Yes, look into a graphics card first. To suggest any upgrades it would really help if you could post: the slot (agp or pci-e or, better yet, your motherboard if you know), your budget and your power supply. Graphics cards and ram are the easiest upgrades. It may sound difficult but once you have the parts and open your case it's a very straight forward procedure. Just as easy and, as far as I'm concerned, also something to consider, is buying an audio card to replace that onboard ac97.
Yes, look into a graphics card first. To suggest any upgrades it would really help if you could post: the slot (agp or pci-e or, better yet, your motherboard if you know), your budget and your power supply. Graphics cards and ram are the easiest upgrades. It may sound difficult but once you have the parts and open your case it's a very straight forward procedure. Just as easy and, as far as I'm concerned, also something to consider, is buying an audio card to replace that onboard ac97. BLKR4330
ill spend up to $1000...any more is ridiculous.....but obviously id rather not spend all of it....id like the best deal i could get...but if it comes down to it id spend the 1000... how do i find out my motherboard??? And i dont know anything about slots, but right on the front of my computer there is a sticker that says "PCI-Express Slot Available" i dont know if thats any help....
[QUOTE="BLKR4330"]Yes, look into a graphics card first. To suggest any upgrades it would really help if you could post: the slot (agp or pci-e or, better yet, your motherboard if you know), your budget and your power supply. Graphics cards and ram are the easiest upgrades. It may sound difficult but once you have the parts and open your case it's a very straight forward procedure. Just as easy and, as far as I'm concerned, also something to consider, is buying an audio card to replace that onboard ac97. senecaboyer88
ill spend up to $1000...any more is ridiculous..... how do i find out my motherboard??? And i dont know anything about slots, but right on the front of my computer there is a sticker that says "PCI-Express Slot Available" i dont know if thats any help....
that rig is basically unupgradeable as it is not 939 corrct me if im wrong. if your spending 1000 dollars you are vbetter off buying a new system
[QUOTE="senecaboyer88"][QUOTE="BLKR4330"]Yes, look into a graphics card first. To suggest any upgrades it would really help if you could post: the slot (agp or pci-e or, better yet, your motherboard if you know), your budget and your power supply. Graphics cards and ram are the easiest upgrades. It may sound difficult but once you have the parts and open your case it's a very straight forward procedure. Just as easy and, as far as I'm concerned, also something to consider, is buying an audio card to replace that onboard ac97. inyourface_12
ill spend up to $1000...any more is ridiculous..... how do i find out my motherboard??? And i dont know anything about slots, but right on the front of my computer there is a sticker that says "PCI-Express Slot Available" i dont know if thats any help....
that rig is basically unupgradeable as it is not 939 corrct me if im wrong. if your spending 1000 dollars you are vbetter off buying a new system
what is 939?? And how come some people say i cant upgade...then other people say that im perfectly capable??
That proves that you have a PCI-Express Slot. So modern graphics cards will work on your system. Do you want this computer for high-end gaming ?Cyborg-21
and yes i want it for high end gaming....ive decided i like computer games better if there available on both console and pc...mods are just so good....
[QUOTE="Cyborg-21"]That proves that you have a PCI-Express Slot. So modern graphics cards will work on your system. Do you want this computer for high-end gaming ?senecaboyer88
and yes i want it for high end gaming....ive decided i like computer games better if there available on both console and pc...mods are just so good.... Just one more thing before we can recommend you graphics cards. What is the output in Watts of your computer power supply unit ? (to find out, open the case, look at the square-shaped box in the corner that is the power supply. It should have some stickers on it stating the output).
[QUOTE="senecaboyer88"][QUOTE="Cyborg-21"]That proves that you have a PCI-Express Slot. So modern graphics cards will work on your system. Do you want this computer for high-end gaming ?Cyborg-21
and yes i want it for high end gaming....ive decided i like computer games better if there available on both console and pc...mods are just so good.... Just one more thing before we can recommend you graphics cards. What is the output in Watts of your computer power supply unit ? (to find out, open the case, look at the square-shaped box in the corner that is the power supply. It should have some stickers on it stating the output). it says... OUTPUT: 300W MAX and holy **** its dusty in there....theres like dust balls over everything...that cant be very good for the computer...would i just use one of those air blower cans to clean it??
