Want To Upgrade Ram

[Kaiser499]

Hello, I was looking to upgrade my ram, will any ram stick work or does it have to be a specific kind? I was thinking of upgrading to the RipJaws ram sticks.

[Ominouscloud]

Completely depends on your mobo/ chipset. If it's older you may be stuck with DDR2 and the newer ones use DDR3.

[vesseblah]

Hello, I was looking to upgrade my ram, will any ram stick work or does it have to be a specific kind?

Depends entirely on your motherboard. Also it depends on the OS and programs you're using if adding more RAM will give any tangible benefit.

[Kaiser499]

Here are my specs

OS: Windows 7 Home Premium 64-bit

Processor: AMD Phenom II X2 550(3.1GHz)

Memory: 4GB DDR3 1600

Graphics: NVIDIA GeForce GTS250 1GB

Motherboard

Chipset
AMD 770

CPU

CPU Type
Phenom II X2

Installed Qty
1

CPU Speed
550(3.1GHz)

L2 Cache Per CPU
2 x 512KB

CPU Socket Type
AM3

CPU Main Features
64 bit Dual Core Processor

[Ominouscloud]

There is a negligible difference between brands of ram, mostly only seen in the strictest of benchmarks. The best upgrade you could get would be a better GPU as the 250 isn't exactly in the "gaming card" category.

[Kaiser499]

What would you recommend for the graphics card?

[Ominouscloud]

I won't profess to be familiar with AMD processors or GPUs at all having been an Intel/ Nvidia fan since way back, even when AMD was supposedly the better gaming processor, so I'm not sure at what point your CPU might cause a bottleneck... That being said when looking at Nvidia cards the higher performing cards end with 60, 70, 80 or 90. Click here for a useful guide as to relative processing power of Nvidia GPUs and the power required to push them.

[Kaiser499]

If it would help any here's the computer I'm using.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16883227218

[Ominouscloud]

This MSI 560, this MSI 570 or if you really wanna go for the gusto the MSI 580 depending on what you can afford.

[Kaiser499]

Thanks, I'll look into those. Any other suggestions?

[Zkeya]

The CPU is weak and will probably bottleneck most of the high-end GPUs, so no point on paying too much. I'd suggest either nvidia 560Ti or AMD 6950 (check MSI Twin Frozr). (but even these might be bottlenecked :/)

[Kaiser499]

Can I replace the CPU without too much trouble? Or would I have to get a new computer?

[Zkeya]

Can I replace the CPU without too much trouble? Or would I have to get a new computer?

A bit hard to say since we don't know the motherboard (I don't know too much about AMD CPUs anyway). I suppose it has AM3 socket. You could download CPU-Z to check the model of the M/B though.

[Kaiser499]

I have an ASUS M4A77TD Motherboard.

[Ominouscloud]

Socket AM3 on that so yeah, you should be able to replace your chip with any current AMD processor w/o troubles.

[Deleted]

This MSI 560, this MSI 570 or if you really wanna go for the gusto the MSI 580 depending on what you can afford.

Wowza, you are suggesting high-end cards to a pretty low end computer mate.

And the GTS 250 is a very capable gaming card. It's not new, but it's on pair with the rest OP has. The GTS 250 is a re-branded GTX 9600 which is a re-branded GT 8800. Pairing something like a GTX580 with the rest of that computer would be a complete waste, not to mention that his PSU would probably not mention it. It would be equivalent of putting a gold-plated luxury carriage behind an old mule.


@OP
Your best bet is probably to upgrade to a new AMD CPU that fits your MoBo socket, or to wait until Bulldozer comes out and upgrade then. To make the upgrade from a GTS 250 worth it I would probably recommend at least a GTX 460, but, such a card would be bottle-necked by your current CPU.

[Ominouscloud]

Wowza, you are suggesting high-end cards to a pretty low end computer mate.

And the GTS 250 is a very capable gaming card. It's not new, but it's on pair with the rest OP has. The GTS 250 is a re-branded GTX 9600 which is a re-branded GT 8800. Pairing something like a GTX580 with the rest of that computer would be a complete waste, not to mention that his PSU would probably not mention it. It would be equivalent of putting a gold-plated luxury carriage behind an old mule.


@OP
Your best bet is probably to upgrade to a new AMD CPU that fits your MoBo socket, or to wait until Bulldozer comes out and upgrade then. To make the upgrade from a GTS 250 worth it I would probably recommend at least a GTX 460, but, such a card would be bottle-necked by your current CPU.

Maybe I'm missing something here, but isn't a 3.1Ghz dual core more than any game out requires (except maybe FFXIV)? Though having a quad might be better, the dual core should be fine and not hamper the GPU that much and since it has been established that he/ she is indeed using an AM3 mobo it would not be hard to upgrade from there.

My first example was a 560, which is basically the 460 only running cooler on less power... after that I mentioned the rest as potential upgrades up to the OPs budget/ whims... If you're going to start upgrading a PC do you do it a generation at a time or do you get what you want in the end so that you don't have to worry about that part for awhile and move onto upgrading other parts?

Also, according to the link the PSU on the case is a 700w and should easily handle a single 580 if the OP chose to go that route.

[Deleted]

Well, 3.1Ghz on one CPU might not correspond to 3.1Ghz on another. The i3 2100 far outperforms the Phenom II X2 550, and they are both 3.1Ghz. Also worth a mention is that the 550 is almost 3 years old now and just about 3 generations behind. Pairing such a CPU with a GTX580 would seriously bottleneck it. Don't get me wrong, it's not a horrible processor, but getting anything above a 560 ti is just not a smart choice.

Also, you recommended the 560 ti but called it a 560. It is true that the original 560 was more or less an overclocked 460, but the 560 ti delivers a pretty large performance increase in comparison.

Also, I'm not sure what you mean with "If you're going to start upgrading a PC do you do it a generation at a time". Huh?

[Ominouscloud]

Also, I'm not sure what you mean with "If you're going to start upgrading a PC do you do it a generation at a time". Huh?

Meaning why upgrade in steps? If you intend to start upgrading why put a 460 now, then maybe upgrade the CPU only to have to upgrade the GPU again much sooner than you would by jumping up to at least a 560 Ti right now, and anything above that might be overkill currently, but if someone's looking to upgrade whatever it is that needs an upgrade (this started about ram of all things), likely they'll keep upgrading so the limiting factor is budget at this point, not current components unless compatibility comes into play.

Also, you're right, I'd assumed the 560 Ti I'd recommended when I said 560. Either way according to http://www.anandtech.com/show/4344/n...om-overclock/9 the Ti is only an 8% boost over the non-Ti so the gain is there, but I wouldn't call it pretty large.

[Deleted]

Also, you're right, I'd assumed the 560 Ti I'd recommended when I said 560. Either way according to http://www.anandtech.com/show/4344/n...om-overclock/9 the Ti is only an 8% boost over the non-Ti so the gain is there, but I wouldn't call it pretty large.

8%? Going from the 560 to the 560 ti (54.6 to 62.9 fps) is a ~15.2% increase. Going from the 560 ti to the 570 is around a ~12.5% increase. I'm looking at the first BFBC2 benchmark here.