Building/Upgrading a PC for TS2
Zazazu:
Ok. I'm about to do an upgrade, at least in the next month. It's time. I want to be in line for Spore to be as pretty as possible, and I've a Christmas bonus a'comin'. Current stats:
System Model: Dell DXP051
BIOS: Phoenix ROM BIOS PLUS Version 1.10 A03
Processor: Intel(R) Pentium(R) D CPU 3.00GHz (2 CPUs)
Memory: 2046MB RAM
Card name: ATI Radeon X300/X550/X1050 Series
Manufacturer: ATI Technologies Inc.
Chip type: RADEON X600 (0x5B62)
DAC type: Internal DAC(400MHz)
Display Memory: 256.0 MB
Monitor Max Res: 1280,1024
Description: SigmaTel Audio
I definitely want to up my card. I'm thinking an ATI x1950, 'cause they're shiny, and not too bad on price (plus ATI pawns Nvidia when it comes to game bug issues). I want more RAM, because more RAM makes it go whoosh. Maybe an extra gig? Or could I go double to four gigs? I'm sure I'll need some sort of cooling solution to handle the extra load. And my extremely stupid question for the moment...is a processor upgradable?
Unfortunately, I've never tried upgrading a computer. I've added in an Ethernet card on an old 486, plus put a sound card in. But I've not done video or RAM. I'll be able to figure it out...I'm quite good at putting things together. But as for what is compatible with what...well.
jolrei:
Quote from: Raene on 2007 October 15, 22:59:38
Definitely the video card. All EPs and SPs with just onboard video? XD Wow. You'll probably want to look for one of ATI Radeon X1XXX type cards. I personally have a Sapphire Radeon X1650 Pro.
Video card is not a bad idea. However, I'm running a Base-Uni-BV combination with a P4 dual core 3Gig, Asus mobo with onboard ATI Radeon X200 (X300 chipset), and 1 Gig of RAM, and it runs smooth and fine. I'm wondering if problems might be more associated with a difference between Intel and AMD configurations. I would upgrade my video card in an instant (since it is about as old as Moses) if it wasn't working for me. In any case, my point really is that lag or other such problems may not be simply due to a single component.
Mind you, considering the problems others are having, my system performance seems to defy logical explanation. I can only say that I built my own, choosing each and every part through some lengthy research, so that probably helps.
lemonfresh:
Quote from: jolrei on 2007 October 16, 14:16:23
Quote from: Raene on 2007 October 15, 22:59:38
Definitely the video card. All EPs and SPs with just onboard video? XD Wow. You'll probably want to look for one of ATI Radeon X1XXX type cards. I personally have a Sapphire Radeon X1650 Pro.
Video card is not a bad idea. However, I'm running a Base-Uni-BV combination with a P4 dual core 3Gig, Asus mobo with onboard ATI Radeon X200 (X300 chipset), and 1 Gig of RAM, and it runs smooth and fine. I'm wondering if problems might be more associated with a difference between Intel and AMD configurations. I would upgrade my video card in an instant (since it is about as old as Moses) if it wasn't working for me. In any case, my point really is that lag or other such problems may not be simply due to a single component.
Well, it could also be that I'm not running dual core and am running all the Eps and Sps. My AMD is 2.2Ghz. I have to admit, I'm rather impressed with the performance of the onboard ATI Radeon X200. And like I said, it held strong all through Seasons. BV is just the straw that's breaking the camel's back, unfortunately. I'm pretty confident that more RAM and new graphics card are in order, rather than just one, or the other. I did find out that my X200 is up to 128MB, but that it "borrows" some or all of that from my 1GB... (in non-awesome terms, hardware has never really been my thing). I think I'm going to copy Raene and hunt down a Radeon X1650 Pro. I'll slap another GB RAM in as well, when I can and see how that works.
Much thanks and bleating for the responses.
jolrei:
If I recall correctly, in its day, the X200/X300 series were considered pretty good. I am impressed that I get real fingers and full animations without lag or jerky shit from this card. I believe (being too lazy to dig up my spec sheets and background info on my rig's components) that, while the card itself has a certain amount of memory, being built in also lets it share RAM with the board (and here I'm probably making some terrible IT description errors). I thought that with BV I would finally stretch the limits of the meagre 1Gig RAM on my system, but no.
The game does heat things up, but I have never overheated or crashed. I do have problems hearing the game sound if all the cooling fans are going at once. :P
Pythia:
The time has come for me to buy a completely new computer. I've been searching all over the net for something suitable and think I may have found the winner. I'd appreciate advice and any opinions on whether to go for it. The only game I'll be running will be Sims 2 with all the EP's and perhaps Sims 3 when it comes out, other than that just usual stuff like watching vids, internet, music etc.
Here is your chosen specification...
Processor (CPU)
Intel® Core™2 Duo E6750 (2 X 2.66GHz) 1333MHz FSB/4MB L2 Cache
Memory (RAM)
2048 MB CORSAIR DDR2 667MHz - LIFETIME WARRANTY! (2x1GB)
Motherboard
ASUS® P5K SE: DDR2, SATAII, PCI-e x16, 2 PCI, 3 x PCI-e x1
Operating System
WINDOWS® VISTA Home Premium (inc Genuine CD & License) (£59)
USB Options
8 x USB 2.0 PORTS (6 REAR + 2 FRONT) AS STANDARD
Memory - 1st Hard Disk
250GB SERIAL ATA II HARD DRIVE WITH 8MB CACHE (7200rpm)
2nd Hard Disk
NONE
1st CD/DVD Drive
20x Dual Layer LightScribe DVD Writer ±R/±RW/RAM
2nd CD/DVD Drive
NONE
Graphics Card
512MB RADEON X1950 PRO PCI Express + DVI + TV-OUT
Sound Card
8 Channel Realtek ALC883 High Definition Audio (P5K-SE)
Network Facilities
ONBOARD 10/100/1000 GIGABIT LAN PORT
Memory Card Reader
INTERNAL 52 IN 1 CARD READER (READS XD, MS, CF, SD, etc)
Case
Stylish Silver/Black Sigma case + 2 front USB
Power Supply & Case Cooling
500W (Peak) Quiet Dual Rail PSU + 120mm Case Fan (£25)
Processor Cooling
SUPER QUIET 19 dBA INTEL CPU COOLER (£14)
All this with monitor, mouse, keyboard and speakers for £742 inc. tax and shipping.
So what do the experts think? Anything you would recommend changing? I'm dithering over whether to get vista or stick to XP and I'm also wondering whether to increase the power supply to 600 watt (adds £35 to the price).
Ideally I'd like the new PC to last for 3+ years with perhaps some upgrading in the future if I really need it.
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