Ok. Do you mind upgrading your power supply or do you want to stay with your current power supply ? If you want to stay with your PSU, the 7600GS Nvidia card will work fine on your system.
[QUOTE="Cyborg-21"]Ok. Do you mind upgrading your power supply or do you want to stay with your current power supply ? If you want to stay with your PSU, the 7600GS Nvidia card will work fine on your system. i would have no clue how to do that...or how much it costs.... and would the graphics card work really good?? Like i could run most new games on a all high settings??? I have an ATI right now with drivers and stuff installed....so how would that work?
With that much money to spend I think you need to think this through first, do some research. I'd say you have three options: 1) a $1000 will get you started on a decent Core 2 Duo based system which is the best currently available, has more upgrade possibilities and more potential to last. This would probably be the smartest option, especially if you're interested in building it yourself. 2) getting your pc up-to-date cheap and easy (like the earlier suggested 7600gs and 1GB ram for $150-200) and using the rest of the money (and saving some more) for a new pc later (this year?) to go directx 10. You'll basically be putting off the decision and still be able to do some fairly decent gaming. Lots of promissing hardware will be released in the meantime.. 3) using the 1000 to get the best upgrades available. This would be the most fun if you ask me cause all the components will be (former) high-end and you'll be squeezing every last drop of performance out of your current pc. There will be some DIY involved and since you pretty much exhaust all upgrading possibilities this way, there's no telling how long it will last. You'd be looking at: athlon fx-60 $379.99 or athlon x2 4600+ 299.99 for cpu and EVGA 8800gts 320mb $299.99 for the graphics card, get an extra Gb of ram and there will be enough money left for a stronger power supply.
With that much money to spend I think you need to think this through first, do some research. I'd say you have three options: 1) a $1000 will get you started on a decent Core 2 Duo based system which is the best currently available, has more upgrade possibilities and more potential to last. This would probably be the smartest option, especially if you're interested in building it yourself. 2) getting your pc up-to-date cheap and easy (like the earlier suggested 7600gs and 1GB ram for $150-200) and using the rest of the money (and saving some more) for a new pc later (this year?) to go directx 10. You'll basically be putting off the decision and still be able to do some fairly decent gaming. Lots of promissing hardware will be released in the meantime.. 3) using the 1000 to get the best upgrades available. This would be the most fun if you ask me cause all the components will be (former) high-end and you'll be squeezing every last drop of performance out of your current pc. There will be some DIY involved and since you pretty much exhaust all upgrading possibilities this way, there's no telling how long it will last. You'd be looking at: athlon fx-60 $379.99 or athlon x2 4600+ 299.99 for cpu and EVGA 8800gts 320mb $299.99 for the graphics card, get an extra Gb of ram and there will be enough money left for a stronger power supply. BLKR4330
whats the best thing to go with if i just want to do it quickly..... like i just want to walk into a bestbuy...buy whatever i need...open up my computer, and put it in......then be able to play a whole bunch of new games..... i dont know how to build my own...i dont know anything about processors or any of the stuff i seem to need to know about...i just want to play new games for around 1 year or so...i was able to when i first bought my computer.. do i really need to go through all of that stuff to play?? What would happen if i just bought a new high end graphics card and RAM card...would i still not be able to play??
the 7600gs definitely wont let you play new games on full graphics/resolution..... seems to me your looking for a quick and easy fix so I would reccommend more ram, and a better video card..... in actual fact if thats the x700 pro im thinking of then its better than the 7600gs???? anyway your going to have to upgrade your psu for a new high end graphics card, but at least you have pci-express which is good. RAM is vry easy to install.... just slot in in and your set...... video cards are also very easy slot it in, install the drivers and your set(im presuming you wont overclock). The psu(power supply unit) is simple enough to upgrade as well, but buy a proper brand name one though like seagate etc etc. Just do a google search and Im sure you can find hundreds of guides to help you install the new stuff anyway.
Number 2 :D geforce 7600gs $89.99 corsair 1gb valueram $74.99 or corsair 2x 512mb valueram $79.99 (for dual channel)
I estimate you should be fine gaming medium setting for this year.
