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[McLizardman]

Hi, I built this as a budget gaming rig a decent time ago, and it is as follows:

AMD Phenom II X2 555 BE

2 X 2 GB DDR3 1333 mhz RAM (4 GB Total)

Radeon HD 5770 1GB

BioStar A780L3G

500 watt Antec Power Supply

5400 RPM disk drive

 

Now, I know the disk drive is slow, but I'll upgrade that when I get the chance. I am more concerned about the CPU and graphics card. Does anyone have a good suggestion for a decently priced CPU that could keep up a little better in today's games. I am currently considering a Phenom II X 4 980. If anyone has a better suggestion, I would like that. But what I am really after is a new graphics card. The 5770 I have is a nice card, but like the CPU it is beginning to age. I really don't know what to get here. I would like it to be under 200 dollars. So, if you could help with a suggestion, I would greatly appreciate it. Thanks!

[El_Capitan]

I have plenty of stuff for sale on my for sale thread.

[LuckyDeath]

What kind of games/resolutions?

 

The CPU increase the the Phenom II isn't worth it imo. You obviously don't want to switch to Intel because then you're paying for a new mobo and out of your budget.

 

But for $200, I think you would see better increases by upgrading to perhaps a Radeon 68xx series GPU.

[IVIYTH0S]

What kind of games/resolutions?

 

The CPU increase the the Phenom II isn't worth it imo. You obviously don't want to switch to Intel because then you're paying for a new mobo and out of your budget.

 

But for $200, I think you would see better increases by upgrading to perhaps a Radeon 68xx series GPU.

and also you could try unlocking your x2 to be a quad

[McLizardman]

and also you could try unlocking your x2 to be a quad

 

I tried, but both cores were defective. Also, an upgrade to a phenom II quad core would not be worth it? Hmmm, are you sure? I can understand a 6 core not being worth it, but aren't many programs able to use 4+ threads?

[IVIYTH0S]

I'd start overclocking your 555 and your 5770 and see what that gets you.

 

What resolution is your monitor too?

[McLizardman]

I'd start overclocking your 555 and your 5770 and see what that gets you.

 

What resolution is your monitor too?

 

its a small monitor, at 1024 X 768. Overclocking isn't a bad idea, however I try not to cause unnecessary heat in my case. Dust builds up really fast in the fins of the CPU and GPU heatsinks, which I have to clean out each month. I would like to try to overclock though, as I have never tried it before. I'm told it is easy on a BE chip.

[IVIYTH0S]

Very easy! just keep the temps on the CPU under 60 degrees celcius and you're good.

 

The videocard will likely be voltage deprived before it becomes dangerously hot....though at that resolution you shouldn't need to overclock anything

[LuckyDeath]

At that resolution what games are giving you trouble?

 

Really sounds like the 5770 and the 555 BE should be able to keep up just fine for most games... I built my little brother a rig using those exact same components for games like WoW, etc... and he plays at 1280x800.

 

Also, to answer your question, alot of games CAN use 4 cores. However, if you don't say which games you're playing we can't be sure

 

Furthermore, just because the game will use the extra cores doesn't mean that the FPS will jump higher than a new video card. $200 would put you in the market for a 68xx series card, which is much better than a 5770. I suspect the GPU is your bottleneck, as that CPU is not that bad really.

 

And of course, overclocking both of them will squeeze a little more out of them... not a ton, but you should see a slight improvement in framerates.

 

What games are you playing now, and what FPS are you getting? What kind of FPS do you WANT to get?

[McLizardman]

At that resolution what games are giving you trouble?

 

Really sounds like the 5770 and the 555 BE should be able to keep up just fine for most games... I built my little brother a rig using those exact same components for games like WoW, etc... and he plays at 1280x800.

 

Also, to answer your question, alot of games CAN use 4 cores. However, if you don't say which games you're playing we can't be sure

 

Furthermore, just because the game will use the extra cores doesn't mean that the FPS will jump higher than a new video card. $200 would put you in the market for a 68xx series card, which is much better than a 5770. I suspect the GPU is your bottleneck, as that CPU is not that bad really.

 

And of course, overclocking both of them will squeeze a little more out of them... not a ton, but you should see a slight improvement in framerates.

 

What games are you playing now, and what FPS are you getting? What kind of FPS do you WANT to get?

 

Right now, I like to play Call of Duty World at War and StarCraft 2. I get good FPS on both, but on starcraft my frames drop pretty severely when there is a lot of action going on. When the games start, I get upwards of 100, then it goes down to 40 -80, then when there is a lot of stuff on screen to sometimes below 20. I just want it to stay be at a constant 30 +, which I usually get, but like I said, it can get crazy. I plan on getting BattleField 3 and Skyrim, so I would would like to play those smoothly on max if not high settings.

[LuckyDeath]

At that resolution a 68xx card should handle any game, to be honest. But for $200, you might as well go all the way to the 69xx series if you can find one cheap enough.

 

You can get http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814150523 . XFX 6950, $200 with MIR.

 

That will be an enormous step ahead of your 5770. In a year or two, you can look at a quad core CPU to go with it, but right now I believe your bottleneck is the GPU, not your CPU.

 

Also, what kind of internet connection are you on? Just be sure this is hardware related, and not due to latency. Some people get angry that WoW still stutters after they blow $3000 on a new gaming rig, but their connection is still crap.

 

Alternative is upgrading to a quad core for ~$100 (a la http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819103940) and then looking for a used GPU for ~$100. I would check the marketplace, I know Deathnote was selling a 5870 for $150... which is still a very good card at that price point (it can match the 6950 in some cases, and for $50-$100 less, they are just hard to find).

Edited December 3, 2011 by LuckyDeath

[McLizardman]

At that resolution a 68xx card should handle any game, to be honest. But for $200, you might as well go all the way to the 69xx series if you can find one cheap enough.

 

You can get http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814150523 . XFX 6950, $200 with MIR.

 

That will be an enormous step ahead of your 5770. In a year or two, you can look at a quad core CPU to go with it, but right now I believe your bottleneck is the GPU, not your CPU.

 

Also, what kind of internet connection are you on? Just be sure this is hardware related, and not due to latency. Some people get angry that WoW still stutters after they blow $3000 on a new gaming rig, but their connection is still crap.

 

Alternative is upgrading to a quad core for ~$100 (a la http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819103940) and then looking for a used GPU for ~$100. I would check the marketplace, I know Deathnote was selling a 5870 for $150... which is still a very good card at that price point (it can match the 6950 in some cases, and for $50-$100 less, they are just hard to find).

 

okay cool. I will consider getting a quad core later. The 68XX sounds like my best bet right now. Thanks for the info. My internet connection is Comcast economy plus, which I think is rated at 3 mega bits (Just did a speed test, got 3.10 mbps).