Techy question : Intel processor upgrade

Ocean Moves · 04 Mar 2006, 23:37

My machine:
Gigabyte 8IPE775/-G (775 chipset)
3.00 ghz Intel Pentium 4 1MB L2 cache
2 x 1024 MB RAM PC3200
RADEON 9600 graphics 256MB 8x AGP

I would like to be able to play some
high end games at 1280x1024 resolution
with full graphics detail,
e.g. Quake 4, TOCA racing 3 etc

To acheive this (and give some
future proofing to running windows vista
at a good speed)

I'm thinking of upgrading the processor to:
Intel Pentium 4 P4 660 3.6 GHz 2MB L2 cache

Do you think I'm likely to see the benefits
I want from this kind of upgrade?

(The above processor is not one of the new
dual core intels, it is a beefed
up hyper-threading P4 with a bigger cache,
as far as I know)

lazarus corporation · 04 Mar 2006, 23:47

To avoid having to upgrade again in 12 months time I'd suggest making sure you get a 64 bit processor.

Although Windoze XP & below only run in 32-bit (regardless of whether your processor is 32 or 64 bit) Windows Vista will apparently ship in both 32 bit and 64 bit varieties (most Linux distros have 64 bit versions already, and the Mac's OSX is also 64 bit I believe).

My guess is that some high end Windows Vista games in 12 months time will only run on 64-bit processors (as will some non-games software).

Disclaimer: I don't use Windows and I don't play games! But I'm sure you'll get some more opinions below over the next couple of days...

Edit: here's an article

Ocean Moves · 05 Mar 2006, 01:19

thanks for your comments.

I have based the choice of processor on the gigabyte website
which indicates which chips my board can handle...
presumably this slightly aging AGP socket 775 board won't be able
to handle a 64 bit chip anyway

? My board has bios F4..

http://www.gigabyte.com.tw/Support/Moth ... uctID=1808

lazarus corporation · 05 Mar 2006, 01:25

as I understand things, 775 sockets can handle 64 bit processors, but other people will be able to give you a more definite answer.

Deviancy · 05 Mar 2006, 03:13

Asus motherboard.. forgot the chipset
2.53 Intel Pentium 4 1mb l2 cache (if I remember right)
1 x 1024 ddr ram pc like i remember
Geforce FX 5900 128mb 8x agp

I can't vouch for the racing game but I can run Quake 4, Half Life 2 and Doom 3 at 1280x1024 without an issue.. frame rates are quite decent as well. Multiplayer on Doom 3 blows on my box though.. so I could use a newer P4.

I think you're holding your box down with that raedon 9600 quite honestly. If you cant run a game like Quake 4 at 1280 it would have to be your video or your ram is sdram rather than ddr. Although I'm still going with the 9600. These newer games are built with the idea that the user is going to be running a more modern card. I'd also avoid raedon in the near future. Many devs aren't taking Raedon into consideration like they used to. This may change since PCI express video cards are becoming quite hyped.

Personally.. i'd hold off any upgrading until Vista is official since it will be pushing the 64 bit alternative more then the 32 bit so you're going to want a computer that can take advantage of that and if you haven't already you're going to want a board that has a PCI Express slot.

I really need to start my next box.. I always start off with a nice new case..

Ocean Moves · 05 Mar 2006, 04:37

im pretty ignorant about AGP cards;
I thought being an 8x agp card ment it was
pretty fast? are there many other factors involved??

ie. is there a current AGP card i could use to
achieve my goal ?

I can't play quake 4 at 1280x1024 - very slow.

Deviancy · 05 Mar 2006, 04:59

I just have a feeling that the doom 3 engine which Quake 4 runs on is optimized for Nvidia's cards. AGP x8 is fast.. quite nice.. PCI-Express is just supposedly faster. I haven't checked out the benchmark tests on the comparisons yet though.

Thing is you have a pretty decent system if you ask me.. I'd just upgrade to a newer video card and try your luck. I mean most shops give you 15-30 days to do an exchange.. worth a shot.

Ocean Moves · 05 Mar 2006, 07:43

can you suggest a 8xagp card for socket 775 ?

Deviancy · 05 Mar 2006, 10:41

The socket shouldn't matter.. so it all comes down to how much you're willing to spend.

My favorite card at the moment is the Nvidia Geforce 6800 Ultra. I don't have it myself yet but it's my next card probably. The new Tomb Raider game comes out in a few weeks and I have a feeling it's going to melt my fx 5900