Im currently at the end of the road in upgrading my 939 mobo. Im looking into getting a 8800gtx as soon as the price drops in november. Will a amd64x2 4400+ be good enough to work with a 8800gtx? or will it be bottlenecked to hell?? thanks
i think it shall be fine , x2 4400 is a very good processor still
It'll be fine, from most of the benchmarks on legion hardware you're only talking a very small % gain in FPS at most resolutions, it'll still be a very good combo for some time to come;
http://www.legionhardware.com/docu [...] id=672&p=9
alright cool. thanks
I disagree. From articles I've read it looks like CPU is a huge bottleneck for the 8800 series. You need a very fast processor to unlock the 8800s full potential. It depends on what you are doing I guess too. What VGA card are you running now? If it's anything greater than a 7800 I'd change CPU architecture first. You'll get the most bang for the buck- performance wise.
Don't listen to Stevie you are fine.
| tbiggums wrote : Don't listen to Stevie you are fine. |
Ok Mr. Biggums, if that is your real name...
You may want to read this article straight from this website before you post again. http://www.tomshardware.com/2006/1 [...] stest_cpu/
EDIT: Pay close attention to the author's final thoughts...
Yes, his CPU will bottleneck the 8800GTX, but it won't be that severe. I would be more concerned if he was trying to pair it with a P4 or an Athlon 64. Will your performance be held back? Yes by a couple of frames, but not like 10-20.
You could also pop an Opteron in the 939 for like 200 bucks, but I don't know how much better they are compared to the X2 4400+.
steviep831,
It really depends on a few things when making this kind of decision. What game will he be playing? At what resolutions will he be playing them? What settings will he normally use? Really the only game that could go from unplayable to playable by switching to Core 2 is Flight Sim X. There are some games that perform identically with a GTX @ 1600X1200 on a X2 6000 and a X6800. His cpu will be fine with an 8800gtx, he doesn't need to upgrade his cpu just yet.
+1 It will be fine with 4400x2.
that's "one for the dagger" for me (props to those who know where i got that from) i have a x2 3600+ (OC'ed to 2.2 which i believe are stock 4400+ settings) and i only see maybe a 4-5 fps difference than my friends 6600 in CS:S on max settings.
Sorry if I came off disrespectful stevie, it's just that the article you posted has been discussed to hell and back. The general consensus on the forums is that the fps gain from a super high end cpu paired with an 8800 vs. a mid-high end cpu is minimal. Hell, lots of games don't even support dual core cpu's not to mention quad core cpu's. Also the drivers for the 8800's have changed a bit since Nov. 2006
edit: and no Biggums is not my real name but I love Dave Chappelle
A 4400 x2 is a great processor to match with a 8800gtx. Even at high resolutions, the difference between a 4400+ and an e6700 matched with a 8800gtx is only 2 frames benchmarking in Fear.
The e6700 hits about 73fps, and the 4400+ hits about 71fps.
Grab an 8800gtx and you won't be sorry.
Some poor souls think that unless you have the latest greatest most top of the line processor, everything else is just crap. It simply is not true anymore. Even the lowly AMD x2's still have plenty of horsepower to satisfy the vast majority.
A bit off-topic, what kind of PSU do you have right now? Also, is your case big enough for an 8800 GTX? We're not talking about a Dell or HP here, are we? My Dad has an HP X2 5000+ with integrated graphics and both his PSu and his case prevent upgrading to an 8800 GTX.
| aevm wrote : A bit off-topic, what kind of PSU do you have right now? |
You know, I was going to ask that before and didn't. That's usually the first thing I ask.
@OP: What aevm said.
| steviep831 wrote :
|
pay closer attention to the benchmark numbers. I don't necessarily agree with the author's conclusions on this one.
Seems to me, the impact of the CPU at high res is minimal.
Who buys an 8800 GTX to play at 1024x768?
and, if they do buy them to play at low resolutions.... would you be able to see a difference between 80fps and 100fps?
well guys i again say it wont bottleneck , if u think it iwll bottelneck , then he shall OC his x2 (remember 2x1mb cache x2 cpu OC nicely),
my x2 4400 manages fine with my setup, oh and to the guy that linked that review, when discussing bottlencks, you need minimum FPS, not much point posting a review otherwise (spanks naughty author).
Will he be bottle necked to hell... maybe not. But I think his initial post says it all about his current situation. "I'm currently at the end of the road in upgrading my 939 mobo." I makes more sense to upgrade his CPU and MB than plop down $500-600 on an 8800. And he still hasn't posted what his current GPU is. I don't care what others say here, I've seen a playable difference first hand.
But steviep831, no matter what else he upgrades, if he wants an 8800gtx, he will still have to plop down $500-$600. If he feels the need to upgrade more later, I think that he can probably carry the card over to the new system, right? I am going out on a limb here since he hasn't stated what his current GPU is, but he will get more benefit now for the money by going with the 8800gtx than a MB/CPU upgrade without it.
