Is my system up to date? ::Noob alert:: !

[krazypoe]

Hey yawl, I am pretty new to the homebuilt system community and overheard a conversation about graphic cards. It got me to thinking - is my system up to date? ? ? ? ?

I built this computer - summer of 2007 - and was wondering if its about that time to get some new hardware.

I had a friend of mine help me build it all, I just bought the parts. But I need some help from all you guys in helping to filter out what might need to be changed out and updated.

**This is a gaming rig specifically** !!!!!!!!

Here is my current rig -

Thermaltake W0131RU 850W ATX12V / EPS12V SLI NVIDIA SLI Certified NVIDIA QUAD-SLI APPROVED 80 PLUS Certified Modular Active PFC Power Supply - Retail

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817153043

EVGA 768-P2-N831-AR GeForce 8800 GTX 768MB 384-bit GDDR3 PCI Express x16 HDCP Ready SLI Supported Video Card - Retail

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814130072

mushkin 4GB (2 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR2 SDRAM DDR2 800 (PC2 6400) Dual Channel Kit Desktop Memory Model 996561 - Retail

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820146690

Intel Core 2 Duo E6600 Conroe 2.4GHz LGA 775 65W Dual-Core Processor Model BX80557E6600 - Retail

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819115003

ASUS Striker Extreme LGA 775 NVIDIA nForce 680i SLI ATX The Ultimate Gaming Motherboard - Retail

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813131074

Running on Windows Professional 32 bit -- I am going to purchase Vista soon.. :]


I have never had a problem when it came to playing a game until Grand Theft Auto 4 - when my framerate dropped. -- Also on that note, what might have caused the frame rate to drop??

Thanks for you time -- Feedback is REALLY appreciated!

 

[irkjab]

The 8800 GTX should be good for a while as far as gaming performance goes. What resolution do you run games at?

When you do get vista, go with the 64-bit Premium. (Or wait for Windows 7)

The framerate drop in GTA4 is probably due to your processor. I would drop a new heatsink on it and overclock it. You should be able to get it to 3ghz easily. You could even do a modest overclock with the stock heatsink.

 

[Wolfshadw]

While you may need a BIOS update, you could upgrade the processor to either a Dual-Core E8400 3.0GHz (1333MHz FSB) or a Quad-Core Q6600 2.4GHz (1066MHz FSB) or over-clock your current processor as Irkjab suggests.

-Wolf sends

 

[krazypoe]

ok, cool - thanks for the replies ~ I was considering overclocking, but know nothing about it.

so I guess my next question is, do yawl know of any good video tutorials or tutorials in general to help with overclocking?

** To Irkjab - my resolution is 2530 x 1600 on a 32 inch monitor from Dell.

 

[irkjab]

Whoa.

Well, the 8800 GTX might have some trouble at high settings on that resolution.

You could probably get a 3ghz overclock without any voltage increase. To do this, you would go into the bios, change the cpu frequency from 266 to 333, and change the cpu to ram frequency ratio to such that your ram runs at 800mhz. The specifics of how you do this depends on the bios though.

 

[krazypoe]

If I attempt to overclock, is there any thing I should look out for precautionary wise? Is it usually trial and error when it comes to overclock? and also am I supposed to test my overclock? If so, how?

sorry again for all the noob questions ~

 

[krazypoe]

Also, how do you check to see if your BIOS is up to date? Do the manufacturers website usually scan your computer and tell you?

 

[irkjab]

You can test the overclock by running a stress test program, such as prime95, for an extended period of time.

You can probably download a bios update utility from ASUS's website. It will check for a newer bios and update if necessary.

If you were going to upgrade, what would your budget be?

 

[krazypoe]

Well, in terms of a budget - I dont have one initially set. If an update on a piece of hardware is pretty much necessary, I would get the best.

I also was just now reading up on updating your BIOS and came across BIOS Agent.

It says my CPU speed is 2400 Mhz and the max speed is 3800 Mhz.

 

[rewindlabs]

Your best bet on an "upgrade" would be to go for a lower resolution monitor....a 19xx/10xx monitor would boost your performance ALOT! you could run it as a secondary display as well...

That way in the future when you upgrade your gpu you don't have to spend twice as much to get respectable framerates...

Im satisfied with my 1680x1050 monitor and plan on using it when i upgrade to a dx11 card as well...i would have had to spend alot more to get decent playability at 19xx/10xx

 

[krazypoe]

Interesting approach to my question rewindlabs ~

I never considered that, that would certainly be something I could try out.

I would just need to get a bigger desk! :X

 

[irkjab]

As for the overclocking, with your bios, I think you would just key in 3000mhz for the processor speed, and 800mhz for the ram frequency.

I would use a program called core temp to monitor the temperature.

 

[krazypoe]

Cool, when I overclock it, is it possible to go back down or change the Mhz after going so high?

 

[irkjab]

You can go in the bios and lower the frequency if the overclock is unstable or the processor runs too hot, yes.