Vista 64 bits vs XP 32 bits

[Pegasus15]

I'm a gamer and the only thing that I want with my computer is to maximise the FPS (frame per second) while I play games like COD4, Half Life 2 or other. I will buy a new computer soon and I try to know which OS will by the best for my needs. I don't care how the OS looks like, I just want the best game experience possible.

I understand with this review that Windows XP still give more FPS than Vista with its SP1 in most games.

http://www.presence-pc.com/tests/Windows-Vista-SP1-22758/8/

My questions are: If I put 4GB of ram on a Vista 64 bits, is my computer will provide me better game performance than a XP 32 bits with 2GB of ram?

Does anyone of you have any problem running games on Vista 64 bits? (if yes, what is the game and what is the problem)

My computer should be:

Intel Q9450 or Q6600
GeForce 9800GTX OC
DDR2-800

Thanks to all of you.

 

[Scotteq]

If your benchmark is the absolute greatest possible number of frames per second, stick with XP.

 

[Pegasus15]

In fact, my objective is the "best game experience" possible and the number of frames per second is the only available benchmark that i found.

 

[notherdude]

It's going to depend on the game and the card as well as the OS. Since DX-10 should eventually be worth something it is probably best to build a gaming system on Vista, unless you want to install it later. Both OS are fast and stable as gaming platforms at this time. Benchmarks I have seen lately indicate single digit % differences with XP still the overall leader but not by much. But this depends on the benchmark used and the setup and what have you. Few games are going to push the limits of the system you are considering, at this time anyway. So the small performance difference is mostly meaningless.

Vista thrives on good, new equipment and the early driver problems are mostly over. Vista rocks pretty well as an enthusiast/gaming platform.

Go Vista 64 and get 8 gig RAM, RAM is cheap!

 

[Pegasus15]

Thanks to both of you. Are you aware of any game that doesn't work properly in Vista 64 bit?

 

[notherdude]

Everything I have thrown at it works flawlessly. I wouldn't worry. Vista 64 is a very popular game OS at this time so if there were many problems we would be hearing about it. Both Vista and XP 64 run 32 bit apps in 32 bit mode, so it's pretty much the same as running 32 bit. You need specific drivers written for 64 bit but so far driver support for Vista 64 is very good, Since you are looking at a new system drivers should not be an issue for you.

 

[Pegasus15]

Thanks again!