X800 XL.........X1950 PRO

[Mercedes-Benz]

Folks,

would I be better getting a new system, or Should I upgrade my card from X800XL to an X1950 PRO ( when it comes out!)

Display adapter ATI RADEON X800 XL AGP (0x554D)
Core Name R430

Clock Information
BIOS VPU 400.00
Current VPU 398.25
BIOS MEM 490.00
Current MEM 492.75


My system specs are..

Amd XP3200 (BARTON)
1.5 G 3200 DDR 400 MEM
ATI X800XL (specs above)
ASUS A7N8XE Deluxe mobo
XP PRO
500WT PSU
IIYAMA 21" CRT

I only want to get better quality FPS on flight sims etc.
(Lomac +MS FS X ) and am wondering if my cpu which I cant upgrade anymore might be a bottleneck!

Any help/comments are welcome.

many thanks

 

[div0]

I'd stick with what you've got and consider a full upgrade when you can afford it.

AGP cards are a rip-off compared to PCI-E.

Besides, I'm pretty sure your CPU will bottleneck a 1950pro, depending on the game and settings that you use.

 

[Darkwave]

Were I in your shoes (and I have been) I would just wait a while and save up for a new motherboard, processor and 2GB memory. The system you have now is still easily capable in most games and upgrading to an X1950Pro AGP would be very beneficial in the short-term, but in the long-term it's not really a good idea as there are games coming out even now that demand much more processing power and memory.

 

[Mercedes-Benz]

I'd stick with what you've got and consider a full upgrade when you can afford it.

AGP cards are a rip-off compared to PCI-E.

Besides, I'm pretty sure your CPU will bottleneck a 1950pro, depending on the game and settings that you use.

Ok thanks sir, I needed a competent second opinion.
Also I need to convince my wife.... ( flowers should ease the pain on the bank balance !!)

I was thinking of this system

Key Features:

Intel Core™ 2 Duo base unit
Genuine Windows® XP Media Center
Free Upgrade to Vista Home Premium
Intel® Core™ 2 Duo E6600 Processor
(2.40GHz ,4MB L2 Cache, 1066MHz)
ASUS PCIe Mainboard - nForce 4 SLI Deluxe
1024MB DDR2 533Mhz Memory
300GB Serial ATA Hard Drive
256MB nVIDIA Geforce 7600GT Graphics
Sony 18x Super Format DVD Writer
7.1 Channel Surround Sound Audio
10x USB, 2x Firewire, GB LAN

£750

Should I get a better video card or will it (256MB nVIDIA Geforce 7600GT ) do ?


thanks again for your help sir

 

[Mercedes-Benz]

Were I in your shoes (and I have been) I would just wait a while and save up for a new motherboard, processor and 2GB memory. The system you have now is still easily capable in most games and upgrading to an X1950Pro AGP would be very beneficial in the short-term, but in the long-term it's not really a good idea as there are games coming out even now that demand much more processing power and memory.

Thanks sir,

I bought MS Flt sim X and I struggled to run it on medium settings on my system.

Such is life...

thanks

 

[Calum]

Get rid of the competitor!

 

[Darkwave]

A 7600GT would be fine, but if your budget allows for it then something with a bit more bang wouldn't hurt.

 

[melbourne720]

Intel Core™ 2 Duo base unit
Genuine Windows® XP Media Center
Free Upgrade to Vista Home Premium
Intel® Core™ 2 Duo E6600 Processor
(2.40GHz ,4MB L2 Cache, 1066MHz)
ASUS PCIe Mainboard - nForce 4 SLI Deluxe
1024MB DDR2 533Mhz Memory
300GB Serial ATA Hard Drive
256MB nVIDIA Geforce 7600GT Graphics
Sony 18x Super Format DVD Writer
7.1 Channel Surround Sound Audio
10x USB, 2x Firewire, GB LAN

That motherboard doesn't look right for that system, can you get a nforce4 mobo for conroe? Methinks not.

That RAM looks a bit cheap.

If your going to the trouble of a conroe build, you'll want something more powerful than a 7600 GT in there. X1900XT or a 7900 series chip would make the most of the rest of the components, particularly as the gfx card is the limiting factor in most systems. I'd drop down to a 6300 and spend more on the gfx card.

I think OCuk do better builds for the money

 

[Raikiri]

Build it yourself IMO, you really won't regret it.


