Buying a New Video card

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mailpup said:
The CPU socket is right but you might want to upgrade your RAM. Your old mobo at best supported 184-pin DDR DIMM socket, DDR266/200 DDR SDRAM. The new mobo will support DDR 400 (PC 3200) so you'll want to take advantage of that.

Also, in looking at your profile I saw that you currently have 256MB RAM. The minimum requirement for BF2 is 512MB RAM with 1GB recommended.

ok i got it, i forgot to add in my system specs that i have a pc2700 512 mb ram, sorry bout that so in total i have about 768???
 
so its just the motherboard i need to change?and will the new mobo support the video card, you sent me in a link?? And will all my other things work with eachother?
 
I am actually NOT recommending you change your motherboard. With your budget, it doesn't make sense to me to do so.

And I am still not convinced that your 2.4 cpu MUST run at 1.8 assuming that you have provided the correct info on your motherboard.

I think with your budget, your best bet is to keep your current motherboard, do everything you can to get that CPU running at 2.4, and then upgrade your video card ONLY. You don't have the cash to do much else at this point, and I think this path would give you the best boost in your gaming.
 
If you have like $360, I recomend buying a low-end dell, and then upgrading the video card. It's pretty cheap, and dell's are some of the best premade computers out there. If you don't have the cash, I recomend what Don said. Good Luck!
 
Here we go. You need to change some jumpers on your motherboard to move up to a FSB of 133 (currently you are set to only 100)

Here is your motherboard's manual:
http://www.ecs.com.tw/ECSWeb/Produc...nuID=16&LanID=0&DetailID=51&DetailName=Manual

Have a look at the pages about jumper settings. There are diagrams showing you where they are, and how you have to set them. After you do this, your CPU will run at 2.4Ghz.

For 133 FSB:
JP1A1 - Short 2-3
JP1B1 - Short 1-2

For DDR RAM:
JP1 - Open
J2A/B/C/D - Short
J3A/B/C/D - Short

So the next question is, what speed ram do you have in there?
 
ok i have switched the jumpers before but when i try to start up the screen stays black????? i really dont know what the spped o ram is but 1 is a 512 pc 2700 and the other is 256mb pc 2300, i have tried switching jumpers withought the 512 but same thing happens.?? :dead: :dead:
 
Your motherboard supports PC2100 ram at best. All that ram you have in there is not really made for your motherboard, and probably explains why you are not able to boot up when you switch to a 133FSB.

Use that CPU-z program to find out EXACTLY what your ram speed is. There is no such thing as PC2300 ram. Do you mean 3200?
 
ok ill try that, but jp1 is open but how do i change the other two? it looks like i cant move anything there?
 
You don't have the jumpers for it?

Look at this picture. It is not your motherboard, so yours probably looks different, but it'll illustrate what you need to do anyways.

z_000744jumpers.jpg


The two pins in the middle have the jumper on them. This is what your manual means when it says "short". It means to put the jumper on. The two sets on the outside are both "open" which means "no jumper".

If you don't have the jumpers, you'll need to buy some. They are usually "universal" and you can buy them from any computer parts store for a few cents.
 
Also, please use that CPUz program to find out your ram speeds. This will be very important. You may need to buy new ram. Hopefully once you change the jumpers to DDR this'll fix you up though.

You mention above that you have a "512 pc 2700 and the other is 256mb pc 2300".

There is no such thing as 2300 ram... is it 3200 or 2100?
 
ok im looking inside the memory tab in cpuz What is the speed under? the frequency is 100??? is that it?
 
ok should the 2 other jumpers all be coverd or all be open?? with no jumper on top of them>>>????? right now all jumpers are cover with litle plastic peices?
 
akaivan said:
ok im looking at the ram slot 1 and it sais my 256 mb ram is pc2300 142 mhz???

Where are you looking to get these numbers? Run CPUz and get the info from there. Post a screenshot if you can.
 
GUESS WHAT!!!! I FIXED IT LOL. OK the memory works fine with the 2.4 too, i didnt touch a thing of memery but what i did is switch jp1 to the 133 mhz and then i took the cmos batterie jumper off and started the computer. then it shut down itself so i put the jumper back on but switched sides. and i turned on again and nuthing so i put back to normal and now it works on 2.4!!!! Thanks for all your help, but how do i make sure it runs on 2.4 cpuz says it does so im thinking its good. Now next video card, what should i choose to go with my agp 4x??? And how will i know if my psu will power it? Is there a program were i can test if i have any power leftover? :angel:
 
Great news! Glad to hear you got yourself up to 2.4Ghz. If CPU-z says you are at 2.4, then you can trust it. You're done!

Next, open up your case, and look at the sticker that is stuck to your PSU. Can you tell me what it says? Specifically, who is the maker, and most importantly, how many amps is it putting out on the +12v?

Next, go here and see how your computer feels about having a 9800pro or a 6600GT (agp) in it:
http://www.extreme.outervision.com/
 
I'm worried about your PSU handling a new graphics card, to tell the truth.

You have a wooping 10amps on the 12v rail. :dead:

Unfortunately, the only way to tell is to buy a graphics card, and give it a shot. If you find that it isn't running properly, the problem is your PSU.

You can get a good psu these days for very cheap though. For example, this one here is $37 and has over 30amps on the (dual) 12v rails:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16817104952
 
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