budget computer to strategy games

Toggle sidebar Toggle sidebar
S

speshk4444

Junior Member
Feb 3, 2006
6
0
0
I have been out of the loop of computer hardware for a little while and will probally not be able to play Age of Empires 3 or Star Wars Empires at War. I must play!

My system has 1 gig thunderbird, Gforce 2 pro, MSI turbo board, and a crap case that has treated me well for some time, but that time is over. I have done reasearch and the following has me still wondering.

1) The difference between the Venice and Sledghammer. SEE3?

2) Will a Gforce 6600 run most games?

3) If not will 2 with SLi do it and how much of a power supply will I need. I believe 2 would work but is it necessary?

4) Knowing the kind of games that I play will a Semperon still cut it? I'm guessing not since there is only 256 Kb of L2 cache.

5) What is a 9800 ATI comparable to?

The system that I am leaning towards is as follows:

MSI K8N socket 754 Nforce 4
AMD 64 3000+ Venice
Geforce 6600 256mb 128bit DDR
if 2 video cards are necessary I would have to go with Epox

I hate being on a budget!
 
cKGunslinger

cKGunslinger

Lifer
Nov 29, 1999
16,408
57
91
Two video cards is typically pointless, unless they are both top-of-the-line cards. Usually, you'll spend less money on a single card that will match or even out-perform your low/mid-end SLI setup.

6600gt should be find for strategy games, and even a few actions games at less-than-max settings.

Semprons are ok for ultra-budget systems, but since socket 754 is a dead end, I'd go 939 instead. You'll pay a bit more for the CPUs (no 939 Semprons.)

9800 is still pretty competitive, but getting long in the tooth. They are also AGP only, so unless you get an AGP + PCIe board (rare,) you've limited your upgrade path again.

Don't forget 1GB+ RAM.

(Exactly what is you budget? That would help in the base selection of parts/platform.)
 
B

Broly

Banned
Dec 18, 2005
430
0
0
My friend, the 6 series is a mistake, I strongly suggest the following specs:
The venice
The MSI is good, but EPOX is just as good may save you a few bucks
DO NOT GET A 6800 GT, GET A 7800 GT! This is bang for your buck!
Get an EPOX SLI - READY motherboard.
You can add another 7800gt later and that should allow you to dominate age of empires.

Hope that helps

also what guslinger said, 1gb is standard i recommend 2
 
B

Bobthelost

Diamond Member
Dec 1, 2005
4,360
0
0
1) The difference between the Venice and Sledghammer. SEE3?
Pass

2) Will a Gforce 6600 run most games?
Yes, although you won't be able to have much eyecandy on

3) If not will 2 with SLi do it and how much of a power supply will I need. I believe 2 would work but is it necessary?
A 450W PSU is enough to run SLI, but make sure it's a brand name, fortron is a great budget PSU maker

4) Knowing the kind of games that I play will a Semperon still cut it? I'm guessing not since there is only 256 Kb of L2 cache.
CPU is rarely the bottleneck, but i would really go for a 939 system if i were you

5) What is a 9800 ATI comparable to?
Pass

Buy yourself a single slot motherboard, an entry level single core CPU and put as much money as you can spare into the GPU, more than 1gb of RAM would be nice, but it's probably not worth diverting the money from the graphics card.

SLI is not for you, don't waste your money on a SLI board.
 
S

speshk4444

Junior Member
Feb 3, 2006
6
0
0
The budget is around 500-600 since I have a 21 inch flat screen monitor ond pretty much everything else but the guts. I usually don't upgrade on a consistant basis so getting something that will become discontinued will not matter so much for me unless it will not play games. Newegg has amd 64 in a 754 for about 70 less that a 939 and the MSI borard, 754 also, should be around 60.

The video cards are where most of my confusion begins. Don't want to spend more that I have to just because it is better but will if it means that I won't have to upgrade.
 
B

Bobthelost

Diamond Member
Dec 1, 2005
4,360
0
0
Well the thing to do would be to wander over to tom's hardware and look at thier VGA roundups, then find the 6600 and see how it performs compared to cheaper and more expensive options.

For a 21" LCD you're looking at either widescreen or a bloody huge square screen, which one is it?
 
B

Broly

Banned
Dec 18, 2005
430
0
0
You want a 7800 so you can get an sli down teh road to last you for a good 3 - 4years TOPS

technology is changing fast man all you can do is make sure you let it work around you not the other way around
 
S

speshk4444

Junior Member
Feb 3, 2006
6
0
0
The 21" is a CRT. Got a great deal on it back in the Gforce 2 days. I can't think of the brand name but it is a wanna be Sony.
 
YOyoYOhowsDAjello

YOyoYOhowsDAjello

Moderator<br>A/V & Home Theater<br>Elite member
Aug 6, 2001
31,205
45
91
B

Bobthelost

Diamond Member
Dec 1, 2005
4,360
0
0
Ah! Gotcha.

In which case you're still looking at 1600x1200 max resolution, but you can downsize that easily if you don't mind. The more money you spend on the graphics card the higher the resolution you can play with. I'm not very good at low budget builds tbh, and broly seems to be a lot worse.
 
YOyoYOhowsDAjello

YOyoYOhowsDAjello

Moderator<br>A/V & Home Theater<br>Elite member
Aug 6, 2001
31,205
45
91
Originally posted by: Broly
You want a 7800 so you can get an sli down teh road to last you for a good 3 - 4years TOPS

technology is changing fast man all you can do is make sure you let it work around you not the other way around
Click to expand...

Not everyone needs to buy a $300 videocard.

