Page 1 of 2 12 LastLast
Results 1 to 16 of 27

Thread: Graphics card update - worth it on an old system?

  1. #1
    disMember M0nkeyb0Y's Avatar
    Join Date
    Apr 2005
    Location
    Kent
    Posts
    1,046
    Thanks
    274
    Thanked
    61 times in 33 posts
    • M0nkeyb0Y's system
      • Motherboard:
      • DFI DK X58 T3 eH6
      • CPU:
      • Intel Core i7 930
      • Memory:
      • Corsair 6GB (3x2GB) DDR3 1600
      • Storage:
      • Boot: Intel SSD (80gb); + >3Tb
      • Graphics card(s):
      • ati 5870
      • PSU:
      • Corsair 750w modular
      • Case:
      • see thread in my sig
      • Operating System:
      • Windows 7 Professional
      • Monitor(s):
      • NEC EA 231wmi
      • Internet:
      • 16MB/s

    Graphics card update - worth it on an old system?

    Hello all,

    My system is to the left, but to save you the trouble of clicking...

    AMD 939 4400X2
    A8N32 - SLI
    2* 7800GTX
    4Gig RAM

    I'm currently playing Empire Total War, it's the best game I've played in a very long time, however it is kicking it out of my system.... making it unplayable on occasions.

    My question is: is it worth buying a graphics card to replace the two I have (I feel I can't justify a full system upgrade at the moment). Or, with the comparatively slow system I have, would this be a false economy?

    Thanks
    MB

    PS - if it's worth it which should I go for?

  2. #2
    root Member DanceswithUnix's Avatar
    Join Date
    Jan 2006
    Location
    In the middle of a core dump
    Posts
    12,335
    Thanks
    714
    Thanked
    1,406 times in 1,188 posts
    • DanceswithUnix's system
      • Motherboard:
      • Asus X470-PRO
      • CPU:
      • 3700X
      • Memory:
      • 32GB 3200MHz ECC
      • Storage:
      • 1TB Linux, 1TB Games (Win 10)
      • Graphics card(s):
      • Asus Strix RX Vega 56
      • PSU:
      • 650W Corsair TX
      • Case:
      • Antec 300
      • Operating System:
      • Fedora 33 + Win 10 Pro 64 (yuk)
      • Monitor(s):
      • Benq XL2730Z 1440p + Iiyama 27" 1440p
      • Internet:
      • Zen 80Mb/20Mb VDSL

    Re: Graphics card update - worth it on an old system?

    Well, your graphics cards do look like they are your bottleneck, so I would say yes replace them.

    In addition, an upgraded graphics card can be used if you upgrade the rest of the system so it isn't money wasted.

    OTOH, I gather those dual core 939 chips fetch a fair penny on ebay, and modern CPUs are sooo cheap atm!

    Anyway, what is your budget?

  3. Received thanks from:

    M0nkeyb0Y (17-11-2009)

  4. #3
    Anthropomorphic Personification shaithis's Avatar
    Join Date
    Apr 2004
    Location
    The Last Aerie
    Posts
    10,857
    Thanks
    645
    Thanked
    872 times in 736 posts
    • shaithis's system
      • Motherboard:
      • Asus P8Z77 WS
      • CPU:
      • i7 3770k @ 4.5GHz
      • Memory:
      • 32GB HyperX 1866
      • Storage:
      • Lots!
      • Graphics card(s):
      • Sapphire Fury X
      • PSU:
      • Corsair HX850
      • Case:
      • Corsair 600T (White)
      • Operating System:
      • Windows 10 x64
      • Monitor(s):
      • 2 x Dell 3007
      • Internet:
      • Zen 80Mb Fibre

    Re: Graphics card update - worth it on an old system?

    Most games are mainly GPU dependant....which means that as long as the CPU isn't too slow, then a gfx card upgrade will still give the biggest possible gains.....there is of course a point where the CPU cannot supply data fast enough to the GPU but that shouldn't really effect you unless you buy a complete beast of a card and run it at a super high resolution.

    Some games do buck this trend though and use the CPU heavily........and coording to this Total War does heavily load the CPU!

