Upgrade time!

[N3G4T1v3]

Ok, so since the Rand is weekening so quickly, I thought I better get my upgrade ASAP before new stock comes in and prices go rocketing up.

So I'm thinking of these:

AMD Phenom Tri-Core 8750 CPU - Socket AM2+ (http://www.take2.co.za/electronics-amd-phenom-tri-core-8750-cpu-socket-am2-3626185.html)

Corsair XMS2 Memory - DDR2-800MHz - 2GB Kit (2 x 1GB) (http://www.take2.co.za/electronics-corsair-xms2-memory-ddr2-800mhz-2gb-kit-2-x-1gb-3121931.html)

GeCube ATi Radeon HD4850Pro - 512MB - PCI-E (http://www.take2.co.za/electronics-gecube-ati-radeon-hd4850pro-512mb-pci-e-3876135.html)

For the motherboard I was thinking of the Asus AMD M3A78-CM (http://www.take2.co.za/electronics-asus-amd-m3a78-cm-motherboard-socket-am2-3975434.html), but I'm not sure if this is the right choice or not. I pretty much set on my other components, but undecided about the motherboard.

I've budgted for about R1500 for a motherboard, I really don't need on-board graphics or Crossfire/SLI, suggestions would be gladly appreciated

(Thanks Chevron for the inicial idea for my PC)

[Chevron]

What's your budget? I gave you that build a month or two ago. Prices change all the time.

Also is all you need is a cpu, gfx card, ram and mobo?

[DXeXodus]

Is there no way you could squeeze the 4870 into your budget? Would give you a lot more bang for your buck.

[Chevron]

If I remember he said his budget was R5000.

With a

Connect 3D ATi Radeon HD4850 - 512MB - PCI-E (http://www.take2.co.za/electronics-connect-3d-ati-radeon-hd4850-512mb-pci-e-3877532.html) Price: R 2,235

Corsair XMS2 Memory - DDR2-800MHz - 2GB Kit (2 x 1GB) (http://www.take2.co.za/electronics-corsair-xms2-memory-ddr2-800mhz-2gb-kit-2-x-1gb-3121931.html) Price: R 682

AMD Phenom Tri-Core 8750 CPU - Socket AM2+ (http://www.take2.co.za/electronics-amd-phenom-tri-core-8750-cpu-socket-am2-3626185.html) Price: R 1,526

Well as for mobo:

Asus AMD M3A78-CM Motherboard - Socket AM2+ (http://www.take2.co.za/electronics-asus-amd-m3a78-cm-motherboard-socket-am2-3975434.html) Price: R 1,041

So altogether: R5484

Although you can get 1066mhz ram for R702

OCZ Fatal1ty Edition Memory - DDR2-1066MHz - 2GB Kit (2 x 1GB) (http://www.take2.co.za/electronics-ocz-fatal1ty-edition-memory-ddr2-1066mhz-2gb-kit-2-x-1gb-3962133.html)

Bringing the total to: R5504

[Frozenfireside]

I wouldn't bother with the upgrade. It's already having an effect.
My mate who works for Axiz says everything jumped in price last week by 5%.
He wanted RAM and it was R200 but is now R350. That's about the biggest jump he said but everything else is rising in price as well.

Wait for the turmoil to die down and then go for it-shops will use this excuse to put their prices up anyway.

I'm either buying my PSU 2nd hand or waiting.

[Chevron]

I wouldn't bother with the upgrade. It's already having an effect.
My mate who works for Axiz says everything jumped in price last week by 5%.
He wanted RAM and it was R200 but is now R350. That's about the biggest jump he said but everything else is rising in price as well.

Wait for the turmoil to die down and then go for it-shops will use this excuse to put their prices up anyway.

I'm either buying my PSU 2nd hand or waiting.

It depends what he has now. With fallout, red alert, Far Cry 2 and dead space people want to be able to run them well.

[B4warn3d]

couldn't agree more with Chevron. People want decent gaming performance from their gaming rigs, especially since some pretty awesome games have hit our shores. And I think those specs above really are more than adequate.

I would definitely recommend the HD4850, it's a little monster.

[Interfan]

I wouldn't bother with the upgrade. It's already having an effect.
My mate who works for Axiz says everything jumped in price last week by 5%.
He wanted RAM and it was R200 but is now R350. That's about the biggest jump he said but everything else is rising in price as well.

Wait for the turmoil to die down and then go for it-shops will use this excuse to put their prices up anyway.

I'm either buying my PSU 2nd hand or waiting.

