Here is my powersupply specs:

ModelBrandCOOLER MASTERModelRP-500-PCARSerieseXtremeSpecTypeATX12V V2.01Maximum Power500WFansSleeve bearing 120mm fanPFCNoMain Connector20+4Pin+12V Rails2PCI-E Connectors1 x 6PinCrossFireNoSLINoModularNoPower Good Signal100-500msHold-up Time>17msEfficiency>70% typicallyOver Voltage ProtectionYesInput Voltage110 - 115V/220 - 230VInput Frequency Range50/60 HzInput Current8A/ 6.3A

Output+3.3V@20A,+5V@20A,+12V1@16A,+12V2@16A,
-12V@0.8A,+5VSB@2.0A

MTBF>100,000 HoursApprovalsNemko, TUV, cUL, CE, BSMI, FCC, CCCFeaturesConnectors1 x Main connector (20+4Pin)
1 x 12V(P4)
6 x peripheral
3 x SATA
2 x Floppy
1 x PCI-EFeaturesGreen power design to meet energy star and blue angel requirements
OVP / OPP / Short Circuit Protection

Could the problem be my power supply?

I have a Coolermaster 500W and the highest amps it puts out is 20Amps, 16A on the "rail" (grid on the side?) that is marked 12V1

I have just read elsewhere that the card needs "which is 24-28A MINIMUM on the +12v rail. If your PSU only has 1 +12v rail and it's rated at only 18A, then it isn't sufficient. If you have multiple +12v rails rated at 18A, you should be fine."

Hi all have been gaming for years but just now getting my act together and trying to upgrade my system.

Here's what I currently have:

P4 3.0 single core

2 gb ram 8800GT 512mb OC

Win XP sp3.

I just replaced my "old" X1950 Pro with the 8800GT and have seen virtually no improvement in FPS (maybe even worse) in Call of Duty 4 and Crysis the 2 games I play most (COD4 online and Crysis single player). In Crysis with everything set "medium" and screen resolution at 1280x1050 (I have a 21" CRT monitor and can go much higher) with no AA, etc I am lucky to average 10 FPS.

UPDATE: I ran 3DMARK 06 on both cards and here is what I came up with:

ATI X1950PRO = 4029 N

VIDIA 8800GT = 3199

So with a faster card I benchmark lower!???!???!??!! Yes I know my processor is weak and I will upgrade very soon BUT I don't understand why my 3Dmark06 score is so low with the new card.

Just used Driver Sweeper to completely rim my comp of ATI Drivers. Am going to run 3DMark06 again to see if I can improve upon my poor result of 3200.

I just upgraded from an Sapphire ATI X1950 PRO to a BFG 8800GT OC (512mb vram) and I didn't get the performance increase that I was thinking I was going to get. After surfing the web I think that my CPU is a major bottleneck.

My system:

P4 3.0 Ghz

2 gb ram

Win Xp service pack 3

BFG 8800GT OC

22" Viewsonic monitor

In Crysis the game seems actually slower than before. I am getting like 7-10 fps a lot. Sometimes a bit more but certainly not playable. The weird thing is that when I set the game to LOW settings including screen resolution it still chugs. 20 FPS or so.

What is going on here?

Plan to upgrade soon to a ASUS SLI-Ready Motherboard and a Core 2 duo 8400 3.0 processor

I just upgraded from an Sapphire ATI X1950 PRO to a BFG 8800GT OC (512mb vram) and I didn't get the performance increase that I was thinking I was going to get. After surfing the web I think that my CPU is a major bottleneck.

My system:

P4 3.0 Ghz

2 gb ram

Win Xp service pack 3

BFG 8800GT OC

22" Viewsonic monitor

In Crysis the game seems actually slower than before. I am getting like 7-10 fps a lot. Sometimes a bit more but certainly not playable. The weird thing is that when I set the game to LOW settings including screen resolution it still chugs. 20 FPS or so.

What is going on here?

Plan to upgrade soon to a ASUS SLI-Ready Motherboard and a Core 2 duo 8400 3.0 processor