Looking for upgrade advice

[wayne00]

Hi all!
I'm currently running nF4 mobo with 2GB RAM, A64 3800+ (Venice, oc'ed to 2460MHz) and Radeon X1650XT. It's enough for my work. I'm also occasional gamer - what should I upgrade to get better framerates in e.g. Fallout 3, Call of Duty: World at War, Far Cry 2 etc.? My goal is play at 1280x1024 with at least 25 fps (now in F3 I have about 20 or lower, especially in open areas), AA not required, but why not? Of course I' m looking for any cheap solutions, not to throw all through the window and buy brand new rig Well, I'm looking for best bang for the bucks
What could I do? Replace CPU (my mobo supports A64 up to 4000+, X2 3800+ - 4800+ or Opterons 154, 180 or x2 170) or GPU? Will any more powerful video card give me good performance boost (e.g. Hd3850 or 8800) , or it will be limited by current CPU?

I'm not quite familiar with newer video cards, so I need to ask for help. Thanks in advance!

Wayne.

P.S. Are Opterons mentioned before any good? It's quite rare CPU, but sometimes can be bought at reasonable prices.

 

[zerocool84]

You're cpu limited but your gfx card is old as well. You're looking at a new mobo/ram/cpu/videcard to get some decent fps in fallout3.

 

[s44]

Even a $60-70 HD4670 will boost your performance a lot. Dual core would definitely help but I'm not sure what 939x2s (used maybe?) are going for these days -- if it's over $50, not worth it. 2GB should be fine for now.