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noob question (sorry)

F

fakebun

Member
currently i have a p4 3.0e 800fsb with ECS pt800ce-a and 2x512 DDR400 kingston valueram, Geforce 2Ti, sound blaster audigy gamer, winxp pro sp2, 300w antec psu, and 80+120gig Ultra ATA HD

I plan to upgrade my computer...mainly upgrading the mobo and the video card. my budget is 300$ any suggestions on what to upgrade? im using a socket 478 P4

i saw this mobo Abit IC7-G MAXII on newegg
http://secure.newegg.com/NewVersion/Fee...tratingReview.asp?item=N82E16813127152

i wonder if its any good.


p.s i want to make my computer enough to play wow and/or f.e.a.r
i dont plan on using SATA as of now...and can u guys also suggest some cooling accessories thats cheap and effective (i dont plan on OCing as well)
thx guys
 
I do not think that you need to upgrade your motherboard. The problem with the motherboard you list is that it has an AGP slot. AGP is dying off right now. If you are going to buy a new motherboard, you might as well buy one that is somewhat future proof, meaning that it includes PCIe. If you bought such a motherboard, you would spend at least $65. But now you would need a new processor (Athlon64 3000+ = $140), and video card (6600GT = $140). At least you can reuse your memory. If you can afford it, go right ahead. If you cannot afford over $300, then simply buy the fastest AGP card you can (6600GT or an ATI x800)
 
so ur saying that i should just get a new processor and a new mobo and a new video card

but im satisfied with my p4 3.0 right now...

is there any mobo thats socket 478 for p4 prescott that has pci-e?
thx
 
so...if i keep my cpu and ram and change the mobo to that albatron one u found
it would greatly increase my perfomance on everything right?

that would leave me 220 for a good video card....im thinking of 6600...not GT...

should i buy 6200 OC or 6600 w/o GT?

btw, is albatron reliable?
-and-
is AOpen's 6600GT worth buying?
 
That doesn't make any sense. The AMD 3700+ would give you a real boost. But, why would you insist on keeping a Pentium 3.0 GHz? I wouldn't change a motherboard just to keep that processor. Hell, you could sell that CPU & mobo on eBay and upgrade to a new mobo/CPU/vid card.

I just sold an Asus mobo/Duron 1.8 GHz/Ti4200/512MB RAM on eBay for $190 CDN today. I'm glad to get rid of that crap since it lowers the cost of my upgrade.

3700+ $164 US
http://www.ewiz.com/detail.php?name=A64-3700

Asus K8N4-E Deluxe $86 US
http://www.ewiz.com/detail.php?name=MB-K8N4EDX

eVGA 6600 GT $143 US
http://www.ewiz.com/detail.php?name=EV-6600GT

So, the total would be $393 US and UPS ground inside the US would be less than $15 US so total of $408 US less of course the price you can get for your mobo & CPU.

If you get $108 US for your mobo & CPU on eBay, that's your total $300 US.


http://www23.tomshardware.com to see what kind of difference you'll see with the new CPU. (In UT2004, you''d get a 34% boost in frame rates.)

\EDIT: Disregard what I said about the AOpen 6600 GT (before editing it out). I read two customer reviews that were negative (regarding ineffective heatsinks, one guy's card was fried).

\ANOTHER EDIT: You could also sell your Geforce2 Ti and Antec 300w to try to cover the cost of a better power supply. Something like the...
Fortron 400watt $53 US
http://www.ewiz.com/detail.php?name=PS-FS400TN

oops, I also forgot a heatsink for the CPU but you get the idea
 
well i dont know how amd processor work
how fast is 3700+

i wouldn't change the cpu because i dont see a need to. I just got that 3.0 this year january. its still usable
 
sheesh, I gave you the tomshardware link and you didn't look? In UT2004, a 3.0 GHz Intel was at 118 fps while the 3700+ was at 158 fps. I already did the math for you, 34% increase.
 
Originally posted by: fakebun
well i dont know how amd processor work
how fast is 3700+

i wouldn't change the cpu because i dont see a need to. I just got that 3.0 this year january. its still usable
Click to expand...

you mean you can still get a good price for it on eBay. You're better off selling it while you can.

I don't think you've spent enough time looking at benchmarks. The CPU often gives you the "base" for your performance. With AA on at higher resolution, that's where the more powerful GPU will show you their strength.

Next year you'd be able to get a Geforce 8 series card or ATI equivalent and you'd have a hot rod on your hands. You could sell your 6600 GT and 1 GB and get 2x1 GB RAM with low latencies (like 2-2-2-5) then you wouldn't have a reason to complain.

That's a cheaper solution than you realize for what you end up with.

Faster RAM can get you up to 10% more in performance. And for those who don't know, getting a sound card will free the CPU of processing which will give you an extra several fps as well. That might give you a much needed speed boost on parts of some maps (in games).

 
If you are on a budget, consider just picking up this card for $200:

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16814102608

This card blows away a plain 6600. It's about the best you can do for a new AGP card in that price range.

Or, consider a plain 6800 agp and try to unlock it and overclock it:

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16814122193 $170

Otherwise, don't mess with upgrading a socket 478 system right now, as it's expensive and it's a waste of money.

I'm facing the same delimma as you. I have a 2.8 Prescott 478, and I've decided to just upgrade my vid card (my trusty 9800pro fried out the other day and my cheapo refurb 6800nu-- got for $132 🙂 is on its way from newegg).

After socket M comes out next year, I'm gonna build a new AMD system.
 
I know you guys are hot and horny for you whiny Intel processors but when I upgraded from my Duron 1.8 GHz/Ti4200 to my 3400+/X700 Pro, I went from low settings in UT2004 at 1024x768 with low frame rates in Tokara Forest ect. high frame rates on every map including a higher resolution and higher settings.

Also, I saw some CPU scaling benchmarks with the 7800 GTX and the 3000+ clearly makes it lag behind. So, you need something like a 3400+ socket 754 or 3500+ or above. Next year's mid-range video cards will likely require those CPU anyway. So, it's NOT a waste of money. You'll be able to last several years with that kind of CPU and next year's video cards.
 
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