What should I do with this machine?

[patio87]

I bought this machine in a inter office sale, I got it for $20 dollars and was better than what I already had at home. I figured I would just drop my x1950 graphics card, and PSU in it and give it a go. So far this machine has been very nice. I'm running Windows 7 Ultimate.

The mobo is Foxconn 945G7MA-8KS2:
http://ixbtlabs.com/articles2/mainboard/foxconn-945g7ma-8ks2-i945g.html


I have 4 1gig stick(3.25 usable, i'm running 32 bit Windows Ultimate) of Kingston KVR533D2N4

The processor is Socket 775 P4 3.20 Ghz. But the heatsink/fan is really small.



Now I would specifically like to play a game called Battlefield bad company 2, Medal of honor, etc. Now I loaded Battlefield bad company but I notices I'm getting the usual mouse lag, low FPS. The graphics looks fine but I know I need an upgrade somewhere. Now I am in no way trying to build a super gaming machine(obviously) but I would like to cheaply get a lower end machine that can run these games with good frames.

Where should I make an upgrade? I feel like I really need to upgrade the processor, what do you suggest I go with? I hear that there are some socket 775 quad cores, are they worth it? Should I just by a new Mobo/processor and just start over? What about the ram?


Any help here is appreciated, thanks.

 

[Wish I Was Wealthy]

I bought this machine in a inter office sale, I got it for $20 dollars and was better than what I already had at home. I figured I would just drop my x1950 graphics card, and PSU in it and give it a go. So far this machine has been very nice. I'm running Windows 7 Ultimate.

The mobo is Foxconn 945G7MA-8KS2:
http://ixbtlabs.com/articles2/mainboard/foxconn-945g7ma-8ks2-i945g.html


I have 4 1gig stick(3.25 usable, i'm running 32 bit Windows Ultimate) of Kingston KVR533D2N4

The processor is Socket 775 P4 3.20 Ghz. But the heatsink/fan is really small.



Now I would specifically like to play a game called Battlefield bad company 2, Medal of honor, etc. Now I loaded Battlefield bad company but I notices I'm getting the usual mouse lag, low FPS. The graphics looks fine but I know I need an upgrade somewhere. Now I am in no way trying to build a super gaming machine(obviously) but I would like to cheaply get a lower end machine that can run these games with good frames.

Where should I make an upgrade? I feel like I really need to upgrade the processor, what do you suggest I go with? I hear that there are some socket 775 quad cores, are they worth it? Should I just by a new Mobo/processor and just start over? What about the ram?


Any help here is appreciated, thanks.

Hi patio87 ...First off this is in the wrong section & should be in the graphic card section ...I think you should rethread this & stick it in the graphics section & you'll get a whole lot more answers real quick ...Do not forget that you are in the homebuilt system section ...

 

[patio87]

But it's not at all just a graphics card question. I asking about the machine as a whole. In fact I don't think I have any issue with the graphics card at all.......or do I? You see where I am at a loss for answers in this post?

 

[wribbs]

That CPU is definitely holding you back. I'm not sure what your upgrade options are for that board but if it's stuck with P4s there's no hope.

Agreed about Wish I Was Wealthy. This is the correct section. You can tell he's on crack or something with all those smilies.

 

[patio87]

That CPU is definitely holding you back. I'm not sure what your upgrade options are for that board but if it's stuck with P4s there's no hope.

Agreed about Wish I Was Wealthy. This is the correct section. You can tell he's on crack or something with all those smilies.

That's what I'm thinking as well, thanks.

Looking for suggestions......

 

[wribbs]

Well since I don't know what processors that board can support. If you'd like to upgrade, I'll give you a couple of options I dug up. If you want Intel, wait for Sandy Bridge IMO. (april)
Reuse your current RAM: ASRock A770DE+ AM3/AM2+/AM2 AMD 770 ATX AMD Motherboard $62
New RAM: MSI 880GMA-E45 AM3 AMD 880G HDMI SATA 6Gb/s USB 3.0 Micro ATX AMD Motherboard $83 AR
Then whatever you can afford/power: AM3 Processors

 

[jitpublisher]

If we are talking about gaming and playing the latest games at decent frame rates with some detail and resolution, forget about doing anything with a P4 system.
That is why you got it for $20 at a garage sale, you are going to get exactly $20 worth of performance out of it. Even your old 1950 pro GPU is sadly lacking. (I used to have a 1950, and they were great cards, about 5 years ago!)
Suggestions above by wribbs are worth looking at. You can buy a baseline AMD AM2+/AM3 board and X3 processor cheap, and they will literally be 4 times the system you will ever have with a P4 at any speed. Then you need to look at your GPU.

 

[patio87]

Well since I don't know what processors that board can support. If you'd like to upgrade, I'll give you a couple of options I dug up. If you want Intel, wait for Sandy Bridge IMO. (april)
Reuse your current RAM: ASRock A770DE+ AM3/AM2+/AM2 AMD 770 ATX AMD Motherboard $62
New RAM: MSI 880GMA-E45 AM3 AMD 880G HDMI SATA 6Gb/s USB 3.0 Micro ATX AMD Motherboard $83 AR
Then whatever you can afford/power: AM3 Processors

Thanks for the links, definitely using these links.

If we are talking about gaming and playing the latest games at decent frame rates with some detail and resolution, forget about doing anything with a P4 system.
That is why you got it for $20 at a garage sale, you are going to get exactly $20 worth of performance out of it. Even your old 1950 pro GPU is sadly lacking. (I used to have a 1950, and they were great cards, about 5 years ago!)
Suggestions above by wribbs are worth looking at. You can buy a baseline AMD AM2+/AM3 board and X3 processor cheap, and they will literally be 4 times the system you will ever have with a P4 at any speed. Then you need to look at your GPU.

Great! Thank you. Would there be any point in buying a 775 Core 2 Quad, or another 775 cpu?