Should I go for a PC upgrade or a PS3?

[MARKMAKAVELI]

Hi,

Well im new to all this and my debate is whether I get a ps3 or can just upgrade my pc.

I mainly wanna play pro evo 8 but I did a test on a game that I thought would be more demanding (HALO 2) as I dont want any problems arising.

here are my results attached, if you could be so kind as to look at them and tell me

a) is it worth upgrading
b) how much £ im looking at

much appreciated!

Mark
View attachment test spec.txt

 

[Route44]

I am a PC fan so I'll give my biased opinion.

I would definitly get another gig of RAM.

Your video card needs a serious upgrade (does your motherboard handle PCI-Express cards?).

Processor should be fine but if your video card is a BIG upgrade then your cpu may bottle neck it.

Make sure you have a power supply that 1) supplies enough power for a video card upgrade and 2) is stable.

 

[Ghu]

I think you should up ur pc because the games out for the ps3 are bad so if you dont wanna wait up ur pc.

lol

 

[Schmutz]

PES2008 is reportably terrible on the PS3 at the moment with crazy slowdowns in corner kicks and replays! The X360 version (not that you go there) also suffers from slowdown, and using the x360 analogue simply doesn't work with the games 8 way movement

I've played PES on PC since PES4. PES2008 is flawless on my old AMD 3500+/1gbRAM/256MB 6800GT at 1024x768/Highest quality. If you can upgrade to 1gb RAM and nvidia 7 series graphics card like 7900GT then you'll be able to run it fine! And it would cost a lot less then a PS3...

 

[Brendannaidoo]

Hi Guys.

Well it seems that i am in the same situation, im stuck between spending a spending money every few months on pc components or just going and buying an xbox 360. I'm not a fan of consoles and I've been pc gaming for 6 years now so its a tough call.........

 

[MARKMAKAVELI]

I would definitely get another gig of RAM. – is eBay the best bet?
As I’m new to this I’m not sure what I’m buying is correct, it’s not the kind of thing I can afford to get wrong! lol

Your video card needs a serious upgrade (does your motherboard handle PCI-Express cards?)
How would I find this out?

Processor should be fine but if your video card is a BIG upgrade then your cpu may bottle neck it. Looks like I’ll be upgrading to “NVIDIA 7 series graphics card like 7900GT”. Again, how do I tell that my cpu will handle it?

Make sure you have a power supply that 1) supplies enough power for a video card upgrade and 2) is stable. I’m probably being really thick here but do you mean like where I plug it in, I’m just in a normal house? lol

I've played PES on PC since PES4. PES2008 is flawless on my old AMD 3500+/1gbRAM/256MB 6800GT at 1024x768/Highest quality. If you can upgrade to 1gb RAM and NVIDIA 7 series graphics card like 7900GT then you'll be able to run it fine! And it would cost a lot less then a PS3...

Ok, is eBay the best place to buy those things? How much should I be looking to spend? Would you be confident that, after these upgrades, my computer would be able to run pretty much all the new releases on the pc? E.g. PES2008, FIFA08, Tony Hawks etc?

I really appreciate your replies, I know it can be frustrating dealing with a newbie! I just want to make sure everything runs ok! Thanks again.
Mark

 

[Schmutz]

Ok, is eBay the best place to buy those things? How much should I be looking to spend? Would you be confident that, after these upgrades, my computer would be able to run pretty much all the new releases on the pc? E.g. PES2008, FIFA08, Tony Hawks etc?

I buy stuff on ebuyer.com. I also used komplett, aria and microdirect before. I search for what I want on the sites and get the cheapest one, but I try to shop at one place at a time to keep delivery costs down!

I think the minimum you'll get away with spending for moderate performance in the games you mentioned is around £60. You do need a PCI-Express slot to use newer graphics cards. (You probably have that or the older AGP slot) as for finding out, you could look at this pic I found http://content.answers.com/main/content/img/CDE/PCXSLOTS.GIF and compare D LOL I'm not a computer expert either!)

If you have an AGP slot the best AGP cards are Nvidia Geforce 6/7 series which are fine for playing the games you mentioned (As I said, I played PES2008 on my 6800GT 256mb/AGP graphics card and it was fine at 1024x768, highest quality) I found 6800GS 256mb for £55.01 here http://www.komplett.co.uk/k/ki.aspx?sku=317265, but you should look around and ask what offers the best value for money, 6800GT isn't such a significant jump from your current graphics card really. If you do have a PCI express slot your options are much larger.

I didn't notice before you had 1gb RAM already, seeing as thats what I used for PES2008 on my old machine maybe you'll be ok rather then getting another 1gb.

For a great performance I'd try to get Nvidia 7950 AGP card, or if you have a PCI express slot, the 7900GT does run PES2008 fine too. Them cards cost between £100 - 150 (BTW I know I have not mentioned any ATI graphics cards, but I don't know what ones are good in them price brackets, to make sure you get the best value you should research ATI cards too!)

 

[Route44]

Download SIW which is a great little utility that is free and free of spyware as well. It will give you the make and model of your hardware components such as your motherboard.

Your motherboard make and model will tell us the type of video cards you can use. Your 6200SE is low end.

