I have a fairly old system running a three year old setup. After trying crysis 2 beta ( which I may or may not have pirated ;) )I have come to the conclusion that I need a new GPU. I was getting roughly 15-20 FPS and that made me rage quit within 20 mins. Was hoping this system would last me five years but I guess I was pushing it, don't make me loose fate and join the console side.
[u]System spec[/u]
Q6600 overclocked to 2.8
PC6400 DDR2 4X1024 overclocked to 900MHz
8800 GTS Extreme 640MB
nForce 680i LT
I do not wish to spend money on a new GPU I would rather buy a second GPU to run in SLI.
I am aware that the 8800 series are discontinued but Ive checked online and I still see a few for around $50-100 used. This seems reasonable but then I compare that to some newer cards and I see $150 cards that are almost 2 times faster and running cooler.
1.should I buy a new card and replace my 8800?(dont want to do this)
2.help me find a card that is compatable with my 8800 and will give me good results for crysis 2 roughly in the $50-100 range.
Replace the 8800. You can get a 560ti which is (respectively) about 5 times the card you already have. The rest of your system is pretty decent, you shouldn't have to mess around with it for a while if you OC your Q66 a bit more.
My SLI'd 8800GTX's got horrid results in modern games, another 8800GTS won't help you very much at all.
I'd really recommend a 560ti, damn nice cards for the money.
I agree with Rabu Rabu. You will need to replace the 8800GTS. Those were amazing cards when they were out... Almost the perfect price/ performance ratio. The best price/ performance ratio now is with the 560ti, the 5870, and the 6870. If those cards are too expensive consider getting a GTX460. The EVGA branded ones can be purchased for around $175.
Let us know your budget and we will figure out the perfect upgrade.
Yeah the 8800 needs to be replaced. And your CPU might also be a bit of a bottleneck for anything better. You wont like to hear this, but you might as well get a whole new PC.
Thanks for the advice, looks like I will have to upgrade to a new card. I am short on money right now so I will have to wait 2/3 months to buy one. looking at $100-$150 range but I think I'm better off selling my whole comp and make a new system.
I think I can sell my system for $500 use that extra 150$ which I could have used on a new card for a new system that will last me around 2 years. rinse and repeat >:D