What to do - Upgrade processor & Mobo or Graphics Card?

[Haggis6]

Thought this would be the best place to post this

Currently I'm running a system with p4 2.5, 1gig ram and fx5600gt 128mb card and i can just about run bf2 (lowest settings across the board)

I now have the option to buy a 6800gt 256 OR upgrade with a new mobo and athlon 64 3700+ with 1 gig ram and keep the same graphics card for prob next 6 months

what would you recommend?

[M3_freak]

Re: What to do - Upgrade processor & Mobo or Graphics Card?

On the face of it I'd say graphics card, because even with your upgraded CPU/Mem anything above Low detail settings (esp. textures) is still gonna cause big big problems.

Of course looking at the bigger picture I assume you have an AGP motherboard now, which would mean getting an AGP 6800GT and in turn a NEW AGP board in the future for you AMD 64, which is hardly ideal since AGP is very much in the decline at the moment.

How about getting a PCIe mobo, Athlon 3500+, 1gig of good memory and a PCIe 6600GT now, then in 6 months you could get a 6800GT if you wanted to and it'll be down in price!

[Haggis6]

Re: What to do - Upgrade processor & Mobo or Graphics Card?

Thaks for the quick respose gotta have a look at the bank balance and possibly the credit card could get a dusting off something to chew over anyway

[Shamus]

Re: What to do - Upgrade processor & Mobo or Graphics Card?

I just can't recommend buying an AGP based system because we are all going to be forced into the PCI-E form factor sooner than later. I know funds are always limited but your best bet is to upgrade the motherboard, CPU and video card at the same time to remain compatible in the near and distant future.

[lcplsickoll]

Re: What to do - Upgrade processor & Mobo or Graphics Card?

I just can't recommend buying an AGP based system because we are all going to be forced into the PCI-E form factor sooner than later. I know funds are always limited but your best bet is to upgrade the motherboard, CPU and video card at the same time to remain compatible in the near and distant future.

I completely agree with what's said here. You should think of getting a good PCI-E mobo now and if costs a concern then save with maybe an 64 3000+ and a 6600GT. You'll have a good base to upgrade with if you don't skimp on the Mobo.

[ChopperKill]

Re: What to do - Upgrade processor & Mobo or Graphics Card?

I'm gettin a bit sick of this PCI-e thing now. Right now this minute there is no tangible difference between PCI-e and AGP whatsoever. Anyone who says theres is does not know what they are talking about. Anyone tellling you that you need to do it right now does not know what they are talking about. And if there is any difference it's so tiny it's barely worth caring about. AGP is good for another couple of years. PCI-e is the future but there's no rush.


If you update your CPU and mobo and stick with that card you will get virtually no improvement. But if you get a 6800GT and stick with your mobo/CPU you will be running everything pretty much on high with 4xAA and 16xAF cept maybe for a few minor adjustments cos you only have 1Gig of RAM.


If you can afford to do the whole thing and get a PCI-e card as well then go for it. But if it's a clear choice of g card or mobo/CPU. Do the card.

In 18 months-2 years when PCI-e really starts to matter worry about it then. Pretty much everyone upgrades along that kinda timeframe anyway. So if you get a PCI-e system now you'll only be upgrading to a faster PCI-e mobo and CPU again in 2 years. And for the whole of that 2 years you'll be looking at your PC thinking why did I upgrade now. I'm still running at the same ****ty settings.

[lcplsickoll]

Re: What to do - Upgrade processor & Mobo or Graphics Card?

I'm not talking about improving over AGP, I'm talking about having a motherboard you won't have to replace when you're ready for the next upgrade. For instance an Asus A8N-Sli will allow you the luxury of building a budget system now, and the ability to upgrade to dual core Athlon's and Dual PCI-E cards in the future without forking out extra money.

[Haggis6]

Re: What to do - Upgrade processor & Mobo or Graphics Card?

Well at the minute it does look like a clear cut choice of either the 6800gt agp or the new processor and mobo the stats on the mobo are below and it looks pretty much future proof to me but the decision lies in do i buy the card or wait for quite a few months to go the pci-e route hmmmmm :cry:

Product DescriptionMSI K8N SLI Platinum - mainboard - ATX - nForce4 SLIProduct TypeMainboardForm FactorATXDimensions (WxDxH)30.4 cm x 24.4 cmChipset TypeNVIDIA nForce4 SLIMax Bus Speed1000 MHzProcessor0 ( 1 ) - Socket 939Compatible ProcessorsAthlon 64, Athlon 64 FXRAM0 MB (installed) / 4 GB (max)Supported RAM TechnologyDDR SDRAMStorage ControllerATA-133, Serial ATA IIAudio OutputSound card - 7.1 channel surroundNetworkingNetwork adapter - Ethernet, Fast Ethernet, Gigabit Ethernet

[lcplsickoll]

Re: What to do - Upgrade processor & Mobo or Graphics Card?

It's never easy. If you'll be gaming for the next couple years. Then Mobo, if not then go with the video card.

[Umi.Ryuuzaki]

Re: What to do - Upgrade processor & Mobo or Graphics Card?

I say do vid card, but it depends if you plan to do a big overhaul later. If you plan to upgrade later on, just grab a 6600 GT - great on medium settings. Besides, at 2.5ghz, anything higher than a 6800 NU might be bottlenecked.

PCI-E is doable if you got quite a bit of money. Theroically, a PCI-E upgrade shouldnt cost..more than 290-415 USD (150-170 for AMD Athlon 64 3000+, 60-120 for a good mobo, 80-125 for a PSU), depending where you shop. (let me add: another 150-160 for a 6600GT btw)

But if its either CPU/mobo or vid card, do vid card. You'll see the benefits more with a 6600GT AGP or 6800 NU.

