RAM or Graphics Card?

Comments

• Mikeha Member EpicPosts: 9,196

  January 2009

  You need 2 Gigs of Ram these days if you are PC Gaming. Also does your computer use AGP or PCI Express? You can get a decent Video Card these days for about $100. You should be able to upgrade your ram and video card for about $125.
• Cleffy Member RarePosts: 6,414

  January 2009

  The 6150LE is a really bad IGP to be using by todays standards.  You definetly want a better graphics card before RAM, but both would be needed.  You would also need a new power supply.

  Realistically, the Video Card costs $75; the RAM costs $40; and the Power Supply costs $40.  There is no point overspending on something over $100 in the current market as it will only have an impact on a handful of games.
• chryses Member UncommonPosts: 1,453

  January 2009

  Originally posted by theJPK
  
  
  So my computer is starting to get a little old for the high definition MMORPGs that have been coming out recently and rather then waste my money on a new computer(I'd hate to have to get a vista...) I decided a little upgrade needed.
  I'm not as knowlegable to the inside of my PC as id hope so I am going to need a little help from the community.
  -I have a Nvidia GeForce 6150 LE graphics card
  -I have 960mb of RAM
  So which one is more outdated, needed more for graphical performance, more expensive, and more difficult to install. The bottom line is which one should I update, suggestions of what spefic thing I want is appreciated.
  

   

  Hey JPK, the answer to your questions:

  * Video card or RAM?  Well looking at your spec you need both 100%.  Both are seriously outdated.

  * Most difficult to install?  Neither, both are very simple.  You literally need to push down the clamps on either end of the RAM, pull out, push in new RAM until clamps lock in.  Done.  For the Video card it may be a tiny bit more complicated.  Unscrew the bolt holding in current video card.  Pull it out.  Get new Video Card and push in until hole lines up with bracket and screw in.  The Video card will have a cd which contains the driver needed to run it.  

  Good news - Looking at your RAM and Video Card you could upgrade 200-300% and not spend that much.  You could buy a video card like a 7600GT for nothing these days... e.g. $40 or so. RAM same really.  Basically it wouldnt be hard to upgrade your system for nothing. The 7600GT Nvidia card is old by todays standards but it would blow your 6150 away.

  BAD news / Issues - If you are running that video card and RAM then the chances are you are using a very old motherboard and CPU as well.  Unless you can confirm what cards and RAM your motherboard uses then don't risk buying an upgrade.  You should be able to check your hardware in Device Manager and then go online and see what it actually uses.  If you are using just 960 of RAM then the Motherboard may not be able to hold more than 2gig.  The Video card may be limited to 7 series of Nvidia and similar.   Now more complications....If you buy 2 - 4 gig of RAM and a 7600GT or higher card and it does fit into your motherboard then you may have crashes if your Power Unit isn't big enough.  This is also simple to test.  If you go online you can find 'power usage calculators' I know the ASUS website has one.  Just plug in what you are using and it will show how much you use.  If you open your PC or even look at the back you can see if the Power unit is 300-500 Watts.  You should have plenty spare but just to check use the calculator to see what wattage you need with the new hardware.  Also if you are running a system with that spec your CPU is quite low as well.  No need to upgrade with the other two but if you just upgrade the RAM and Video Card it will definitely help a lot but it will still struggle with the graphic heavy games like LotR, AoC, Vanguard etc.

  So in short -

  * Check the wattage you have

  * Check the wattage with the new hardware using the calculator.

  * Check the make and model of your motherboard and get a list of RAM type and Cards it can support.

  * Check Ebay and other sites for 2nd hand cards and RAM.  Chances are you cant buy any new as they are not made anymore for your Motherboard.  Get a cheap upgrade then wait until you can get a new system.  I guesstimate $100 for the lot.   But remember if you want to play the real graphic hungry games then you still may have trouble.

   

  Hope this helped

   
• Mikeha Member EpicPosts: 9,196

  January 2009

  I would say just save your money and upgrade with a new Motherboard, CPU, Memory and Video Card.
• chryses Member UncommonPosts: 1,453

  January 2009

  Hey JPK,

  I have read up on your motherboard and it seems that it can take 2gig of ram.  2 x 1 gig sticks.  Did a quick search and found this RAM below and its 20 bucks each new.  So you can probably get a couple of 1gig sticks  2nd hand for the same price.  

