Vid card suggestion and question please.

[Lunarnova]

I hear people mention CPU or GPU bottlenecks and was wondering if someone can explain it to me as if I were a 1st grader. I get that it is some sort of limitation in processing speed, but how does one figure out which would hold the other back?

I am currently running a 9600 Phenom in a M3A MoBo with 4gig RAM (well 3.2 since its a 32 bit system) and a 8800GS card. I also have a 500w PSU. I was thinking of upgrading my current GPU, but don't want to waste money on something if it is not going to increase the quality of my gaming. Also, is there really any difference using an Nvidia GPU versus an ATI card with this setup?

Thank you for any advice!

Oh, my monitor resolution is a 19" Samsung 1280x1024 resolution if that helps.

[DarquePervert]

Personally, I don't see any reason to upgrade, unless you simply want to have something better than you currently have.
Your system is just fine and probably plays Lotro with no problems whatsoever.

[Fox_Mulder_XP]

Personally, I don't see any reason to upgrade, unless you simply want to have something better than you currently have.
Your system is just fine and probably plays Lotro with no problems whatsoever.

Well, I disagree with that, an 8600GS will choke on DX10 mode. The game really looks incredible in DX10 mode so if you have the $130 for a 9800GTX+ you can dramatically improve your gameplay experience with DX10 mode and a much higher framerate. You've already got a quad core CPU in there, so you would be able to take advantage of a more powerful GPU.

[cdnsteve]

While in game, type ctrl+F key. This will show you your framerate or FPS. The higher the better. Also let us know what graphics settings you're using, such as low, med, high, very high?

Your CPU and ram should be fine, I would consider a graphics upgrade for sure. I am personally finding that I get way better FPS results using DX9 on my Radeon 4870 1 gig (over 100FPS better than DX10) on very high. I also don't notice a big visual difference and would rather more FPS since I PVMP a lot.

If you upgrade your graphics card you might need to upgrade your power supply. I am also on a 500W but it's the bare minimum for my graphics card. Luckily my PS has 2 PCI-E cords because my card requires it, make sure to check yours.

[Quintus]

why do people post **** about things they have no knowledge of? Your PSU is fine for just about every GPU out there other then the ultra-high end cards from Nvidia or ATI.

the 8800GS got re-branded as the 9600GS (same card different name). Your screen res is rather low, are you sure the native resolution is not 1440x900? If you are playing at very high setting with constant FPS at 50 or higher you don't really need to upgrade. If you want to play more demanding games or increase your LOTRO FPS, I suggest an ATI 4850. The Nvidia 9800GT and ATI 4830 are also improvements over you current card but will show you a slight improvement.

As far as a very simple explanation of bottle-necking; Your CPU, GPU, and Ram (your computer has other parts in play) all run at certain speeds moving information. Think of these three parts as three people chopping wood and the information as wood. One person gathers it, one chops it, and one preps it for sale. If all three people work at the same relative speed the wood never starts to stack up. If one or two people work slower then the other person, the wood starts to stack up at one point along the line or bottlenecks. Bottlenecking does not damage your PC it just means if you upgrade to all relative speeds for your PC, you will maximize the PC's ability.

Most PC's have a bottleneck somewhere along the line.

[Lunarnova]

Thanks everyone for posting!

Yes my screen resolution is 1280x1024, the monitor is a Samsung 960bf.

I am planning on upgrading the monitor at some point also, but really want to take care of the vid card first. What I was thinking of getting is the GTX 260. The prices on those are dropping like crazy. I was also looking at the 4850 and 4870, but I haven't dealt with ATI in quite a long time. I wasn't sure how they compared to the Nvidia cards.

[Quintus]

check toms monthly video card review. they do a fantastic job placing cards in each gaming and price category.

http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/...deon,2151.html

The ATI 4000 series cards tend you give you a better bang for your dollar. The Nvidia drivers are a tad more stable then ATI but there's really no difference between the two as manufacturers.

[Blammo2501]

check toms monthly video card review. they do a fantastic job placing cards in each gaming and price category.

http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/...deon,2151.html

The ATI 4000 series cards tend you give you a better bang for your dollar. The Nvidia drivers are a tad more stable then ATI but there's really no difference between the two as manufacturers.

I decided to go the ATI route a little while ago and picked up a 4870. The performance is amazing (~90 FPS in LotRO with DX10/Very High+, also have an E8400 @ 3.6GHz) and the temperatures run pretty cool (<60C under load @ 30% fan speed on the GPU). If you are going to step up to one of those higher-end cards, you might want to look at upping your PSU. The 4870 says that a 450W is -required-, so giving yourself a little more is always a good idea. You don't need to go with the huge 1000W PSU or anything like that, but moving up from the 550W range wouldn't be a bad plan with the cards you're looking at.

The post above is very correct in what it says about ATI vs. Nvidia: Nvidia (generally) gives you better driver support, while ATI (generally) gives you more bang for your buck. ATI has come a long way with the 4800 series though.

Check reviews, specs and pricing and make your decision based on your own preferences. You'll get a lot of arguments going either way when it comes to video cards. Offering my own experience, I'm perfectly happy with my ATI.

Just something to think about.

[YippyJoe]

What they all said is right, especially the first one that said you probably don't need to upgrade.

Although the next guy talking about DirectX 10 is right too, the game should still run very well on what you have.

If you do upgrade your video the ATI 4850 , Nvidia 9800GTX+, or the ATI 4870 are all great cards right now, for the $140-$200 price range, but you'll also want to upgrade your power supply. If you don't it will probably still work, but it won't be as fast as it could be and you might eventually have issues with other components in your system since nothing will get enough power. I'm stuck on a 400watt PSU right now with a 9800GTS, and it technically works, but it's slowly killing my system.

[YippyJoe]

One more thought, you might get more upgrade for your money out of a monitor upgrade instead of a video card.

I play in Ultra High at 1600x1200, with half the CPU and half the RAM you have, but roughly the same video card. It's smooth except when it's loading textures.

I saw someone playing in 1280x1024 the other day and couldn't believe the difference, I couldn't play like that. So much UI for such a tiny little screen...

[Lunarnova]

I was planning on upgrading the monitor at some point, but I have the feeling my card might be going bad. I was having some texture issues in another game I play that I've never have seen before, so I thought I would use a bit o' tax return money on it.

Heck, with the prices on the vid cards dropping, maybe I'll have enough for both!

[Blammo2501]

I was planning on upgrading the monitor at some point, but I have the feeling my card might be going bad. I was having some texture issues in another game I play that I've never have seen before, so I thought I would use a bit o' tax return money on it.

Heck, with the prices on the vid cards dropping, maybe I'll have enough for both!

Have you checked to make sure your temperatures aren't too high on the card? Try running GPUz while you are gaming and see how high things are getting. Make sure you set it to update while in the background and log to file while you are gaming (shut that off while you're not, makes the logs easier to get through).

When you start experiencing problems, alt-tab and check to see the high points on the temperature graph.

[Lunarnova]

Yes, I have checked the temps on the card, 63C during play. Confirmed with EVGA that the temps are well within tolerances.