Fast Running out of 'Steam'

[crocker]

I'm showing signs of wear and tear!!
AMD Athlon 1.4
GE Force 2 Pro 64MB
512 DDR memory
ASUS A7A266 mbo
Windows 98E

Budget

[SilverFox441]

To get best value for your owners's dollar (pound) think at least one upgrade in advance.

In other words...

If you upgrade your CPU now will it work on a planned upgrade of the MB? Will RAM you buy now be compatible with the new MB?

Most new vid cards are capable or working in  AGP 4X and 8X...so the vid card will last a while.

I plan upgrades along a planned path:

• Full upgrade: Basically the whole thing is toast, time to start over. I try to avoid these as they are expensive.
• Major Upgrade: MB, CPU, RAM. Transfer all the other stuff and get basically a new computer. Still expensive, but far cheaper than a new comp.
• Mid-Life Upgrade: Selected component replacement; CPU, RAM, or Vid Card. By picking the right components in the Major Upgrade I can keep a valid upgrade path open to keep my old comp workable at very little money.

I'm in the middle of a Mid-Life crisis...errr...upgrade right now. New vid card (ASUS 5700) and replaced RAM DDR 2100 out and DDR 2700 in. The RAM upgrade was unplanned...my old 512 stick was glitched and I asked what the price difference was between the free warranty replacement and the better stuff. Cost me $35.00 CDN for the upgrade.

You also have to consider how much of the work your owner is capable of/comfortable with. I do all hardware work on my comp myself...frightening how much that has saved me.

I started with a PIII 500 (Amiga Owner previously). Built by a local comp house.

Upgrade 1: More RAM
Upgrade 2: New MB and Case/Power supply
Upgrade 3: New HD
Upgrade 4: New CPU (800 Celeron)
Upgrade 5: Major- New CPU, MB, Case and RAM (1.7 GHz PIV)
Upgrade 6: New Vid Card
Upgrade 7: Added CD Burner and Scanner
Upgrade 8: New RAM and New Vid Card (Current)

Total cost of all upgrades to date, doing the work myself, is not up to the original purchase cost of that PIII 500.

[congo]

Your RAM and mainboard are acceptable. The USB2 mainboards are also USB1 as well.

An 8x AGP Video card will work on a 4x mainboard.

Your CPU is getting outdated, but should still run FS2002.

Your video card is the weak link in the chain. The problem is that video cards are expensive in the UK, it seems retailers do a lot of profit taking with video upgrades. Look long and hard for a bargain video card, I'm sure you'll find one.

I usually warn against a GeForce FX 5200, as I consider them rather weak in comparison to what's available, but for FS2002, it would be a cheap upgrade and far better than the graphics you have now.

A GF FX5200 purchase will probably leave you with enough spare cash to search out a decent CPU upgrade, say an AMD XP 2400+ or if the price is close, a 2600+ that will run on a 266mhz front side bus. (I read about one, but i've never seen it). Make sure the CPU is factory boxed with a heatsink/fan included in the box.

That will definitely get you going.

I'm glad a computer has finally asked for help without it's owner's interference!  

Happy Flying!

[crocker]

I'm feeling better already. I sense my operator is also slightly more optimistic and I can see the faintest of smiles.
Silverfox and Congo  I really appreciated your comments which have given food for more thought. I guess at the end of the day it comes down to balance and a properly thoughtout upgrade strategy, combined with an eye of budget! ( You're right, the UK is not the most competitive market for cards). I always said to my graphics card 'you're the weakest link' and I now know it's time to say 'goodbye'.  Just in passing someone somewhere commented that the bed rock for a flight sim is the processor and RAM. Video cards are important ofcourse But it seems, according to this source, there are less problems with lower end cards and top end processors than some of the complications that appear to arise with high end cards- does flt sim need the 9800's etc. But I can only speak from inexperience and the fact that I run 2k2. I cannot speak for the other one!  I've no idea what my pilot thinks!!!!!

cheers and thanks        

[congo]

Don't get confused by the Plethora of info you read or hear about. The following treatise applies to AGP bus based video upgrades of 4x AGP or greater speeds.

The importance of the graphics engine is ABSOLUTELY formost when it comes to sims like ACOF. The CPU and RAM provide support for the graphics.

For example, say in your case you had a GF2 MX400 64mb video card, you might score around 2400 points in 3D mark 2001se. Now go and whack a XP2400+ and a gig of ram in your PC and you'll score 2900 points. so you gain 500 points.

Now, go back, take your present system, and here is approx what you would score with the following low to midrange cards:

GF4 MX440

[crocker]

Congo

thanks, point learnt and taken onboard. This is where the bewilderment crept in I guess. Can I bore you with one last question and then I'll go off and fly somewhere! You made the point earlier that 'most' 8x AGP cards will work in a board which only supports 4x. How will I know if what I order  will work if I go for an 8x? Will it work to its full potential on my board which as I say only support 4x?

Once again thanks for taking the timeout to reply.

[congo]

As far as I know, all  the 8x AGP cards are backwards compatible. Current software, to my knowledge, doesn't really take much advantage of the 8x AGP bus speed, offering only a very slight  real speed increase over 4x.

Some of the older boards actually had a different AGP voltage than what the newer cards require, but your's isn't that old, but if your are worried about it, find out what agp voltage it supports to be sure, maybe in your bios options, or in the manual.

It's your decision ultimately how good a card you get, weighing up the potential to take the card to a new PC in the future, or just getting something to suit your current rig.

From personal experience, I can recommend a GF4 TI4200, either in 128mb 8x AGP version or a fast 4x version, even if it's only a 64mb card.

You see, all cards are not created equal, and this is where the trap lies.

Some video cards use expensive super fast RAM onboard, these are typically labeled "ultra" or similar. The apparently same video card, may have another suffix, such as "SE", which may be short for "Sucks Entirely"!!! , having slow ram chips or a slightly crippled graphics engine, even though it's the same number of the genre of card. A good example is the difference between a Radeon 9800xt and the Radeon 9800se sapphire. They are totally different both in price and performance!

To cut a long story a little short, A GF4 TI4200 64mb 4x AGP with fast ram onboard, is slightly faster than the 128mb 8x AGP equivalent, and offers overclocking potential.

Stretching your budget to this type of card will give you quality graphics at a reasonable cost. If you can't find it in the UK, consider a mail order to the US, or get a friend there to post one to you. If you mail order, seek a reputable dealer. Ebay is another option, but I personally will not buy a second hand graphics card sight unseen.

Good Luck