My system, for gaming: would a RAM or Video Card upgrade be best?

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transcend11

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I haven't upgraded anything major in my system for quite a while, besides hard drives and such. Now that I'm playing Warhammer Online, I'm realizing the need for an upgrade somewhere. Here's my current system:

DFI LANPARTY UT nF4 Ultra-D
AMD Athlon 64 X2 4200+ @ 2.64 GHz
BFG GeForce 7900 GT 256MB
2 GB OCZ Platinum PC3200 SDRAM
24" Monitor @ 1920x1200

The main issue I'm experiencing with Warhammer is lagging whenever a large amount of characters are on screen that need to load. An example is turning the corner to face a city, or turning around 180 degrees and needing to load everything behind me. I want to fix this issue.

I realize running the game at my monitor's 1920x1200 resolution is a strain, but there's no choice there.

Since I don't have the money to completely upgrade my system, I need to choose the best possible single upgrade. My RAM would be great for gaming if it were 4 GB... but the problem is if I upgrade that, it will be useless as soon as I replace my motherboard, since it only supports 182-pin DDR SDRAM.

Now, if I upgrade my video card, I can definitely use that once I build a new system with a new motherboard. I'm looking at a card such as:
XFX PVT84JYAJG GeForce 8600 GT 512MB 128-bit GDDR2 PCI Express x16
or EVGA 640-P2-N829-AR GeForce 8800GTS SSC 640MB 320-bit GDDR3 PCI Express x16 (but I would have to upgrade my 550W power supply for this I think...)

In my situation, would a video card upgrade me worthwhile, especially with increased video memory... or RAM, or I need more than either of these to get my in good shape? Thanks for any help :)
 
with your system the added memory won't make any difference. Neither of the cards you mention for graphics will much of a difference either, especially if you game at 1920*1200. Can your budget stretch to getting the ATI radeon 3850? or maybe even the 8800GT?

any cards under the 3850 will not bring you anything more gaming wise and I would say the 8600GT will be actually worse.
 
EVGA 512-P3-N801-AR GeForce 8800 GT 512MB 256-bit GDDR3 PCI Express 2.0 x16 is better than EVGA 640-P2-N829-AR GeForce 8800GTS SSC 640MB 320-bit GDDR3 PCI Express x16? (the 8800GTS I mentioned in my first post)

So is the 8800GT superior to the 8800GTS, even if the GTS is more expensive?
Besides this, the reason both cards you mentioned won't work for me is because they are both PCI-E 2.0, and my motherboard does not support 2.0. The 8800GTS is PCI-E 1.0 though.

And the 8600GT would be worse than my 7900GT? But the model number is higher..?

Thanks for your reply. If these upgrades make such a little difference, what is holding me back, my processor? Maybe it would be best to just wait and build a whole new system...
 
transcend11 said:
EVGA 512-P3-N801-AR GeForce 8800 GT 512MB 256-bit GDDR3 PCI Express 2.0 x16 is better than EVGA 640-P2-N829-AR GeForce 8800GTS SSC 640MB 320-bit GDDR3 PCI Express x16? (the 8800GTS I mentioned in my first post)

So is the 8800GT superior to the 8800GTS, even if the GTS is more expensive?
Besides this, the reason both cards you mentioned won't work for me is because they are both PCI-E 2.0, and my motherboard does not support 2.0. The 8800GTS is PCI-E 1.0 though.

And the 8600GT would be worse than my 7900GT? But the model number is higher..?

Thanks for your reply. If these upgrades make such a little difference, what is holding me back, my processor? Maybe it would be best to just wait and build a whole new system...
Click to expand...


Yes, the 8800 GT is better then the 8800 GTS 640mb, and PCI-E 2.0 is backwards compatible with 1.0 and 1.1

and yes, the 8600 GT is not a big jumo over the 7900 GT even if the numbers are higher.

What you have to remember about video card(definitly with Nvidia) is that just because the numbers or a letter is different(or is they add a ''S'' at the end) doesnt mean its better. The 8800 GTS is actually way older then the 8800 GT the 88000GT is a better option.
 
Or like how the 8800 GTS 512 (G92) is better then the 8800 GT and al the older 8800 GTS's
 
Thank you all for the replies, I've learned a lot about this new generation of video cards now... and Nvidia's evil trickery with their model numbers :D

So... I could definitely afford the EVGA GeForce 8800 GT 512MB 256-bit GDDR3 PCI Express 2.0 x16.

So, now that we've got the card narrowed down... will this definitely help me with the texture loading/lagging issues I'm experiencing? Or will it only slightly help me and I really just need to upgrade my video card in addition to a better CPU, RAM, etc.?

