Upgrading a 2005 system..

[silentmichael]

Hi. I have an older gaming PC from 2005. The video card recently died out on me, and now I need a replacement. There is no need to troubleshoot my current problem, as I already have figured it out. Now I need some advice.

Here are its current specs:
Motherboard: ASUS A8N-SLI
CPU: AMD Athlon64 4000+ (San Diego core)
RAM: 1GB (512MBx2) PC3200 (Corsair XMS)
Video: nVidia GeForce 7800GTX (eVga 256MB)
PSU: Antec True550
OS: Windows XP SP3 (32bit)
Resolution: 1680x1050

Other than the video card, which needs replacing anyway, I know that the RAM might need to go up to 2GB. I know that the CPU will be a huge bottleneck. And it can't be upgraded because Socket 939 is dead.

The games that will be used for this computer will be Source games (L4D, TF2, DOD:S, HL2) and Call of Duty 4/WAW.

Any suggestions as to what specific parts I should upgrade the video card and RAM to? It should be able to hold me out for a little more than a year, where I will probably get a completely new PC by then.

I'm looking to spend around $100, you can go over if you need to, but not by too much.

I've already asked around, and got these recommendations:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814130468
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814150351
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814150337

Although I am open to either nVidia or ATI, I would prefer to stick with nVidia.

Any suggestions?

Thanks.

 

[the1tarheel]

I know that you wanted to stick with Nvidia, but they do not have a card that can hang with his one at this price (allows you to double memory which will give you a 35% boost in games as a combination) This card will give you roughly 30% increase in FPS alone
HIS Hightech H467QT512P Radeon HD 4670 IceQ Turbo 512MB 128-bit GDDR3 PCI Express 2.0 x16 HDCP Ready CrossFire Supported ... - Retail
$79.99
-$10.00 Instant
$10.00 Mail-in Rebate14-161-252
$69.99
. .
CORSAIR XMS 1GB (2 x 512MB) 184-Pin DDR SDRAM DDR 400 (PC 3200) Dual Channel Kit Desktop Memory Model TWINX1024-3200PT - Retail
Item #: N82E16820145492
$39.99

Subtotal: $109.98
Calculate Shipping
Zip Code: $5.99 UPS 2nd Day Shipping: $5.99

Promo Code: $0.00

Grand Total: $115.97

 

[fullmetall]

Hey, have you been playing those games on this computer before?(well i dont think you could have with 1gb) because l4d i know for sure will utilize 4 cores of a cpu and a good gpu.

What 1tarheel gave you is probably your best bet but, i'd look at a full upgrade soon.

 

[thefox14]

Well the computer looks like it could last you a while if you keep it fairly up to date. I'd suggest upgrading the RAM and GPU
I found all of these parts on newegg as they have always had the best prices and support.

GPU: Radeon HD 4670 IceQ Turbo 512MB

RAM: G.SKILL 4GB (2 x 2GB) 800

after the mail in rebate on the GPU this should run a grandtotal of $107 (including shipping)

 

[fullmetall]

Didnt see the ram choice you picked, should defenatly get the 2x2gb.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820148212
ballistix, cheapest for the best timing.

4670 HIS is a +1.

Now you have 32bit, you will only be able to see 3.25gb of the 4gb because thats how windows set it up for 32 bit.

 

[silentmichael]

I know that you wanted to stick with Nvidia, but they do not have a card that can hang with his one at this price (allows you to double memory which will give you a 35% boost in games as a combination) This card will give you roughly 30% increase in FPS alone
HIS Hightech H467QT512P Radeon HD 4670 IceQ Turbo 512MB 128-bit GDDR3 PCI Express 2.0 x16 HDCP Ready CrossFire Supported ... - Retail
$79.99
-$10.00 Instant
$10.00 Mail-in Rebate14-161-252
$69.99
. .
CORSAIR XMS 1GB (2 x 512MB) 184-Pin DDR SDRAM DDR 400 (PC 3200) Dual Channel Kit Desktop Memory Model TWINX1024-3200PT - Retail
Item #: N82E16820145492
$39.99

Subtotal: $109.98
Calculate Shipping
Zip Code: $5.99 UPS 2nd Day Shipping: $5.99

Promo Code: $0.00

Grand Total: $115.97

Thanks. So I would gain a larger performance increase with the 4670 and an extra gig of RAM, than I would with just a 4850 or GTS250 alone?

