Hardware Update Recommendation

[jjacocks]

I'm a long-time reader of this site, but a first time poster.

Currently, I have the following system, assembled over time, from random parts:
Athlon 64 3500+
Asus A8N-SLI Deluxe
1gb PC2100 (2x512, should be PC2700, but not stable at that speed)
Gigabyte GeForce 6600GT 128mb
WD Raptor 74
Dell 2405FPW 24" and HP2037 20" LCDs
SB Audigy 2

What parts in the system do you all think msot need to be upgraded? I use the system mostly to play games, and to do many different sorts of media conversion (TiVo ripping/encoding, music ripping/encoding). I'd like to be able to play World of Warcraft at 60fps at 1920x1200 (native res on the Dell LCD). I know that's a dream, but it's the direction that I'm headed. 🙂

It seems to me that upgrading the video card to a 7800GT would help a bit, but I'd appreciate the suggestions of everyone here.

Thanks!

 

[Away]

First of all...welcome to the forums.

I agree with you on upgrading the video card. A 7800 will definitely add some extra punch to that system. What I don't understand is the memory. I'm running 1GB of PC3200 in my Asus board with full stability. I don't know what brand of memory you are running, but if you are in the market for something new, try some Corsair or Kingston Value. I know that you can buy them in the kits to compliment your dual channel. Good luck to you on your upgrade.

 

[jjacocks]

The memory stability note means that, even though the RAM (commodity) was sold as PC2700, I can't get any of my systems to post with it running faster than PC2100 speeds.

I have definitely considered getting some name-brand memory, but I hate to spend the money, if it isn't going to help the system's performance, as I don't currently need more than 1gb of RAM.

Thanks!