Advice needed <3

nugg0r

nugg0r

nugg0r

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Joined
23 Oct 2009
Posts
79
Afternoon!

Having purchased a system from overclockers 18 month ago, with all the new games that are around the corner like battlefield 3 and SWTOR. i am thinking i may need to upgrade a bit for these new titles, it may play them ok not really sure but have been looking around the web for info and i seem over the minimal requirements but obviously want a decent experience..

As i cant afford to buy a new machine and want to play these at a decent non annoying speed on my pc, i was wondering if anyone could advise me on anything i may be able to upgrade/replace for a decent price as im not sure that this machine will be able to keep up woth the new titles mentioned.

as this is now and older machine i cant find it on the site for the specs but i do know its got these..

AMD Athlon II X2 Dual Core 250 3.00GHz
RADEON 5770HD dx11 video card
4Gb memory

thanks for any help

nugg0r
 
Hi and welcome.

A few little things for you to do before anything can proceed.


Can you look at the motherboard and find the make and model number printed on the PCB (usually around the top slot)

Also while the case is open can you make a note of the PSU maker and model number?

And your budget for the upgrades?
 
Hi there,

May I ask what make and model number motherboard and PSU you are using? (running CPU-Z and going into the mainboard tab should help here).

As for the games you mention, the CPU actually seems to do OK in BF3 at least (see here), though the HD 5770 may be a bit on the slow side (depending on your resolution).

I would suggest trying out the free battlefield 3 open beta and see how your system performs in its current configuration (I think today is the last day you can try the beta).

Assuming your motherboard supports Phenom II X4 CPUs, then upgrading to something like this would be a good option if you want more CPU power (plus it comes with a nice game).

As for graphics, then assuming your PSU is up to it then something like this would be a nice upgrade.
 
Hiya and thanks for the replys,

I downloaded the little program CPU-Z, wish i had seen that before now! thanks

i have found..
Mainboard Model ASus M2N68-AM SE2 pci express
Radeon HD 5770 on 22" @ 1680 1050 res

i cant seem to find the PSU though but trying to think back im sure it was only 450/550... cant remember now was a while ago..

I am thinking of trying to get a better CPU and video card probably £250 for both if possible till i can afford a new machine next year..

thanks

ps the machine bought was a "Titan Nero" AMD Athlon II X2 Dual Core 250 3.00GHz DDR2 System
 
There will be a label on the psu, a program wont help you find out what it is, you need to physically look.
 
http://www.asus.com/Motherboards/AMD_AM2Plus/M2N68AM/#CPUS

That should be the CPU support list for your board.

A PhenomII X4 955BE is listed, but one version needs a certain revision of the PCB.

Phenom IIX4 955 (HDX955FBK4DGI),3.2GHz,125W,rev.C2,SocketAM3,Quad-Core 2.00G 0504

Phenom IIX4 955 (HDZ955FBK4DGM),3.2GHz,125W,rev.C3,SocketAM3,Quad-Core ALL 0603
Click to expand...

The last four digits are the BIOS version that has supported it since.
 
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Looking at this page your motherboard does support 125W quad cores like the Phenom II X4 955BE, you just need to update the BIOS first. If you want to increase your CPU speed then going down this road and buying this would be the best bang-for-buck.

Edit: As Stulid points out, it seems that you need a PCB version "2.00G" for the newer C3 revision Phenom II CPUs to work. Does it say anything like this on the CPU-Z tab or on the board itself?

With a budget of £250 total - then you could afford the Phenom II X4 955BE and this graphics card (depending on if you existing PSU is up to it) - which will give you a nice performance boost.
 
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Thanks guys, my PSU is only 400w though... which is a bit dull and im unsure if those 2 new components will have enough to run!

they look the part for what im after, considering what you guys have said i maybe better off trying to blag enough for a new mobo and psu as well? but then do i need new memory? or should i just then save up for a whole new thing?!?! ARRRRGHH lol
 
What is the make of the PSU, it could be a Corsair CX400? which is a scaled down version of god.

Look at the motherboard, can you see anywhere near the RAM slots/around the expansion card slots thats might say Ver2.0/Rev2.0 etc?
 
Looking at this image (a photo of a M2N68-AM PLUS) the PCB revision number should be mentioned to the right of the board model name/number - which is just above the blue PCI-E slot (in the above photo it says it is "REV. 2.01G").
 
Well the PSU is a Corsair CX 400W ATX Power Supply

I have just had a look inside the case and cant make out anything along the version numbers you mentioned, but on the CPU-Z it just says Rev X.0x.. for some reason :/

I'll have to have a better look later, not easy to do on my own on four wheels!

cheers lads
 
Ah, if you have a Corsair CX 400W then that does change things - that one is no ordinary 400W PSU.

With that PSU you should be OK with a quad core CPU and a GTX 560 Ti.
 
Well that PSU is epic, and I see no reason why it cant power a ATI 6850/6870 or GTX460

So if your board does take a 955BE or you get sent a C2 stepping version of it.


Your basketProduct Name Qty Price Line Total
HIS ATI Radeon HD 6870 1024MB GDDR5 PCI-Express Graphics Card with DIRT3 & Deus Ex PC Games £131.99
(£109.99) £131.99
(£109.99)
AMD Phenom II X4 Quad Core 955 Black Edition "125W Edition" 3.20GHz (Socket AM3) - Retail with FREE Deus Ex PC Game £79.99
(£66.66) £79.99
(£66.66)
Sub Total : £176.65
Shipping cost assumes delivery to UK Mainland with:
DPD Next Day Parcel
(This can be changed during checkout) Shipping : £9.50
VAT is being charged at 20.00% VAT : £37.23
Total : £223.38
 
Ahh Brillant thanks,

So i can get both those items delivered for £223 thats great, thanks for your help.
Just one thing back to the version numbers on the mobo, to run the AMD Phenom II X4 Quad Core 955 Black Edition "125W Edition" 3.20GHz (Socket AM3) i need to make sure my mobo has the Ver2.0/Rev2.0 writing on it like the picture and then will need a new bios?

cheers
 
nugg0r said:
Ahh Brillant thanks,

So i can get both those items delivered for £223 thats great, thanks for your help.
Just one thing back to the version numbers on the mobo, to run the AMD Phenom II X4 Quad Core 955 Black Edition "125W Edition" 3.20GHz (Socket AM3) i need to make sure my mobo has the Ver2.0/Rev2.0 writing on it like the picture and then will need a new bios?

cheers
Click to expand...

It depends what version of the CPU you get, there shouldnt be any C2 steppings left, but you never know?

If you can insure the PCB is a v2.0 then you are fine either way.

Flash the BIOS and away you go.
 
nugg0r said:
Just one thing back to the version numbers on the mobo, to run the AMD Phenom II X4 Quad Core 955 Black Edition "125W Edition" 3.20GHz (Socket AM3) i need to make sure my mobo has the Ver2.0/Rev2.0 writing on it like the picture and then will need a new bios?
Click to expand...

Yes, that's it. It will hopefully say "REV. 2.00" or a higher number.

If it's a lower number then you could always look for a second-hand C2 revision Phenom II X4 955BE.

To install a new BIOS, have a look in the motherboard manual (there is a digital version here) and go through the process of updating the BIOS using the EZ Flash 2 utility. I would suggest going for the 0603 BIOS version.
 
Hey Stulid or cmndr andi, would you be able to help me just a little bit more please?

My brother came round to help me and as he had just reinstalled windows and the the drivers etc for me, he checked the motherboard ones you were talking about and he has found the BIOS details, the version is V02.61. is this still ok for what you helped me with ?

thank you
 
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