    Take a look at the charts.....
    Main PC: Asus Rampage IV Extreme / 3960X@4.5GHz / Antec H1200 Pro / 32GB DDR3-1866 Quad Channel / Sapphire Fury X / Areca 1680 / 850W EVGA SuperNOVA Gold 2 / Corsair 600T / 2x Dell 3007 / 4 x 250GB SSD + 2 x 80GB SSD / 4 x 1TB HDD (RAID 10) / Windows 10 Pro, Yosemite & Ubuntu
    HTPC: AsRock Z77 Pro 4 / 3770K@4.2GHz / 24GB / GTX 1080 / SST-LC20 / Antec TP-550 / Hisense 65k5510 4K TV / HTC Vive / 2 x 240GB SSD + 12TB HDD Space / Race Seat / Logitech G29 / Win 10 Pro
    HTPC2: Asus AM1I-A / 5150 / 4GB / Corsair Force 3 240GB / Silverstone SST-ML05B + ST30SF / Samsung UE60H6200 TV / Windows 10 Pro
    Spare/Loaner: Gigabyte EX58-UD5 / i950 / 12GB / HD7870 / Corsair 300R / Silverpower 700W modular
    NAS 1: HP N40L / 12GB ECC RAM / 2 x 3TB Arrays || NAS 2: Dell PowerEdge T110 II / 24GB ECC RAM / 2 x 3TB Hybrid arrays || Network:Buffalo WZR-1166DHP w/DD-WRT + HP ProCurve 1800-24G
    Laptop: Dell Precision 5510 Printer: HP CP1515n || Phone: Huawei P30 || Other: Samsung Galaxy Tab 4 Pro 10.1 CM14 / Playstation 4 + G29 + 2TB Hybrid drive

  5. Received thanks from:

    M0nkeyb0Y (17-11-2009)

  6. #4
    jim
    jim is offline
    HEXUS.clueless jim's Avatar
    Join Date
    Sep 2008
    Location
    Location: Location:
    Posts
    11,435
    Thanks
    612
    Thanked
    1,639 times in 1,304 posts
    • jim's system
      • Motherboard:
      • Asus Maximus IV Gene-Z
      • CPU:
      • i5 2500K @ 4.5GHz
      • Memory:
      • 8GB Corsair Vengeance LP
      • Storage:
      • 1TB Sandisk SSD
      • Graphics card(s):
      • ASUS GTX 970
      • PSU:
      • Corsair AX650
      • Case:
      • Silverstone Fortress FT03
      • Operating System:
      • 8.1 Pro
      • Monitor(s):
      • Dell S2716DG
      • Internet:
      • 10 Mbps ADSL

    Re: Graphics card update - worth it on an old system?

    Yep, E:TW is a bad one for the CPU - I would wait for a full system upgrade.

  7. Received thanks from:

    M0nkeyb0Y (17-11-2009)

  8. #5
    root Member DanceswithUnix's Avatar
    Join Date
    Jan 2006
    Location
    In the middle of a core dump
    Posts
    12,335
    Thanks
    714
    Thanked
    1,406 times in 1,188 posts
    • DanceswithUnix's system
      • Motherboard:
      • Asus X470-PRO
      • CPU:
      • 3700X
      • Memory:
      • 32GB 3200MHz ECC
      • Storage:
      • 1TB Linux, 1TB Games (Win 10)
      • Graphics card(s):
      • Asus Strix RX Vega 56
      • PSU:
      • 650W Corsair TX
      • Case:
      • Antec 300
      • Operating System:
      • Fedora 33 + Win 10 Pro 64 (yuk)
      • Monitor(s):
      • Benq XL2730Z 1440p + Iiyama 27" 1440p
      • Internet:
      • Zen 80Mb/20Mb VDSL

    Re: Graphics card update - worth it on an old system?

    But a full upgrade would involve a new GPU, which if funds are not permitting for the full upgrade then the GPU can still happen now.

    Is the current CPU overclocked btw?

  9. #6
    disMember M0nkeyb0Y's Avatar
    Join Date
    Apr 2005
    Location
    Kent
    Posts
    1,046
    Thanks
    274
    Thanked
    61 times in 33 posts
    • M0nkeyb0Y's system
      • Motherboard:
      • DFI DK X58 T3 eH6
      • CPU:
      • Intel Core i7 930
      • Memory:
      • Corsair 6GB (3x2GB) DDR3 1600
      • Storage:
      • Boot: Intel SSD (80gb); + >3Tb
      • Graphics card(s):
      • ati 5870
      • PSU:
      • Corsair 750w modular
      • Case:
      • see thread in my sig
      • Operating System:
      • Windows 7 Professional
      • Monitor(s):
      • NEC EA 231wmi
      • Internet:
      • 16MB/s

    Re: Graphics card update - worth it on an old system?