  1GB ASUS Motherboard PC2-5300 non-ECC DDR2-667 DIMM (p/n ASUS-1GB-DDR2-667-D) pad
  
  Price: $19.98

  Easiest Solution 1

  If you seriously don't want to buy a new PC for a while and want to try and get a quick fix now then the easiest and quickest solution is the RAM.  Reason why is that it takes 1 min to install and you can guarantee it will fit.  Plus it shouldnt have any knock on affect to the Power Unit or anything else. 

  Solution 2

  Same as above but with a new Video Card as well.  What you need to watch out for:

  1) How big is your case? Your video card may be quite small and it would be heartbreaking to buy a new card and it won't fit inside your case.  I checked your motherboard and it seems that it would take 8800gt but I would'nt go that high purely because its sucks so much power and its a big card.  Check out the space in your case and the area around your graphic card.  Then check out 7800GTX cards dimensions and try and do a quick measurement.  Should be fine mostly but there are some small cases out there.

  2) As my last post says, if you upgrade a graphic card to a 7800GTX or around that. Check the calculators to see how much power you will need for your whole system.

  Solution 3 - Power unit needed

  Same as above but if you do need a new power unit then it can get messy.  It really is simple but if you are not use to building PC's it can be daunting.

   

  Overall you can upgrade and get some 'decent' results with 2 gig of RAM - $30 and a 7800GTX or 7800GT for $30.  Just make sure you do the checks above to avoid any disappointment.

   

  Side note: HDD are easy to install and you can find some on ebay that would be quite quick and massive compared to yours.  Sound cards are easy to install to and you could get a very cheap one and they help also. 
• theJPK Member Posts: 91

  January 2009

  I will look into it but I think im just going to end up buying a new computer and convert to vista. My whole computer is really out of date, I am not even sure if I bought this thing for as much as the upgrades would cost lol.

  __________________________
  Played:WoW, Darkfall, Warhammer, Shadowbane, Anarchy Online, Last Chaos, Runescape, Maplestory, Planeshift
  Loved: Guild Wars, Eve, Darkfall
  Playing:(none)
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• pyrofreak Member UncommonPosts: 1,481

  January 2009

  Originally posted by theJPK
  
  
  I will look into it but I think im just going to end up buying a new computer and convert to vista. My whole computer is really out of date, I am not even sure if I bought this thing for as much as the upgrades would cost lol.
  

   

  I'd like to point out that there's absolutely nothing wrong with Vista, and knocking it before you've tried it is essentially succumbing to peer pressure. I've been running Vista for 6 months at least and have not had a single problem

  Now with 57.3% more flames!
• chryses Member UncommonPosts: 1,453

  January 2009

  Good point on the new PC.  You could easily buy a 2nd hand one which has 8800GT video card, 4 gig RAM, good CPU etc, and get it for nothing these days.  Problem with updating components with an old system is that you will find it will cause an issue which you fix then another issue which you fix and before you know it you have a new system.  Good luck on a new rig or updating anyway  

  remember Vista needs 4gig of RAM minimum. 
• theJPK Member Posts: 91

  January 2009

  Originally posted by chryses
  remember Vista needs 4gig of RAM minimum. 
  

   

  The computer I was planning on getting this time was HP DV7 and has 4 gigs RAM but what do you mean it needs 4 gigs? If I get one with less then 4 gigs would it not be vista?

  http://www.circuitcity.com/rpsm/oid/233243/rpem/ccd/productDetail.do#proddesc

  __________________________
  Played:WoW, Darkfall, Warhammer, Shadowbane, Anarchy Online, Last Chaos, Runescape, Maplestory, Planeshift
  Loved: Guild Wars, Eve, Darkfall
  Playing:(none)
  Waiting for: I don't know
• g.killram Member Posts: 62

  January 2009

  Originally posted by theJPK
  
  Originally posted by chryses
  remember Vista needs 4gig of RAM minimum. 
  

   

  The computer I was planning on getting this time was HP DV7 and has 4 gigs RAM but what do you mean it needs 4 gigs? If I get one with less then 4 gigs would it not be vista?

  http://www.circuitcity.com/rpsm/oid/233243/rpem/ccd/productDetail.do#proddesc

  dont waste money buying a prebuilt. build it yourself.
• theJPK Member Posts: 91

  January 2009

  Originally posted by g.killram
  
  Originally posted by theJPK
  
  Originally posted by chryses
  remember Vista needs 4gig of RAM minimum. 
  

   

  The computer I was planning on getting this time was HP DV7 and has 4 gigs RAM but what do you mean it needs 4 gigs? If I get one with less then 4 gigs would it not be vista?

  http://www.circuitcity.com/rpsm/oid/233243/rpem/ccd/productDetail.do#proddesc

  dont waste money buying a prebuilt. build it yourself.

