Upgrading: One Step at a Time

Dyre Straits · Dec 12, 2004, 10:00 AM

Due to budget constraints, I've been in a situation where I've been doing some upgrading just one step at a time over the past few months.

First, I upped my RAM to 1 GB using 2x512 Single Channel DDR 266. (I'll be changing this on the next upgrade to PC3200 DDR (400 MHz).)

The next step was to get a nice upgradeable Motherboard. I opted for an ABIT VT7 which is a very affordable VIA-based board using Intel 478 Pin architecture. It supports multiple FSB configured CPUs.

(One additional consideration was to be able to utilize AGP 8X for my 9600 Pro.)

My most recent upgrade (today) was to install a P4, 3.2E CPU with HyperThreading technology and 800 FSB. It also has 1 MB L2 Cache! (Over the past few months this computer has gone from a P4 1.6 -> Celeron 2.6 and now to the current CPU.)

I was quite impressed when I ran 3DMark2K1SE and saw an increase of over 4000! points by only upgrading to the current CPU. This is at Default settings for everything....nothing overclocked.

I then ran 3DMark2K3 and saw a slight increase....apprx 100 points. This, however, didn't surprise me at all since FutureMark has restricted their newer tests to the performance of the VPU and not to the overall system. However, the 100 point increase could be due to a much better rate of data transfer between the CPU and the VPU.

It'll be interesting to me to see what differences occur when I put in the 1 GB of PC3200 in about a month or so.

Dom · Dec 12, 2004, 11:37 AM

Sounds good. What about a new videocard?

refraction · Dec 12, 2004, 12:42 PM

yeh i recon youd benifit from a nice low end Geforce 6800 or Radeon X800

could see your scores quadruple

drakesteakn · Dec 12, 2004, 04:21 PM

instead of those cards. for money restraints, go for a 9800 Pro. good leap in perfornace for the price.

Dyre Straits · Dec 12, 2004, 04:57 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by drakesteakn

instead of those cards. for money restraints, go for a 9800 Pro. good leap in perfornace for the price.

Just how much of a leap from my 9600?

Dom · Dec 12, 2004, 05:03 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Dyre Straits

Just how much of a leap from my 9600?

Very big. In fact, the 9500 is better than the 9600. The 9800 Pro is very nice.

Dyre Straits · Dec 12, 2004, 05:07 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Dom

Very big. In fact, the 9500 is better than the 9600. The 9800 Pro is very nice.

Thanks!

However, I wouldn't want to go to a 9500 because it doesn't have full DX9 support, right?

swimtech · Dec 12, 2004, 05:23 PM

With a 9800pro Dyre, your scores should at least double. The 9500 is a DX9 hardware card too, but not as snappy as a 9800pro.

Judas · Dec 12, 2004, 06:06 PM

.... indeed... going from my 9600np to a 9800 pro more then doubled my results.... i was hitting anywere between 2000-2200 3dmark 03 marks... then i poped my 9800 pro in and cranked out a solid 5500-6000

Same results for all the games.... actually more then double seeing as i'm getting well over double with additional settings enabledl ike AF and AA

Drakon · Dec 12, 2004, 06:17 PM

yes indeed. a 9800 pro is still a decent card. good overclocker too...

Sandok · Dec 12, 2004, 07:01 PM

For some... I can't even hit 400 and 360 OC from my 9800 Pro with a VGA silencer... And with my stock, I could MAYBE oc to 382 and 341!!!

Dyre Straits · Dec 12, 2004, 09:24 PM

Anyone want to send me a 9800 Pro to try out?

pr0digal jenius · Dec 12, 2004, 09:34 PM

for the price if a 9800 pro you mgiht could find a 6800 GT if you search hard enough

Judas · Dec 12, 2004, 10:22 PM

not going to happen in canada.... 9800 pro 250 bucks.... any 6800, even the cheapest... min i've seen is just over 600 bucks.... you DON'T want to know what the ultra is

pr0digal jenius · Dec 12, 2004, 10:50 PM

oh....i've seen GTs for around 300 here

granted I went with a well known retailer and paid 380...lol

Dyre Straits · Dec 12, 2004, 10:54 PM

6800 ain't gonna happen on a rig I own, anyway.

(ATi, are you listening? LOL )

drakesteakn · Dec 12, 2004, 11:19 PM

lol, too bad i got rid of my 9800 Pro, it was a great card. getting 460 core 380 mem

Dom · Dec 13, 2004, 04:47 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Dyre Straits

Thanks!

However, I wouldn't want to go to a 9500 because it doesn't have full DX9 support, right?

