Anything to upgrade?

[ikjadoon]

Hi. My system is in my sig, but here it is anyway for those who are too lazy to move their eyes a few millimeters:

Core 2 Duo E6600 @ ~3.5GHz
ASUS P5N-E SLI
2GB of DDR2-770
8800GTS 640MB @ 621/1548
Seagate 320GB
LITE-ON 20X
CM Stacker 830
Enermax 620W
Vista Ultimate 64-bit SP1

I just got my ACT scores in and I'm wondering if I should use them for an "opportunity" to upgrade my computer. I am getting a WD 640GB soon, but is there anything else? I'd like to spend the money on getting some better peripherals (really need new speakers, mouse is ancient, and the keyboard is noisy), but they aren't exactly performance-enhancers.

Just wondering!

Thanks!

~Ibrahim~

 

[tiraides]

DDR2 770? What brand are those?

Go ahead and get some better peripherals -- your setup, as a whole, looks fine.

(BTW, what monitor do you have? And what resolution do you use on it?)

 

[crhscoog]

+1 to tiraides post

 

[ikjadoon]

DDR2 770? What brand are those?

Go ahead and get some better peripherals -- your setup, as a whole, looks fine.

I wish I knew. Custom-made by the Overdrive PC. The 770MHz isn't the rating, it is just the speed it is running at.

OK, that is what I was thinking. I had a slight inclination to maybe upgrade to an 8800GTX or another 8800GTS 640MB for SLI, but I don't know how much of a performance boost I'll actually get. I play at 1680x1050 and the only game I have trouble with is Crysis.

~Ibrahim~

 

[tiraides]

Crysis is designed to tax video cards, even the high-end ones. Then again, your 8800GTS (the G80 version that you have) is a mid-range card. You could go one of two (recommended) routes here. The first recommendation is to sell your current card and get either one of the newer G92 (512MB) 8800GTS cards or the HD3870x2 card. The second option would be to buy a second 640MB 8800GTS, but buy it used, and use both cards in SLI mode. (There's no sense spending $300-$400 on a new G80 8800GTS when the G92 version outperforms it for less.)

If you have the money to do so, go with the first option. The problem with SLI is that for you, at the resolution you're using, it's actually overkill. (Well, maybe not for Crysis, but in general....) Additionally, the new 9800-series cards from NVIDIA should be arriving soon, and one of those models may be as effective as (if not better than) two 640MB GTS cards in SLI mode. (And a new 9800GTX or GX2 card may cost less than two 640GB 8800GTS cards, especially if you buy both GTS cards new.)

Based on the speed that your memory is running at, I believe that the RAM may have been overclocked as well. If your Overdrive PC is still under warranty, don't worry about it. If you decide to upgrade the RAM, either now or at some point in the future, then you may want to consider buying a 2x2GB DDR2 800 kit and swap your current RAM out with that. (It's not a true necessity, but it may help performance.)

 

[ikjadoon]

And to think it was 2nd best when I bought it, lol.

I have been browsing around eBay and a 8800GTS 640MB sells for about $150ish. I think my GPU upgrade path will depend on how well the high-end 9-series cards perform. And if they are not worth it, the GTS 640MB should drop in price even more. Heck, I might even be able to grab one for under ~$100 and that'll be a good deal.

4GB of memory is actually really rather cheap. I think I will go for this:

4GB DDR2-800
WD 640GB
+ random peripherals

And possibly a GTS 640MB if the price drops low enough. I can just buy any 4GB DDR2-800 pair, right, since it doesn't have to overclock? Heck, it has to underclock.

~Ibrahim~

 

[tiraides]

You don't have to worry about the RAM... just place the BIOS settings to Auto regarding the RAM. Again, you don't need to change the RAM right now; the video card is where you'll see the most noticeable improvements at.

But there's no guarantee that the arrival of the 9800-series cards will drop the prices down even further. The retail prices for the G80 GTS cards remained the same even after the arrival of the G92 GTS.