Upgrade Advice Please

[TrueBlueSUFC]

Hi I am a new member and a bit of a newbie when it comes to components so please be gentile with me!

My gaming system I want to upgrade for as little money and maximum performance as possible here are my current specs...

Intel Core 2 Quad 2.40Ghz

4GB Ram

Nvidia GeForce 9800 Gx2

ACPI x 64

Win 7 64bit edition

Now I am thinking there that the weak link is the graphics card but I am not sure any advice what I should upgrade too so I can just tell my guy to go sort it.

 

[matt314]

Your CPU is not currently the bottleneck, it is indeed your GPU. What is your current budget? Take a look at the Radeon 5870, 5850, 5830and 5770. The 5870 might create a CPU bottleneck, but other than that I think it should be fine.

 

[MadAdmiral]

Agree with the above.

I would suggest you start considering a new build though. The LGA775 socket (the one that Core 2 CPUs use) is a dead socket. You're also certainly using older RAM (DDR2). You're likely to get a year or two more out of the build with a new GPU, but a new build is definitely in the near future for you...

 

[matt314]

^+1.
I don't know your budget but you may want to consider a 5870 and upgrade the rest of your rig when you can. That'll give you something solid and lasting. Another great alternative is to get a 5850 and when you build the rest of your computer get a second one. That will give you power equivalent to a 5970 which will last you for a long time.

 

[TrueBlueSUFC]

Cheers for the advice guys

 

[TrueBlueSUFC]

I see you guys there are saying go for Radeon is this for any reason? I have always used nvidia but I am prepared to give Radeon a shot if its best suited.

 

[MadAdmiral]

It's because ATI is currently destroying nVidia in performance, price and future proofing in pretty much every price range. If you're buying a GPU under $300, there isn't a single nVidia card I could recommend.

 

[coldsleep]

Here's Tom's Hardware Best Graphics Cards for the Money, May 2010. There are some nVidia recommendations in there, but not a lot.

 

[TrueBlueSUFC]

Looks like 5780 it is guys would I notice much performance from y 9800 GX2?

Sorry for the newbie questions.

 

[coldsleep]

On that same page, it suggests that you shouldn't upgrade to a processor less than 3 tiers up. The 5870 is exactly 3 tiers up from the 9800 GX2.

If you bought a 5850, it probably wouldn't be worth the upgrade cost, but a 5870 is likely to have a noticeable increase in performance.

HOWEVER, before you hit buy, do you mind mentioning what resolution you game at? The 5870 is overkill for anything under 1920x1080. What games you play would also be useful information.

 

[TrueBlueSUFC]

Total War
Crysis
Latest games really

I just need an upgrade to get me through about a year so I can save up for a total new rig

 

[coldsleep]

Total War
Crysis
Latest games really

I just need an upgrade to get me through about a year so I can save up for a total new rig

And what resolution?

 

[TrueBlueSUFC]

the computer I am upgrading is in bits at the moment so I cant check for sure but just under 1920x1080 from memory

 

[MadAdmiral]

What do you mean just under? 1620x1050? If that's what you're running at, I don't think an upgrade will be worth it. I'd wait until you get a full 1080p monitor then worry about a GPU upgrade.

 

[TrueBlueSUFC]

Sounds about Right - maybe just some memory and an over clock?

 

[MadAdmiral]

Memory won't do anything. And you don't want to be buying more dying tech (DDR2).

An overclock would be good though. Make sure to get a HSF that will be useful on the AM3, LGA1156 or LGA1366 sockets as well.

 

[TrueBlueSUFC]

What performance gain could I potentially see from an overclock