Just Some Ideas

[Mista K6]

Hey all, I'm rather a newb with comps and I dont know alot about compatibility, so I'm just gonna throw this up here. Any opinions or advice would be much appreciated. Right now my comp is pretty good (see sig). I just upgraded from 256 mb of PC800 RDRAM to 768, and from a GF2 MX to a GF4 Ti4200 (btw, dont get your supplies from the shop, by em online, they're A LOT cheaper :thumb: , wish I'd known that... : omg: ). Anywho, the performance went up, but not "a lot." I dont wanna build a new PC, cause if I do, I'll go all out and pay about $2k, which I def cant come up with right now. So, I was thinking of what might be limiting me. Then I thought its either gotta be my CPU or mobo. Right now I have a Intel 850 chipset family (not quite sure which one) 400mhz mobo with AGP 4x. If I could find a 533mhz, AGP 8x mobo that fit into my case, and supported my CPU and RAM, would that give me a big increase in performance. If not, I know that my mobo will support up to a 2.6ghz processor (Intel). If I get the new mobo, I could put in a 2.8 or more, depending on prices. Right now I have a 478 pin 1.9, I think the core voltage is like, 1.725; everything is stock (correct me if I'm wrong, but isnt the high voltage because a 1.9ghz processor is exactly likea 1.7ghz, but overclocked?). Anywho, I was also thinking about getting new 7200 rpm HD. For the graphix card, I'm gonna keep the GF4 Ti4200 until I can get a GF FX5800 card (500mhz core speed, 1ghz RAM, wow :wow: ). Anyways, let me know what ya think, and I'm really looking for bang for my buck. Thx for any help, : peace2: Mista K6

[bigjackusa]

If you are currently running a 5400rpm drive, that is a serious bottleneck in your system. Your cpu and ram will work in a 533 mobo but you need faster ram and a 533 rated cpu to run at 533, so a mobo by itself might not do much for you. I don't know if this affects your rig or not, but Dell has taken to using psus and mobos with non-standard power connections. They look normal but are wired differently. If your psu is one of these it will fry a normal mobo when you power it up. They want you to buy from them.

[Suicide]

If you can afford it, and don't plan on overclocking much (maybe 110mhz FSB (440mhz system bus) tops) then I'd ditch that PC800 ram and pick me up some PC4200 rambus ram (if your board will support it), if not, pick up some PC1066 ram, and oc your proc to 133mhz (thus giving you 533mhz system bus and a 2.53ghz clock speed)). Save yourself a ton of money than upgrading your processor, AND your board (in which case you'd more than likely pick yourself up a DDR board, which you'd have to buy new ram anyway).

[bigjackusa]

Your mobo won't support pc4200.

[Wiggo]

Not only bad advise for AMD and video but now bad advise for Intel. Suicide either read the whole story and do better homework (probably a combo of both) or just don't reply at all as ya replies suc in a lot of cases (try www.google.com if ya don't have any better resource links). I hate bad info and ya been leavin' quite a bit of it behind of late. :(

[Mista K6]

Hey, sry, I forgot to post this, it might help some.

My PCMark 2002 scores:

CPU: 4581
RAM: 4582
HDD: 644

I was looking at the other scores in the thread in the general driver forum (good stuff, awesome for comparison info :thumb: ). My CPU seems to be a little low, hence that's how I determined I might need a new one. Also, my HDD score SUX . I was thinking of gettings a WD 80GB HD, they seem to rock. I have two hard drive bays in my tower, so would it be possible to hook up both hard drives, send the info I need over to the new one, and then take out the old one? j/w :?: . However, I noticed my RAM score was one of the highest there, so I know RAM is def not the prob (check your info suicide) . I was searching around, there's almost no RIMM boards around, so I think I'll just keep my mobo until I get a new PC (does the 400mhz FSB really kill my speed compared to a 533FSB?) and one of the new 800mhz boards :D . Overclocking is def not going to happen as I have and Intel board and CPU, lol. I checked with the site, and my board will support up to a 2.6ghz processor; they're about $200, so I wouldnt mind that :) . So, if I get the new hard drive and a new CPU (much later after I get the HDD), will my performance go up alot, like in a PC Mark 2002 score? I shouldn't complain, right now I can play UT2003 in 800x 600 rez, 32 bit color, Quin AA, 2x ani, and all high - highest settings with *15* bots and get and fps of 20-50, but I'm just a performance freak :rolleyes2 . Thx for any info in advance, : peace2: Mista K6