GAming question

[Variol]

I mostly use my PC for gaming. I was wondering what can do to maximize performance? I try to keep it pretty clean. Is there some software that will help that? I know there used to be, in the old days.

 

[TimeParadoX]

What is your current system specs? If you have a Crap computer with a old videocard or low ram then you might have to upgrade abit Also.. if you want to upgrade to maximum performance I recommend building your own computer which is what im doing at the moment... A decently built computer can cost about $600-700 if you buy the parts from www.Newegg.com

 

[Variol]

The specs are actually pretty good, considering it's about 3 years old:

AMD 2500+ Barton
1gig ram
128meg video ATI 9200
100gig SATA HDD
ABIT KV7 mother board

 

[mailpup]

Consider upgrading your graphics card. It isn't even supported by ATI's recent drivers any longer. As such, at least some new games don't support that card either.

 

[TimeParadoX]

Yeah the 9200 series sortof died out awhile back, I had a 9250 test card for WoW to see if it can preform any and it only raised my avg. FPS ( frames per second ) to about 20-30 with medium qaulity with World of Warcraft and about 10-15 FPS on Doom3 with high qaulity...

I recommend getting a new videocard, do you have AGP or PCI? if PCI get a nVidia 6200 and I dont know for AGP because I never had AGP slot befor..

the nVidia 6200 is probably the best PCI card out there and it gives me about 40-50 avg. FPS on World of Warcraft on high which amazingly good..

 

[Variol]

It is an AGP motherboard. I think they're hard to get these days.

 

[Variol]

What about these?

ATI RADEON PowerColor X700, 256MB AGP Video Card

3D Fuzion GeForce FX 5500 256MB AGP Graphics Card

They're both on staples.ca website. I have a credit there I'd like to use.

 

[TimeParadoX]

Stay away from the 5500s...

get this http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16814130262

It's a good AGP card if you asked me... But I read the specs and the pipelines and the shaders are pretty updated...


Oh also, Depending on what gaming you do is how you choose videocards
FPS ( 1st person shooter ) - Get a pretty good videocard that has a high clock speed + good ram so you dont lag out and get "Headshot!" =P

RTS ( real time stradegy ) - These games dont really need High-end videocards unles you are playing one of the newer ones like Company of Heros and stuff but good ram ( atleast 1gig ) will be perfect

MMORPGS ( massive multiplayer online role-playing games ) - Most MMOs these days like WoW need a decent videocard and decent ram ( atleast 512mb, I got that and I play WoW pretty good but I lag alot in major cities )


The videocard I linked above should be able to cover all these game types I talked about, Hope I helped any =)

 

[Variol]

They have the X700 at Staples for $99.97 on clearance. I play almost all turn-based RPG's and turn-based strategy games, which are usually not too demanding. Heroes 5 just has too much crap in it.

I also overclocked the CPU from 2500 to 3200. The game crashed twice since. Is it due to the over clocking?

 

[mailpup]

When you overclock, you should monitor your CPU temperatures. If you don't or don't have a means to do so, you risk frying the CPU. As you may know, when you overclock, you should seriously consider aftermarket cooling. You didn't mention what your cooling solution was.

 

[Variol]

I don't know what it us but I set it back anyway. I couldn't really see a difference. If I bump it up later, I'll get a good cooling fan.

I decided to purchase the ATI X700 card. What would be the best way to install it given that I'm replacing an old card?

 

[Sharkfood]

Can you spend a couple extra bucks? If so, this would be a much, much better buy:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16814195027

It has 8 pipes like the X700, but a 256-bit memory interface. It's a good AGP card and a steal at that price.

 

[Mictlantecuhtli]

I thought the original question was about software. We have all kinds of guides here.

 

[Variol]

Well, I didn't get an answer about software, so I went to hardware. I'm really pissed BTW. My wife just brought the card home and it's used! The box was already opened and there's even hair on the tape that holds the ESD bag closed! I can't believe Staples would do that,

 

[Variol]

Can you spend a couple extra bucks? If so, this would be a much, much better buy:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16814195027

It has 8 pipes like the X700, but a 256-bit memory interface. It's a good AGP card and a steal at that price.

What's the deal? Everyone else's price 200-300+ dollars?

 

[TimeParadoX]

Actualy.. Sharkfood is right, that card is very good and saves alot of money for the specs it has.. also I would follow what Sharkfood says because he is always right when it comes to Videocards and all that stuff.

 

[satchmo]

I would get a Radeon 9800 Pro myself.

It's cheap now, and it's still good.

 

[Variol]

I'm not questioning the card, I'm questioning why this place can sell it for less than half of everyone else's price.

 

[Variol]

Hmm, everybody got so quiet with that question.

The other thing is how does it connect to my monitor? I have a 19" Viewsonic CRT. Does it connect through the DVI or just the regular monitor port? And will it affect the quality?

 

[mailpup]

Your CRT probably has a D-sub connector rather than a DVI connector so that's the one you would use to connect to the card. That is, D-sub to D-sub. DVI would be a better quality connection if your monitor had it.

I'm not questioning the card, I'm questioning why this place can sell it for less than half of everyone else's price.

Perhaps they got a good deal from the manufacturer but unless one of us works for Newegg, how could we know for sure? Your guess would be as good as ours.

 

[Variol]

Well, I figured, if someone is recommending the site, they must know why their prices are so good. Makes sense, right? I do have a 19" LCD I use for work. I could use that one instead. What does a DVI cable run for?

Can you spend a couple extra bucks? If so, this would be a much, much better buy:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16814195027

It has 8 pipes like the X700, but a 256-bit memory interface. It's a good AGP card and a steal at that price.

Looks like they don't like selling to us Canadians.

 

[Cpt_Subtext]

When I upgraded my now dead machine, from a Radeon 9600 Pro I went for the XFX Geforce 6600FX which in comparasion was amasing and since then it has come down in price a bit since then... the only draw back to this card was the sheer amount of power it consumed... with a 550w PSU I had to disable a few of my fans and disconnect my back up DVD-RW before it would work.

 

[Variol]

My wife is in Maine this weekend doing some shopping. I'll have her look for the 9800pro. Has anyone seen any other cards advertised for a good price for her to keep an eye out for?

 

[Variol]

I found the X700 Pro online for about $102cdn. Will my other hardware still be good for a while, or am I being stupid putting a new video card in a 3 year old PC?

I just checked the shipping and it's $33 and that's within Canada. Can you say rip-off boys and girls?

AMD athlon 2500+ Barton
1 gig ram
ABIT KV7 MB

 

[Variol]

I was just at Staples yesterday and saw the geforce 6200oc for $139.95 after $30 instant and $30 mail-in-rebate. I also get 10%. Would it be worth while?