Currently,
p4 2ghz
512 ram Pc133
Geforce mx2 400
- Upgrading to
1gig pc2700
Saphire 9600XT, 128mb.
- $186 CAD. ^^;;
Good computer upgrade?
Moderator: Moderators
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Drone_Fragger
- Posts: 1341
- Joined: 04 Dec 2005, 15:49
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Foxomaniac
- Posts: 691
- Joined: 18 Jan 2006, 16:59
ATI works but it is in no way the best option.
For example numerous graphical features of the new sm3 map format where not implemented because ATI has terrible OpenGL support. OpenGL under ATI doesnt run as fast as directX and thus 2 equivilant cards from nvidia and ATI, nvidia will win by a longway on an OpenGL game in most cases.
ATI also has poor linux drivers, soemthign AMD is attempting look at.
The dynamic water also works only on nvidia cards because ATI cards lack the necessary support, and the vast majority of ATI cards wont display shadows on maps bigger than 32x32.
ATI cards are designed to run DirectX graphics as fast as they can. Unlike nvidia cards they compromise in order to do this, whereas nvidia supports as much as it can, hence why nvidia OpenGL support is so good.
For example numerous graphical features of the new sm3 map format where not implemented because ATI has terrible OpenGL support. OpenGL under ATI doesnt run as fast as directX and thus 2 equivilant cards from nvidia and ATI, nvidia will win by a longway on an OpenGL game in most cases.
ATI also has poor linux drivers, soemthign AMD is attempting look at.
The dynamic water also works only on nvidia cards because ATI cards lack the necessary support, and the vast majority of ATI cards wont display shadows on maps bigger than 32x32.
ATI cards are designed to run DirectX graphics as fast as they can. Unlike nvidia cards they compromise in order to do this, whereas nvidia supports as much as it can, hence why nvidia OpenGL support is so good.
Hmm maybe i didnt point out my specific needs on this old computer.
1. Its 4 years old, its pretty much useless.
2. Its for light casual gaming, and just a speed improvement on games i already play.
o.O; And those are canadian prices btw o.O; And i havent bought anything. I will get the card this tuesday, and probably the ram later on the month.
Cause its such an old computer, this seems to be the best 200 CANADIAN, improvement.
1. Its 4 years old, its pretty much useless.
2. Its for light casual gaming, and just a speed improvement on games i already play.
o.O; And those are canadian prices btw o.O; And i havent bought anything. I will get the card this tuesday, and probably the ram later on the month.
Cause its such an old computer, this seems to be the best 200 CANADIAN, improvement.
o.O; kaye, point me to the 200 dollar mobo + super graphics card + mobo + quad core katensfield o.OCaydr wrote:If you're going to upgrade your graphics card, I'd recommend a sapphire x1600. It's a good card at a very good price. Hold out until the 32x PCI-E and quad-core motherboards appear before a major upgrade.
X1600 has SM3, allowing dynamic water (AFAIK) and improved performance in many modern games.
Try nvidia cards, from what Ive seen they seem to be cheaper.
And if 2700 is all your mobo can support...Fine, but you should get a much better price then that.
I reccomend:
http://www.tigerdirect.ca/indexca.asp (Nice prices, but bad aftercharges)
http://www.vibecomputers.com/ (Good store, could have a better selection though)
http://www.pricegrabber.ca/ (If you wanna get the best price...
)
And if 2700 is all your mobo can support...Fine, but you should get a much better price then that.
I reccomend:
http://www.tigerdirect.ca/indexca.asp (Nice prices, but bad aftercharges)
http://www.vibecomputers.com/ (Good store, could have a better selection though)
http://www.pricegrabber.ca/ (If you wanna get the best price...
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Drone_Fragger
- Posts: 1341
- Joined: 04 Dec 2005, 15:49
Nope. Dynamic water dunt run on my X1600. Although, That may be the fault of ATis Drivers nmot telling me if I have the right version or not :OCaydr wrote:If you're going to upgrade your graphics card, I'd recommend a sapphire x1600. It's a good card at a very good price. Hold out until the 32x PCI-E and quad-core motherboards appear before a major upgrade.
X1600 has SM3, allowing dynamic water (AFAIK) and improved performance in many modern games.
I'll be running this game on low, san andres on medium, age of empires wiht maybe medium particle +Drone_Fragger wrote:Nope. Dynamic water dunt run on my X1600. Although, That may be the fault of ATis Drivers nmot telling me if I have the right version or not :OCaydr wrote:If you're going to upgrade your graphics card, I'd recommend a sapphire x1600. It's a good card at a very good price. Hold out until the 32x PCI-E and quad-core motherboards appear before a major upgrade.
X1600 has SM3, allowing dynamic water (AFAIK) and improved performance in many modern games.
I offer the following about replacing your CPU. You can easily, stably overclock a dual-core Intel Pentium D 805 / 2.66GHz / revision B0 / 64-bit / Socket 775 to above 4.0 GHz, which today costs around $100 USD. Of course, over clocking that particular processor above the 4 GHz barrier requires a liquid cooler of around $100 to 200 USD to achieve stability or control overheating. You can however stability overclock to around 3.6 GHz to 3.8 GHz with a good $50 heat pipe based cooler with fan(s), and it would equal most processors in power that cost around $750+ USD.
You would need at least a good motherboard that can manage such support for the Intel Pentium D 805, which should cost around $100 to $200 USD. If you need a list of specific motherboards from various manufacturers, I will do so, but a lot of the newest Asus Intel motherboards should support this processor and it├óÔé¼Ôäós over clocking.
The new motherboard would also open up your options for video cards (PCI-E x16 capable) and memory, well, that is if you are willing to save up a few hundred dollars. You don├óÔé¼Ôäót have to take this information to heart; it├óÔé¼Ôäós a cheap and reasonable upgrade recommendation, which you don├óÔé¼Ôäót have to agree with. It is about the best bang for your buck presently and offers a lot of upgrade potential without having to make major replacements over the years.
You would need at least a good motherboard that can manage such support for the Intel Pentium D 805, which should cost around $100 to $200 USD. If you need a list of specific motherboards from various manufacturers, I will do so, but a lot of the newest Asus Intel motherboards should support this processor and it├óÔé¼Ôäós over clocking.
The new motherboard would also open up your options for video cards (PCI-E x16 capable) and memory, well, that is if you are willing to save up a few hundred dollars. You don├óÔé¼Ôäót have to take this information to heart; it├óÔé¼Ôäós a cheap and reasonable upgrade recommendation, which you don├óÔé¼Ôäót have to agree with. It is about the best bang for your buck presently and offers a lot of upgrade potential without having to make major replacements over the years.