The 9500 Pro has full DX9 support, I have one. Runs very well in HL2, but I personally would like something more powerful. I was just using the 9500 in referrence to your 9600. I would highly recommend a 9800.

CDsDontBurn · Dec 13, 2004, 05:21 AM

My work doesn't even sell any of the 9800 cards anymore

. Reason why, is cuz they figure if people are going to get a high mid-range card, then they can spend an extra $50 and get a 6800 vanilla. At my work, it gaming cards go from 9550, 9600 128Mb/256Mb, 9600xt, 6800 vanilla, 6800GT, x800pro, 6800 Ultra, x800xt

Sad really, the 9800 was an awsome card.

Judas · Dec 13, 2004, 07:09 AM

still imo.... you can still run just about anything at full 1600x1200 with and high quality settings.. or notch it down a little to add extra AF or AA

CDsDontBurn · Dec 13, 2004, 08:03 AM

the first generation 9x00 series were awsome. If i still had my 9700pro, i'd hang it up on my wall just to say that it was the flagship of it's day

.

Vampyromaniac · Dec 14, 2004, 07:52 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by CDsDontBurn

the first generation 9x00 series were awsome. If i still had my 9700pro, i'd hang it up on my wall just to say that it was the flagship of it's day

.

it won my poll, too

Ubergrendle · Dec 16, 2004, 02:07 PM

I got an ATI 9700pro refurbished on eBay for $125 USD... worked out to be about $160 Canadian, which was half the price of a new 9800 Pro a few months back.

I'd rather have a 9800 pro, but I couldn't pass on that type of deal. Works quite well on my rig (which is pretty low end now) for HL2, CS:S, etc.

Doom3 makes my computer cry though.

CDsDontBurn · Dec 16, 2004, 05:04 PM

doom 3 requires alot out of anybody's system. It also plays best on the 6x00 nVidia cards.

Dyre Straits · Dec 21, 2004, 09:08 AM

I was able to get my 1 GB PC3200 today from Fry's Electronics. They had a special on Kingston 2x512 MB in a package for $149.99. Then there's a $30 mail-in rebate that makes the final cost $119.99.

So far, without any other changes, 3DMark2K1 increased over 1000 points from my previous test.

CDsDontBurn · Dec 21, 2004, 10:15 AM

Bah! Fry's has some good stuff, but hardware is hit and miss as to if it works or not.

Dyre Straits · Dec 21, 2004, 07:18 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by CDsDontBurn

Bah! Fry's has some good stuff, but hardware is hit and miss as to if it works or not.

How's that? It all looks new to me. I'm not buying online....I'm going to the store itself.

NeoTribal · Dec 21, 2004, 07:46 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by sandok

For some... I can't even hit 400 and 360 OC from my 9800 Pro with a VGA silencer... And with my stock, I could MAYBE oc to 382 and 341!!!

It's all luck of the draw... I reccommend a sapphire card... I get a stable oc of 420/380 with a vga silencer

CDsDontBurn · Dec 22, 2004, 05:37 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Dyre Straits

How's that? It all looks new to me. I'm not buying online....I'm going to the store itself.

just because something looks new, doesn't mean it is new. Fry's is known not to have working products out of the box. Usually this is because somebody will return something (say memory for example) because it was DOA. Now once it has been returned, Fry's for the most part will not send it back to the manufacturer for warranty replacement, they'll just put it back on the shelf and resell it once again.

Dyre Straits · Dec 22, 2004, 07:41 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by CDsDontBurn

just because something looks new, doesn't mean it is new. Fry's is known not to have working products out of the box. Usually this is because somebody will return something (say memory for example) because it was DOA. Now once it has been returned, Fry's for the most part will not send it back to the manufacturer for warranty replacement, they'll just put it back on the shelf and resell it once again.

Well, so far, we've had good success with what we've purchased there. And, they do have a good return policy.

Dec 12, 2004, 12:42 PM	#3
refraction DriverHeaven Addict Join Date: Nov 2003 Posts: 307 Rep Power: 0 $refraction is on a distinguished road$	yeh i recon youd benifit from a nice low end Geforce 6800 or Radeon X800 could see your scores quadruple __________________ [color=royalblue]Computer Specs[/color] := [color=royalblue]AMD Opteron 146 2.0Ghz @ 2.9Ghz[/color] = [color=royalblue]1024Mb PC4400 RAM Dual Channel[/color] = [color=royalblue]Gainward BLISS 7900GTX 512mb[/color] = [color=royalblue]SB Audigy 4 [/color]= [color=royalblue]250Gb SATA Hard Drive[/color] = [color=royalblue]Thermaltake Xaser Case [/color]= [color=royalblue]Benq FP91G+[/color][color=royalblue] 19" TFT[/color]
$refraction is offline$

