• Some users have recently had their accounts hijacked. It seems that the now defunct EVGA forums might have compromised your password there and seems many are using the same PW here. We would suggest you UPDATE YOUR PASSWORD and TURN ON 2FA for your account here to further secure it. None of the compromised accounts had 2FA turned on.
    Once you have enabled 2FA, your account will be updated soon to show a badge, letting other members know that you use 2FA to protect your account. This should be beneficial for everyone that uses FSFT.

Worth Upgrading?

M

mlbiskup

n00b
Joined
May 26, 2011
Messages
3
I looking to buy a new video just to extend my current computer without buying one. I was curious if anyone had any suggestions on one where the rest of my system won't pose a bottleneck.

Here are my system specs:
Summary
Operating System
MS Windows 7 32-bit
CPU
Intel Core 2 Quad Q6600 @ 2.40GHz 35 °C
Kentsfield 65nm Technology
RAM
4.0GB Dual-Channel DDR2 @ 399MHz (5-5-5-18)
Corsair CM2X2048-6400C5
Motherboard
EVGA 122-CK-NF68 (Socket 775)
Graphics
L226W @ 1680x1050
ATI Radeon HD 4850 Series (ASUStek Computer Inc) 38 °C
Hard Drives
313GB Seagate ST332062 0AS SCSI Disk Device (SCSI)
977GB NVIDIA STRIPE 931.52G (SCSI)
Optical Drives
SAMSUNG DVDWBD SH-B083L SCSI CdRom Device
Audio
High Definition Audio Device
Operating System
MS Windows 7 32-bit
850W Cooler Master Power Supply (RS-850-EMBA)
 
you are going to need an after market cooler so you can at least do a mild oc on that cpu. unless that mobo is a problem then at least 3.0 should be a piece cake.

after that then look towards a 6850 for AMD or a gtx460 768mb or gtx460 1gb for Nvidia.

and I dont know why you are running a 32 bit OS. your key should work for both 32 and 64 bit as for as I know so I would install 64 bit.
 
My system specs are much the same. Though I now have 8GB ram. To echo the cannondale06's post, upgrade to 64bit windows when you have the time to back your old files up and do a fresh install.

I personally have a gigabyte GTX460 that's treated me well since I got it about a year ago. Though if I upgraded today I think I'd go ATi. Likely the 6850 or 6870.

I think you mean SATA not SCSI for your drives?
 
Yea, the hard drives are in SATAII. I used Speccy for the hardware info. Thanks for the input.
 
Overclock your CPU and get a new GPU (6870 or higher). My friend has the same CPU as yours and is paired with a 6970. It yielded big improvements over his previous GPU. I was worried about CPU bottleneck...it does exist...however, the upgraded GPU still doubled the performance.
 
If you get a mild oc on that CPU then I'd say definitely. I upgraded from an 8800gts to the 1G gtx460 and apart from CPU limited games like GTA IV I've seen good increases In my fps.

I'll add to the story that i mostly play FPS and RPG games, I'm not sure I'd see the same increases In RTS games, but then again I only have 2 cores...
 
Echoing everyone else, OC the CPU and upgrade the graphics card. With your RAM you should be able to hit 3.2GHz anyway (unless you have an old B3, but we'll see). A 3.2GHz Q6600 will still hold its own in almost all games. I think a 64-bit OS is the way to go (I have no idea why Windows isn't natively 64-bit yet), but it'll cost you at least $30.00 even if you're a student, and it's not necessary for the performance of your comp. That said, I think you could hold off on getting Win7 64-bit until you do a full overhaul. Determine what your budget is for graphics and a new card will add a lot of life to your system.
 
I have the "slacker" stepping on the cpu, I believe it's the G0. I never over-clocked a cpu before (never felt the need). Would someone point me in the right direction? I have a Thermalright XP-120 on there currently. Thanks again for all help.
 
Start by downloading CPU-Z (will help determine what revision/stepping your CPU is):
http://www.cpuid.com/softwares/cpu-z.html (on the right side look for what version will work with your OS, be it 32 bit or 64 bit). Be sure to get the ".zip, no installation" version. that one always seemed to work better for me.

Example of my Q6600 that's revision G0:
cpuzbz.jpg
 
big bottleneck:
Intel Core 2 Quad Q6600 @ 2.40GHz

buy a cheap dual core chip and oc to 4ghz+
 
dukerjames said:
big bottleneck:
Intel Core 2 Quad Q6600 @ 2.40GHz

buy a cheap dual core chip and oc to 4ghz+
Click to expand...

I know that if I were a much more avid gamer and had SLI or CrossFire I'd be running the latest and greatest. If I were to upgrade today I'd get either a Intel 2500K or 2600K. Though I don't really see a "big bottleneck" for the light gaming I personally do on my rig with a GTX460 1GB. Even at 1920x1200 *shrug*...

How much of a increase would one see with a newer CPU vs a q6600?
 
benchmarks suggest they improve performance by quiet a lot! especially for an i5 or i7.
 
Again for now OC your CPU and buy GPU first. Later down the road, upgrade your CPU.
 
I am agreeing with others. An OC on that cpu would help but if you can find a cheap Q9400 or higher and OC that would be a bigger difference again. I'm currently running a Q9400 with an OC to 3.4Ghz and i have found a difference in most games
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top