    Quote Originally Posted by DanceswithUnix View Post
    Is the current CPU overclocked btw?
    No it's at stock

  10. #7
    disMember M0nkeyb0Y's Avatar
    Join Date
    Apr 2005
    Location
    Kent
    Posts
    1,046
    Thanks
    274
    Thanked
    61 times in 33 posts
    • M0nkeyb0Y's system
      • Motherboard:
      • DFI DK X58 T3 eH6
      • CPU:
      • Intel Core i7 930
      • Memory:
      • Corsair 6GB (3x2GB) DDR3 1600
      • Storage:
      • Boot: Intel SSD (80gb); + >3Tb
      • Graphics card(s):
      • ati 5870
      • PSU:
      • Corsair 750w modular
      • Case:
      • see thread in my sig
      • Operating System:
      • Windows 7 Professional
      • Monitor(s):
      • NEC EA 231wmi
      • Internet:
      • 16MB/s

    Re: Graphics card update - worth it on an old system?

    Budget for a new GPU would be around £100

    Or hold off to the new year (feb/march) - and have a budget of £500 for a new system

  11. #8
    Anthropomorphic Personification shaithis's Avatar
    Join Date
    Apr 2004
    Location
    The Last Aerie
    Posts
    10,857
    Thanks
    645
    Thanked
    872 times in 736 posts
    • shaithis's system
      • Motherboard:
      • Asus P8Z77 WS
      • CPU:
      • i7 3770k @ 4.5GHz
      • Memory:
      • 32GB HyperX 1866
      • Storage:
      • Lots!
      • Graphics card(s):
      • Sapphire Fury X
      • PSU:
      • Corsair HX850
      • Case:
      • Corsair 600T (White)
      • Operating System:
      • Windows 10 x64
      • Monitor(s):
      • 2 x Dell 3007
      • Internet:
      • Zen 80Mb Fibre

    Re: Graphics card update - worth it on an old system?

    Do you play anything else?

    If E:TW is your main poison, then maybe a new board + CPU now, with a new gfx card in the new year?

    I almost can't beleive you have DDR1 RAM! If it was DDR2 at least, you could get an AM3 CPU + board for < £100.....but 4GB of RAM (DDR2 or DDR3) is ~ £70 at the moment :S
    Main PC: Asus Rampage IV Extreme / 3960X@4.5GHz / Antec H1200 Pro / 32GB DDR3-1866 Quad Channel / Sapphire Fury X / Areca 1680 / 850W EVGA SuperNOVA Gold 2 / Corsair 600T / 2x Dell 3007 / 4 x 250GB SSD + 2 x 80GB SSD / 4 x 1TB HDD (RAID 10) / Windows 10 Pro, Yosemite & Ubuntu
    HTPC: AsRock Z77 Pro 4 / 3770K@4.2GHz / 24GB / GTX 1080 / SST-LC20 / Antec TP-550 / Hisense 65k5510 4K TV / HTC Vive / 2 x 240GB SSD + 12TB HDD Space / Race Seat / Logitech G29 / Win 10 Pro
    HTPC2: Asus AM1I-A / 5150 / 4GB / Corsair Force 3 240GB / Silverstone SST-ML05B + ST30SF / Samsung UE60H6200 TV / Windows 10 Pro
    Spare/Loaner: Gigabyte EX58-UD5 / i950 / 12GB / HD7870 / Corsair 300R / Silverpower 700W modular
    NAS 1: HP N40L / 12GB ECC RAM / 2 x 3TB Arrays || NAS 2: Dell PowerEdge T110 II / 24GB ECC RAM / 2 x 3TB Hybrid arrays || Network:Buffalo WZR-1166DHP w/DD-WRT + HP ProCurve 1800-24G
    Laptop: Dell Precision 5510 Printer: HP CP1515n || Phone: Huawei P30 || Other: Samsung Galaxy Tab 4 Pro 10.1 CM14 / Playstation 4 + G29 + 2TB Hybrid drive