Hey, have you been playing those games on this computer before?(well i dont think you could have with 1gb) because l4d i know for sure will utilize 4 cores of a cpu and a good gpu.

What 1tarheel gave you is probably your best bet but, i'd look at a full upgrade soon.

I was able to play l4d on the computer. I had to put the settings to medium or low, but I could play it with an acceptable fps. however, load times were really long.

 

[silentmichael]

Well the computer looks like it could last you a while if you keep it fairly up to date. I'd suggest upgrading the RAM and GPU
I found all of these parts on newegg as they have always had the best prices and support.

GPU: Radeon HD 4670 IceQ Turbo 512MB

RAM: G.SKILL 4GB (2 x 2GB) 800

after the mail in rebate on the GPU this should run a grandtotal of $107 (including shipping)

Didnt see the ram choice you picked, should defenatly get the 2x2gb.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820148212
ballistix, cheapest for the best timing.

4670 HIS is a +1.

Now you have 32bit, you will only be able to see 3.25gb of the 4gb because thats how windows set it up for 32 bit.

Seems like the 4670 is the right choice. But will that RAM fit in my motherboard? I'm currently using PC3200, while those are PC2 6400.

 

[thefox14]

Well since you only have 1gb of ram getting the 4850 might give you a pretty nice boost in games but it WILL be bottlenecked because of the amount of RAM in your system.

so it's kind of an in-between. you dont want to bottleneck the gpu by having so little ram and you dont want to bottleneck the system by having a lower quality gpu

You might want to look at my build though, as you get the 4670 and 4GB of ram instead of 1GB.

 

[fullmetall]

With 2gb of ram, it will hold more bandwidth and conduct more speed.

4670 will run way better than what you had, not as good as a 4770/4850 but, you will see a difference.

Getting the HIS 4670 and the 2x2gb of ballistix or g.skills we have provided for you, you will see performance change.


It is a Nvidia Chipset motherboard btw.

 

[thefox14]

oh i'm glad you said that. Actually, now that i look at it again, it doesn't look like your mobo takes DDR2 memory or have support for PCI express 2.0 x16. YOU CAN'T USE OUR BUILDS!

Now knowing that you dont have ddr2 support or the newest PCI support, i would suggest saving up to upgrade your motherboard. Although it could be a $100 upgrade on its own.

But if you want to keep the same computer go with this RAM and this GPU.
Grand Total: $100 (after mail in rebate, not including shipping)

 

[silentmichael]

I was under the impression that PCI express 2.0 was backward compatible with the 1.0 motherboards. I guess not this motherboard though, since it's an older one?

 

[thefox14]

pci express 2.0 slots i believe are backwards compatible. But not the other way around.
As far as i'm concerned 2.0 needs a 2.0 slot

 

[ahslan]

dont go for the 9500gt...its absolute trash compared to the 4670...get the 4670 along with the extra gig of ram...

 

[Helloworld_98]

@thefox14, nope, a 2.0 card can work in any PCIe x16 slot. whether 1.0, 2.0, or 3.0 when/if it comes out.

 

[thefox14]

oh well thats good to know. Then in that case get the 4670 and the DDR 400 ram i suggested most recently

 

[silentmichael]

OK. thanks for the help guys, I'll probably go with the 4670 and the Corsair XMS ram.

However, i'm still thinking about an nvidia.
I've done a little research, and found that the 9600GT could be comparable to the 4670.

I was looking at this: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814143130
I lose out on $5 and a rebate, is it worth it? or should I stick with the 4670?

Thanks.

 

[mindless728]

2GB of memory, DDR-400 ~$60
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820231039

and a ATI Radeon 4670

the price on the memory is the reason why i went with a new system over a year ago (and it wasnt this bad before)

well good luck to you

 

[Griffolion]

pci express 2.0 slots i believe are backwards compatible. But not the other way around.
As far as i'm concerned 2.0 needs a 2.0 slot

Fox, the compatability goes either way. So a 2.0 can work fine in a 1.0 so long as its a x16 slot. You just wont get the performance of the 2.0 slot.

But i agree with peeps here, time to get a new motherboard.