Small time upgrade questions.

[Dondo 0]

Hello all. Been A LONG time since I posted, but since it will soon be getting dark earlier and earlier, I won't be "real-world" flying much though the winter. So, thought I'd update the ol' PC and get back into simulated flying. I've been running FS9 on this hardware for about 3 years.P4 2.8ghz FSB8001 gig Crucial DDR3200 ramGeForce 6600GT 128 meg cardAsus P4P800 moboIt has run FS9 quite nicely and I'm pleased. I do have some room for some upgrades though and the way FSX runs on this setup, I think I should amp it up a little bit.I was thinking of heading up to a 3.2 ghz CPU and adding another gig of ram. What I don't know about is new vid cards. Are there going to be any DX10 cards that will be AGP, or is PCIe pretty much the only way they will come? Can anyone suggest a pretty decent card around the $250 range? Something that might help with FSX a little more?Thanks for any help.Dondo

[Guest wayupthere]

Hello Dondo,What 3.2 do you have in mind? AMD or Intel?As far as RAM, you should definatly increase that, best amount for XP is 2GB and Vista32 total 3GB (4GB on 64bit OS).As to the GPU, although the majority of GPUs are indeed PCIe. There are going to be some DX10 AGPs out on the market.That said, if you are on AGP right now, DX10 + AGP = waste of money,my advice don't go that route. For one, DX10.0 is running to an end, and DX10.1 is soon to be on the shelves. So that already is one thing to keep in mind and maybe be hold off right now with a a purchase of a DX10 GPU, since those cards will not take full advantage of DX10.1 coded programs.Secondly, the chances that DX10.1 GPUs will be released on AGP should be very small since DX10s weren't intended to be released on AGP in the first place, only due to demands, the GPU "farmers" decided to step it down a slot.My advice do yourself a big favour and, upgrade to PCIe. That way you will have a lot more options, and you render yourself alot more future competative/ready.If you however STILL want an AGP DX10 GPU, then what resolution will you be displaying on your monitor?. And what PSU do you currently have in your system?.Regards,

[Dondo 0]

If I remember correctly, I think my motherboard will only take up to a Pentium 4 3.2ghz chip. Upgrading ram is easy, I know the brand/speed that I will add.Video-card....to go with a PCIe card, I'd have to replace my motherboard, which I'm not really wanting to do. If I were going to do that, might as well add dual core processors, faster ram, bigger/better drives, etc. I guess my question is, what would be about the best AGP (DX9) I could replace my GF6600GT with that would allow me to run FSX a little bit better? It looks like DX10 is a no go for a while anyway since I'm not willing to invest in everything I'd need (Vista/mobo). So, bang for the buck videocard wise, what would you suggest?Thanks for the reply so far. I do appriciate it.Dondo

[Guest wayupthere]

What Resolution are you currently running? and/or hope to be running after your upgrade?Best buck, i'd say might as well go out for the last line of 7series Nvidia, or somewhat along the lines of an 1950 ATI, But knowing your resolution, one can narrow it down.

[Dondo 0]

1270x1024 (I think, not behind that PC, but I do remember that it was something x 1024) I use two monitors in window mode (second monitor is for 2d GPS/radio etc) and I also use TrackIR 4 Pro. Both monitors are 19".

[Guest wayupthere]

Hey,Well at that resolution (1280x1024), opt from what I mentioned above. You staying away from DX10, those will still do your system good, and work fine with dual-screen setup.Regards,