Of course he could go for the gold and really waste a bundle on an Ultra......
| jitpublisher wrote : But steviep831, no matter what else he upgrades, if he wants an 8800gtx, he will still have to plop down $500-$600. If he feels the need to upgrade more later, I think that he can probably carry the card over to the new system, right? I am going out on a limb here since he hasn't stated what his current GPU is, but he will get more benefit now for the money by going with the 8800gtx than a MB/CPU upgrade without it.
|
Stole the words right out of my mouth.
| steviep831 wrote : Will he be bottle necked to hell... maybe not. But I think his initial post says it all about his current situation. "I'm currently at the end of the road in upgrading my 939 mobo." I makes more sense to upgrade his CPU and MB than plop down $500-600 on an 8800. And he still hasn't posted what his current GPU is. I don't care what others say here, I've seen a playable difference first hand. |
keep telling yourself that and also, does that mobo of your properly support your CPU?
lol didnt know this got into a discussion. I currently have a 7800gtx.
| strangestranger wrote : and also, does that mobo of your properly support your CPU? |
It's actually a P5N32-E, and yes it handles my CPU perfectly...
as far as the GPU... an 8800GTX is a huge step up from the 7800GTX. I'd still do the CPU/ MOBO upgrade first. Let's say he's got a 17" monitor... his max resolution is probably 1280x1024. About the only thing he can't run at max rez for his current setup is Oblivion...
I run Oblivion Maxed all the time.
ah but think of the AA+HDR, does wonders for the game.
You're fine, I built a gaming system for my friend using a 5000 X2 and an 8800GTS and it runs great (not to mention all the money I saved by buying a less expensive mobo and processor) It's got plenty of horsepower left in it, enough to run an 8800GTX, so you have no problem. Unless of course those extra 2 frames per second really make or break your day...
My opinion on the issue is that you are going to see more of an improvement in gaming by getting an 8800GTX then by getting a better CPU. I think his current CPU is fine with a 7800GTX and upgrading to a better CPU isn't going to improve gaming performance much, therefore it makes more sense to just upgrade the GPU and perhaps do some CPU overclocking to increase performance.
| Gravemind123 wrote : My opinion on the issue is that you are going to see more of an improvement in gaming by getting an 8800GTX then by getting a better CPU. I think his current CPU is fine with a 7800GTX and upgrading to a better CPU isn't going to improve gaming performance much, therefore it makes more sense to just upgrade the GPU and perhaps do some CPU overclocking to increase performance. |
Perhaps the better question is if getting an 880GTX is going to improve his situation. If he's a gamer, then he'll have nothing less than a 19" monitor. As I said above most 19"ers have a max rez of 1280x1024. Here's an interesting article that in the first page says the following: "We are only going to use two games in this evaluation because quite simply they are the most popular shader intensive games and nearly every other game plays at the highest settings possible on the 8800 GTX. So this evaluation mixes it up a bit from our norm. We will test on a 19” CRT at 1600x1200 doing apples-to-apples, as well as a Dell 24” at 1920x1200 and for SLI we will be using a Dell 30” at 2560x1600. If you are using a monitor with a resolution smaller than those listed, you are likely wasting your money purchasing a video card of this caliber." So.... Raz, what monitor are you running? Because unless you have anything less than a monitor that runs at 1600x1200, you are throwing away money.
Here's a link to consider about changing out the CPU with adding a better GPU. Not sure how much this helps, but I thought I'd throw it out to the masses for critique.
http://www.legionhardware.com/docu [...] id=672&p=5
Did the OP state what CPU he has now?
yeah,
that is why I asked the questions that I asked. The monitor size doesn't matter on CRT but it does with an LCD. OP, answer the above questions that I asked and then we can better guide you.
sorry for my absence.
I do run a 19" at 1280x1024 and ive decide to not get a 8800gtx but a gts instead when the price goes down. Ill save money up for a new system a year down the road.
A 8800gts 320mb should be enough for your resolutions. Here's what I would get for $277 w/shipping. It's an eVga card that you could use the "Step Up" program and upgrade within 90 days of purchase. So you could upgrade the video card to the lastest and still not spend too much. This would allow you to transfer the newer card to the new system next year.
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Prod [...] 6814130082
that sounds like a good plan. Does anyone really know the extent of the price drop in November?
Been reading in the forums that there won't be much, if any price drops. The 9800's (when they come out), probably won't affect current prices too much.
ok next question
at resolution 1280x1024....will the 320mb GTS be enough for both dx9 and 10 or will it be more logical to get a 640. Say for games like Crysis for example.
I would say the 320 would do you fine at that resolution. If you upgrade to a larger screen later, it might make a small change. I would buy the eVga version of the 8800gts 320mb and upgrade to the newer cards that are due out in November timeframe. If you upgrade within 90 days, you can use the "Step Up" program and only have to pay any difference that there would be between the 2 cards. You can buy whatever card you like, but if you get the eVga brand, you will have some options within the 90 days of purchase. This way you can game now and within 90 days you can upgrade (if you want to) to the newest nVidia/ATI cards that should be due out by the end of the year. <crosses fingers>
The way I look at it, if its the best part you can get then it is better to have it and be bottlenecked then to not have it and have a slower system. IMO! lol
Best,
3Ball
| 3Ball wrote : The way I look at it, if its the best part you can get then it is better to have it and be bottlenecked then to not have it and have a slower system. IMO! lol
|
AGREED!!! Just was thinking that myself. You then would be able to upgrade something later (CPU/RAM/MOBO) and still use the better GPU with it!!
| 3Ball wrote : The way I look at it, if its the best part you can get then it is better to have it and be bottlenecked then to not have it and have a slower system. IMO! lol
|
| lunyone wrote : AGREED!!! Just was thinking that myself. You then would be able to upgrade something later (CPU/RAM/MOBO) and still use the better GPU with it!! |
thats the plan
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