Thanks again :)
 
Get a better videocard now and then a new mobo and CPU as soon as you can afford it.

2GB is fine for most games today but definitely go with 4GB once you get a new mobo and CPU.
 
dccmadams said:
8600gt is crap
Click to expand...

O'Rly? :eek:
I have a mobile version of this graphics card in my MBP and it runs WAR fine @ 1920x1200 with 35FPS. I can adjust and tweak and get just over 40.

Not bad for a laptop and a new game like WAR IMHO. ;)
 
transcend11 said:
Thank you all for the replies, I've learned a lot about this new generation of video cards now... and Nvidia's evil trickery with their model numbers :D

So... I could definitely afford the EVGA GeForce 8800 GT 512MB 256-bit GDDR3 PCI Express 2.0 x16.

So, now that we've got the card narrowed down... will this definitely help me with the texture loading/lagging issues I'm experiencing? Or will it only slightly help me and I really just need to upgrade my video card in addition to a better CPU, RAM, etc.?

Thanks again :)
Click to expand...

for 20 dollars more AR you can get this http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814261027, its 140 AR.

and it will walk all over the 8800GT. and when you upgrade you can get a seconded on, and they scale very well together. really if your going with less then a GTX260 ati pretty well has the market wrapped up.
 
hyt3k9 said:
O'Rly? :eek:
I have a mobile version of this graphics card in my MBP and it runs WAR fine @ 1920x1200 with 35FPS. I can adjust and tweak and get just over 40.

Not bad for a laptop and a new game like WAR IMHO. ;)
Click to expand...

well not for a mobile chip. but a 4670 pretty well eats its lunch
 
Going from 2gig ram to 4 sped up WOW for me. Less in game/city lag and load times.

Good vid card also helps. Ram can be pretty inexpensive to upgrade. Can you do both?
 
I would go with a video card upgrade. WAR lags for me too in big cities, and I have 8 Gb of ram. Current prices on 8800 GT 512 or 8800 GTS 512 or ATI 4850 look good.
 
I've got a similar setup, but running an Opteron [email protected]. Memory is running at DDR 440 (rated DDR400), but I have the opportunity to pickup some Corsair DDR550. Will definitely be getting at least a GTX260 and likely a GTX 280.

Will an additional 2 gigs of Memory help? Will I see a speed increase moving to a dual core?
 
Schion, no, you would be as well save your money and do a decent upgrade.

You will get no improvement worth mentioning for upgrading your Ram. You might see some improvement on getting a dual core cpu, depends on what you are going for? You didn't say what motherboard you have.

What resolutions do you intend to game at?

With your current CPU, there is no point in buying a 280 or 260.
 
I'm running a DFI NF4 Ultra-D right now. I have 3x22" monitors setup, but am only running 2 of them at the moment because I need an additional videocard.

With the 2 monitors, I usually game at 3200x1200. I can't turn on HDR in many games at that resolution, let alone AA with my current card.
 
You would definitely see a difference going from a single core to a dual. I had a Athlon 64 3500 before my opty and this thing just rips it apart.
 
dccmadams said:
8600gt is crap
Click to expand...

That depends, i have a 8600 GTS and it is actually a really good card, and i can play Bioshock on high and what not. Its not a bad card.

People just aren't to fond of it for the performance against the 7900's, just think of the 8600's as 7900's with DX10. I personally like the 8600 GTS and the price for one is extremely low, so now a days i dont see a problem.
 
Raz1r said:
Bullshit. I have an 256mb 8600GT and it runs everything I throw at it in 1680 x 1050 besides Crysis, which is way un-optimized. I crank everything except for the crazy-high AA settings.
Click to expand...

It's still worse in performance than the 7900GT which the Op already has, and is a complete waste of money if He wants to improve performance. It really is a very budget gaming card. And if you are running all the latest games at 1680*1050 with everything "cranked" I would have to question what you call playable, maybe 20 fps and lower is what you call playable? I know to some people this is fine.
 
Definitely upgrade your videocard and DON'T get an 8600 because they are indeed crap. Additionally, you may not even need to replace your 550W PSU because lets be honest your underutilizing your PSU as it is and according to anandtech a system running a QX6850 and SLI 8800 Ultras only utilizes around 580W of power at load. The only issue is how many Amps are available on your 12V rail/s.
 
instead of the 8800gt for 140 get a 9800gt for 115 from the egg
same card, but newer and cheaper, and some 9800gt's are actually 9800gtx in disguise
 
8600's are defintitly not crap for the price and performace these days. BUT if you want a really good card and a high end one, then YES the 8600 is not what he is looking for, a 8800 GT and up will be good.
 
