Old question. Buy a better processor or video card.

[Ulisses Silva]

Guys. This is my cpu current configuration:

Processor: AMD Phenom II X4 955 BE 3.2GHz 8Mb AM3 Box
Motherboard: Asus Phenom/Athlon II (AM3) | M4A89GTD PRO/USB3
Memory: Kingston 8GB DDR3 1333MHz
Video card: Nvidia GeForce GTX 460 1GB GDDR5 256-bit
Power Source: OCZ 700W | StealthXStream

In your opnion, what i need to upgrade? Processor or video card?

Thanks.

 

[ssddx]

for what purpose?

ie: what do you use your computer for and where do you find it bottlenecking currently?

a gfx upgrade is easy, a cpu upgrade can sometimes entail a new motherboard depending on what cpu you buy.

if you use the pc for a multitude of different tasks like web browsing, office work, a few games, a few professional programs and you feel that your system just feels a little slower than it should be the best bang for the buck is a ssd boot drive. system performance feels much more snappy. of course this solution is not for everyone and it depends on what you use the pc for. for instance it doesnt help with gaming at all.

 

[Ulisses Silva]

for what purpose?

ie: what do you use your computer for and where do you find it bottlenecking currently?

a gfx upgrade is easy, a cpu upgrade can sometimes entail a new motherboard depending on what cpu you buy.

if you use the pc for a multitude of different tasks like web browsing, office work, a few games, a few professional programs and you feel that your system just feels a little slower than it should be the best bang for the buck is a ssd boot drive. system performance feels much more snappy. of course this solution is not for everyone and it depends on what you use the pc for. for instance it doesnt help with gaming at all.

Sorry. I forgot to say that. I use my computer most for gaming...

 

[ssddx]

well that rules out ssd as it doesnt affect gaming.

load up your most demanding game that you play. ctrl+alt+delte and open up task manager. for more details click resource monitor. are you stressing your cpu or gpu to 100% ?

look at some new games you wish to buy and at the minimum specs. where does your hardware fall in the lineup?

generally for games a better gpu is the best upgrade to go for unless your cpu isn't up to snuff in which case its time for a complete overhaul. for gaming i wouldnt suggest staying with an old gpu and getting a new cpu (and maybe mobo and ram depending on your board and what it supports) unless your gpu is high end (which its not anymore).

your call of course depending on your findings but i say a gpu would be a better choice. at least for now.

 

[Ulisses Silva]

Wich application do you indicate to do this kind of analysis? I already downloaded GPU-Z and HWiNFO64, but a tip from the pros it's wellcome.

Another question: Resolution affects the CPU usage? Because in some forums i found people saying that higher resolutions means less cpu usage...

 

[ssddx]

run your most demanding game, not some test software, and see what your usage numbers are. if you are maxing out your cpu or gpu it can point you towards what you need to upgrade.

the only thing running gpu-z will tell you is that your current card sucks and that newer cards are better. not very helpful. i've never felt the need to run gpu-z but unless your gaming performance is going to be at the same level as the test its not going to help you all that much.

this is why i said to run a real test using games you actually play to get a feel for what the weap point (bottleneck) is in your system.

i'm not sure about cpu usage but a higher resolution has a very significant effect on gpu usage.