  12. #9
    Moosing about! CAT-THE-FIFTH's Avatar
    Join Date
    Aug 2006
    Location
    Not here
    Posts
    31,621
    Thanks
    3,757
    Thanked
    5,060 times in 3,912 posts
    • CAT-THE-FIFTH's system
      • Motherboard:
      • Less E-PEEN
      • CPU:
      • Massive E-PEEN
      • Memory:
      • RGB E-PEEN
      • Storage:
      • Not in any order
      • Graphics card(s):
      • EVEN BIGGER E-PEEN
      • PSU:
      • OVERSIZED
      • Case:
      • UNDERSIZED
      • Operating System:
      • DOS 6.22
      • Monitor(s):
      • NOT USUALLY ON....WHEN I POST
      • Internet:
      • FUNCTIONAL

    Re: Graphics card update - worth it on an old system?

    A secondhand socket 939 X2 4400+ is going for between £60 to £100 on Ebay. My advice would be to sell all the bits while you can still get a good price for them and upgrade to something a bit newer.

    Regarding the GPU the best one for under £100 would be an HD4870 512MB although it consumes a lot of power.

    OTH,an HD4770 would be a decent and relatively cheap upgrade for around the £60 mark:

    http://www.ebuyer.com/product/179285

    http://www.ebuyer.com/product/173741

  13. Received thanks from:

    M0nkeyb0Y (18-11-2009)

  14. #10
    root Member DanceswithUnix's Avatar
    Join Date
    Jan 2006
    Location
    In the middle of a core dump
    Posts
    12,335
    Thanks
    714
    Thanked
    1,406 times in 1,188 posts
    • DanceswithUnix's system
      • Motherboard:
      • Asus X470-PRO
      • CPU:
      • 3700X
      • Memory:
      • 32GB 3200MHz ECC
      • Storage:
      • 1TB Linux, 1TB Games (Win 10)
      • Graphics card(s):
      • Asus Strix RX Vega 56
      • PSU:
      • 650W Corsair TX
      • Case:
      • Antec 300
      • Operating System:
      • Fedora 33 + Win 10 Pro 64 (yuk)
      • Monitor(s):
      • Benq XL2730Z 1440p + Iiyama 27" 1440p
      • Internet:
      • Zen 80Mb/20Mb VDSL

    Re: Graphics card update - worth it on an old system?

    Those 4770 cards are a good price, but won't they only be about 50% faster than a pair of 7800GTX in SLI? Depends on how shader heavy the game is I suppose.

    How about a 5750 for £91.52?

  15. #11
    Not a good person scaryjim's Avatar
    Join Date
    Jan 2009
    Location
    Gateshead
    Posts
    15,196
    Thanks
    1,231
    Thanked
    2,291 times in 1,874 posts
    • scaryjim's system
      • Motherboard:
      • Dell Inspiron
      • CPU:
      • Core i5 8250U
      • Memory:
      • 2x 4GB DDR4 2666
      • Storage:
      • 128GB M.2 SSD + 1TB HDD
      • Graphics card(s):
      • Radeon R5 230
      • PSU:
      • Battery/Dell brick
      • Case:
      • Dell Inspiron 5570
      • Operating System:
      • Windows 10
      • Monitor(s):
      • 15" 1080p laptop panel

    Re: Graphics card update - worth it on an old system?

    You might be interested in this Tom's Hardware review - it's for the HD4650 AGP, but it demonstrates a very clear and consistent CPU bottleneck across virtually all games, using an Athlon X2 3800+. I'm not convinced that it's the 2x 7800GTX that are bottlenecking your gaming performance here, I'm afraid...

