Advice

furerer

Hi all......

Here's my pc spec:

Neo power psu 480w
1gb ddr ram pc3200
DFI LANPARTY nf4
ATI Radeon x1900 256mb ddr3 core clock 500mhz
AMD opteron processor 146, (2.1ghz....I think!)

A bit outdated these days, but I'd like to play a few games that will not currently work on the above set-up. So advise me as to the best options within a reasonable amount of money to be spent. Do I need to upgrade the mother? I know the processor and graphics card need upgrading....should I up the ddr ram? Sensible and reasonable answers much appreciated. Any more info you need to assist, I shall do my best. Thanks in advance.

Overheal

time for a new rig. more money on that box would be uneconomical.

furerer

Overheal wrote: »

time for a new rig. more money on that box would be uneconomical.

Thanks Overheal.......but that really dont answer the question I placed.

Overheal

furerer wrote: »

Thanks Overheal.......but that really dont answer the question I placed.

Sure it does. Your asnwer is a new processor (It's a single core..) and ram that isn't 2 generations obsolete. Which will only be supported by a newer motherboard, and that x1900 is several years out of date also. About the only things that can be retained for an upgrade are the Hard Drive Power Supply and the Case. And personally I wouldn't fancy keeping a Power Supply after that many years, its likely prone to fail within a few more years anyway.

Essentially the whole rig is too old to throw money at. If you can find compatible upgrades for your Socket on adverts then go for it but otherwise I think your money is better spent elsewhere. To modernize it for current gaming minimums you're looking at least at a new GPU and some type of compatible CPU that is a dual core, if it even exists for your particular socket. 1st Generation Athlons would probably fit, going on the presumption it's a 939 or 940 socket.

While that was slightly more verbose and more time consuming than my first answer, it is still essentially the same advice

furerer

Overheal wrote: »

Sure it does. Your asnwer is a new processor (It's a single core..) and ram that isn't 2 generations obsolete. Which will only be supported by a newer motherboard, and that x1900 is several years out of date also. About the only things that can be retained for an upgrade are the Hard Drive Power Supply and the Case. And personally I wouldn't fancy keeping a Power Supply after that many years, its likely prone to fail within a few more years anyway.

Essentially the whole rig is too old to throw money at. If you can find compatible upgrades for your Socket on adverts then go for it but otherwise I think your money is better spent elsewhere. To modernize it for current gaming minimums you're looking at least at a new GPU and some type of compatible CPU that is a dual core, if it even exists for your particular socket. 1st Generation Athlons would probably fit, going on the presumption it's a 939 or 940 socket.

While that was slightly more verbose and more time consuming than my first answer, it is still essentially the same advice

Thanks Overheal.......

Now that is an answer that I can relate to, whether it's more verbose or not. So I'm now convinced that I need to re-build my pc. My hd's are good and relatively new, so it's the rest I need to do. Advise on motherboard please......maybe something like this
http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/AMD-Bulldozer-FX-4100-3-6Ghz-4GB-DDR3-1333mhz-Gigabyte-Motherboard-Bundle-/150761784948?pt=UK_Motherboards_CPUs&hash=item231a1a4674
or your opinion on another. I'd like to be able to play any game that's currentlt available .

Overheal

micro ATX board? It works. just seems.. tiny. LAN Box? Or do you actually have a regular case?

I usually say go big or go home but on a budget its not bad. The only thing that bothers me is the motherboard is somehow an AM3+ socket but with an old geforce 7000 series IGP and an nForce northbridge. Just seems needlessly odd. CPU choice and all is grand but I would want a motherboard with an AMD chipset to match. Look for something with an AMD 990X, 990FX or 970 chipset on it.

furerer

You talking about this

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Asus-AMD-Gaming-Bundle-Sabertooth-990FX-Motherboard-FX-4100-4GB-DDR3-RipjawsX-/130642863256?pt=UK_Motherboards_CPUs&hash=item1e6aebe498

Overheal

Yes.

that ram wont play nice with most after market CPU coolers but you should be fine. If you do fancy a cooler go for a corsair H60 or similar.