[Fulcrum]

Hello Ladies and Gentlemen,

I come here to ask for a favour, im looking to upgrade this system, all im asking is to ask the forum members if now is the right time to upgrade or if I should wait and what should I upgrade. My current system is this:

Intel(R) Core(TM)2 CPU E6420 @ 2.13GHz Model 15, Stepping 6
Total Memory Slots: 4
Available Memory Slots: 2
Currently Installed Memory: 2GB DDR2
ATI radeon X1650 256 MB
Microsoft Windows XP Home Edition 32 bit edition.
Asus P5B mobo

When i run higher end games like GTA IV, the computer displays poor graphics, i dont know much about graphic cards but im sure I need an upgrade, i dont know which one. Budget : max 100-300$CDN for graphics card, i dont suspect i need a new mobo, i know ill need another ram, i know windows xp 32 bit only supports another Gb or ram. but can you guys think of anything else i need. the video card- i dont need it to have all that fancy HDMI, HDTV cable hookups, just lightning speed amazing graphics.

Thanks for your time

[Pinscher]

Well GTA IV is a very taxing game even on high end systems. You are choking on not only your GPU but also your CPU. It is a very cpu intensive game.

NCIX.com - Buy ASUS Radeon HD 4890 850MHZ 1GB 3.9GHZ DDR5 PCI-E Dual DVI HDTV Out Video Card - EAH4890/HTDI/1GD5 In Canada.

I couldn't find a cpu compatability chart but I think this cpu will work. Don't quote me on it though, do some more research before buying it.

NCIX.com - Buy Intel Core 2 Duo E8400 Dual Core Processor LGA775 3.0GHZ Wolfdale 1333FSB 6MB Retail - BX80570E8400 In Canada.

If you want, you can download Windows 7 RC for free and then upgrade to 4gb of ram. Here's a good kit.

NCIX.com - Buy G.SKILL F2-6400CL4D-4GBPK PC2-6400 4GB 2X2GB DDR2-800 CL4-4-4-12 240PIN Dual Channel Memory Kit - F2-6400CL4D-4GBPK In Canada.

What PSU do you have?

[Trotter]

Everything I could find on the 3200 chipset listed Xeon CPUs.

GTA IV chews up the CPU big time. A quad, if your board can handle it, would be best for handling it.

[Fulcrum]

Originally Posted by Trotter

Everything I could find on the 3200 chipset listed Xeon CPUs.

GTA IV chews up the CPU big time. A quad, if your board can handle it, would be best for handling it.

I was thinking about quads, but i read somewhere that most games are compatible with quads, or rather, not utilizing the quad fuction of the cpu.

As for PSU, is there a way to check, without opening up the tower?

[Muffin Man]

gtaIV is actually part of the group of few games that are beginning to utilize all four cores.

there's really no other way to check your psu, just take off the side panel and look at the label for the brand and model number.

[Pinscher]

Originally Posted by Trotter

Everything I could find on the 3200 chipset listed Xeon CPUs.

GTA IV chews up the CPU big time. A quad, if your board can handle it, would be best for handling it.

ASUSTeK Computer Inc.

[Fulcrum]

so i should go ahead and get a quad core then? or stick with a dual?

My PSU is MIOS
AC input: 230/115 VAC 10/6A 50~60 Hz

EN60950
500W

i hope thats enough info

Thanks

edit: Im seeing alot of graphic cards with different DDR's some are GDDR, some are DDR1-5. whats the difference?

[Trotter]

Go for the quad.

The 4890 requires a 500W PSU. Your PSU should run it.

GDDR is faster than DDR. The higher number the newer the generation of the GDDR and the faster it is. GDDR5 is the top of the food chain right now.

[Pinscher]

Originally Posted by Trotter

Go for the quad.

The 4890 requires a 500W PSU. Your PSU should run it.

GDDR is faster than DDR. The higher number the newer the generation of the GDDR and the faster it is. GDDR5 is the top of the food chain right now.

But just because a card has GDDR5 (only ATI cards have this ATM) does not mean it is automatically the best. Nvidia cards hold the performance crown and they use GDDR3. This is not to say the 4890 is any wimp. It is an awesome card well worth getting.

Fulcrum: I found this thread on your PSU silentpcreview.com | View topic - Mios 20+4 500W

It looks like your PSU is a little dicey and not to be trusted. This system also looks a couple years old (I'm guessing around 2-3). The capacitors in PSUs (especially low quality ones) degrade over time making them slightly weaker. If you can afford it, you might want to consider getting a new PSU with this upgrade. A quad and a 4890 might be too much for it to handle.

[Fulcrum]

which PSU (wattage) should I get? another 500W? or higher?