I would put the money on the videocard. You already have 2GB of memory so adding more would not give much back to your system. A better videocard on the other hand will have a much greater impact for games.
 
I'm going with the general consensus of putting cash into the video card and waiting on the memory upgrade. Now if only I knew where prices were going with the GTX260 and GTX280. ($209 and $380 at the lowest with no rebates right now...)
 
scihon said:
I'm going with the general consensus of putting cash into the video card and waiting on the memory upgrade. Now if only I knew where prices were going with the GTX260 and GTX280. ($209 and $380 at the lowest with no rebates right now...)
Click to expand...

right now in that range the GTX260 is the best buy. I like the GTX280 but at 380 its hard to justify with the price of the 4870 and GTX260 where they are at. If you look around you might be able to find a better deal on that GTX280, I got mine for 343 AR. but at 200 dollars a GTX260 is a pretty good deal. All the same if your stuck with a slower CPU you will do better to get a single faster card. So it depends on what you want. A GTX280 will not add frame rates but will increase the amount of eye candy you can turn on.


On that note I really would look at a cheap upgrade. you can get a P45 board for 80 dollars now and an E7200 for around 120. ad a couple of gigabytes of DDR800 for 20 dollars and for the price a GTX260 you have double your performance. Not to mention OC ability just something to chew on.
 
Thanks everyone for the help, ordered the card just now. Part of me likes to hold onto the socket 939 and just see how far i can get it OC'd without resorting to LN2 or cascade coolers (though I do have a Mach 2 GT just sitting around...)
:D
 
3far4shot said:
8600's are defintitly not crap for the price and performace these days. BUT if you want a really good card and a high end one, then YES the 8600 is not what he is looking for, a 8800 GT and up will be good.
Click to expand...

They are crap. Horribly shader and bandwidth limited. They are garbage unless your playing at 800x600.
 
nissanztt90 said:
yes rly...8600 is crap.

OP: Get a 8800 512mb GT/S or ATI 3850 or better. Your cpu/ram is ok for that resolution, although it is becoming dated. Do the GPU first though.
Click to expand...

Well as a mobile GPU its a damn good one, as a desktop gpu it sucks ass because there is so much more to choose from. From a mobile gpu point of view there are so little out there the 8600GT M is a very good card.
 
Raz1r said:
Bullshit. I have an 256mb 8600GT and it runs everything I throw at it in 1680 x 1050 besides Crysis, which is way un-optimized. I crank everything except for the crazy-high AA settings.
Click to expand...
speaking of Bullshit. the 8600gt can handle VERY few games above 1280x1024 and even at that res its pushing it. I have one but unlike you I live in reality so I know you cant play modern games at max settings at 1680 with that fucking card. I could link you to benchmarks all day long showing that you are nuts for saying that.

nissanztt90 said:
They are crap. Horribly shader and bandwidth limited. They are garbage unless your playing at 800x600.
Click to expand...
they are fine for 1280x1024 in older games and 1024x768 in newer games and will max most games out at that res if you have a good cpu and 2 gigs of memory. other than that yeah they are crap compared to most other cards out there.
 
TechBoy said:
Well as a mobile GPU its a damn good one, as a desktop gpu it sucks ass because there is so much more to choose from. From a mobile gpu point of view there are so little out there the 8600GT M is a very good card.
Click to expand...

In some sense...its passable at best, when the resolution is 1280x720, or if its an older game...1440x900. Or if you absolutely must have a sub 15inch notebook.

Considering hes buying a desktop card, its fair to say the 8600GT/S is pure dogshit.
 
The OP already has a 7900, so getting the 8600 makes little sense IMO. Whether it's slightly faster or not, and even considering the DX10 features, it would still be more of a "sidegrade" than an upgrade.

If money is an issue, the new Radeon 4670 card might be an option, but with the 1920x1200 resolution, it would struggle. Normally people who can't/don't want to spend a lot on computer hardware also have a smaller monitor, ie. 19".. When you already have high resolution monitor, but not alot of money to spend on the videocard to drive it, things become a little tricky :) A 4850 would do fine, though... As long as you don't use alot of FSAA (2x or no FSAA).
 
Thank you all for your replies, you were extremely helpful...

After giving it some thought, I ordered a new video card that I am confident will be wonderful for WAR and many other PC games coming out in the future even with my system...

I just ordered the SAPPHIRE 100245L Radeon HD 4850 512MB 256-bit GDDR3 :)

I know the 8800 GT / 9800 GT was highly recommended in this topic, but I think everyone will agree if I could afford the Radeon HD 4850, I should get it instead? :)

I haven't had an ATI graphics card since my 9700 Pro, so hopefully they have stayed reliable.
 
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