Which to upgrade first...

[jeweladdict]

Currently running amd athlon xp 2500+
512mb of ram (dual chan)
ati 8500 aiw
a7n8x deluxe mobo

I'm planning on building a 64 bit system sometime nextyear... Planning being the key word

right now, playing Wow lags the hell out of me, its really really bad. I've optimized my wow, so that all the visual effects are running really low, but its still pretty bad.

should i get more ram first?
will upgrading to an aiw 9800 work? wouild it be too much for my system to handle?

i dont really think its worth it to upgrade the cpu... that and i cant get the damn fan off :X

If i do go the route of a new video card, I'd like to use it in my new 64 bit system once I make it, so I might splurge for one of the pcix ones. Seeing that my mobo doesn't support that now, are there such things as pcix pci expansion slots? :X

advice plz

 

[TheGreatGrapeApe]

PCIe card would never work on just PCI slot, no matter what.

You best bet would be to upgrade your graphics card now, then your system latter. The R8500 was a good card in it's time, but the current games easily overwhelm it. The R9800 is a quality upgrade, but perhaps think about forgoing the AIW part and getting a seperate tuner/video-in PCI card and then a seperate graphics card. You can bring the video-in/tuner card with you to your next rig, but likely you will be best off with a PCie card in 6mths to a year when you can move to dual core AMD64 or Intel. If you're lucky they'll still be making AGP mobos which support the new features (if it takes long enough socket 1207 may be available offering DDR2 to AMD64).

I'd say either an ATI R9800Pro (make sure it's 256<b>bit</b> MEMORY [that's 256bit not 256mb, the 256bit is very important 128bit is much slower and basically the same as an R9600Pro/9500Pro]) or a GeForce 6600GT AGP would be best suited for your needs. Both of those cards are the best buys from their makers.

You CPU and memory should be sufficient for WoW, whereas your current graphics card is about a generation behind the other components.


- You need a licence to buy a gun, but they'll sell anyone a stamp <i>(or internet account)</i> ! - <font color=green>RED </font color=green> <font color=red> GREEN</font color=red> GA to SK

 

[jeweladdict]

thx for the info, which of the two is better?
the 6600gt or the 9800?

are they of comparable price?

 

[TheGreatGrapeApe]

GF6600GT is a better card, but the R9800Pro is significantly cheaper (especially cheaper than the GF6600GT AGP which is a premium over the PCIe version).

Think of the price ranges as ~$185 for the R9800Pro and ~$225 for the GF6600GT AGP as 'good' prices.

The GF6600GT is usually about 25% faster than the R9800Pro, with a range from about equal to about 50+%.

I'd say the GF6600GT would be a better LONG term choice, but if you plan on upgrading in about a year's time, then you may wish to save money for a replacement.


- You need a licence to buy a gun, but they'll sell anyone a stamp <i>(or internet account)</i> ! - <font color=green>RED </font color=green> <font color=red> GREEN</font color=red> GA to SK