BLKR4330
so those wouldn't run games on all high settings though...right? These are pretty much the only games im interested in playing... -Battlefield and all the expansion packs -Company of Heroes and a couple of more games...that re most likely coming out that i dont know about....only new one im interested in is crysis..but i already accept the fact ill never be able to play it....so ill move on... after i buy those...do i need to install anything?? Or do i just put it in and im all set....because i have an ATI and all the drivers already installed...if i got a geforce wouldnt i have to uninstall a whole bunch of things??? And for the ram card i just put that in??? and are there any better versions of the cards?? I was actually planning to spend more than that...so i mean might as well check to see if i can get anything better.....but most likely ill just end up buying those.... and sorry for all the questions but i have one more....can i just walk into a store and buy those?? Or would i have to order them off of online??
If you can spend $1000,why not just build a new system???AARONRULZ1
Yeah, 1K$ is a good amount of money, and you can get good stuff... Theres no way I would put a grand into your current computer, it's too old... I suggest starting from scratch, DDR2 RAM, either a C2D, or an Athlon X2, and of course PCI-E...
[QUOTE="AARONRULZ1"]If you can spend $1000,why not just build a new system???bluealien2
Yeah, 1K$ is a good amount of money, and you can get good stuff... Theres no way I would put a grand into your current computer, it's too old... I suggest starting from scratch, DDR2 RAM, either a C2D, or an Athlon X2, and of course PCI-E...
 thats because i have absolutely no clue what im doing....i opened mine up today to see what i would be dealing with if i had to put in new stuff...i have no clue what im doing...i was gonna buy a ram card, but theres so many slots and stuff that i have no clue where to put it....i can only imagine if i were to have to build a new one...
plus i have too much stuff on my computer that id lose and not be able to get back if i were to buy a completely new one...
Then head on down to ibuypower.com, and customize a PC there, theres no way you should spend a grand on your current configuration... Either build a new one, or buy a decent pre-built, just no Uhaems (E-machines), Dells, HP, Compaq, Alienware, ETC, you wont get much from them with a grand, but Ibuypower you should get a decent rig for that money...
If you really want to upgrade now, you would need to get a new power supply unit. That will enable you to get high-end graphics cards. Although the slight concern is that the CPU won't be good enough to keep a high end GPU fed with data.
I've been giving your situation some thought and here's what would probably work best for you. Buy a new video card. Don't buy anything else yet, just the new video card. I'd suggest a 7900GT like this one: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16814150216 Buy it locally from a Best Buy or Circuit City or somesuch. It's very easy to install (you just pull out the old video card, plug in the new one, and connect the power supply to it). You'll have to update your video drivers for it, but honestly that's as easy as installing any sort of software. Nvidia's webpage will have directions to walk you through it. The basic process comes down to removing your current video drivers (from the add/remove programs utility), rebooting, clicking an .exe file, and rebooting again. Very simple. Buying just the video card at this point has a lot of potential benefits for you. It's the easiest thing you can do for the biggest performance gain, it's modular so one way or another you're going to be buying it anyway, and considering how uncomfortable you are with installing components it's the least complicated thing you'd need to do. There is a chance that your power supply won't run the video card. However most times they overestimate the required power supply suggestions based on the assumption that you're running quite a few things in your PC. Chances are your system will run the card fine, and let's say worst case scenario it can't. Nothing will be damaged. Return the card and be done with it, or keep the card and buy a new PSU. A PSU is also modular (hell everything is, but these are some of the easiest things to install) so in the end, you're never going to be wasting any money as these are things you'd be buying one way or another, and they're all returnable.
Consider doing this before anything bigger like buying a whole new PC or upgrading the guts out of your current one. The 7900GT would serve you well with Company of Heroes and Battlefield. And it's the fastest, easiest, cheapest, most expandable way to start enjoying those games right now.
This question may have a really obvious answer, and if it does, sorry. But why are you suggesting he buy a whole new rig? Couldnt he just change the mobo to another, and get like a 500W PSU, and pay someone a bit of money to install it all? That would surely leave room to upgrade at least the graphics card...
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