Upgrade suggestions : Geforce2 MX?

[Buzz]

Looking to upgrade my 2nd system to be able to run decent 3D games - specifically Everquest which dips down to under 10fps under some circumstances. Current specs :

Abit BH6
PPGA Celeron 366 o/c to 458mhz (83mhz bus)
Voodoo3 2000, mem o/c to 175mhz
Seagate 7200rpm ata-66 hdd
Crappy snd card and 10/100 nic

I had previously used a cu-mine 600E and ran it at 800mhz (133bus) for the longest time on this mobo so I'm sure that I could do that again. Will that make more of a difference or will upgrading the video card to a Geforce2 MX be a better choice? MX with tv out should be around the same price as the cumine 600E ... Any ideas?

 

[acroig]

Here's the problem. With your CPU you might as well stick with what you have. The MX will be faster than the Voodoo, but it will sit and wait for the CPU to feet it triangles. You need a CPU upgrade and a video upgrade to get what you want. If you still had that 600@800 the answer would be obvious. You could always buy an MX at aplace that accepts returns to see how your current setup performs with it.

Just an idea

 

[duragezic]

I'm not sure what the lowest cpu speed is for a MX but at high resolutions like 1280x1024, there is VERY LITTLE difference between using a cpu that's maybe 200mhz faster. However that was with a 550 and a 750. It depends the resolution. At 640x480 and 800x600, a faster cpu will give higher frame rates.

It's kind of a toss-up. I'd have to agree with acroig though. Wait until you have enough money for a new cpu and a mx.

 

[nippyjun]

I would recommend getting a celeron 2 566@850. This will probably cost you around $50-$70 bucks. Then sell your current celeron and voodoo2 and get a Geforce 2 GTS, not the MX.

 

[acroig]

Not a bad suggestion, good for the money considering that a P3-700 sells in sthe 140's and that's the minumum speed I would go with right now. I GTS will be faster, especially at 1024 or higher.

 

[Zeppy]

I'd have to agree with the gang on this one. Looks to me that your CPU is a serious bottleneck at this point. (Trust me, I've been there.) Realisticly, just getting a new CPU/mobo and keeping the Voodoo3 will give you a huge performance boost.

 

[Buzz]

Thanks for the input guys. I decided to hold off on the upgrade and bumped up the PPGA Celeron 366 back up to 550. Hasn't crashed in the 4hrs in game so it appears to be somewhat stable. Performance is much better but still not nearly as good as the P3@800 & Geforce2 MX.

Next upgrade will probably be a Geforce2 GTS 64mb for my primary system someday...

 

[duragezic]

Now that you're up to a 550mhz it might not be so bad. I'm packing a 366@550 also and ordered a Radeon 64, which should be arriving tomorrow. I posted before I got it regarding my cpu speed and if it would hold back the sheer power of the Radeon (). The general consensus was it should be fine, much better than my banshee. If you look at Anand's review of the Radeon 64 you can see the performance difference between a Athlon 750 and P3 550E. I chose the Radeon 64 review because it has two cpus and a ton of other video cards on there so you can check out the MX on there.

You will see that at 640x480, 800x600, and to some extent 1024x768, the faster cpu gives a decent increase in fps. At 1280x1024 and 1600x1200, there is VERY LITTLE difference in fps with the two cpus.

After looking at that you might decide, it still could be a possibility. I'll see how mine runs at least when I get it.