There's no way we can know when the market will turn. It might get worse before it gets better. He might have to wait a long time before he can get what he wants.

I have also believed that you only wait if you know exactly when things will change. If not get the best you can for your money at that moment in time.

@N3G4T1v3 :On the gpu if you want 4850 Andy at landmark has the msi one for R2251.50 but he only has 20. He said that the price is still that low because its old stock once its sold it will be going to R2876.78. Though you should know this.

[N3G4T1v3]

If I remember he said his budget was R5000.

With a

Connect 3D ATi Radeon HD4850 - 512MB - PCI-E (http://www.take2.co.za/electronics-connect-3d-ati-radeon-hd4850-512mb-pci-e-3877532.html) Price: R 2,235

Corsair XMS2 Memory - DDR2-800MHz - 2GB Kit (2 x 1GB) (http://www.take2.co.za/electronics-corsair-xms2-memory-ddr2-800mhz-2gb-kit-2-x-1gb-3121931.html) Price: R 682

AMD Phenom Tri-Core 8750 CPU - Socket AM2+ (http://www.take2.co.za/electronics-amd-phenom-tri-core-8750-cpu-socket-am2-3626185.html) Price: R 1,526

Well as for mobo:

Asus AMD M3A78-CM Motherboard - Socket AM2+ (http://www.take2.co.za/electronics-asus-amd-m3a78-cm-motherboard-socket-am2-3975434.html) Price: R 1,041

So altogether: R5484

Although you can get 1066mhz ram for R702

OCZ Fatal1ty Edition Memory - DDR2-1066MHz - 2GB Kit (2 x 1GB) (http://www.take2.co.za/electronics-ocz-fatal1ty-edition-memory-ddr2-1066mhz-2gb-kit-2-x-1gb-3962133.html)

Bringing the total to: R5504

I realized it was a better choice to get a slightly more powerful CPU, in that way it will last longer

I'm definitely going to get 1066MHZ DDR2 instead

I'm also going to get myself a new case, my old one is really crappy. I'm thinking or the Coolermaster Stacker 690 (http://www.prophecy.co.za/coolermaster-stacker-side-window-p-23301.html)



@N3G4T1v3 :On the gpu if you want 4850 Andy at landmark has the msi one for R2251.50 but he only has 20. He said that the price is still that low because its old stock once its sold it will be going to R2876.78. Though you should know this.

This is the exact reason why I'm upgrading now, because most places still have old stock.

[Chevron]

I realized it was a better choice to get a slightly more powerful CPU, in that way it will last longer


Yeah ok, but what's your budget?

You can of course get a more powerful cpu, but they cost more as well. So what's the budget excluding case please?

[MonGooS]

Hey guys, I guess this is the perfect thread to ask this.
Well I was looking at my PC and its getting really slow lately so I want to upgrade. I just wanted to know what exactly in my PC would benefit me most from being upgraded or maybe where my PC is bottle necking. I have already placed all my money on the CPU being the culprit.

My System is :
Mobo : GA-8I945GZME-RH
GFX Card : 8800 GTS 320MB
Ram : 2GB DDR2 800 Kingmax
CPU : Intel Pentium D 3.4Ghz


Also a side note I know its difficult to tell but ill only upgrade Christmas time. So what in your opinions should I upgrade ?

[Wesley]

Eish, another one of these threads. I'm gonna leave this one to Chev XD If I did post anything, it'd more than likely look similar to his suggestion.

And Negative, why not wait for the market price to come down in a few months? We have the Core i7 out next month, as well as the ATi HD4830 coming to our shores as well. DDR2-1066 prices are also going to really fall once the new Intel processors are sitting on the shelves of PC shops around the world.

[Chevron]

Hey guys, I guess this is the perfect thread to ask this.
Well I was looking at my PC and its getting really slow lately so I want to upgrade. I just wanted to know what exactly in my PC would benefit me most from being upgraded or maybe where my PC is bottle necking. I have already placed all my money on the CPU being the culprit.

My System is :
Mobo : GA-8I945GZME-RH
GFX Card : 8800 GTS 320MB
Ram : 2GB DDR2 800 Kingmax
CPU : Intel Pentium D 3.4Ghz


Also a side note I know its difficult to tell but ill only upgrade Christmas time. So what in your opinions should I upgrade ?

Most definitely the cpu. You need at least a 4600+ to push that GFX card.

[Wesley]

Well I was looking at my PC and its getting really slow lately so I want to upgrade. I just wanted to know what exactly in my PC would benefit me most from being upgraded or maybe where my PC is bottle necking. I have already placed all my money on the CPU being the culprit.

