[jackflash1991]

Ok the machine is getting out of date again. Got L4D2 and CoD MW2 and it's lagging a bit. Would like some opinions on where I should start. Right now I think my CPU is alright. I currently have Windows 7 64bit and only 2GBs of RAM so I'm thinking of upgrading that. I'm also thinking of getting a 28" 1920 x 1200 monitor so that means more stress on the graphics card too.

Opinion on getting more RAM
Right now I have 2x 1GB sticks or DDR2 800. My motherboard has 4 slots and supports DDR2 1066. Do think it would be worth it if I were to buy 4GBs of DDR2 1066 vs. just buying 2 more GBs of DDR2 800?

Opinion on a new graphics card
Right now I think it is the RAM for the most part. I think once a DirectX 11 game comes out or I really start to struggle with my graphics card I will switch.

Specs are listed below in the signature.

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Personally, yes upgrading your RAM would help dramatically.
4GB Ram 1066MHz from 2GB of 800Mhz would do the trick. It's a good option to go with first off, Windows 7 Ultimate usually requires 4GB Ram? So the Upgrade in RAM sounds like a very good idea to me.

Gfx upgrage-
Your GPU isn't to bad. If you where to upgrade it, i would recommend a eVGA 260 GTX or a eVGA 250 GTS, they are quite good for O.C and wouldn't put to much strain on your PSU

Edited by matt., 27 November 2009 - 03:29 AM.

[matt.]

Personally, yes upgrading your RAM would help dramatically.
4GB Ram 1066MHz from 2GB of 800Mhz would do the trick. It's a good option to go with first off, Windows 7 Ultimate usually requires 4GB Ram? So the Upgrade in RAM sounds like a very good idea to me.

Gfx upgrage-
Your GPU isn't to bad. If you where to upgrade it, i would recommend a eVGA 260 GTX or a eVGA 250 GTS, they are quite good for O.C and wouldn't put to much strain on your PSU

Edited by matt., 27 November 2009 - 03:29 AM.

[jackflash1991]

Ok so do you think it is worth upgrading all of my RAM to DDR2 1066 vs. just sticking with DDR2 800 and just adding RAM? Is there a noticeable difference between the two?

DDR2 800 costs about $50 for every 2GBs of RAM.
DDR2 1066 costs about $60 for every 2GBs of RAM and I would be buying 4GBs to replace my current RAM so the total would come out to about $120.

$50 quick upgrade or pay $70 more to upgrade all of my RAM to DDR2 1066.

Edited by jackflash1991, 27 November 2009 - 12:51 PM.

[Troy]

Hey Jack! Long time buddy...

I'd go with the extra 2GB of 800MHz RAM, I recently did it myself for my rig, threw in an extra 2x 1GB kit as I was able to get the exact kit I already had, so now I have 4x 1GB. It would have been far too expensive for my budget to upgrade to 2GB sticks, but it works fine and I'm loving it.

The next step up from there would be the graphics and CPU.

Cheers

[Neil Jones]

The speed difference between DDR2 800 and DDR2 1066 isn't noticeable, so while an upgrade to 4Gb can be recommended depending on needs, replacing the lot isn't worth it unless there is an issue with the existing stuff.

The other upgrade routes as previously discussed.

Edited by Neil Jones, 30 November 2009 - 04:10 PM.