Upgrading my comp

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So, i'll be the first to admit I know **** all about hardware. What does 512mb of ram really mean? I got no freakin' clue.

So my question is, what do I need to upgrade to get WoW (of course) running more smoothly?

The problem i'm having is basically as much as I love WoW, looking at screenshots was only exciting before the game came out. I don't enjoy looking at screenshots while playing the freakin' game. I get lag every time I play, I just kinda assumed it was normal till I started watching PvP videos and got a bit suspicious their computer didn't freeze every two seconds when someone used a new ability.

To make matters worse, I just hit 60 with my new char whom will be my PvP *****, so you can imagine how my computer feels in bg with 40 ppl blasting each other with fireballs and the like. Oh yeah, I love my screenshots.

So, what I want to know, because i'm hardware illiterate, is exactly what components I need to upgrade on my computer to make it lag less in high stress environments. Also, if it's a specific thing if you could reccomend a brand it would be awesome too.

(All my video settings are on the lowest possible detail, even distance viewed, yay for alliance getting the jump on me!)

Please help teh Kama. T_T
 
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Well the first question is; What are you current specifications? (Start -> Run -> dxdiag for specifications)

Then we can say which component you should upgrade.
 
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Also, how much are you willing to spend and what can you afford?. Are you planning to build a new rig or just upgrade some parts of your current setup?.
 
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Sry. T_T

Windows XP
Pentium 4 CPU 2.00GHz
512mb RAM
RADEON 9000 Series AGP (0x4966)

And, I dunno. Let's just assume I have an average amount of money. I don't know the pricing on anything so I don't know what is a fair price. :(

Lemme know if you need more.
 
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You could get a 6600GT(AGP ofcourse) for about $150/120 euro.

That would SIGNIFICANTLY increase performance.

Then you could also buy an extra 512MB memory module.(Assuming you have now 1 512MB module in your computer)
 
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What is a 6600GT exactly? More specifically, what advantages does it have over my Radeon?

If i'm going to buy a new video card, I think i'd like to get a newer one that'll last me. Even if it costs more. So I dunno. Still with that one?
 
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Kama said:
What is a 6600GT exactly? More specifically, what advantages does it have over my Radeon?

If i'm going to buy a new video card, I think i'd like to get a newer one that'll last me. Even if it costs more. So I dunno. Still with that one?
6600gt has more pipes and faster clocks and craps all over your 9000pro. You'd probably end up causing a bottleneck with the card though, your limited by your fsb. Getting another 512mb stick of ram though is a good upgrade though.
 
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I love how none of you have answered his question:
Kama said:
What does 512mb of ram really mean? I got no freakin' clue.
RAM is an acronym for Random Access Memory. It's the temporary storage of data for the computer and it allows much faster read/write/seek speeds than a Hard Drive (nanoseconds vs milliseconds, hundreds of megabytes [XXX] vs double-digit numbers [XX]). The downside is that it's volatile, which means that any data stored in it will be erased the moment it loses power.

I'd assume that 512MBs of RAM would be sufficient for WoW at lowest settings. But if your gameplay is freezing and 'stuttering', then maybe you should opt for more.

So my question is, what do I need to upgrade to get WoW (of course) running more smoothly?
To answer your question: more RAM and/or a better CPU (Central Processing Unit) and/or a better VPU (another acronym meaning Video Processing Unit). Although, if your current RAM is SDR (Single Data Rate, often known as SDRAM), and not DDR (Double Data Rate) then we have the problem for sure. You can check this by downloading a program called CPU-Z (Click Here), going to the "Memory Section", and looking in the "TYPE" box.

Devion said:
You could get a 6600GT(AGP ofcourse) for about $150/120 euro.

That would SIGNIFICANTLY increase performance.

Then you could also buy an extra 512MB memory module.(Assuming you have now 1 512MB module in your computer)
Agreed, but not in that order.

RAM -> CPU -> VPU

Kama, can you do me a favor and take a few screenshots of CPU-Z in the CPU section and Memory section? Thanks.
 
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Hm. Seeing your status, I'd say above is correct.

Get a Geforce 6600 GT and get another 512 stick of RAM

RAM lets more memory be read faster. The more you have, the faster and more programs you can open.

I pretty much have the same as you, cept im at 2.20GHz.