How fast things move is a good reason not to spend a lot on your videocard if you don't need to.
 
S

speshk4444

Junior Member
Feb 3, 2006
6
0
0
Now the question would be would a ATI out perform a Nvidia video card in the Age of empires 3 and games similar to it. I just have never gotten into 1st person shooters and the really graphic intensive games. Just not my cup of tea. A $100 card would be great if it works under these conditions. Don't really want to spend more than 150 unless I have to.

Since ATI has issues with Nforce 4 mobos can you give me a recomondation of a good VIA chipset.

Thanks of the Tomshardware shout out. I completely forgot about them.
 
S

speshk4444

Junior Member
Feb 3, 2006
6
0
0
I see all of the performance tests involving different games such as Doom and Halo. What would Age of empires 3 and games similar to it be closest to?
 
B

Bobthelost

Diamond Member
Dec 1, 2005
4,360
0
0
ATI doesn't have many issues, and none that are really worth worrying about. I'd work out what price range you can afford and then look at the cards availible to you in that range, then it's up to you if the increased performance is worth the extra money.

After a quick read of another thread then i'd go 754 for your build, it's cheap and fast enough.
 
S

speshk4444

Junior Member
Feb 3, 2006
6
0
0
Last Question

At what point does the fps have an effect on the eye. I would think the 10 or more would be enough and my eyes would not notice the difference past that. Has there been any research on this subject?

Anyways, everyone has been great and I will post again as soon as I build it.

This is what I am leaning towards.

MSI K8N NEO3 socket 754 $62.00
AMD64 3000+ 120.00
Gforce 6600 GT about 120.00
Seagate 80GB HD about 80.00
Case Rosewill 400W 45.00
Corsair 1GB value about 60.00 Fry's weekend special.

Total: about 500 + S&H
 
T

t3h l337 n3wb

Platinum Member
Apr 22, 2005
2,698
0
76
For RTS, you probably want about 15+ for decent framerates. Don't get a crappy PSU. Fortron 400W is only $40 on Newegg. If you can't play any of the newer games, there's always Starcraft, the greatest RTS of all time :D
 
S

shoRunner

Platinum Member
Nov 8, 2004
2,629
1
0
I wouldn't recommend getting a skt 754 system with agp as you are killing any upgrade options.

if you want to get a skt 754 system i'd recommend getting one that has pci-e like MSI K8NGM $62

that way you can get a good midrange card like the 6800GS $180
or get a cheaper 6600gt for $120

and you can definately spend less on that hd.
check out the hot deals forum. here
is a thread for hd deals of this week. you can get a 120gb seagate for $60 OTD.

I'd also recommend against getting a generic PSU and getting one like this or getting the case and psu from antec like this
 
Z

zagood

Diamond Member
Mar 28, 2005
4,102
0
71
Agree with shoRunner, HDs are the only components that are worth going to BestBuy or Circuit City for. You can find deals for around 25 cents a gig for PATA, or 30 cents a gig for SATA.

6600GT will do you fine.

-z
 
H

hurtstotalktoyou

Platinum Member
Mar 24, 2005
2,055
9
81
Originally posted by: speshk4444
I have been out of the loop of computer hardware for a little while and will probally not be able to play Age of Empires 3 or Star Wars Empires at War. I must play!

My system has 1 gig thunderbird, Gforce 2 pro, MSI turbo board, and a crap case that has treated me well for some time, but that time is over. I have done reasearch and the following has me still wondering.

1) The difference between the Venice and Sledghammer. SEE3?
Click to expand...

On your budget, you probably shouldn't worry about either. A Sempron 64 2500+ or 2800+ is what you'll want. They both have SSE3.

2) Will a Gforce 6600 run most games?
Click to expand...

Yes, albeit at lower settings. But given your budget, I don't see any alternative.

3) If not will 2 with SLi do it and how much of a power supply will I need. I believe 2 would work but is it necessary?
Click to expand...

SLI is not realistic on your budget.

4) Knowing the kind of games that I play will a Semperon still cut it? I'm guessing not since there is only 256 Kb of L2 cache.
Click to expand...

No, Semprons are great, actually. They're a little slower than Athlon 64s, but not by too much.

5) What is a 9800 ATI comparable to?
Click to expand...

I have no idea.

The system that I am leaning towards is as follows:

MSI K8N socket 754 Nforce 4
AMD 64 3000+ Venice
Click to expand...

Try for an Epox EP-8KDA3J and a Sempron 64 2800+ (like I have!). It's a lot cheaper and not much slower.

Geforce 6600 256mb 128bit DDR
Click to expand...

Don't forget at least 1GB PC3200. You can get reliable DIMMs from ms4me.com for $76 a pop.
 
A

alimoalem

Diamond Member
Sep 22, 2005
4,025
0
0
mobo: there's a lot for <$70 if you search newegg for a s939 with 1 pci-e slot. just select the other stuff to narrow your search
cpu: amd 3200+ ($170)
ram: 1gb stick of corsair, ocz, mushkin or g.skill value ram ($75)
gpu: 6600gt ($115 after rebates...$135 before)
hdd: reuse the one u have or buy a western digital SATA one for $50
psu: 400w fortron ($40)

this comes to around $510...
 
B

Broly

Banned
Dec 18, 2005
430
0
0
I've played AOE 3 Onm y 5950 ultra 256mb w/ 3.2ghz HT w/ 2gb ram

IT blew chunks at at 16xx x 10xx...
it's a demanding game.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.

TRENDING THREADS

COMPANY
RESOURCES
FOLLOW
Top Bottom