  I wish I had an idea how or the time. I'm an astronomy major not computer programmer

  __________________________
  Played:WoW, Darkfall, Warhammer, Shadowbane, Anarchy Online, Last Chaos, Runescape, Maplestory, Planeshift
  Loved: Guild Wars, Eve, Darkfall
  Playing:(none)
  Waiting for: I don't know
• g.killram Member Posts: 62

  January 2009

  Originally posted by theJPK
  
  Originally posted by g.killram
  
  Originally posted by theJPK
  
  Originally posted by chryses
  remember Vista needs 4gig of RAM minimum. 
  

   

  The computer I was planning on getting this time was HP DV7 and has 4 gigs RAM but what do you mean it needs 4 gigs? If I get one with less then 4 gigs would it not be vista?

  http://www.circuitcity.com/rpsm/oid/233243/rpem/ccd/productDetail.do#proddesc

  dont waste money buying a prebuilt. build it yourself.

  I wish I had an idea how or the time. I'm an astronomy major not computer programmer

  www.youtube.com/watch

   

  it is very easy. and there are many guides online
• Bronks Member Posts: 222

  January 2009

  Originally posted by g.killram
  
  Originally posted by theJPK
  
  Originally posted by g.killram
  
  Originally posted by theJPK
  
  Originally posted by chryses
  remember Vista needs 4gig of RAM minimum. 
  

   

  The computer I was planning on getting this time was HP DV7 and has 4 gigs RAM but what do you mean it needs 4 gigs? If I get one with less then 4 gigs would it not be vista?

  http://www.circuitcity.com/rpsm/oid/233243/rpem/ccd/productDetail.do#proddesc

  dont waste money buying a prebuilt. build it yourself.

  I wish I had an idea how or the time. I'm an astronomy major not computer programmer

  www.youtube.com/watch

   

  it is very easy. and there are many guides online

  I think your best bet is a pre-built. Anyone who says not to already has the know-how to build one. Pre-build PCs are great because they will give someone like you a much needed overall upgrade.

   

  Consider the following (which is a tower that is currently offered at Best Buy):

   

  Base Features
  
  Processor Type Intel Dual Core E2180
  
  Processor Speed 2.0GHz
  
  RAM 2GB DDR2
  
  Hard Drive Speed/Capacity 320GB 7200 RPM
  
  Optical Drives Supermulti drive, (DVD+/-RW), DVD-RAM
  
  Graphics Integrated NVidia GeForce 7050
  
  Pre-loaded Operating System Windows Vista Home Basic

   

  So this tower does a couple things for you. It upgrades your RAM, gets you a dual core processor, a larger, faster hard drive and, at $349, would allow you to upgrade to an even better video card for about $80. For under $500 you have a system that is upgradable. Oh, most on-board sound is also 7.1 Surround nowadays so you'd upgrade to good sound too.

  Chances are, your old system isn't capable of handling most of the laymen-type upgrades available. Your old PC probably can't handle newer RAM speeds and sizes, probably won't have a PCI-e slot for a vid card and probably won't have the power connectors for SATA drives. Buying the above pre-built will ensure that you can upgrade it for the next couple years to come.

  You have the monitor and keyboard/mouse now, so a tower is all you need. I used to be an upgrade junkie with my kids' computers but honestly I have witnessed the difference a totally new tower can do.

   

  [url=http://www.flickr.com/photos/28371832@N02/2648951313/[/url]
  
• chryses Member UncommonPosts: 1,453

  January 2009

  Yes building your own PC from scratch is the 'best' option and will be cheaper.  However I would definitely not do this unless you really know your way around a PC or no someone that does.  It looks easy on the face of it but it can be a little unerveing if you try and boot it the first time and you get a screeching beep.  If you don't know the basics then a prebuilt machine is the only way to go.  (Also if you build yourself then you need to research about all the parts, what is compatible, best performance vs. price etc etc.  I tend to spend 1-2 weeks before each build and really research everything and check out reviews, forums etc. 

  regarding RAM and Vista etc.  Yes you can run Vista on 2gig of RAM but from what I have read and people who use 2 gig is minimum and Vista can hog a lot of memory.  These days 4 gig is recommended but if you buy a pre built machine and it has just 2 gig of memory it will be upgradeable to 4 gig very easily if and when you want to add to it.  All motherboards have 4 slots these days.  Just make sure you ask the question at purchase. 
• haruharu476 Member Posts: 5

  January 2009

  Don't choose a prebuilt, build your own. Try looking for a store that gives you an option to choose each part and they will build it, or ask a friend who knows.