Gaming upgrade advice

[Shadykaricta]

All,
Im new to the forums so I apologize if I am posting this in the wrong place. I'm really hyped for FFXIV so of course I went out and got the bench mark and ran it quick as I could. I was quickly brought down to earth with a score of 800 (at low resolution). For those who don't know the range goes from like 0 - 6500 or so at both low and High rez. After crying I decided I got a couple of months let me see what I can do upgrade wise. I currently have:

Windows Vista (32 Bit)
Intel Core 2 Quad CPU Q6600 @ 2.4Ghz
4GB Ram
NVidia GeForce 8600 GTS

What I am asking help on is what is the best way to upgrade considering a limited budget? I am not looking to fully upgrade to increase my epeen length. I'm just trying to play a game comfortably or even with a very slight level of aggravation. Im definitely considering upgrading to a 64 bit OS but what else would you recommenced. I thank anyone kind enough to post in advance.

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Hi,

Welcome to AnandTech Forums. Per your concern, I moved this thread to our General Hardware forum.

We hope you enjoy yourself on our forums and that you find the answers you want. 🙂

Harvey
Senior AnandTech Moderator/Administrator

 

[Sp12]

First, yes this is the wrong forum, you want 'general hardware'.

Second, you have 4GB of ram, but are using a 32bit OS, Vista at that. Windows 7 x64 is a definite step up.

A Q6600 isn't really that old, and in fact for gaming it keeps up well with i7s per clock.

I'm willing to guess the video card is the issue. What size power supply do you have? What motherboard? How much are you willing to spend? What resolution are you looking to play at?

 

[Shadykaricta]

Thank you for the response and sorry for posting in the wrong spot.

It's a dell XPS 410. Im assuming its Standard ATX/BTX Motherboard (One PCI express x1 slot, One PCI Express x16, One PCI Express x4 slot)

The power supply is 375W.

Im looking to spend 200- 400. This is including upgrade to 64 bit OS. I don't need to play at the highest resolution. Mid range is cool.

 

[mfenn]

Luckily for you, you should be able to do what you want within (the upper end of) your budget. While your Dell PSU may be able to handle a Q6600 + new GPU, I'm going to recommend you upgrade to be safe.

You can get a Radeon 5770 for ~$150 which should be more than enough GPU for FFXIV. As for the PSU, you can get a Corsair 550VX for $80 - $10 MIR. This PSU should outlast the rest of your Dell. Finally, Windows 7 Home Premium 64-bit is $95. That's a total of $315 AR.

 

[Sp12]

Thank you for the response and sorry for posting in the wrong spot.

It's a dell XPS 410. Im assuming its Standard ATX/BTX Motherboard (One PCI express x1 slot, One PCI Express x16, One PCI Express x4 slot)

The power supply is 375W.

Im looking to spend 200- 400. This is including upgrade to 64 bit OS. I don't need to play at the highest resolution. Mid range is cool.

Well, that power supply is really suspect as a dell, and 375.

Win 7 Home Premium 64 95$ Check if you can get it through work/school, they often have MSDN software packages like that. There's also a chance you could get a cheaper upgrade license.

Here's a 30$, quality 400 watt PSU. 400 watts a 'tad' low, but if you're not overclocking you should be OK. You can get 550 watts for ~60/70 dollars. 650 for 80/90.

Here's my favorite 5770 because of XFX double lifetime warranty, 167$. The 5770 can be had for 150. At this point I'm unable to find new 1GB 4870s for less than a 5770, but if you're willing to go used there's typically great deals on used 4870s in the FS forum, only issue is that they use more power which might outweigh any cost savings with a more expensive PSU. What resolution is your monitor, as that's the easiest way to determine if this videocard is overkill, you really DO NOT want to be playing at anything less than your monitor's native, even if it means dropping quality settings.

So for about 200$ (less if you go used) you can get a significant step up in game performance, but honestly if you're looking for a game a few months out, I'd wait until then for prices to drop and technology to progress. Add 95$ for Win7 for 292 total.

Edit: Lol at mfenn and I having basically the same suggestion.

 

[Shadykaricta]

Monitor is light, 1440 x 900 but I'll probably connect it to my flat screen TV from time to time. Also Thanks to both of you guys for the great feedback. This is such a great resource.

 

[RaistlinZ]

Does FFXIV make use of DirectX 11? If so, the 5770 would be a good choice. Otherwise, you can consider a used 4890 for around $140.00 or so (you'll want a better power supply for that though).

Either one should give you blissful gaming at 1440x900 easily.

 

[BTRY B 529th FA BN]

what does FF put more stress on the CPU or GPU?