need help upgrading pc

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ok heres the deal, im desperate for better graphics/overall performance in BF2 im currently running it all at medium with lighting, etc at off or low pretty choppy inconsistent framerate. id love to see it at max settings and i dont want to spend more than $200 or maybe even $250 to do it (ill be buying a new pc this summer but id like to postpone that for as long as i can).

this is what im running:
Compaq Presario S6200CL

AMD Athlon XP 2800 (2.08ghz)
512MB RAM
Geforce fx 5700 256mb
Bestec ATX-250-12V REV (250W) powersupply

have another stick of 512 but for some odd reason pc crashes after i install it. for my video card it would NEED to be an agp

thanks for the help
 
First off Hello and welcome to techspot.

I have racked alot of hours playing BF2, and I am going to be honest you really need to increase your RAM, as well as your Video Card

I say

Stick in another 512 of RAM, like this

and get a video card as well like this

It will bring you under the 250 mark, and will really run BF2 alot better. You could even get a cheaper video card, say a 7600 or even a older x850 and still see a major increase in performance.

But BF2 loves RAM so I say a Gig is crucial.

Sean
 
thanks for the help

so is my power supply ok? ive heard a few things about psu being destroyed on new gfx cards. but if i do need a new psu i have no idea which to get as there are so many mixed reviews on their reliability.
 
I seemed to have looked over the bottlenecking. Good Call.

Now I am a very big supporter of getting a good power supply. Cheap power supplies can cause problems, both with inadequate amperage and reliability.

500 Watts is a good medium for buying PSUs. It will leave you room to grow. You could probably get by with less but I dont recommend it. Newegg is running a sale on Antecs right now. Here is one I have used in the past, that is on sale

But any other major brand will work, just dont skimp out with a cheapie.

AS far as the ram goes, it would be better if you could match up the exact brand to avoid problems. Mismatched sticks dont cause trouble frequently but they can.
 
yourbff said:
do you have any recommendations on a card that wont be hampered by my cpu? right now im leaning towards a 7600GT

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814150185

will i need ram of the same brand or just the stats you provided? and where a PSU would come in, do you have any specific recommendations for my rig?

That card is a PCI-express and your motherboard will only handle AGP cards. It probably will take time but rather than putting money into your current rig, with the exception possibly of another 512 megs of RAM, I would seriously consider saving up and getting a new PC all together.
Your current rig can't go beyond 1 Gig of RAM and conventional wisdom is 2 gigs for gaming, though 1 gig can still suffice for many.

Newer cards will be bottlenecked by your CPU. More RAM won't and can't make up for that.
 
I think a PSU with 350W should be enough for you. You're going to have a new computer in few months anyway.

Unless you want to buy a PSU for both computers, then something with 500W or above will be the good decision.
 
i guess i should have been more specific on what kinda of new computer im getting. Ill be buying a laptop soon as im gonna be heading off to college this year. Ones im looking at:

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16834220137

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16834220104

or one with similar stats, its also important that i be able to game one them.

im not quite sure on what to do with the pc i have now with its poor cpu, although i did read somewhere (i think on gamespot) that BF2 relies more on the gfx card and ram than the actual speed of the processor. do you guys know of the best card i can get that wont be bottlenecked by my cpu and possibly one that can run with m current psu? as id like to something for it to last a couple more months
 
I'd go with the Windows XP Media center one. Vista at this point has too many issues, plus the majority of hardware and software vendors have drivers for XP. You can always upgrade later.
 
If you really want to play game, and you're going to college, then DON'T buy a laptop. Use that money to build up a gaming PC.

4 years later, when you're looking for job, you can get risk of that PC and start looking for a laptop.
 
A laptop for college is a lot more practical because he is going to need it outside of his dorm room more than he realizes. Yes, by all means, play games but it is going to be needed for school work big time.
 
Route44 said:
A laptop for college is a lot more practical because he is going to need it outside of his dorm room more than he realizes. Yes, by all means, play games but it is going to be needed for school work big time.

As a college student I totally agree with that.
 
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