03-30-2004, 09:16 AM
VGA Charts Part III
Ugh. I pity you. My old (current) GeForce4 Ti-4200 (the OLD 64MB version; as in, 4x AGP, NOT 8x) beats the living snot out of your card, and it was the lowest of the low of a PREVIOUS generation of cards. To get ANY better, you HAVE to get a 5700 or 5700 Ultra, and even then, it's a FEW (read: half a dozen) FPS better. TOTALLY not worth the money. To get a marginal increase that IS worth the monetary investment, you have to go for at LEAST a 5900 XT (a budget / toned down version of the 5900, which is only slightly less powerful, all-in-all). 5950 Ultra is the ultra-elite card for that generation, with the 5900 being a hair behind (literally).
Next time, do your homework. You'll save yourself loads of money and aggravation. ;) Or, just ask me. :D I periodically review several hardware areas (most notably Motherboards, RAM, and Video Cards) for improvements, and perform personal cost / benefit ratio, etc. evaluations. And by personal, I mean for my own personal use. It's a hobby, not a profession. :)
As to the rest of your post:
First of all, 1 GHz is slow. Beyond slow. Snails-pace. Particularly for any recent, 3D-oriented games. Doubly so for MMOs (of any sort), because they have a LOT of stuff onscreen, both big and small. Secondly, 256 MB of RAM is pitifully small. I'd barely run my OS with that little RAM. Any playing of recent games would dictate at LEAST 512MB, and preferably a Gig if you want to stay on the high end.
As to upgrading your RAM, you'll want to make sure that whatever RAM you choose is the same SPEED (size does not matter, although recent studies show that a single large stick tends to have slightly better performance than 2 smaller sticks equating to the same amount of RAM). Otherwise, you'll have to buy entirely new RAM. Secondly, it may be wise to research just how fast RAM speeds your motherboard can support, and buy the highest it will take. RAM price differences between speeds are so minimal (excluding the newest, highest speeds) that it's often much more cost efficient to buy higher than you have now. And, it will certainly increase your performance.
Something to consider: 512MB of RAM is about the bare minimum you want to be running the latest games with, particularly an MMO. I have a 1.6GHz, with a graphics card that beats out yours (as noted above), and 512MB of 3200 RAM, and my comp chugs aplenty during Planetside, even with the lowest detail settings (only applicable during intense battles, unfortunately, where there is MASSIVE amounts of rendering; while not in heavy conditions, I can max out the settings and not feel a hitch). 1 Gig is usually the recommended level for intense gaming, such as MMOs, and with RAM prices and availability, that's not an unreachable goal for many. You can, of course, always overclock your video card. This is a very time-consuming process, and WILL lead to a lot of CTRL+ALT+DEL's and hard resets, but the benefits can be worth it, provided you are smart and safe about it. Make sure your computer has enough cooling to handle the increased heat, make sure your vid card can handle the increased heat via cooling (adding heat sinks, getting a better fan, etc.), and make sure your power supply can handle the added strain, as you could very easily blow your PSU if it's not powerful enough (as mine did, when I got new POWERED 5.1 speakers).
Just for reference (from my own personal notes, for near-future upgrades):
My entire notes (haven't done RAM research yet, and since I just replaced my PSU, I have no need to put that down, either; and it may not even be applicable to you):
At any rate, good luck with your gaming, and I hope this information proves useful! As I said, if you ever have a hardware question, feel free to drop me an e-mail. I usually update my notes every 6 months, in order to stay reasonably current with new technology.
Quote: I just bought a 128mb GeForceFX 5200 around Christmas
Ugh. I pity you. My old (current) GeForce4 Ti-4200 (the OLD 64MB version; as in, 4x AGP, NOT 8x) beats the living snot out of your card, and it was the lowest of the low of a PREVIOUS generation of cards. To get ANY better, you HAVE to get a 5700 or 5700 Ultra, and even then, it's a FEW (read: half a dozen) FPS better. TOTALLY not worth the money. To get a marginal increase that IS worth the monetary investment, you have to go for at LEAST a 5900 XT (a budget / toned down version of the 5900, which is only slightly less powerful, all-in-all). 5950 Ultra is the ultra-elite card for that generation, with the 5900 being a hair behind (literally).
Next time, do your homework. You'll save yourself loads of money and aggravation. ;) Or, just ask me. :D I periodically review several hardware areas (most notably Motherboards, RAM, and Video Cards) for improvements, and perform personal cost / benefit ratio, etc. evaluations. And by personal, I mean for my own personal use. It's a hobby, not a profession. :)
As to the rest of your post:
First of all, 1 GHz is slow. Beyond slow. Snails-pace. Particularly for any recent, 3D-oriented games. Doubly so for MMOs (of any sort), because they have a LOT of stuff onscreen, both big and small. Secondly, 256 MB of RAM is pitifully small. I'd barely run my OS with that little RAM. Any playing of recent games would dictate at LEAST 512MB, and preferably a Gig if you want to stay on the high end.
