Does the core2quad q8200 2,33ghz still cut it

[02hudsond]

im getting a very cheap pc setup on monday and im wondering how the intel core 2quad 2.33ghz at stock clocks (adventpc) cuts it if it was coupled with a decent video card

heres the full system spec

core2quad q8200 2.33ghz

6gb ddr 2 ram

1tb hard drive,,,,probs sata

blueray re-writer

19inch monitor (will be sticking it in to my 32inch tv)

im not sure what video card its running at the min but the seller mentioned it has hdmi so it cud be a decennt card ,,,, its costing me 70quid and will be a huge upgrade on my current system

if the cpu is still ok for decent gaming whats the best bang for buck video card for this setup ... i want play black ops 2 ,, gta iv etc at medium settings high resloution

 

[gussrtk]

I think the system is still in good shape if you dont wish to spend a bunch of money.

Really i would suggest, get a decent 30$ (usd talking) CPU cooler, and overclock the CPU a little, get it around 3.0Ghz mark and a Radeon 7850 GPU, then you will play games nice

the thing about getting a new video card is that the CPU is slow, and may slow down/bring down performance of the video card. that is why you overclock, so that the CPU can get on par to be able to take advantage of the new video card performance, otherwise it's just gonna choke on it. I have a q6600 with 550ti, still didnt overclock it, but it runs games pretty smoothly (new)

cheap option is to upgrade video card and CPU cooler + overclock





other options, very cheap video card 7770 Radeon, will get you medium graphics on games about, possibly a little better.

7850 will get you High graphics


(im suggesting radeon cards only cuz they are usually a little cheaper/better value)




although for your tv, i dont know how it will work out, i think you will need a 2gb vram video card to be able to handle it a little better (that resolution i mean)

 

[iceclock]

id advise to get an aftermarket cooler overclokc it. slap in a videocard that be good.

 

[jaguarskx]

Yeah, decent PC as long as it did not cost you too much. Since it seems to be a brand name PC there is no hope to overclock it for better performance.

The power supply will determine what kinda graphics card you can install. 300w is good enough for the Radeon HD 7750. 400w is fine for a Radeon HD 7770 and 500w is good for a Radeon HD 7850.

A 32" HDTV is typically 720p resolution rather than 1080p resolution. The Radeon HD 7750 is inexpensive and provides pretty good performance for 720p. The Radeon HD 7770 does not cost that much more than the HD 7750 and it provides a pretty good increase in performance. The only downside is it consumes more power than the Radeon HD 7750 so a 400w PSU is generally recommended.

Naturally, stepping up to the Radeon HD 7850 will give you even better performance, but I think the Radeon HD 7770 will be fine if the resolution is 720p. Plus it is cheaper too.

 

[clutchc]

The Q8200 C2Q is still an adequate processor. The DDR2 memory is a bit slow, however. But not much you can do about that. I pretty much agree with the above suggestions. The aftermarket cooler won't be necessary unless you overclock, though. What resolution is your 32" HDTV you will be using? The HD7770 will be more than adequate for 720p, but if you game at 1080p you will need a bit more if you want to run your games at max/near max settings. Maybe the HD 7850 mentioned above.

 

[iceclock]

yeah. i mean if u can overclock it, put in a 7700 will give u a small but decent boost until u can afford a new plateform.

 

[02hudsond]

AMD Radeon HD 6450 2GB how does that perform at 720p on games like gtav iv ,call of duty black ops 1 and 2 and sleeping dogs i wud be happy to play at medium with a good frame rate ,,, if that cards rubish then another card at no more then 40pounds

 

[clutchc]

Even at 720p, the HD 6450 will be a drag. Even medium settings will be a bit too much for it to provide smooth frame rates at 720p. And you don't need 2GB for 1366x768 resolution. There's not that many pixels and texels to address at that rez.

You're not going to get an HD 7770 or any other capable card at that price. The HD 7750 will do a fine job at 720p, but it is probably more than you want to spend.
http://www.scan.co.uk/products/2gb-msi-radeon-hd7750-1600mhz-gddr3-28nm-gpu-800mhz-512-cores-hdmi-dl-dvi-dport

You may want to check out used cards in your area. ebay is one online example if you can purchase through that site.

 

[iceclock]

bah 100$ seems cheap for a graphic card.
thats the minimum id spend for one.

 

[jaguarskx]

AMD Radeon HD 6450 2GB how does that perform at 720p on games like gtav iv ,call of duty black ops 1 and 2 and sleeping dogs i wud be happy to play at medium with a good frame rate ,,,

Ummmm..... try low, not medium with decent... decent frame rates.

 

[jaguarskx]

For £46.39 Inc VAT, I recommend the following Radeon HD 6670. That is THE minimum card I would recommend.


http://www.scan.co.uk/products/1gb-msi-hd-6670-r6670-md1gd3-v2-800mhz-core-1024mb-ddr3-1334mhz-memory-dl-dvi-vga-hdmi

 

[clutchc]

+1 jaguarskx
I just recently put a HD 6670 1GB DDR3 in a budget PC with a Phenom II X2 220 for someone who didn't have much money to spend. It surprised me. Here are some of the notes I took:
Can play Crysis Warhead @ 1920x1080_Mainstream
Can play Crysis 2 @ 1440x900_High
Can play BF3 @ 1600x900 Auto settings

I realize these aren't the games you had listed, but it is something for comparison. When I say 'can play' I mean the framerate seemed smooth with minimal hiccups.

 

[jaguarskx]

... The HD 7750 will do a fine job at 720p, but it is probably more than you want to spend.
http://www.scan.co.uk/products/2gb-msi-radeon-hd7750-1600mhz-gddr3-28nm-gpu-800mhz-512-cores-hdmi-dl-dvi-dport

....

As I mentioned in my original post, the Radeon HD 7750 is the card you should by if you can afford to do so. The above link provided by clutchc is for a Radeon HD 7750 that costs £64.52 Inc VAT which is a pretty decent price for the performance you get.

The Radeon HD 6670 I recommended above sell for £46.39 Inc VAT. There are two versions of the HD 6670 though. One uses DDR3 RAM like the one I linked to and a slightly faster version which uses DDR5 RAM (faster than DDR3). The performance difference between them is about 10%. That's just for a frame of reference.

The Radeon HD 7750 costs about 39% more than the Radeon HD 6670 w/ DDR3 RAM. However, the performance difference is about 55% - 60% higher. That means you are getting a better bang for your buck. Well... in your case better bang for your pound / sterling / quid.

 

[iceclock]

ya so im guess the consensus is. if ur low on cash 6670 with ddr3 or 5, or 7750.

 

[02hudsond]

i will get the 6670 as thats £ 47 unless anyone can recommend a better card at that price , also will the 6670 handle new games at meduim

 

[clutchc]

i will get the 6670 as thats £ 47 unless anyone can recommend a better card at that price , also will the 6670 handle new games at meduim

Did we ever determine what resolution your monitor is? Or your HDTV if you are using it?

 

[02hudsond]

its running 1280x 1024 at the min .. the built in video is no good and will be getting graphics card next week

 

[clutchc]

its running 1280x 1024 at the min .. the built in video is no good and will be getting graphics card next week

If your 32" HDTV is native 720p, the HD 6670 will perform nicely for you. If it's 1080p, you will have to reduce settings quite a bit. But seeing as how you are moving up from integrated graphics, I think it will 'knock your socks off' by comparison. Enjoy!