I want to run BF2 smoother, but without breaking the bank

[Umi.Ryuuzaki]

Well, its been a month since BF2 came out and I got my optimzations done. But I feel i'm right about ready to play the upgrade game.

Current stats:

AMD Athlon XP 3000+ on a 333 FSB -_-;
1024 mb of OCZ RAM (2-3-3-6)
Geforce 6600 GT AGP
Sound Blaster Audigy 2 ZS

I recently switched out the ram from my decent Patriot to the OCZ and got a 6600 GT to just run BF2 fine (see sig @ what settings). However, I got two options at this time of what to do, to make BF2 smoother:

A) Sell my old set of RAM, then CPU/mobo and get a AMD Athlon 64 s754 3000+ and a no-frills mobo (but high quality).

or

B) Sell the old set of ram and just get a 1gb stick with the same timings.

Now, I would throw in my old 1gb ram set...problem - timings are 3-3-3-8, DDR 400 and I only got 3 slots. I was told by a friend to just use the OCZ ram, because better ram = better performance over 3 sticks of laggy ram.

Opinions, suggestions are welcomed.

Budget limit - 100 USD Initial, more if I sell the ram and/or old CPU/mobo. I can spend more, if I can really justify it. "I rather upgrade efficent-ly than upgrading for the sake of my e-penis"

[BF2_Joe]

I'll get you a whole new computer under $800.00 with no video card
with a CPU AMD 64 4000+ :rock: thats a 939pin, it's better.

[bisley]

Go socket 939 if you can, AMD64x2 will drop into this mobo when they get cheaper ofcourse ! but that means a new cpu also . Your memory should be fine though.

[Umi.Ryuuzaki]

Maybe I'll add something: I do not have a lot of money right now and my policy about upgrades is that it makes sense and I spend the money wisely. Sure It would be nice to grab a nforce3 ultra + a AMD 64 4000+ and i'm set, but then, I just realized that this game is a ram hog soo....

[spyro415]

Whats wrong with your settings right now? The difference between medium and high settings is seriously minimal...i'd have a hard time picking out the differences in a screen shot. Dynamic shadows look like garbage, a lot of people turn them off anyway just because they look so bad. If you want AA, why don't you try turning the resolution down?

[Umi.Ryuuzaki]

Whats wrong with your settings right now? The difference between medium and high settings is seriously minimal...i'd have a hard time picking out the differences in a screen shot. Dynamic shadows look like garbage, a lot of people turn them off anyway just because they look so bad. If you want AA, why don't you try turning the resolution down?

Studdering Lag. I absolutely hate it. I like how the game looks and it runs fine...after the random studdering lag stops after loading lol. I did try the game with a borrowed 512 stick for a time and it did help me alot. But i'm looking at all of my options before I spend.

[BF2_Joe]

Studdering Lag. I absolutely hate it. I like how the game looks and it runs fine...after the random studdering lag stops after loading lol. I did try the game with a borrowed 512 stick for a time and it did help me alot. But i'm looking at all of my options before I spend.

What dose your MOBO say, How mutch can you put on it?

[Umi.Ryuuzaki]

What dose your MOBO say, How mutch can you put on it?

I currently got my 2x of 512 mb OCZ sticks in 2 slots. I only got one slot open. Last I checked, its 3gb of total ram...though I thought Windows XP with a 32bit cpu supported only 2gb of ram

[spyro415]

Studdering Lag. I absolutely hate it. I like how the game looks and it runs fine...after the random studdering lag stops after loading lol. I did try the game with a borrowed 512 stick for a time and it did help me alot. But i'm looking at all of my options before I spend.

I see. Well if you decide to go down the CPU/Mobo road, i agree with everyone else here to try and get a socket 939, as it will be way more future-proof. I was going to get a s754 as well, until everyone on here told me they were fading those out.

[ZiRo]

Uhm, your 333 fsb, have you tried turning that down and 1:1ing the ram?

[Umi.Ryuuzaki]

Uhm, your 333 fsb, have you tried turning that down and 1:1ing the ram?

i'm running the ram at 1:1 at the moment.

So, should I get more ram, or just go for a CPU/mobo upgrade?

[HellRåzor]

Actually the only thing keeping your perfomance in bf2 down is your vid card... Your specs are fine, it's not the ram holding you back. If anything update your vid card to a 6800GT by selling that vid card and using the other 100 dollars you got. After that, you may want to get a better cpu.

[cha0tic]

The PSU also can have a play on performance, too low and you can loose FPS and your computer could also shutdown from lack of volts. I have a 420W RaidMax PSU and that seems about as low as you can go without loosing performance.