Is my 1.60GHz to low for anything good?

[wolfbane240]

Hello;

I own a Inspirion 530
Intel 2140 @ 1.6GHz
5.00 GB
32-bit Vista Home Basic
300w PSU
Acer 23inch 1920x1080p monitor

I am currently running the graphics off the motherboard and am content with it but would like to play DDO and sims 3 at higher settings (mid-low at the moment). Any LOW priced (under $70) suggestions for upgrade cards and are they worth it with my 1.60GHz processor?

 

[wolfbane240]

Hello;

I own a Inspirion 530
Intel 2140 @ 1.6GHz
5.00 GB
32-bit Vista Home Basic
300w PSU
Acer 23inch 1920x1080p monitor

I am currently running the graphics off the motherboard and am content with it but would like to play DDO and sims 3 at higher settings (mid-low at the moment). Any LOW priced (under $70) suggestions for upgrade cards and are they worth it with my 1.60GHz processor?

guess i should add that i've looked at the forums and saw all the threads concerning the 5450 and 6670 but i'm not sure if either will make a difference in my machine. thx

 

[wiinippongamer]

It is a pretty low end processor by today's standarts but should be fine for some casual gaming like the games you listed.

This card: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814102988 will work on your system and provide a pretty significant upgrade from the integrated intel, should be able to play sims 3 at high and then some. Don't expect wonders from it though your CPU is still below most modern games' minimum requirements. Seeing as you use 1080p the processor bottleneck won't be too noticeable.

 

[wolfbane240]

Thx for the reply. the computers a hand-me down from my wife (she just got a Dell XPS) but its all i can afford for myself, sort of like wives getting the better car . anyway thx for the link its one of the ones i was looking at and now i'm more confident in getting it.

 

[wolfbane240]

I appreciate the quick response from wiinippongami to my question.

I was looking through the forums and came across a discussion about the possible problems a 2.0 pci might have in my 1.0 pci so with no disrespect to wiin, I was wondering if I could see an improvment from a HD 5450? I only ask cause my machine is over 5 years old and I don't want to spend more money on it than I need to. (hopefully my wife's machine will pass down in less than 2 years). Thx again for the replies.

 

[rybo1227]

I think anything is a improvement over the integrated graphics.

 

[wiinippongamer]

My bad. It's PCIE2.1 cards that can have some problems with a PCIE1.0 mobo, even though 90% of the time they work fine. PCIE2.0 cards on the other hand have no issues with 1.0 mobos unless the mobo is defective or something.

This one: http://www.ebay.com/itm/NEW-Galaxy-Technology-GeForce-GT240-1GB-GDDR3-PCIe-2-0-Video-Graphics-Card-/220939117951?pt=PCC_Video_TV_Cards&hash=item3370ff657f#ht_696wt_905 shouldn't have any issues from bus incompatibility, though it's a bit slower than the 6670. But yea anything will be an upgrade over the integrated card.

 

[wolfbane240]

Thanks again wiinippongami, looks like I'll be getting the GT240.

Have a question though, my brother-in-law heard I was looking for a card and he had a PNY GeForce FX5200 DDR 256MB PCI sitting around and offered to send it to me. since i don't have a clue i was wondering if it would do the job? like you and rybo1227 said anything would be an improvement.

 

[wiinippongamer]

He meant anything in the current market would be an upgrade, but I doubt a fx5200 can play sims 3 at high

 

[Sunius]

FX 5200 is 10 years old.. It will definitely not be good with sims 3 . Also, I'd suggest this card, it's a bit better than GT 240:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814500252

 

[wolfbane240]

thx for the replies, but i'm just tired of scanning the web for something i can afford. the suggestions you guys have made are great but i really can't go over $45 (even though i said i could). i just wanted to see what was out there for this machine. i've narrowed it down to 2 choices and any response is fine. again thx for your time.

http://www.walmart.com/ip/EVGA-GeForce-210-512MB-DDR3-PCI-Express-Graphics-Card/15739049

http://www.walmart.com/ip/XFX-PVT86MYNF2-GeForce-8400GS-PCIE-512MB-DDR3-Graphics-Card/17352736

 

[Sunius]

Let me expand your options and narrow it again: those two cards you've linked have nothing to do with games. I'd be surprised if they were even a bit of an improvement.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814127557
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814500245

First card is still weak, but better than the ones you linked. The second card is the cheapest gaming card I could find. That's what would I recommend.

 

[wolfbane240]

Thank you Sunius for spending the time looking for those. sadly i got tired of browsing and just ordered a

http://www.walmart.com/ip/Asus-GeForce-8400GS-1GB-DDR3-PCI-Express-2.0-x16-Video-Graphics-Card/19793267

I really do appreciate the advice but for $36.50 (tax included) I had to settle. I'm not a big gamer and like i said in the op i was content for the time being to use my machine when the wife's on hers i just wanted a little more performance and eye-candy.

I will be back soon when I either get a new machine or upgrade the PSU on this one. Thanks again to all those who replied.

 

[Sunius]

Aw too bad. That card is 5 year old design.. They were first released in 2007 summer. Too bad you were so hasty. I hope it will give you some improvement.