Skyrim and Xcom

[cornix18]

I have a HP Pavilion
Specs are:

Radeon HD 7450 graphics card with 1GB DDR3 dedicated memory

AMD six-core FX-6120 Processor

Its really laggy and I can only run skyrim on the lowest settings, so do I need a different Processor or a different graphics card to to run it on high settings, and to be nice and smooth

 

[Deleted member 217926]

Both really but the main problem is the graphics card. That is not a card for gaming.

 

[COLGeek]

The video card is the reason your performance is so low. Stepping up to a HD7770 (or higher) would improve your satisfaction greatly.

 

[cornix18]

What graphic card do you recommend for playing skyrim on high

 

[cornix18]

So what video card is recommended to play skyrim and xcom on high settings

 

[COLGeek]

I would look at a HD7870 or higher. What is the wattage on your HP's power supply (on label on side of power supply if you don't know)?

 

[daswilhelm]

if the system came with a 7450, it wouldn't come with a power supply strong enough for a 7870. you could put in a 7750, it doesn't require a power connection.

if you are able to swap out the power supply, a 7850 or 7870 would be advisable.

 

[Deleted member 217926]

I agree with an HD 7770 for a minimum with those games. However, as has been said you will likely need a new power supply anyway making something stronger more advisable. What resolution do you play at? At 1920 x 1080 I would say an HD 7850 would be your best bet for the money with an HD 7870 an even better choice if you can fit it in your budget.

Here is an excellent article Tom's does every month on the best cards for the money.

http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/gaming-graphics-card-review,3107.html

The reason I said both in my first post is that Skyrim especially is very CPU bound. Even a processor with fewer cores like the FX 4300 will do better because of the higher clock speeds.

http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/skyrim-performance-benchmark,3074-9.html

http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/fx-8350-vishera-review,3328-14.html

http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/gaming-fx-pentium-apu-benchmark,3120-3.html