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Best upgrade path?

B

bozrdang

Weaksauce
Joined
Aug 3, 2004
Messages
89
I'm looking to upgrade my system for better gaming performance (for Doom 3 especially) and I'm wondering what you all would suggest for $650.

My current system:

Asus A7N8X-E Deluxe
AMD 2500+ Barton OC'd to 3200+
512 (2x256) Corsair XMS DDR PC-3200 3-3-3-8 (Dual channel)
ATI Radeon 9500 Pro
WD Raptor 36.7G

Obviously, my video card needs upgraded, but I'm not sure how high to go with it. Do I go with say an ATI 9800XT plus 1G of good low latency ram like Corsair TWINX1024-3200XLPT, or should I go with a better video card (like X800 Pro) and 1G of cheaper ram? Which would yield the better gaming performance? Is the X800 Pro that much better than the 9800 Pro?

Also, I've read that dual channel memory has little impact on the Athlon XP platform. What about adding one 512M card of ram to my existing 2x256, which I uderstand will disable dual channel, and using the money saved on a better video card?
 
While you will see some (small) speed improvement by upgrading to memory with lower latencies, you will get the most benefit from upgrading your video card.

I would recommend the 6800 over the x800. Go with the PS3.0 out of the box. Plus, the 6800 is just plain faster than the x800.
 
My concern with the 6800 is the need for a powerful power supply. Right now I have a 400W, and I wouldn't have the money to upgrade the power supply along with that vid card.

You say that lower latency ram won't show a big improvement, but what about the increase from 512M to 1G? How much would that help?
 
My concern with you filling all 3 DIMMs is that it may have a slight chance of introducing instability. You already have to drop to cas 3 just to get 200FSB, that's why I'm worried. I was under the impression that Corsair XMS did cas 2.5, at the slowest?

I have Platinum though, so maybe yours are a different or older version?

If you are concerned about power requirements at all, I can guarantee you that a 9800Pro will tax the PSU considerably less than an nVidia equivalent.

My suggestion is to get a 9800 Pro and begin saving the rest of that money toward a 939 system (they should have a sub $200 1700+ chip, if you will, by the end of '04 or early '05.
 
You are right Mav451. I must correct myself. My current Corsair XMS ram runs at 2.5-3-3-8, not 3-3-3-8. It's been a while since I set it up and I forgot.

Since I'm already planning on going to a 939 system after the new year, would you suggest a 6800 with my current 512Mb of ram instead of a lesser card and 1 of ram?
 
Upgrade the video card and go with a gig of RAM, that will gain you the most benefit right now.

Don't worry about slightly higher CAS latency, the added memory will more than make up for it.
 
Since I already have one 36.7 Raoptor, would it make better sense to get a 6800GT + another 36.7 Raptor and run the two in raid 0 along with my current 512MB ram, or should I get a 9800XT with 1G of ram (double my 512MB) and leave my Raptor solo? It looks like I can do one or the other, but not both.
 
Go the new video card. If you are worried about the power for the 6800, you should look at the 9800 Pro or XT. They are more than capable in the market today, even against the 6800 and X800. As for the rest of your money, you could get some more RAM and get a bit more performance, or you could get another Raptor. That seems a slightly better option, as you ca never have too much hard drive space. But really, the call is yours, so if you feel like more performance, go the new RAM, but if you are looking (or feel you'll need) more storage space, go for the Raptor.
 
Just to let you know.. it is possible to run in dual channel mode with 3 DIMMS.. put the 2x 256 in 1&2 and put the 512 in slot 3.
I had 512MB and a friend let me use 2x 256 DIMMS during a LAN and I was able to use it in dual channel mode. The RAM was all the same brand and I think I was able to run with the same tight timings as when I only had the single 512 DIMM in there. Had no problems that I can recall.
 
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