Arctic Cooling Freezer 7 Pro CPU Cooler (Socket 775) Arctic Cooling Freezer 7 Pro CPU Cooler (Socket 775) £13.99
(£16.44) £13.99
(£16.44)
Lian-Li PC-7 PLUS Black Aluminium Midi-Tower Case (No PSU) Lian-Li PC-7 PLUS Black Aluminium Midi-Tower Case (No PSU) £48.99
(£57.56) £48.99
(£57.56)
Intel Core 2 DUO E6400 "LGA775 Allendale" 2.13GHz (1066FSB) - Retail Intel Core 2 DUO E6400 "LGA775 Allendale" 2.13GHz (1066FSB) - Retail £124.99
(£146.86) £124.99
(£146.86)
Gigabyte GA_965P_S3 (Socket 775) PCI-Express DDR2 Motherboard Gigabyte GA_965P_S3 (Socket 775) PCI-Express DDR2 Motherboard £74.99
(£88.11) £74.99
(£88.11)
GeIL 2GB (2x1GB) PC5300 667MHz Value DDR2 Dual Channel Kit (GX22GB5300DC) GeIL 2GB (2x1GB) PC5300 667MHz Value DDR2 Dual Channel Kit (GX22GB5300DC) £129.99
(£152.74) £129.99
(£152.74)
Sapphire ATI Radeon X1950 Pro 256MB GDDR3 HDTV/Dual DVI (PCI-Express) - Retail Sapphire ATI Radeon X1950 Pro 256MB GDDR3 HDTV/Dual DVI (PCI-Express) - Retail £114.99
(£135.11) £114.99
(£135.11)
Samsung SpinPoint P SP2504C 250GB SATA-II 8MB Cache - OEM Samsung SpinPoint P SP2504C 250GB SATA-II 8MB Cache - OEM £44.99
(£52.86) £44.99
(£52.86)
Samsung SH-W183 18x18 DVD±RW Serial ATA Dual Layer ReWriter (Black) - OEM Samsung SH-W183 18x18 DVD±RW Serial ATA Dual Layer ReWriter (Black) - OEM £19.99
(£23.49) £19.99
(£23.49)
Akasa Ultra Quiet 500W Paxpower Active PFC ATX2.2 PSU - Black Nickel Akasa Ultra Quiet 500W Paxpower Active PFC ATX2.2 PSU - Black Nickel £49.99
(£58.74) £49.99
(£58.74)
Sub Total : £622.91
Shipping cost assumes delivery to UK Mainland with:
City Link Parcel Next Day (Delivered Mon-Fri)
(This can be changed during checkout) Shipping : £10.95
Vat : £110.93
Total : £744.79

Better overclocking board, 2GB of better RAM, no doubt a better PSU, better graphics etc. If you need windows in there Home can be had for around £50 making it £45 more. But you get a lot for your £45.

CPU is slightly worse but with the mobo/ram combo overclocking to faster than the 6600 will be very easy to do.

 

[melbourne720]

That looks a good spec, I'd change the 6400 for a 6300, and the S3 for a DS3, but otherwise perfect

 

[Mercedes-Benz]

Build it yourself IMO, you really won't regret it.


Arctic Cooling Freezer 7 Pro CPU Cooler (Socket 775) Arctic Cooling Freezer 7 Pro CPU Cooler (Socket 775) £13.99
(£16.44) £13.99
(£16.44)
Lian-Li PC-7 PLUS Black Aluminium Midi-Tower Case (No PSU) Lian-Li PC-7 PLUS Black Aluminium Midi-Tower Case (No PSU) £48.99
(£57.56) £48.99
(£57.56)
Intel Core 2 DUO E6400 "LGA775 Allendale" 2.13GHz (1066FSB) - Retail Intel Core 2 DUO E6400 "LGA775 Allendale" 2.13GHz (1066FSB) - Retail £124.99
(£146.86) £124.99
(£146.86)
Gigabyte GA_965P_S3 (Socket 775) PCI-Express DDR2 Motherboard Gigabyte GA_965P_S3 (Socket 775) PCI-Express DDR2 Motherboard £74.99
(£88.11) £74.99
(£88.11)
GeIL 2GB (2x1GB) PC5300 667MHz Value DDR2 Dual Channel Kit (GX22GB5300DC) GeIL 2GB (2x1GB) PC5300 667MHz Value DDR2 Dual Channel Kit (GX22GB5300DC) £129.99
(£152.74) £129.99
(£152.74)
Sapphire ATI Radeon X1950 Pro 256MB GDDR3 HDTV/Dual DVI (PCI-Express) - Retail Sapphire ATI Radeon X1950 Pro 256MB GDDR3 HDTV/Dual DVI (PCI-Express) - Retail £114.99
(£135.11) £114.99
(£135.11)
Samsung SpinPoint P SP2504C 250GB SATA-II 8MB Cache - OEM Samsung SpinPoint P SP2504C 250GB SATA-II 8MB Cache - OEM £44.99
(£52.86) £44.99
(£52.86)
Samsung SH-W183 18x18 DVD±RW Serial ATA Dual Layer ReWriter (Black) - OEM Samsung SH-W183 18x18 DVD±RW Serial ATA Dual Layer ReWriter (Black) - OEM £19.99
(£23.49) £19.99
(£23.49)
Akasa Ultra Quiet 500W Paxpower Active PFC ATX2.2 PSU - Black Nickel Akasa Ultra Quiet 500W Paxpower Active PFC ATX2.2 PSU - Black Nickel £49.99
(£58.74) £49.99
(£58.74)
Sub Total : £622.91
Shipping cost assumes delivery to UK Mainland with:
City Link Parcel Next Day (Delivered Mon-Fri)
(This can be changed during checkout) Shipping : £10.95
Vat : £110.93
Total : £744.79

Better overclocking board, 2GB of better RAM, no doubt a better PSU, better graphics etc. If you need windows in there Home can be had for around £50 making it £45 more. But you get a lot for your £45.

CPU is slightly worse but with the mobo/ram combo overclocking to faster than the 6600 will be very easy to do.

Amazing stuff, many thanks, can I get it all from overclockers?

 

[Raikiri]

Yep, all the prices are from here

 

[Gashman]

looks like a good system

 

[Jonny L]

It would serve you well, much better value than any prebuilt system you can buy.

 

[Mercedes-Benz]

Yep, all the prices are from here

Is there an on board sound card, if not which one do you reccommend ?

thanks

 

[Gashman]

all boards have onboard sound these days i believe