PurpleSuperman Posted December 30, 2010 Posted December 30, 2010 Ohai =D I've taken a read through the "How To Successfully Build A Computer" thread and taken some notes from there, but I'd like a few mixed opinions on where I should go from my current build to one that can play games in higher quality. To start I guess I should note that I'm in the UK, this PC would be used primarily for gaming. I'm planning on expanding my games library to some more recent games that require better graphics to actually get anywhere. And I'm looking at as low a budget as possible. £200-£300 would be ideal, but I'll go further should I need to. My current specs (as provided by Xfire) are: Manufacturer: Compaq Presario 061 Processor: Intel® Pentium® 4 CPU 2.80GHz Memory: 2048MB RAM Hard Drive: 80 GB Video Card: NVIDIA GeForce 7300 GT Monitor: Plug and Play Monitor (17") Sound Card: Realtek AC97 Audio Speakers/Headphones: TEC^Sound CPT - 200SX Subwoofer Keyboard: Logitech USB Root Hub Mouse: Cheetah High Precision Optical Gaming Mouse Mouse Surface: Wooden Desk Operating System: Windows XP Professional (5.1, Build 2600) Service Pack 3 (2600.xpsp_sp3_gdr.100216-1514) I honestly can't make much sense out of all of that But I know that it's just enough to allow me to play Team Fortress 2 on minimal settings without any lag or crashing. From the other thread, I read that my first priority is cooling, so should I start off by looking at a power supply/fans and then other hardware, or straight to hardware? I should mention that my room gets pretty warm, anything upto 25 degrees (Celsius) Is there a way of determining the temperature of my PC, just to know what I'm dealing with? If you need to know anything else I guess asking would be the best bet. I've been planning on getting this piece of junk upgraded for a while now, so it's about time I find out what to do >.< Thanks guys =D Share this post Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
MandoPatriot Posted December 30, 2010 Posted December 30, 2010 One main thing should be a new case! Those store bought ones are pretty bad. Some don't even have fans. After that, I would get a bigger HDD (hard disk drive) to install all of your games on. Then a bigger power supply and video card. RAM and CPU should be upgraded but that budget isn't that much... Hope this helps. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
VaporX Posted December 30, 2010 Posted December 30, 2010 Don't upgrade, build new. The parts you have all are old enough that you should not bother to bring anything forward. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
_TheAlexO Posted December 30, 2010 Posted December 30, 2010 Don't upgrade, build new. The parts you have all are old enough that you should not bother to bring anything forward. yes i agree, you really should think about saving and getting a couple hundred more if thats an option. that would be a MUCH better use of your money. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
MandoPatriot Posted December 30, 2010 Posted December 30, 2010 I was going to say buy new but the budget is what kills it.. though, you could get another store bought for that price that will way put-due your current setup. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
dihartnell Posted December 30, 2010 Posted December 30, 2010 (edited) I dont think I would carry anything through to a new rig. Better to sell that off and start again. 300 pounds is more than 300 USD so that may not be too bad a budget to start with and if you can get money for your old rig as well. Where were you planning to buy from? Edited December 30, 2010 by dihartnell Share this post Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
eisbar Posted December 30, 2010 Posted December 30, 2010 Don't upgrade, build new. The parts you have all are old enough that you should not bother to bring anything forward. pretty limited to what you can do with that. but i guess if you didn't want to build new, you could pick up a c2q or a c2d then a 5770 or something that can actually play games But IMO building new is the best way. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
PurpleSuperman Posted December 30, 2010 Posted December 30, 2010 A bigger hard drive is definitely what I need. I have alot of music and pictures also D: So I guess it's clear I should just save and build from scratch. That's initially what I planned, but not being from the wealthiest of families has it's downsides Share this post Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
eisbar Posted December 30, 2010 Posted December 30, 2010 (edited) You don't exactly need top of the line gear, just a quad core or even a decent dual core + something like a 5770 would be fine. what games do you play? EDIT: just reading OP again. download Coretemp to find out the temp of your cpu. Edited December 30, 2010 by eisbar Share this post Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
PurpleSuperman Posted December 30, 2010 Posted December 30, 2010 You don't exactly need top of the line gear, just a quad core or even a decent dual core + something like a 5770 would be fine. what games do you play? EDIT: just reading OP again. download Coretemp to find out the temp of your cpu. Right now I'm playing TF2, CS:S, Garry's Mod and Minecraft. They all run flawlessly on minimum graphical settings, so I'm happy with that. But recently in the Steam Sale I wanted Battlefield: Bad Company 2, but didn't even have the minimum requirements D: And also "This intel processor is not supported" The CoreTemp programme doesn't like me D: Share this post Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
eisbar Posted December 30, 2010 Posted December 30, 2010 Realtemp < try that one then :S otherwise you have to go to the Bios. minecraft <3 one of the most demanding games i have ever played, takes my cpu usage up to 70-80% and ram to almost 3gb. never has a game ever done that to me before yeah a 5770 would be perfect for that. You could get something like an i3 or phenom II. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
PurpleSuperman Posted December 30, 2010 Posted December 30, 2010 Realtemp < try that one then :S otherwise you have to go to the Bios. minecraft <3 one of the most demanding games i have ever played, takes my cpu usage up to 70-80% and ram to almost 3gb. never has a game ever done that to me before yeah a 5770 would be perfect for that. You could get something like an i3 or phenom II. Yeah, that didn't work either D: And Minecraft only lags out if I play it in browser. Downloaded it's fine, as long as the server isn't having problems. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
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