I have a 6600GT and 1 gig of ram and I run pretty smooth.

But if you get a 6800GT, you'll run as smooth as a baby's bottom o/
 
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RAM lets more memory be read faster. The more you have, the faster and more programs you can open.
Not exactly. In the case of a Athlon64 setup, if you were to use 4 stick of ram in the motherboard you'd have higher ram timings and latencyand it would have a negative impact on performance.
I pretty much have the same as you, cept im at 2.20GHz.
Your 3400+ craps all over a P4 running at 2ghz.
But if you get a 6800GT, you'll run as smooth as a baby's bottom o/
A 6800gt would be horribly bottlenecked by his current processor.
 
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Smith| said:
Kama, can you do me a favor and take a few screenshots of CPU-Z in the CPU section and Memory section? Thanks.
Thanks for everyone who is helping, I really appreciate it, though most of it didn't make sense to me. Is a VPU just a video card?

Anyways, here's what you asked for.

 
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Ah... SDRAM. You're not going to get much better performance out of that, I'm sorry.

Oh, and thanks a lot. You cost me my 1,337 post >_>.
 
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So.. I need a new motherboard?
 
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Possibly, as SDRAM is outdated compared to DDR.

Basically, from my point of view, upgrading your CPU (to a AMD 64), RAM (to 1 gig or more), or VPU (to a nVIDIA), could increase performance.

Don't take my word for it though. I'd rather trust Smith or Overlord than me >.>
 
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Well I have to disagree with Smith here.

Since you dont wanna spend a **** load of money to the upgrade, there are only few things you can do.

Get a new system for 500 euro(Which can be a good one, if you choose your components wisely) or just get the 6600GT and be done for the moment.

A short list what a new system would cost;
Asus A8N5X NVIDIA Socket 939 ATX Motherboard / Audio / PCI Express / Gigabit LAN / S/PDIF / USB 2.0 / Serial ATA / RAID $114.99 (Good mobo, my brother got the same one)
Athlon 64 3200 $133.99 (Enough for what you'll do with it)
Corsair Value Select Dual Channel 1024MB PC3200 DDR 400MHz Memory ( 2 x 512MB ) $120.99 (My brother got the same, so no compatibility problems with the mobo here)
XFX GeForce 7600 GS Extreme Edition / 256MB GDDR2 / PCI Express / SLI / Dual DVI / HDTV / Video Card $158.99 (Faster then the 6600GT, without the pricy price tag :p)
Thermaltake / PurePower / 430-Watt / ATX / Dual 80mm LED Fan / 20/24-Pin / SATA Ready / PCI-E Ready / Power Supply $ 54.99

Which makes a total of $583.95

Prices are in Canadian dollars and where took from the site http://www.tigerdirect.ca/
And this is assuming, you use your old case, keyboard, mouse, screen etc.
 
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Devion said:
Well I have to disagree with Smith here.

Since you dont wanna spend a **** load of money to the upgrade, there are only few things you can do.

Get a new system for 500 euro(Which can be a good one, if you choose your components wisely) or just get the 6600GT and be done for the moment.
Getting a 6600GT would hardly be felt, trust me. On my old computer, which had a slightly slower processor, but the same exact RAM as his, I felt no difference between a GeForce 3 Ti 200 and a 9600XT.

If he wants to get a 6600GT and use it until he gets a new motherboard, RAM, and CPU, then go ahead.
 
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Why do you all like nvidia so much? You can get a Ati video card for the same price but with more power.

On topic:The easiest way would be to buy a new comp insted of upgrading this one.
 
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vote4me said:
Why do you all like nvidia so much? You can get a Ati video card for the same price but with more power Consumption.
It all depends on what application my friend. Nvidia are known to run Opengl based applications better then ATI, although ATI performance in opengl isn't so unbearable that it's not playable. X1800GTO, the competiting ATI product is also more expensive then a 7600GT and it requires a molex connecter since it's built of the same pcb as the X1800XL/XT, and the 7600gt does not require a molx connecter at all since it can jsut use all the power provided by the PCI-Express slot.
On topic:The easiest way would be to buy a new comp insted of upgrading this one.
A pre-built pc would cost more money (atleast most of the time) and sometimes you'd get crapper specs then what you could get if you bought it in parts, built it yourself or had a friend/realitive build it for you etc.
 

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