My System is :
Mobo : GA-8I945GZME-RH
GFX Card : 8800 GTS 320MB
Ram : 2GB DDR2 800 Kingmax
CPU : Intel Pentium D 3.4Ghz


Are you sure your system isn't running slow because you have too much junk running at the same time? Because your system whips even the minimum requirements for Crysis, let alone the slew of new games out this holiday season.

The Pentium D architecture is old, but its still good for the job, although it isn't as strong as the newer CPU's. Your 8800GTS is great, no problems there. Possibly your performance could be hindered by your motherboard, the Intel 945G chipset has lived a long life. The memory seems decent enough for gaming and general purposes.

If you want the most out of your system, first start by telling us what operating system you are using?

[MonGooS]

So then there is nothing wrong with my card ? I bought it a while back and was so sad after the GT came out a week later. Thought I had wasted my money. I assume your talking about he AMD 4600+. I am not a big fan for AMD more of a Intel person. Any suggestions on a Intel CPU ? Or will a AMD better performance for cost ?

@ Snow.. I just reformated my PC on the 1st and I keep my system very clean. I make sure no program is running that I am not in need of at that moment.

I am running Windows XP. I have a copy of Vista somewhere my friend gave me because he didn't want it anymore. Should I maybe run vista instead ?

[Chevron]

Are you sure your system isn't running slow because you have too much junk running at the same time? Because your system whips even the minimum requirements for Crysis, let alone the slew of new games out this holiday season.

The Pentium D architecture is old, but its still god for the job. Your 8800GTS is great, no problems there. Possibly your performance could be hindered by your motherboard, the Intel 945G chipset has lived a long life. The memory seems decent enough for gaming and general purposes.

If you want the most out of your system, first start by telling us what operating system you are using?

Was thinking the same thing. Most likely he just needs a format and clean install of his os to get everything back up to scratch.


So then there is nothing wrong with my card ? I bought it a while back and was so sad after the GT came out a week later. Thought I had wasted my money. I assume your talking about he AMD 4600+. I am not a big fan for AMD more of a Intel person. Any suggestions on a Intel CPU ? Or will a AMD better performance for cost ?

I'm not saying you must get an AMD cpu. I just recall when your card first came out a 4600+ was the minimum needed to not bottleneck it, can't remember the Intel equivalent.

Obviously if you wanted a new cpu go intel as you already have an Intel board.

I still think you just need a format and reinstall though.

[MonGooS]

As said I just reformatted recently. I also clean my PC regularly (the inside :P). Do you think it could possibly be my HDD ? Its quite old and maybe packing in and I'm not sure how to check what it is exactly. I have a newer one but I don't use it for my OS I use it just for storage.

[Chevron]

As said I just reformatted recently. I also clean my PC regularly (the inside :P). Do you think it could possibly be my HDD ? Its quite old and maybe packing in and I'm not sure how to check what it is exactly. I have a newer one but I don't use it for my OS I use it just for storage.

Yes, actually. Could have bad sectors. Do a disk check.

Right click on your drive->properties->hardware->error checking->check now. Tick both options then go watch a movie.

[Wesley]

Tick both options then go watch a movie.

I lol'ed. I've done the same thing as well XD

Well, if AMD's 4600+ dual-core was the requirement, then what about Intel's E4500? Should have the same effect.

[Ch@pS]

Hey guys, I guess this is the perfect thread to ask this.
Well I was looking at my PC and its getting really slow lately so I want to upgrade. I just wanted to know what exactly in my PC would benefit me most from being upgraded or maybe where my PC is bottle necking. I have already placed all my money on the CPU being the culprit.

My System is :
Mobo : GA-8I945GZME-RH
GFX Card : 8800 GTS 320MB
Ram : 2GB DDR2 800 Kingmax
CPU : Intel Pentium D 3.4Ghz


Also a side note I know its difficult to tell but ill only upgrade Christmas time. So what in your opinions should I upgrade ?

To upgrade to a newer Intel CPU, you will need a new motherboard, if i recall correctly that mobo of yours only has support for the older 65nm Core 2 Duos.

Furthermore, that motherboard only supports up to ddr 533 doesnt it? So your RAM isnt running to its full potential.

Id suggest a motherboard based on the P35/P45 chipset as well as something like a E7200, will whip the **** out of any competition.

If you can find one, the P5K SE is a solid upgrade choice.


I lol'ed. I've done the same thing as well XD

Well, if AMD's 4600+ dual-core was the requirement, then what about Intel's E4500? Should have the same effect.