[ChopperKill]

Re: What to do - Upgrade processor & Mobo or Graphics Card?

Well at the minute it does look like a clear cut choice of either the 6800gt agp or the new processor and mobo the stats on the mobo are below and it looks pretty much future proof to me but the decision lies in do i buy the card or wait for quite a few months to go the pci-e route hmmmmm :cry:

Nothing is future proof when it comes to PC's. The same people going on about how AGP is dead then turn around and say upgrade to a 939 PCI-e board because it's "future proof". 939 is dead soon as M2 is coming. It's never ending with computers.

PCI-e is the way to go if you are building from scratch but it's not always worth it when upgrading and can often be a waste of money. All that matters ultimately for gaming are in game settings and frames per second. Which setup will get you the best performance here? A new mobo and CPU with the same g card or the same mobo and CPU with a new g card?

To anyone that knows anthing about PC's it's a no brainer. If you can't get the whole thing get the card. The card will improve your overall frames and allow you to run at higher settings. The CPU and mobo will do virtually nothing for your games. Will help windows and apps but nothing for games.

[M3_freak]

Re: What to do - Upgrade processor & Mobo or Graphics Card?

These comments about 'you can't future proof' and 'PCIe is no better than AGP' are true, but miss the point of trying to get the most from what you spend your money on. Looking at the bigger picture I'm still of the opinion you should upgrade your board and chip now, get a cheap graphics card and ofset that extra cost against the savings you'll make on a 6800GT further down the line.

[ODD-BALL]

Re: What to do - Upgrade processor & Mobo or Graphics Card?

god, u just dont get it chopperkill, AGP IS DEAD!!!!!!! There are NO new top of the line motherboards being made with AGP!!!!!!!!!!!!! The Spec is dead!!! It is nearly impossiible to find top of the line video cards in AGP. It is not good for a few years, the spec is retired and the manufactures are only making ****ty budget motherboards with agp untill supplies run out. It is DEAD, get used to it.

[ChopperKill]

Re: What to do - Upgrade processor & Mobo or Graphics Card?

god, u just dont get it chopperkill, AGP IS DEAD!!!!!!! There are NO new top of the line motherboards being made with AGP!!!!!!!!!!!!! The Spec is dead!!! It is nearly impossiible to find top of the line video cards in AGP. It is not good for a few years, the spec is retired and the manufactures are only making ****ty budget motherboards with agp untill supplies run out. It is DEAD, get used to it.

No you just don't get it or you don't read my posts clear enough. I have said numerous times in different threads that PCI-e is the future. There is no question. It's the same as dual core. Dual core is the future no question.

The WHOLE point is right here, right now this second does the difference between AGP and PCI-e matter? The answer is no. Why? Because current games do not come close to using the bandwidth that AGP provides. Ok so we move on. What about 6 months? 12 months? 2 years from now? Still all upcoming games are very unlikely to use more bandwidth than AGP provides. Even Unreal Engine 3 games which are the upcoming pinnacle of graphical excellence do not come close to using the full power of AGP.

So we move on. Yes we know there will be a point where PCI-e overtakes AGP. Is that point today? No. Is that point in the next 6 months? No. 12 months? No. It's unlikely that we will see PCI-e seriously overtake AGP for at least 2 years. So while yes AGP is no longer being manufactured it does not automatically make PCI-e better or faster or better value for money. To presume it does makes you nothing more than an idiot.

I've already said twice to the guy if money doesn't matter just do it all and go to PCI-e with a new card. But it's a difficult choice for some people as money is nearly always an issue. People usually want the best performance they can get for their money. And if we are talking here simple bang for buck then he will get NOTHING and I do mean NOTHING from going CPU/mobo only. He will be STILL be stuck with a crappy g card.

Some of you people it seems just flip through some techy websites read a few blurbs and think you know it all. You have zero idea what it takes to balance, budget, plan and predict to get the VERY best bang for buck when it gets round to upgrading when you are on a strict budget.

I can compare this to high definition TV for example. In the UK hi def tv's have been on sale for about a year now. Hi def is the future yes. But guess what? We haven't got a f**king hi def signal in the UK yet and won't have till 2006. So what's the point?

ODD-BALL. You'd probably have the guy spend good money upgrading his CPU/mobo and keep his card and when he comes to play BF2 he'll be stuck at EXACTLY the same settings as he was before and you'll be there slapping his back saying at least you got PCI-e. Isn't that cool? But it's exactly the same he'll say. No no you got PCI-e man it raaawks!!!! But I spent loads of money and it's just EXACTLY the same. Yeah but dude you got PCI-e!!!!! w00t.

Oh and by the way if he already has an AGP board and if he keeps his card and does the mobo he'll STILL have to get another AGP board anyway so if anyone told him to get a new CPU/mobo they're actually telling him to get AGP anyway.

Just don't read well enough do you.

[Shamus]

Re: What to do - Upgrade processor & Mobo or Graphics Card?

Umm, ChopperKill, with all due respect, I am afraid it is you that failed to read throughly. No one here has suggested that he replace the mobo and CPU as you stated several times. We have each recommended that he consider the upgrade potential of a PCI-E based system including a video card as well.

It is true that AGP still has some good life left in it as far as performance is concerned. But that performance can't be had if manufacturers stop making high-end components based upon the AGP specification. Even the ATI AGP based high end cards are using a PCI-E to AGP conversion because of the native PCI-E support in the GPUs.

I would like to agree with some of your other comments but you don't strike me as being a very agreeable person.