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Whats my weak link?

B

Big10Fan

Limp Gawd
Joined
Mar 14, 2007
Messages
157
I feel like my computer is sluggish lately, I'm thinking about reformatting, but I figured I'd take some opinions on upgrades if any available. I don't play many intense games, but I did notice that after 6 months away from Tribes, I update and try to play again and it isnt as smooth with the same settings, not sure if the game or my computer changed in that time. I cleaned it out, dust free, temps seem fine. Looking for advice. Mostly use it for games such as Tribes/WoW on a 24" Monitor

CPU 0
Name AMD Phenom(tm) II X3 720 Processor
Description Family 15-1 Model 4-0 Stepping 2
Vendor AuthenticAMD
Max Frequency 6300 MHz
Start Voltage 1.025 V
Min Voltage 0.0125 V
Max Voltage 1.55 V
Max Ramp Voltage 0 V
Max Multiplier 31.5 X
Start Multiplier 4 X
L1 Data Cache Size 64 KB
L1 Data Cache Associativity 2
L1 Data Cache Lines 1
L1 Data Cache Line Size 64 Bytes
L1 Instruction Cache Size 64 KB
L1 Instruction Cache Associativity 2
L1 Instruction Cache Lines 1
L1 Instruction Cache Line Size 64 Bytes
L2 Cache Size 512 KB
L2 Cache Associativity 16
L2 Cache Lines 1
L2 Cache Line Size 64 Bytes


GPU 0 --- This is new as of January 2012, it'd kill be if it was suggested this is my weak link, prior I was using onboard graphics.
Name AMD Radeon(TM) HD 6800 Series
Description AMD Radeon(TM) HD 6800 Series
Vendor ATI Technologies Inc.
Core Frequency 100.00 MHz
Memory Capacity 1024 MB
Memory Frequency 150.00 MHz
Memory Bit Width 256 Bit
Display Mode 1920 X 1080 : 32 (60Hz)

Memory 0
Name Physical Memory 0
Description
Vendor G Skill Intl
Capacity 2048 MB
Max Bandwidth 10.7 GB/s
Part Number F3-10666CL8-2GBRM
Serial Number 0
Data Width 64 bits
Bus Frequency 666.667 MHz
Slot Location Slot 2

Memory 1
Name Physical Memory 1
Description
Vendor G Skill Intl
Capacity 2048 MB
Max Bandwidth 10.7 GB/s
Part Number F3-10666CL8-2GBRM
Serial Number 0
Data Width 64 bits
Bus Frequency 666.667 MHz
Slot Location Slot 3


Harddisk 0
Name WDC WD6401AALS-00L3B2 ATA Device
Description Disk drive
Vendor (Standard disk drives)
Capacity 610477 MB
Interface Type IDE
Serial Number WD-WCASY6416273
Firmware Revision 01.03B01
Model Number WDC WD6401AALS-00L3B2
Removable false
Support DMA true
Support LBA true
Support SATA true
SATA Generation Gen 2
Sector Total 268435455
Maximum Queue Depth 31
Highest Supported ATA Version 8
Security Supported true
Security Enabled false
Security Locked false
Security Frozen true
Security Count Expired false
Security Enchanced true
 
cpu and the hard drive are both "weak links" cpu is def seeing its age, but still usable obviously, and the hard drive can be a bottleneck for the system as a whole cause alot of things rely on its speed again, quite obvious.

What motheboard do you have? you can find this out with a program called cpu-z which also tells you the cpu-ram in the system gpu-z will tell you the graphics(and be more accurate with its specs/speed :p)

24" monitor so it is more then likely running a resolution of either 1680x1050, 1920x1080 or 1920x1200. 6870 while a pretty decent card, is/needs a good cpu to back it up. Depending on what games you play, the clock settings you use etc, I think cpu/motherboard-harddrive-gpu in that order are bottlenecks. If you have an aftermarket fan, you could always learn/try some overclocking, it can usually make a pretty big difference in performance, making the experience much more smooth.
 
I have a GA-MA790GPT-UD3H

Is there any hardware out there now? Is it worth waiting If my budget is $200 for upgrades? My current CPU is OC'ed so thats out of the question. Is my ram reusable if I upgrade cpu/mobo? and if so, to what extent? Will it be bottom barrel ram?
 
well, http://www.gigabyte.com/support-downloads/cpu-support-popup.aspx?pid=3143 is the list of supported cpu.

a 6 core or one that can be unlocked to a 6 core i.e Phenom II x6 1055t/1065t/1075t/1090t/1100t or 960t which can possibly unlock(dont think you`re board can)
Or something like Phenom II x4 955-980BE, there is quite a few to choose from, some of them will be harder to find mind you.

8gb ram is a good thing to have, so if you can spare the extra $40 or so, I would upgrade the ram at the same time something from Gskill ddr3 1600 speed(as the price difference from 1333-1600 is so small) I would keep the motherboard and just upgrade the cpu, just make sure you have the proper bios to support it.

So, to limit your costs, I think maybe a cpu and ram upgrade to get the most out of your system, or at very least, just the cpu upgrade and you`ll be fine. The Phenom II x4 would be a better choice then the Athlon II x4 as they are quite close in price and the Phenom II x4 is def the more overclockable and more gaming oriented.

To get even more, then swapping the cpu-motherboard to Intel might be a good choice, however, I don`t like Intel :p

So, cheap cheap, Athlon II x4 cpu
LINK
a little more Phenom II x4 which I would recomend
another link if you have a decent fan you could save a few $ and get the same one from Tiger instead same as above, does not have a fan, slightly different warranty but cost less
or to get the most performance for overclocking and such get the Phenom II x4, 8gb 1600 ram RAM kits I would recomend and a decent cooler if you don`t have one already.
one choice for heatsink just make sure it would fit in your case
a comment someone made at tiger for the 965
Significant improvement!

This is one of the last fastest AMD processors that my GA-MA785GM-US2H Gigabyte motherboard (AM2+, AM3 compatible) could handle. I replaced my older Athlon II X2 240 with it and I'm seeing a vast improvement in speed and processing power (my hobby is video editing), up to 50% faster or maybe even higher. Sale price of $79.99 was a no-brainer and I am really glad I bought it! This company did a great job with fast (and free) shipping, too!

--edit depending on how much you are overclocking your 720 and such will depend on how much something like the 955 or 965 is, they are quite overclockable anywhere from 3.8-4.3Ghz or so, every chip/board is different afterall. I think the biggest improvment is the bus speed and slightly better per clock performance. I think some folks were sayiing Intel core i3 2120 or i5 2320 will be faster or at least in the i3 case the one you are using would be a better "general purpose" cpu vs the core i3 which is the better "gaming" cpu...but, obviously this would now require a new motherboard + the cpu and I would still recomend getting more ram, so given a budget of $200, I think just upgrading the cpu and ram would be just a bit over $100 maybe more, and adding a decent motherboard intel wise would push you over the $200 mark, maybe someone else can chip into this one.
 
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If you're looking for a massive increase in gaming performance, your best bet would be a new Intel CPU and mobo which is easily doable for $200. But if $200 is something you'd have to save up for, what's you actual budget for upgrades?

IIRC, Tribes isn't very heavily multi-threaded. As such, going for a quad-core AMD Phenom II CPU won't help out that much since Tribes won't take advantage of that 4th core. Maybe if you're playing BF3 or Skyrim, an AMD Phenom II X4 upgrade might work.
 
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