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Need advice - Upgrading computer.
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Wishcross
Junior Member
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15. January 2011 @ 20:43 |
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Hey guys, I need some advice on upgrading my computer.
Right now I have a...
Gigabyte GA-G41M-COMBO
Corsair 550VX PSU
3GB DDR2 RAM
Intel Pentium Dual CPU E2160 @ 1.8GHz
NVIDIA GeForce 9600GT
Right now I'm planning to upgrade my CPU to a Core 2 Quad Q8400 2.66GHz.
And also upgrading my graphics card to a Gigabyte ATIHD 5450 DDR3 512mb.
However I'm not so sure about the graphics card, unless there's a huge performance gap between the my current card and the one I might get.
But I do want to upgrade my processor and the only socket I have is the LGA775 socket.
So please help me with some advice.
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ddp
Moderator
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15. January 2011 @ 21:20 |
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AfterDawn Addict
4 product reviews
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16. January 2011 @ 13:29 |
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Geforce 9600GT (your current card): 100%
Currently available cards
Geforce G210: 6%
Geforce GT220: 60%
Geforce GT430: 75%
Geforce GT240: 120%
Geforce GTS250: 175%
Geforce GTS450: 225%
Geforce GTX460: 300%
Geforce GTX465: 320%
Geforce GTX460 1GB: 330%
Geforce GTX470: 390%
Geforce GTX480: 460%
Geforce GTX570: 470%
Geforce GTX580: 560%
Radeon HD5450: 25%
Radeon HD5570: 110%
Radeon HD5670: 130%
Radeon HD5750: 180%
Radeon HD5770: 220%
Radeon HD5830: 320%
Radeon HD6850: 360%
Radeon HD5850: 380%
Radeon HD6870: 410%
Radeon HD5870: 430%
Radeon HD6950: 460%
Radeon HD6970: 510%
As you can see, the 9600GT is four times as powerful as the HD5450. You need to be buying at least an HD5750 or GTS250 to be getting an actual upgrade out of this.
The GTS250 is an old, inefficient card, and its successor is the GTS450, which competes with the HD5770, so those are the cards you should be looking at, at the very least.
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Wishcross
Junior Member
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16. January 2011 @ 18:13 |
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Woah, I didn't have a clue it was 4 times strong. T_T.
And thanks for the link for the processor compatibility.
I'm also thinking about changing my DDR2 ram into DDR3, but is it a huge speed different between the two types right now?
I guess I don't really need advice on my CPU then.
At first I was choosing whether to buy a faster dual-core or actually upgrade to a Quad-Core, but since the socket doesn't allow i3s and etc, I'd have to go with a Core 2 Quad.
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ddp
Moderator
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16. January 2011 @ 18:19 |
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any reason why upgrade to ddr3 ram? what bit is your windows, 32 or 64?
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Wishcross
Junior Member
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16. January 2011 @ 19:12 |
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I'm not so sure. :S.
Windows 7 64bit.
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ddp
Moderator
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16. January 2011 @ 19:51 |
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what are you using the computer for, gaming, surfing net or what?
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Wishcross
Junior Member
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16. January 2011 @ 19:53 |
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Gaming. XD.
I also have another question.
If I do buy the Q8400 processor, would I need to add additional fans?
Such as one or two case fans?
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ddp
Moderator
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16. January 2011 @ 19:59 |
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check your games' system requirements for ram amount. get a fan for front end of case that brings air into case that the back case fan & psu fan blows out of case.
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Wishcross
Junior Member
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16. January 2011 @ 20:33 |
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I just checked my main games and most of them say about 512MB to 2GB RAM.
Also, I've check the inside of my case if I can install the case fan or not...