The E4500 would be about right, problem with those is compared to the E7X00 series, their price/performance ratio doesnt justify them anymore.

[N3G4T1v3]

Yeah ok, but what's your budget?

You can of course get a more powerful cpu, but they cost more as well. So what's the budget excluding case please?

Well its R5500, I could my be push it to R6000 if it was worth it

[MonGooS]

Okay so i see the E7200 is about R1600. Could you give me an example of a mobo with maybe a price ? I am not to clued up on mobo's

[Fredder]

@Mongoose, it is good that you will wait up to then. I got my new parts yesterday, but luckily I ordered before the major price hikes. If you have in the region of R5000 bucks and not opting for a dual graphics card setup, you can build quite a monster. I have got the same graphics card, but I am going to keep it for a while. I upgraded from socket 939 to an Intel quad-core, your graphics card should be fine for now, apart from very high resolutions.

R5000 can get you a Q8200 CPU/E8500 with an ASUS P5Q motherboard and 2Gb 1066 DDR2 RAM at computersonly.co.za. This is at current prices of course.

[MonGooS]

My PC busy doing a disk check, on the laptop now ^_^

If I was to get a Q Core wouldn't my GPU bottle neck ? the Quad Core is over powerful isn't it ?

Looking on computersonly.co.za the E8500 is R2599 and the Q8200 is the same price which is better, and do modern games even support C2Q ?

[Wesley]

My PC busy doing a disk check, on the laptop now ^_^

If I was to get a Q Core wouldn't my GPU bottle neck ? the Quad Core is over powerful isn't it ?

Looking on computersonly.co.za the E8500 is R2599 and the Q8200 is the same price which is better, and do modern games even support C2Q ?

a) If you decided to run a quad-core, with a compatible motherboard, you would see your GPU run at full tilt, no doubt about that.

b) Why are you even looking at those overpriced dual-cores? Check out Intel's Q6600 for under two grand (http://www.jump.co.za/product/intel-core2-quadro-q6600-processor-fcp-iq6600-9233615.htm), its a definite steal for the price. And dont worry about software support, it doesn't really matter what processor you use for games, so long as it is powerful enough to run the game it will do fine. All games will work on a quad-core, and some even work better in a quad-core than a dual-core (case in point: Supreme Commander).

[Chevron]

Well its R5500, I could my be push it to R6000 if it was worth it

Honestly, unless you wanna overclock, there's very little that beats the 8750 in value for money stakes. Even with that extra R500, even with looking at intel cpus all it really gets you is 100-200mhx over the 8750 and you lose a core or an extra core at the same speed.

While they might perform slightly better, not R500 better.

[MonGooS]

Kind of a dumb question but for example if its a C2D 2.33 does that mean each core is 2.33 or in total they are 2.33 ?

In that case would a C2Q 2.66 have double the power of a C2D 2.66 ? I am just a bit confused on that part.

[Chevron]

Kind of a dumb question but for example if its a C2D 2.33 does that mean each core is 2.33 or in total they are 2.33 ?

In that case would a C2Q 2.66 have double the power of a C2D 2.66 ? I am just a bit confused on that part.

It means each core is 2.33Ghz.

Well with regards to dual vs quad it depends on the program. If the program supports quad it will perform almost twice as well as compared to a dual.

[Wesley]

Kind of a dumb question but for example if its a C2D 2.33 does that mean each core is 2.33 or in total they are 2.33 ?

In that case would a C2Q 2.66 have double the power of a C2D 2.66 ? I am just a bit confused on that part.

a) If it says Core2 Duo 2.33Ghz, then it means that both the cores run at the same speed, which is 2.33Ghz

b) Not really. Processing power is very rarely a linear progression, but in theory, a Quad-core has about double the power of a Dual-core.

[MonGooS]

2.33GHz and 2.66Ghz ^_^

Thanks for all the help/advice guys now to just wait for some cash :D

[Chevron]

2.33GHz and 2.66Ghz ^_^

Thanks for all the help/advice guys now to just wait for some cash :D

I misread your post the first time. Fixed my reply now.

[MonGooS]

I see, thanks Chevron :)

[N3G4T1v3]

Honestly, unless you wanna overclock, there's very little that beats the 8750 in value for money stakes. Even with that extra R500, even with looking at intel cpus all it really gets you is 100-200mhx over the 8750 and you lose a core or an extra core at the same speed.

While they might perform slightly better, not R500 better.

I'm happy with the 8750. Can't wait to get my PC now.

Thanks for the help