Dec 12, 2004, 04:21 PM	#4
drakesteakn boo!!!! Join Date: Aug 2003 Location: Ft. Meyers, FL Posts: 2,041 Rep Power: 0	instead of those cards. for money restraints, go for a 9800 Pro. good leap in perfornace for the price. __________________

Dec 12, 2004, 05:23 PM	#8
swimtech HardwareHeaven Extreme Member Join Date: May 2002 Location: North Carolina Posts: 4,040 Rep Power: 124 System Specs	With a 9800pro Dyre, your scores should at least double. The 9500 is a DX9 hardware card too, but not as snappy as a 9800pro. __________________ It's not so much getting your way that matters or not - what matters is how you go about getting it.

Dec 12, 2004, 11:19 PM	#17
drakesteakn boo!!!! Join Date: Aug 2003 Location: Ft. Meyers, FL Posts: 2,041 Rep Power: 0	lol, too bad i got rid of my 9800 Pro, it was a great card. getting 460 core 380 mem __________________

Dec 13, 2004, 05:21 AM	#19
CDsDontBurn Lurking DriverHeaven Join Date: May 2003 Location: Southern California Posts: 22,779 Rep Power: 235 System Specs	My work doesn't even sell any of the 9800 cards anymore . Reason why, is cuz they figure if people are going to get a high mid-range card, then they can spend an extra $50 and get a 6800 vanilla. At my work, it gaming cards go from 9550, 9600 128Mb/256Mb, 9600xt, 6800 vanilla, 6800GT, x800pro, 6800 Ultra, x800xt Sad really, the 9800 was an awsome card. __________________ Her First Day \| A year later

Dec 12, 2004, 11:37 AM	#2
Dom DriverHeaven Extreme Member Join Date: Jun 2002 Posts: 12,940 Rep Power: 0	Sounds good. What about a new videocard?

Dec 12, 2004, 06:17 PM	#10
Drakon DriverHeaven Extreme Member Join Date: Jun 2004 Location: Floatin'... Posts: 4,957 Rep Power: 0	yes indeed. a 9800 pro is still a decent card. good overclocker too...

Dec 12, 2004, 07:01 PM	#11
Sandok DriverHeaven Extreme Member Join Date: Jul 2004 Posts: 9,472 Rep Power: 0	For some... I can't even hit 400 and 360 OC from my 9800 Pro with a VGA silencer... And with my stock, I could MAYBE oc to 382 and 341!!!

Dec 12, 2004, 09:34 PM	#13
pr0digal jenius Delete Me Join Date: Mar 2004 Posts: 14,648 Rep Power: 0	for the price if a 9800 pro you mgiht could find a 6800 GT if you search hard enough

Dec 12, 2004, 10:50 PM	#15
pr0digal jenius Delete Me Join Date: Mar 2004 Posts: 14,648 Rep Power: 0	oh....i've seen GTs for around 300 here granted I went with a well known retailer and paid 380...lol

Dec 13, 2004, 08:03 AM	#21
CDsDontBurn Lurking DriverHeaven Join Date: May 2003 Location: Southern California Posts: 22,779 Rep Power: 235 System Specs	the first generation 9x00 series were awsome. If i still had my 9700pro, i'd hang it up on my wall just to say that it was the flagship of it's day . __________________ Her First Day \| A year later

Dec 16, 2004, 02:07 PM	#23
Ubergrendle Semper ubi sub ubi Join Date: Nov 2004 Location: Toronto Posts: 702 Rep Power: 51	9700 pro I got an ATI 9700pro refurbished on eBay for $125 USD... worked out to be about $160 Canadian, which was half the price of a new 9800 Pro a few months back. I'd rather have a 9800 pro, but I couldn't pass on that type of deal. Works quite well on my rig (which is pretty low end now) for HL2, CS:S, etc. Doom3 makes my computer cry though. __________________ Veteran of the PC Microchannel / EISA wars of the late 1980s.

Dec 16, 2004, 05:04 PM	#24
CDsDontBurn Lurking DriverHeaven Join Date: May 2003 Location: Southern California Posts: 22,779 Rep Power: 235 System Specs	doom 3 requires alot out of anybody's system. It also plays best on the 6x00 nVidia cards. __________________ Her First Day \| A year later

Dec 21, 2004, 10:15 AM	#26
CDsDontBurn Lurking DriverHeaven Join Date: May 2003 Location: Southern California Posts: 22,779 Rep Power: 235 System Specs	Bah! Fry's has some good stuff, but hardware is hit and miss as to if it works or not. __________________ Her First Day \| A year later