i need new pc parts

[Vegeta100]

i have an hp Model #: a6419fh
i had few upgrade like Operating System and graphic card that it

My pc: Operating System
MS Windows 7 Ultimate 32-bit SP1
CPU
Intel Pentium E2180 @ 2.00GHz
Conroe 65nm Technology
RAM
3.00 GB Dual-Channel DDR2 @ 332MHz (5-5-5-15)
Motherboard
ASUSTek Computer INC. Leonite2 (Socket 775)
Graphics
HP w2207 (1680x1050@59Hz)
512MB GeForce 8400GS (PNY)
Audio
Realtek High Definition Audio

i can play sc2 at minimum but custom game i cant because i get very laggy and cant really move what advice do u guys have for me? plz dont say buy a new pc b/c i am handicap and dont have money to buy but maybe buy parts i can next month. any advice will be appreciated.

[kalniel]

Hi, you could buy an AMD hd 7750 or nVidia GT 640 DDR5 version to replace your 8400GS, though I think you are at least CPU limited with a game like SC2 as well. So I'm afraid new computer is the way to go.

[scaryjim]

Hi Vegeta, I've moved your thread to the hardware section as there are more likely people here who can give you good advice.

I know you said don't say this, but the honest truth is that to get a really good gaming experience you would need to replace your PC completely. However, there is one obvious option that will help a bit, and that is to upgrade that ancient 8400GS to something with a bit more gaming pedigree.

The absolute best card I'd risk in your computer is an AMD Radeon 7750, but I think perhaps you won't get the full benefit out of that with your CPU, so best bet is probably a Radeon 6670 instead - look for a GGDR5 one. Here's a couple of links to good options:

HD6670:
http://www.ebuyer.com/409170-sapphir...d-11192-14-20g
http://www.dabs.com/products/asus-at...73070000&src=3

HD7750:
http://www.scan.co.uk/products/1gb-s...ink-dvi-i-hdmi

[Willzzz]

I do wonder if it might the CPU holding you back in this case, in fact I strongly suspect this is the case.

I managed to play SC2 using an i3 530 without a graphics card, I mean performance wasn't great but it was good enough to compete in master league.

http://www.anandtech.com/bench/Product/68?vs=118

SC2 is really very forgiving regarding graphics cards (especially on low) so I'm not sure your 8400GS is the only problem.

[CAT-THE-FIFTH]

Having a 32 bit OS might not help too,if you want to have more RAM.

Is the system an HP PC??

What PSU do you have and what is your budget?? Is this the motherboard:

http://uk.asus.com/Motherboards/Inte...et_775/P5PL2E/

I suspect your motherboard is not great for overclocking which is a shame with the E2000 CPUs which tend to overclock well.

I would consider upgrading both your CPU and graphics card,but you can do a reasonable update for around £100.

Hence,I would look at getting a secondhand E6700 or E6850:

http://www.ebay.co.uk/csc/i.html?_so...mplete=1&rt=nc

http://www.ebay.co.uk/sch/i.html?_nk...&LH_Complete=1

However,the E6850 uses a higher 1333MHZ FSB,so you will need to check if your motherboard supports it first.

From what I gather an HD7750 GDDR5 is better than a GT640 GDDR3 at SC2:

http://www.anandtech.com/show/5969/z...640-review-/10

http://www.techpowerup.com/reviews/Z...GT_640/20.html

If you get upto 20 non-spam posts you can get free postage from Scan,so stick around for a while!

However,the GT640 can be had cheaper though,but both will be big upgrades.

[kalniel]

That's true SC2 can be quite CPU and RAM heavy, I expect custom games will be even harder on the CPU, so apologies for my earlier post - you probably do need a new computer.

[Willzzz]

I would be tempted to try just the CPU upgrade first and see if that solves the problem.
Having graphics on low can sometimes be an advantage after all!

You should be looking to upgrade the whole system at some point and the least money spent now, the sooner you will be able to do that.

I mean you should be able to build say an A10-5700 based system quite cheaply and if you did that you wouldn't really need a graphics card at all.

[CAT-THE-FIFTH]

The OP says they have no money,so I expect the budget is low! I also get the niggling feeling that the PC might be an HP prebuilt one too. Moreover,another factor will be the OS too - I am not so clued up on Windows 7 OEM licenses. Can they be transferred to a new motherboard??

The thing is the E2180 has both a low base clockspeed and very little L2 cache. An E6700 or HD6850 can be had for £20 to £30 and will have 4 times the L2 cache and between a 33% to 50% higher base clockspeed.

[Willzzz]

Yeah I think the CPU is the biggest bottleneck here, that is why I am suggesting holding off on a graphics upgrade and maybe in 6 months or so he might have funds for a new PC?

[scaryjim]

The 8400GS is a pretty awful graphics card for gaming though (only 8 shaders!) - no matter how bad the CPU is I think you'll definitely see some improvement with a GPU upgrade. Even something like a Radeon 6450 would probably be better, and they can be grabbed for ~ £30. Any CPU upgrade would definitely run into a GPU bottleneck IMNSHO, and if you start looking at upgrading both CPU and GPU then the OP may as well just get a new low end trinity machine (A6-5400k would be both a CPU and GPU upgrade, frankly; add a cheap A55 board and 4GB of RAM and you can keep it under £100). Even an A4-3300 would be a better option, and that's under £30 now...

[CAT-THE-FIFTH]

Is the Windows 7 OEM license transferable?? I know with XP you could do it.

[scaryjim]

If it's Win 7 Ultimate it won't be an OEM license - AFAIK Ultimate was only available at retail or as an upgrade. As with most thing YMMV, but it should be possible to transfer to a new computer on that basis (although if it was applied as an upgrade to an OEM OS it wouldn't be - not within the terms of the original EULA anyway...)

[CAT-THE-FIFTH]

That means he should have a 64 bit install disc too??

[scaryjim]

If it's a retail copy, yeah. Not sure about upgrades though - we'll need to wait for the OP to confirm

[Willzzz]

The 8400GS is a pretty awful graphics card for gaming though (only 8 shaders!) - no matter how bad the CPU is I think you'll definitely see some improvement with a GPU upgrade. Even something like a Radeon 6450 would probably be better, and they can be grabbed for ~ £30. Any CPU upgrade would definitely run into a GPU bottleneck IMNSHO, and if you start looking at upgrading both CPU and GPU then the OP may as well just get a new low end trinity machine (A6-5400k would be both a CPU and GPU upgrade, frankly; add a cheap A55 board and 4GB of RAM and you can keep it under £100). Even an A4-3300 would be a better option, and that's under £30 now...

Well like I said earlier, I managed to play using the IGP on a i3 530, that is even worse than 8400GS. Starcraft is very far from typical in terms of hardware requirements.

And this is why I suggested avoiding a discrete card because an APU is going to be the best bet for an extremely limited budget.

[Vegeta100]

I do wonder if it might the CPU holding you back in this case, in fact I strongly suspect this is the case.

I managed to play SC2 using an i3 530 without a graphics card, I mean performance wasn't great but it was good enough to compete in master league.



SC2 is really very forgiving regarding graphics cards (especially on low) so I'm not sure your 8400GS is the only problem.

what u mean without a graphic card??