    I think your best bet is to hold off for the new year, sell off all the s939 kit, and put the funds towards a new build. As CAT says the s939 CPUs can fetch a lot, and your 7800GTXs should raise about £20 each... Also 4GB of DDR400 should get you some decent money too...
    Last edited by scaryjim; 17-11-2009 at 11:21 PM. Reason: reading fail

  16. Received thanks from:

    M0nkeyb0Y (18-11-2009)

  17. #12
    disMember M0nkeyb0Y's Avatar
    Join Date
    Apr 2005
    Location
    Kent
    Posts
    1,046
    Thanks
    274
    Thanked
    61 times in 33 posts
    • M0nkeyb0Y's system
      • Motherboard:
      • DFI DK X58 T3 eH6
      • CPU:
      • Intel Core i7 930
      • Memory:
      • Corsair 6GB (3x2GB) DDR3 1600
      • Storage:
      • Boot: Intel SSD (80gb); + >3Tb
      • Graphics card(s):
      • ati 5870
      • PSU:
      • Corsair 750w modular
      • Case:
      • see thread in my sig
      • Operating System:
      • Windows 7 Professional
      • Monitor(s):
      • NEC EA 231wmi
      • Internet:
      • 16MB/s

    Re: Graphics card update - worth it on an old system?

    Quote Originally Posted by shaithis View Post
    Do you play anything else?

    If E:TW is your main poison, then maybe a new board + CPU now, with a new gfx card in the new year?

    I almost can't beleive you have DDR1 RAM! If it was DDR2 at least, you could get an AM3 CPU + board for < £100.....but 4GB of RAM (DDR2 or DDR3) is ~ £70 at the moment :S
    E:TW is my main poison, I play Day of Defeat and a few other online FPs games occasionally... which my system handles capably.

  18. #13
    disMember M0nkeyb0Y's Avatar
    Join Date
    Apr 2005
    Location
    Kent
    Posts
    1,046
    Thanks
    274
    Thanked
    61 times in 33 posts
    • M0nkeyb0Y's system
      • Motherboard:
      • DFI DK X58 T3 eH6
      • CPU:
      • Intel Core i7 930
      • Memory:
      • Corsair 6GB (3x2GB) DDR3 1600
      • Storage:
      • Boot: Intel SSD (80gb); + >3Tb
      • Graphics card(s):
      • ati 5870
      • PSU:
      • Corsair 750w modular
      • Case:
      • see thread in my sig
      • Operating System:
      • Windows 7 Professional
      • Monitor(s):
      • NEC EA 231wmi
      • Internet:
      • 16MB/s

    Re: Graphics card update - worth it on an old system?

    Quote Originally Posted by DanceswithUnix View Post
    Those 4770 cards are a good price, but won't they only be about 50% faster than a pair of 7800GTX in SLI? Depends on how shader heavy the game is I suppose.

    How about a 5750 for £91.52?
    Quote Originally Posted by scaryjim View Post
    You might be interested in this Tom's Hardware review - it's for the HD4650 AGP, but it demonstrates a very clear and consistent CPU bottleneck across virtually all games, using an Athlon X2 3800+. I'm not convinced that it's the 2x 7800GTX that are bottlenecking your gaming performance here, I'm afraid...

    I think your best bet is to hold off for the new year, sell off all the s939 kit, and put the funds towards a new build. As CAT says the s939 CPUs can fetch a lot, and your 7800GTXs should raise about £20 each... Also 4GB of DDR400 should get you some decent money too...
    Thanks for the link - I too am a little surprised that 2x7800GTX can't cut it anymore: I mean I know it's old technology, but I still thought there was enough boot there to see it through to next gen. Looks like the CPU is stifling me.

    That said the main issue I have with E:TW is the rendering of the armies - it's like the system just can't hack it so takes to displaying non-poly bitmaps if there's too much on the screen...

  19. #14
    Not a good person scaryjim's Avatar
    Join Date
    Jan 2009
    Location
    Gateshead
    Posts
    15,196
    Thanks
    1,231
    Thanked
    2,291 times in 1,874 posts
    • scaryjim's system
      • Motherboard:
      • Dell Inspiron
      • CPU:
      • Core i5 8250U
      • Memory:
      • 2x 4GB DDR4 2666
      • Storage:
      • 128GB M.2 SSD + 1TB HDD
      • Graphics card(s):
      • Radeon R5 230
      • PSU:
      • Battery/Dell brick
      • Case:
      • Dell Inspiron 5570
      • Operating System:
      • Windows 10
      • Monitor(s):
      • 15" 1080p laptop panel

    Re: Graphics card update - worth it on an old system?

