CPU or Videocard to upgrade?

Q

Quake

Limp Gawd
Joined
Nov 13, 2004
Messages
204
My system is this:
Amd Athlon X2 5200+ OCed to 3012 Mhz
GA-MA74GM-S2
2 GB Ram
Geforce 8800GS Oced: GPU to 680, shader to 1700, ram to 972

Will upgrading the Video card make sense to play games at 1680x1050? If so, which one would you recommend?
 
New video cards coming soon so wait. Also, that CPU is going to be holding you back. You can upgrade either and you would probably get a performance boost though.
 
What games do you play?

A game like Crysis would probably be Videocard limited in most situations and you would want to upgrade your videocard.

A game like World of Warcraft would almost always be CPU limited and you would want to upgrade your CPU.

But honestly, before you do EITHER, upgrade to 4gb. It will probably cost you $25.
 
I usually play UT3 and FPS games such as:
Call of duty Series
Prey
Tomb raider
Assassin's creed
Call of Juarez
Mass Effect
Gears of war
...

Driving:
DiRT
GRID
...

True, I should upgrade to 4 GB but right now, I'm running XP for gaming (and linux is my main OS) so the memory isn't impacting that much.
 
I'd upgrade the GPU with that list of games. Might be worth it to upgrade to something nice and then carry it over to the next system, maybe wait for the 5870.
 
I think a video card will give a bigger boost in FPS but a CPU will give you smoother gameplay. I think with that CPU you are going to see hick-ups while playing.
 
For games like Mass Effect, Unreal Tournament 3 and Call of Duty, do you think my CPU is slowing down them down?
 
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For COD series, they're more GPU limited than CPU limited. So your current CPU is fine for COD series.

For UT3 and Mass Effect, those games are bit more CPU limited so yes your current CPU is a bit of a bottleneck for those games.

But before we can recommend a GPU or CPU upgrade, we need to know the following info:
- What's your budget for this upgrade?
- What PSU do you have?
 
Let's put it this way: How much money do you have and after THIS upgrade when will be your next upgrade and how much money will you have then?
 
Right now, I'm ready to spend close to $350 CAD ($318 USD) before I start my university courses, hence, the choice between the CPU and GPU. But if it's worth it, I maybe be able to spend more.

I want to game for almost a year before I upgrade the CPU or GPU.
 
$350 CAD, do both. Upgrade the CPU to a AMD Phenom II X3 720BE for $139.99 and upgrade the video card to an XFX Radeon 4870 1GB for $156.99 2GB RAM will be fine for now on a 32bit O/S such as Win XP.

By the way, what model PSU do you have in your system right now?
 
Let's say.. your PSU needs upgrade. I would go Phenom II X3 720BE for $139.99, XFX Radeon HD 4850 1GB for $129.99 and Antec EA500 for $75.14

For $8 more though, you can get the Antec EA650 PSU with 45A on the +12V for $83.49
 
You might as well upgrade your 460watt PSU. I bet more than likely it's not a good psu. What is the Brand and Model of that 460 watt psu?
 
What HG said: What's the exact make and model of that 460W PSU?
 
Might as well upgrade that PSU. Your budget of $350CAD can get you a decent PSU, Video Card and CPU. The one I mentioned earlier should fit your needs.
 
HardwareGuru said:
Might as well upgrade that PSU. Your budget of $350CAD can get you a decent PSU, Video Card and CPU. The one I mentioned earlier should fit your needs.
Click to expand...

I concur. That coolermaster PSU if of pretty low quality. It would be folly to trust that PSU with a new system. Definitely go with HG"s recommended PSU, GPU and CPU upgrade.
 
The HD 4870 is really cheap for the performance it delivers. And I guess I need the power supply as well...

Thanks.
 
Quake said:
The HD 4870 is really cheap for the performance it delivers. And I guess I need the power supply as well...

Thanks.
Click to expand...

Yup if you want to do ANY sort of GPU upgrade, get a new PSU. Either of the two PSUs that HG recommended are good choices.
 
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