Is it time to upgrade?

[thedonutman]

A64 3200+ (939, Venice)
2x512 Geil Ultra-X
6600GT
535w Enermax
Asrock 930dual-sata2


For around Xmas, I'm thinking of getting:

8800GTS 320mb
The best 939 X2 processor I can get (probably 4200+)


How much will the X2 bottleneck the 8800GTS? Is it better off moving to C2D?

The thing is, if I change platform I will have to buy new mobo, ram and CPU.

What sort of upgrade do you guys recommend doing? Currently I've got about £300 I can allocate to this, but I guess it can be stretched to 400ish.

I'm looking to game on this PC, crysis etc. Not too bothered about DX10 right now, since I don't plan on getting vista for a bit, but I'd still like a powerful DX10 card.

[silentvoice]

I think you could get away with just upgrading the processor and video card. That should set you back around £215 + P&P. There are articles that can be found on the Internet showing various CPU scaling such as this:

http://www.legionhardware.com/document.php?id=618

With the exception of a few games, a lot are limited (performance wise) by the video card. Of course, this is only going by games that have been released in the past. Future games, such as Crysis *may* be more demanding with more advanced physics to process.

Anyway, the system should tie you over for a while. Then you'll have the option for a complete upgrade / build (after you've saved some money). By then you'll probably be getting DDR3, PCI 2.0, SATA 3, Eaglelake (or AMD equivalent) etc.

[StaffsKieran]

Get what you've suggested already and another 1GB of RAM. Should sort you nicely.

[thedonutman]

There is a slight problem with the RAM, since right now Ive got 2 sticks of Geil Ultra-X, and a OCZ memory voltage booster that basically takes up the other 2 slots.

Should I sell the Ultra-x and get a 2 gig set?

I would try and get some more of the same ram, but I need the voltage booster for the ram to work on my motherboard. Its BH-5 and needs around 3v to be stable for me.

[staffsMike]

2GB will be beneficial in games so I would try and get a 2GB set.

[smallstool]

Have a look at what your kits worth on ebay.

Sell the CPU, Memory(as a pair), motherboard etc seperateley.

I sold an Athlon 3200 for £50 saturday and an old motherboard for £30. I got £33 for 2x512ddr.

This bought me a P35-DS3R and an e2180 which I overclocked by 50%.

I've made the switch from AMD to Intel!!