 

[MARKMAKAVELI]

Thanks so much for your replies. I've been ill, thats why I haven't replied.

I've attached my hardware log, hopefully of one you can tell me what I need to do!

I had to delete alot of stuff as the filesize would only allow 100kb, but I think the stuff you need is still there.

thanks

 

[Route44]

1. Will your motherboard allow you to install a dual core processor? Your computer and your motherboard manufacture will be able to tell you.

2. Are you able to exchange video cards? Sometimes they are built in.

 

[Fatness]

PC FOR LIFE! Seriously I own a ps3 and use it for movies more than anything else.

 

[jtickner1]

Ok, is eBay the best place to buy those things? How much should I be looking to spend? Would you be confident that, after these upgrades, my computer would be able to run pretty much all the new releases on the pc? E.g. PES2008, FIFA08, Tony Hawks etc?

Just so you know, the PC wont be seeing a Tony Hawk anytime soon, if ever again.

 

[thekze]

if you play FPS stay with pc

 

[sensaschess]

My opinion is to get a ps3, if you are not inclined on pc & First person shooters. Ps3 is a one time investment but you still have to wait for some good titles to come up. Pc should become bottle neck after a few months of upgradation. If we list out how much we spend on upgrades of pc this question can be easily answered.

 

[MARKMAKAVELI]

I've learned so much!

I have the following:

AMD Athlon 64 3700+
NVIDIA GeForce 6200SE TurboCache(TM)
1gb of RAM

I have now just bought a 512MB nVIDIA GEFORCE 8500GT SUPER PCI-E SLi video card for under £50.

i dont really understand the whole motherboard situation, im just hoping i dont fall short in that respect.

I hook up my pc to my big tv an ive got an adapter for my ps2 pad so hopefully everythings gonna be sweet!

thanks for all your help, no doubt i'll be on here in a few days asking "whats gone wrong" lol.

 

[Slayor]

Cool , Hit some online servers and BOOM , PWNING SOME N00bs

 

[Schmutz]

My opinion is to get a ps3, if you are not inclined on pc & First person shooters. Ps3 is a one time investment but you still have to wait for some good titles to come up. Pc should become bottle neck after a few months of upgradation. If we list out how much we spend on upgrades of pc this question can be easily answered.

But the price PS3's at with the Blu-ray, its actually contestable to build gaming PC's now (whereas usually the consoles offer WAY better value for money). To make a fair argument, the question at hand is building a PC that will be able to run console ports and equivalent - not all the latest PC releases at the highest settings.

PC's hook up to the TV, and so games like PES2008 (which apparently stutters to death on a PS3 hooked up to a non-HD television anyway) are great on PC. Then theres MODS and, taboo as it is, videogame Piracy which is something much easier on PCs

 

[sensaschess]

But the price PS3's at with the Blu-ray, its actually contestable to build gaming PC's now (whereas usually the consoles offer WAY better value for money). To make a fair argument, the question at hand is building a PC that will be able to run console ports and equivalent - not all the latest PC releases at the highest settings.

PC's hook up to the TV, and so games like PES2008 (which apparently stutters to death on a PS3 hooked up to a non-HD television anyway) are great on PC. Then theres MODS and, taboo as it is, videogame Piracy which is something much easier on PCs

Yes, I completly agree with you....

 

[MARKMAKAVELI]

I downloaded PES2008 last night and had a play around. It is slow and judders on my current pc but i hope im right in thinking that when my new graphics card goes in there it will be great.

Schmutz, what you were saying about the modding is so true, as you know i'm a complete noob at this but i was having fun last night applying the fa league badges etc.

I think that although its piracy and is classed as wrong, i think the ability to tweak the game to play how you want it to should be standard. If i have to hear that awful music in the game ever again i will go crazy!

Fingers crossed my graphics card does the job!! thanks guys!

 

[Schmutz]

I downloaded PES2008 last night and had a play around. It is slow and judders on my current pc but i hope im right in thinking that when my new graphics card goes in there it will be great.

Schmutz, what you were saying about the modding is so true, as you know i'm a complete noob at this but i was having fun last night applying the fa league badges etc.

I think that although its piracy and is classed as wrong, i think the ability to tweak the game to play how you want it to should be standard. If i have to hear that awful music in the game ever again i will go crazy!

Fingers crossed my graphics card does the job!! thanks guys!

haha yes. Wait until after January and people usually start releasing full game mods. New pitches/stadiums/kits/emblems/crowd noise and so much more, it happens every year with PES - cool community!

 

[Justice21]

get a ps3 dont need to upgrade it to make it better

 

[hamas123]

Do you own one? If you do how good is it.

 

[Schmutz]

get a ps3 dont need to upgrade it to make it better

You don't need to upgrade a PC to make it better, the option to upgrade is simply THERE rather than not available at all

 

[hamas123]

You do have a point but the PS3 has some good specs, 3.2ghz.

 

[Myzz617]

Seems that you are more leaning towards upgrading ur PC. But i would say if u have the $ buy the PS3 or wait till fri, everything is cheaper cuz of thanks giving. But buy the PS3 perhaps then and still have the PC. Both platforms have great games esp PC cuz 360 games are ported to PC very often.

Ima own all three soon. thats the only real way to go