Took a couple of pictures, looks like I can't. :S
http://img163.imageshack.us/i/006tpl.jpg/
http://img88.imageshack.us/i/005fl.jpg/
This is the the front inside part of the tower, the black parts connecting through to the metal part is the front cover of the computer where the power button and microphone/headphone plugs are.
http://img404.imageshack.us/i/003hj.jpg/
http://img208.imageshack.us/i/001yqe.jpg/
http://img209.imageshack.us/i/004eg.jpg/
This is the left side of my tower, I'm sure these aren't where you put case fans in, because the top square is located right infront of my CPU fan, supposedly this is where my CPU fan gets the air from. I've checked the inside of this left side, and there wasn't any screw holes or ledges to put a case fan in.
http://img585.imageshack.us/i/002je.jpg/
This part is located directed under the square holes provided in the images above. Again this is on the left side of my case, and there aren't any screw holes or ledges to put even a small case fan in.
I guess I need a new case now. XD.
Soooo... any cheap cases good for value these days? Lmao. T_T.
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ddp
Moderator
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16. January 2011 @ 22:00 |
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i'm in canada so check with newegg or your local computer store.
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Wishcross
Junior Member
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17. January 2011 @ 01:31 |
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ddp
Moderator
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17. January 2011 @ 12:50 |
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the front & side pulls air in & the back blows air out.
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Wishcross
Junior Member
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17. January 2011 @ 14:48 |
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Hmm, I'll have to check the front of the case, will the front fan even work pulling air in even though the cover is in front? :S. Seriously confused. XD.
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ddp
Moderator
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17. January 2011 @ 15:05 |
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yes as no case is airtight.
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Wishcross
Junior Member
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19. January 2011 @ 12:46 |
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Okay, thanks for the help then! XD.
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ddp
Moderator
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19. January 2011 @ 14:10 |
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no problem. also all frontend of cases has venting.
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Wishcross
Junior Member
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20. January 2011 @ 19:45 |
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AfterDawn Addict
4 product reviews
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20. January 2011 @ 20:21 |
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1. An E6700 isn't worth that much
2. Microdirect are scammers
3. It's not much of an upgrade.
4. L2 cache is not important for gaming, a quad core is better than a dual though.
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Wishcross
Junior Member
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20. January 2011 @ 21:15 |
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Originally posted by sammorris:
1. An E6700 isn't worth that much
2. Microdirect are scammers
3. It's not much of an upgrade.
4. L2 cache is not important for gaming, a quad core is better than a dual though.
@Q4.
Better than a dual core at gaming? Or just general use?
And... even if the speed of the quad-core is slower than the dual-core? :O
And I'll probably use Scan.co.uk anyway. But it was just to compare the prices, and because Micro-Direct only had that processor. :)
This message has been edited since posting. Last time this message was edited on 20. January 2011 @ 21:16
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AfterDawn Addict
4 product reviews
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20. January 2011 @ 21:17 |
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Both, and the Q8400 is not slower than the E6700, it's actually slightly faster (per-core)
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Wishcross
Junior Member
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20. January 2011 @ 21:25 |
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Originally posted by sammorris:
Both, and the Q8400 is not slower than the E6700, it's actually slightly faster (per-core)
I actually heard from a friend, that even if you have a quad-core processor, it only uses two cores of the four to plays game. :S.
Although I know that some games do require quad-core processors.
Anyway, thanks for your help. :).
Decided to buy the Q8400. XD.
Thanks ddp for the help with cases/cooling problems. :).
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AfterDawn Addict
4 product reviews
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20. January 2011 @ 21:29 |
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As a blanket statement it's completely false. Most games only use one core, some use two, but incresingly many (and arguably, the ones that matter, where your CPU actually affects performance) are using 4 or more cores.
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Wishcross
Junior Member
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21. January 2011 @ 04:41 |
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Originally posted by sammorris:
As a blanket statement it's completely false. Most games only use one core, some use two, but incresingly many (and arguably, the ones that matter, where your CPU actually affects performance) are using 4 or more cores.
Well, the main reason I wanted to buy a faster Dual-Core was just to play Black Ops on my PC. I bought the game but my processor wasn't fast enough to play it. :S.
That's why I was debating whether to buy a dual-core or quad-core for gaming. XD.
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AfterDawn Addict
4 product reviews
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21. January 2011 @ 08:55 |
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Quads are being used increasingly in games, and they are a borderline necessity with crossfire due to additional CPU load created by the drivers, and the fact that you're going for higher performance, which means you need a faster CPU to keep up.
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