As to upgrading your RAM, you'll want to make sure that whatever RAM you choose is the same SPEED (size does not matter, although recent studies show that a single large stick tends to have slightly better performance than 2 smaller sticks equating to the same amount of RAM). Otherwise, you'll have to buy entirely new RAM. Secondly, it may be wise to research just how fast RAM speeds your motherboard can support, and buy the highest it will take. RAM price differences between speeds are so minimal (excluding the newest, highest speeds) that it's often much more cost efficient to buy higher than you have now. And, it will certainly increase your performance.
Something to consider: 512MB of RAM is about the bare minimum you want to be running the latest games with, particularly an MMO. I have a 1.6GHz, with a graphics card that beats out yours (as noted above), and 512MB of 3200 RAM, and my comp chugs aplenty during Planetside, even with the lowest detail settings (only applicable during intense battles, unfortunately, where there is MASSIVE amounts of rendering; while not in heavy conditions, I can max out the settings and not feel a hitch). 1 Gig is usually the recommended level for intense gaming, such as MMOs, and with RAM prices and availability, that's not an unreachable goal for many. You can, of course, always overclock your video card. This is a very time-consuming process, and WILL lead to a lot of CTRL+ALT+DEL's and hard resets, but the benefits can be worth it, provided you are smart and safe about it. Make sure your computer has enough cooling to handle the increased heat, make sure your vid card can handle the increased heat via cooling (adding heat sinks, getting a better fan, etc.), and make sure your power supply can handle the added strain, as you could very easily blow your PSU if it's not powerful enough (as mine did, when I got new POWERED 5.1 speakers).
Just for reference (from my own personal notes, for near-future upgrades):
Quote:Motherboard:
------------
MSI I865PE Neo2-PFS
Model # MS6728-110
Item # N82E168131304507
$80.00
Processor:
----------
Intel Pentium 4 2.8C GHz 800 MHz FSB w/ Hyper-Threading (Retail)
Model # BX80532PG2800/D
Item # N82E16819116161
$181.00
MSI NVIDIA GeForce FX5900XT
Model # FX5900XT-VTD128
Item # N82E16814127119
$191.00
Total Costs: $452
My entire notes (haven't done RAM research yet, and since I just replaced my PSU, I have no need to put that down, either; and it may not even be applicable to you):
Quote:Motherboard:
------------
MSI I865PE Neo2-PFS
Model # MS6728-110
Item # N82E168131304507
$80.00
MSI I875P Neo-FIS2R
Model # 875P NEO-FIS2R
Item # N82E16813130414
$179.00
Gigabyte GA-8KNXP (Revision 2.0)
Model # GA-8KNXP REV 2.0
Item # N82E16813128185
$197.99
Processor:
----------
Intel Pentium 4 2.8C GHz 800 MHz FSB w/ Hyper-Threading (Retail)
Model # BX80532PG2800/D
Item # N82E16819116161
$181.00
Video Card:
-----------
MSI NVIDIA GeForce 4 Ti-4600-8x
Model # TI-TD8X
Item # N82E16814127077
$140.00
MSI NVIDIA GeForce FX5900XT
Model # FX5900XT-VTD128
Item # N82E16814127119
$191.00
Gainward NVIDIA GeForce 5900XT 128 Golden Sample
Model # ULTRA/1100XT,GS
Item # N82E16814128185
$199.99
Gainward NVIDIA GeForce FX5900XT 256 Golden Sample
Model # ULTRA/1300XT GS
Item # N82E16814128184
$278.00
MSI NVIDIA GeForce FX5950 Ultra
Model # FX5950U-VTD256
Item # N82E16814127108
$409.99
Gainward NVIDIA GeForce FX5950 Ultra Golden Sample
Model # VGFX5950UG
Item # N82E16814128183
$415.00
Sound Card:
-----------
Creative Labs SoundBlaster Audigy 2 ZS
Model # 70SB035000000
Item # N82E16829102162
$88.00
Creative Labs SoundBlaster Audigy 2 ZS Platinum Pro
Model # 70SB036000000
Item # N82E16829102164
$209.00
Monitor:
--------
ViewSonic G90FB 19" Flat Screen CRT
Model # G90FB
Item # N82E16824116282
$219.00
Speakers:
---------
Creative Labs Inspire 5.1 Digital 5500
Model #51MS0000AA001
Item # N82E16836116145
$159.00
Creative Labs MegaWorks THX 5.1 550
Model # 51000000AA277
Item # N82E16836116118
$206.00
Creative Labs GigaWorks 5.1 5700
Model # 51MF7011AA000
Item # N82E16836116143
$330.00
Creative Labs Inspire T7700 7.1
Model # 51MF7005AA002
Item # N82E16836116140
$115.00
Creative Labs GigaWorks S750 7.1
Model # 51MF7010AA000
Item # N82E16836116142
$441.00
At any rate, good luck with your gaming, and I hope this information proves useful! As I said, if you ever have a hardware question, feel free to drop me an e-mail. I usually update my notes every 6 months, in order to stay reasonably current with new technology.
Roland *The Gunslinger*