Old pc needs upgrading for gaming on cheap

[Deeman]

Hi guys new to the forum thing and would like some help if possible.
I have an old pc that to be fair ain't done bad but is starting to struggle with newer games and I would like to upgrade on cheap.
It has :
Abit lg-95c mb
Intel celeron (r) processor
2gig ram
Sapphire 4800 graphics card
I'm new to this sorry if above is a bit in-helpfully.
What should I do ??

 

[Indigo]

The first thing you need to do is chuck that Celeron and get a Core 2 Duo. I checked your motherboard's compatibility list, and if you can find one still, a Core 2 Duo E6700 is relatively inexpensive at the moment (anywhere from $80-$120, being that it's an older Core 2 chip, that's actually not too bad)

Unfortunately there's a snag on this next bit. Your RAM, according to the motherboard maker, is maxed at 2GB. You could buy more and see if the system will run with it (2 x 2GB modules) but obviously no promises.

Which Sapphire 4800 series card is it? 4800 is too vague - that's just a family (generational) number. 4850? 4870? etc. Need to know more. If you don't know how to check, just download this program: Speccy - System Information - Free Download and post a screenshot of the first window when you run the program.

Also, which operating system are you currently running?

How much are you hoping to spend?

 

[Deeman]

Thank you for your reply original post sent on iphone so it was a bit empty of content hehe here is the run down of my super fast pc...
Operating System
MS Windows XP Professional 32-bit SP3
CPU
Intel Celeron 331
Prescott 90nm Technology
RAM
2.00 GB Dual-Channel DDR2 @ 199MHz (4-4-4-12)
Motherboard
Welcome to Universal ABIT Co., Ltd. - Get ready for the Next Generation LG-95C (CPU 1) 40 °C
Graphics
DELL E173FP (1024x768@60Hz)
512MB ATI Radeon HD 4800 Series (ATI) 80 °C
Hard Drives
244GB Western Digital WDC WD2500JD-75HBB0 (SATA) 35 °C
Optical Drives
HL-DT-ST DVD-ROM GDR8163B
Philips DVD+RW DVD8601

thank you again-D

Sorry in addition to the above im hoping to spend as little as possible 8( times are hard.
i would like to be able to play skyrim without crying .....

 

[~Darkseeker~]

To be brutally honest mate, you're going to be spending more money getting that up to spec than you would just buying a newer, better computer and what not. By the time you've upgraded your CPU, your board if you want more than 2GB of RAM, your GPU and your RAM it's self, youve basically built a new PC anyway.

My PC (Phenom II x4 925 2.8GHz, 4GB DDR3 1333MHz, Sapphire Radeon 5770 1GB GDDR5) can only do Skyrim on low settings at a feasible frame rate.

 

[Deeman]

Thank you i feared as much from my dabblings looking in pc format and the like.
A few more question to you before i leave the stage .....
Is it better for me to get all the bits and build a pc myself or buy ready made? ,i am a noob to the pc building but from researching the process i think i am capable of doing it only things i see that could give me problems is the wiring and if i put it all together and some think is wrong doesnt boot Etc.. Is it quite straight forward?.I would buy the components following a build from pc format so hopefully that will take out the "Does this, work with that" thing.What do ya reckon thank you for your time -D

 

[Dragonslayer1]

A core 2 duo and a good graphics card should be good for a low end gaming computer. It will be about $200 to $300 id reccomennd the his hd radeon 4670 with ice q cooling fan. Especially if you have a non hd monitor. It is about $80 and would be your best bet for cheap. and 2 gigs ram should be sufficent to play most games smoothly. most of the games need 1.5 gigs max to play smoothly. If you are looking for serious gaming though then you should buy or build one. Be sure to get a computer that was made for gaming tho

 

[~Darkseeker~]

Any other time Dragon i'd agree with your post, in this case I disagree since he specifically mentioned Skyrim, a game I'm having trouble running on what was a £700 computer just a year ago.

Skyrim recommended spec:

Processor: Quad-core Intel or AMD CPU
Memory: 4GB System RAM
Video Card: DirectX 9.0c compatible NVIDIA or AMD ATI video card with 1GB of RAM (Nvidia GeForce GTX 260 or higher; ATI Radeon 4890 or higher)

My system spec is about the same as this, bar the GPU (5770, slightly better than recommended) and I get about 50fps on low settings with 2xMSAA.


and on the subject of building computers, it's all just a matter of being somewhat adept with your hands and logical about it. Most things only fit in one way and only fit in one slot, the key is never force anything anywhere. If you wanted to have a go at a build, I tend to recommend seeing what you can dig up on the cheap to practice with first, but there are plenty of youtubers who make videos about how to build your ideal rig, google should suffice too. You're posting so presumably you have internet access xD

 

[Deeman]

Thank you for your advice v helpful.
I think I'm going to bite the bullet with the old pc it's been good to me to be fair. I will prob use it for storing photos music and general stuff. Save some dosh and build an i5 machine.
Erm is my graphics card to old to matter now or can it be used ?
Thank you -D

 

[Dragonslayer1]

I was unfamiliar with the game requirements. I put one of the 4670's in my brothers pc and it worked brilliantly for a cheap gaming rig. But id probably have to agree then with the previous posts given the requirements for the game. Building a computer isnt hard at all though. Although if you want one premade id go with one off newegg.

 

[Deeman]

Thank you all for your help v kind