Upgrade time....guidance needed!?

[djglenn]

Ok the best way to start these things is by giving my current system configuration:

AMD 64 3200+
2 x 512MB Elixir PC3200 RAM (Dual Channel) [1024MB Total]
ASRock 939Dual-SATA2 Motherboard
34Gb WD Raptor HDD (used for appz)
160Gb Seagate HDD
250Gb Western Digital External HDD
19" Widescreen Acer TFT
Albatron GeForce 6600 256MB PCI-E
Nice Creative Speakers, Cordless Microsoft Elite Desktop.
X-Blade Case with original supplied PSU.

Sorry for all the detail, but it saves me having to go over other things later.

I basically built the PC when I was a student, with a limited budget, but so far I have been happy with it.

Now that I am working and have a bit of dosh (working around £200) I would like to upgrade my computer to give a performance boost.

The lines I was thinking was adding another 1GB of RAM, however is there a noticeable difference between 1GB and 2GB?

Also I could upgrade the graphics card to perhaps a 7600GT or an ati option?

Or with the recent drop in S939 CPU prices I could perhaps pick up a Opteron/X2/FX AMD processor......

The only reason I created this post is because I don’t know if I would physically notice the difference if I upgraded the RAM/CPU.

I currently use my PC for Internet use, downloading, and moderate gaming (I say moderate as I don’t have allot of time to game). My favorite game currently is Battlefield 2.

I do assume though its best for me to hold our to the start of 2007 to get the best deals?

Any ideas guys? I would really appreciate some advice.

[mondogenerator]

I was in a similar situation about two months ago with a similar setup although I had an X800XT and a AMD 64bit 3500. I upgraded the CPU to a 4600 X2 dual core for £130, the X800XT to a X1900XTX for £250 (they are way cheaper now, around £200) and got 2 X 1GB of Corsair DDR400 XMS RAM for around £100.

You will notice a massive different between 1GB and 2GB ram. The difference is enourmous, especially with something like BF2.

[djglenn]

wow, Ideally I would like 2 x 1GB sticks, as it would mean if I felt the need in the future I could upgrade to 4GB total. I wasnt aware you could get it for as low as £100....

Is there a considerable benefit to the cpu upgrade? From a 3500+ to a 4600 X2 that is?

Also sorry for lacking the basic knowledge, but would a graphics card upgrade for me only benefit gaming, or would it improve all graphics, such as movies, etc?

[mondogenerator]

The upgrade from the 3500 to the 4600 is a mixed bag. Yes, there is a massive performance boost overall but not as much as you might think, because an application/game, unless optimised can only use a single core. Obviously everything ran better, I got over 1000 extra points in 3dmark06 and all games I played generally ran a bit better but some others the difference was negliable, or just a placebo effect.

I think the best analogy (I might be wrong) is that a 3800+ is around the same power as a 4200X2 when using a single core. Something like 3Dmark2006 will show you the potential of dual cores for gaming but as yet how this translates into real world application isn't opened up yet.


I got the RAM from a special offer, I think on OCUK.