    Quote Originally Posted by M0nkeyb0Y View Post
    That said the main issue I have with E:TW is the rendering of the armies - it's like the system just can't hack it so takes to displaying non-poly bitmaps if there's too much on the screen...
    That could just be the CPU failing to feed enough geometry into the GPUs though. The problem you'll have is that a CPU upgrade on s939 is gonna cost! Could you move to a moderate cost newer SLI solution? For instance, here's an MSI Socket AM3 750 SLI mobo, which would give you the choice of any AM3 processor and a jump up to DDR3 memory, while keeping your existing 7800GTXs. This wouldn't be cheap, but you could probably keep the CPU mobo and ram to ~ £200 and it should give you a boost across your whole system, not just in games...
    Last edited by scaryjim; 18-11-2009 at 02:16 PM.

  20. #15
    I'm Very Important
    Join Date
    Jul 2009
    Posts
    2,928
    Thanks
    318
    Thanked
    360 times in 318 posts
    • Domestic_Ginger's system
      • Motherboard:
      • Gigabyte GA-MA770-UD3
      • CPU:
      • Phenom II X2 550
      • Memory:
      • 4GB DDR2
      • Storage:
      • F3 500gb
      • Graphics card(s):
      • 5850
      • PSU:
      • Corsair 550vx
      • Case:
      • NZXT beta evo
      • Operating System:
      • W7
      • Monitor(s):
      • G2222HDL

    Re: Graphics card update - worth it on an old system?

    If you are holding off Napoleon TW will be out early next year. There was alot of people angry about the specs needed for ETW which they may clean up in the next one; It may also suppport multiple cores.

    Being able to play at high/ultra settings is still difficult for high end rigs. My S939 3200+ and X1950pro couldn't really handle the campaign map. Medium/small battle settings with almost everything turned off were okay though.

    It just about runs in high on my new rig with alot of stuff turned down, crawling to a snails pace when you zoom it. It does look lovely though!

  21. Received thanks from:

    M0nkeyb0Y (18-11-2009)

  22. #16
    Moosing about! CAT-THE-FIFTH's Avatar
    Join Date
    Aug 2006
    Location
    Not here
    Posts
    31,621
    Thanks
    3,757
    Thanked
    5,060 times in 3,912 posts
    • CAT-THE-FIFTH's system
      • Motherboard:
      • Less E-PEEN
      • CPU:
      • Massive E-PEEN
      • Memory:
      • RGB E-PEEN
      • Storage:
      • Not in any order
      • Graphics card(s):
      • EVEN BIGGER E-PEEN
      • PSU:
      • OVERSIZED
      • Case:
      • UNDERSIZED
      • Operating System:
      • DOS 6.22
      • Monitor(s):
      • NOT USUALLY ON....WHEN I POST
      • Internet:
      • FUNCTIONAL

    Re: Graphics card update - worth it on an old system?

    I though that SLI and Crossfire had more CPU overhead than single card solutions TBH. This is why I suggested ditching the 7800GTX cards as they will pay for some of the cost of an HD4770. Also the HD4770 has more video memory too.

    Another fact is that it is possible to do an upgrade with a Phenom II X4 925,MSI 770-C45 AM3 motherboard and 4GB of DDR3 for around £250.
    Last edited by CAT-THE-FIFTH; 18-11-2009 at 03:38 PM.

Page 1 of 2 12 LastLast

Thread Information

Users Browsing this Thread

There are currently 1 users browsing this thread. (0 members and 1 guests)

Similar Threads

  1. Replies: 21
    Last Post: 22-03-2009, 12:50 AM
  2. Need graphics card advice for a new system.
    By Bowlo in forum Graphics Cards
    Replies: 0
    Last Post: 07-06-2006, 03:06 PM
  3. Non-Gamer... 128Mb v 256Mb Graphics Card... Worth It?
    By mr-nick in forum Graphics Cards
    Replies: 5
    Last Post: 28-09-2005, 11:24 AM
  4. Powerbook graphics update for 15/17in models
    By Gordy in forum Apple Mac
    Replies: 0
    Last Post: 12-08-2005, 11:10 AM
  5. Windows Update flaw 'left PCs open' to MSBlast
    By Bunjiweb in forum Software
    Replies: 10
    Last Post: 19-08-2003, 02:44 PM

Posting Permissions

  • You may not post new threads
  • You may not post replies
  • You may not post attachments
  • You may not edit your posts
  •