Will I have better results by upgrading 8800GTS?

Hi,

I have a socket 939 system with a 2.21 ghz AMD 64 3700+ San Diego cpu, 2 GB OCZ ram, a SB XFI xtrememusic, Evga 8800GTS 320mb, and a Asus a8n-sli premium mobo (heat pipe).

I just downloaded and played America's Army 3 (the free US Gov game) and the game play is very choppy/slow overall. Gameplay becomes nearly unplayable when I am in firefights -- the enemy doesn't become incapacitated until 1-2 seconds after I shoot him. (All settings are at the lowest possible mark)

Will my FPS go up dramatically by buying a GTX 275? will I see what feels like 5-15 fps go up to a smooth 40+ fps? or Do I need a new system entirely ? (LGA 775, E8400 C2D, 4 gigs, 64BIT OS, and a really nice vid card)

I have money but I am not sure which route to go. I like my current PC and have had it for 3 years (minus the 8800GTS - I got that from EVGA when my 7900GT crapped out - I think it was malfunctional for almost a year before it just died) I have thought that maybe the 8800GTS EVGA sent me as a replacement for the 7900GT was bunk as well, since AA-3 is so choppy.

I appreciate all viewers of this thread and any advice I may receive.

Thanks,

Mike

i might be wrong here, so you would want to check... but i think most 939 boards use AGP interface, not PCI-E, which would be needed for the gtx275.

So answer your question... a 275 would definatley be "better" than a 8800 but as ct1615 pointed out, you would be limited by your CPU and you would be bottlenecked, so you wouldn't have as much of a performance gain as you could.

also, what resolution are you playing at? If you are playing like... 1280x1024 then your current setup should be fine.

.......... so i decided to not be lazy and looked it up, that is actually a really nice 939 board, it has PCI-E slots, so yeah.

Everything else still stands though, you would be limited by CPU so full potential would not be reached.

You have a double bad situation. The 8800GTS 320 is a weak card by todays standards. Very weak. Unfortunately, so is your CPU. Your CPU is pretty well matched to the video card you have. To realize much improvement for gaming, you'll need to upgrade both. I would suggest saving a little, dumping the 939 platform altogher, and move into a Phenom II system. Good bang on the cheap there.
And, no most 939 systems were not AGP, the majority were PCIe, and some were even the transitional type boards with AGP and PCIe both. I had a DFI socket 939 3200CFX board with a RD580? I think chipset. The first chipset to run Crossfire 16X times 2.

^ I gotta disagree with you neon. The GTS 320 is generally below even a single Radeon 3850 512MB which is a bit low for todays games on it's own. That's why I got another one for crossfire ^_^

Anyway I have to say that you're in a bit of a bind. I would like to say upgrade your motherboard and CPU and run another 8800GTS 320 in SLI, but 8800GTS cards are rare and are rather overpriced new. Perhaps if you find one on eBay or something. Not only that but SLI boards from nvidia are a bit problematic and while the 700 series for AM2+ CPUs isn't too bad, such boards generally do not support newer AM3 CPUs thus limiting your future upgrade options.

I recommend you start off with a decent AM3 system, like an Athlon II 250 or Phenom II X2 550, and then upgrade your video card latter. Since you will have to buy new RAM anyway it makes sense to go AM3 and get DDR3 rather than go with AM2+ and get DDR2.

Go for the videocard now. If you're not happy with the framerates, upgrade or overclock the CPU.

Thanks for all of the responses guys,

I forgot to mention I am playing america's army 3 at 1680 x 1050 on a 22.1 inch monitor. You guys are right the resolution has to be my issue, but anything less than 1680x1050 on this bad ass monitor looks crappy.

I read that the gtx 275 generates lots of heat. Does anyone have one or can they dispute this, or can anyone recommend a really good graphics card (gives 40-50 fps at 1680x 1050 resolution with medium settings in most new games) that doesn't act as a space heater?

the whole gtx200 line creates a lot of heat. what varies, aside from the obvious, is the cooler they put on each. the gtx 275 cooler is quiet and doesnt cool very well. whereas the gtx 285 cooler cools very well. this is why gtx 275s run warmer than usual.

You can buy the card, and try it out in your system you have now, as it will carry over to the new system you will be building after you run the new card on your current system for about 5 minutes.......

It's definitely a CPU issue. The GPU won't make much of a difference because of your extreme CPU bottleneck. Just get a cheap mobo and a Athlon II X2 550.