2 x 512's...

 

[sirrobin4ever]

What kind of hard drive do you have? The hard drive is THE major bottleneck on how fast applications load. If your hard drive is old, that'll slow your speedy system to a crawl.

 

[miribus]

Get more memory, especially if you want vista, and especially if you want it "slick".
Also, get ready to jump on the cheap dual cores.
I think the 4200+s are going for like about $100.
The cpu can wait though if it's not in your budget. Go for the memory now.
Windows is memory thirsty as it is, and Vista is just that much worse.
You won't notice a framerate jump or anything but you should notice things be a lot more smooth.

 

[jitpublisher]

Here is what I would do and in what order, based on the wants you described

1) Add another GIG of memory
2) Better hard drive
3) 4600X2 or better processor
4) Video card upgrade (new card, do not waste money to SLI your current card)

 

[craqon]

I have a WD 160GB - but it is SATA1

 

[craqon]

I think the final verdict is getting a SATA2 drive, and up the ram to 2Gb.

The processor is dual core, so no real issues there.

Thanks guys

 

[angelkiller]

A simple upgrade would be another gigabyte of RAM. Which is about $70. Or your could upgrade your CPU to an X2 4200 (~110) or if you have the money an X2 5200. Both would should produce noticeable improvements, especially the X2 5200, which is what I recommend for you.

 

[hashbrown]

I would just say the gig of ram like most others. See if you can get the same kit as your first gig. Videocard is not an issue until you want to get DX10. If your cpu is the X2 4000+ you should be fine. try overclocking a little if necessary.

 

[miribus]

I think the most noticeable upgrade, performance-wise, is adding more memory. While an extra core would help, not enough ram will strangle the system more and with newer games, where still a single core is sufficient, 1gb isn't getting you as far as it used to. Especially considering the probability of Vista.

It gives you a little bit more time to assess your VC or CPU needs after the new ATI and Nvidia cards come out and the prices reflect it.

This presumes you are a gamer and are looking for game performance.

 

[Mondoman]

I think the final verdict is getting a SATA2 drive...

This will make no difference, as even the interface speed of SATA1 is much faster than the actual hard drive. You need to look at the hard drive specs, minimizing average seek and latency time, and maximizing *sustained* throughput. Likely the only kind of drive that will make a noticeable difference is a Raptor.

 

[sirrobin4ever]

I think the final verdict is getting a SATA2 drive...

This will make no difference, as even the interface speed of SATA1 is much faster than the actual hard drive. You need to look at the hard drive specs, minimizing average seek and latency time, and maximizing *sustained* throughput. Likely the only kind of drive that will make a noticeable difference is a Raptor.

I agree. My earlier post meant that if you had an OLD hard drive. (Perhaps I should have specified) I mean, like an old 60 gb or something like that. Your 160 is probably pretty quick actually. Mondoman is right though, if you want fast access times and transfer speeds, a raptor is the way to go; albeit a bit expensive.

 

[ethel]

You could always get one of these - damn impressive for a 7200 drive:

http://www.anandtech.com/storage/showdoc.aspx?i=2949