I've been saying I was going to buy a new computer next year but when I look at the specs there isn't a huge difference in what i have now (as far as a regular desktop) so my first question is do I really need one?

Here are the specs of my 4 year old computer:
HP m380n (See specs on system here )
Intel Pent 4 w/HT 3000GHZ, FSB:800MHZ
RAM 1.536GB
Motherboard: Asustek
DVD+RW/CD-RW, DVD-Rom
7 in 1 card reader
Hard Drive 160GB/720rpm
Windows XP Pro SP2 Media Center 2004
Klipsch Pro media 3 piece speaker system 200w
PSU 300w
And Nvidia GeForce FX 5200 card 128MB (AGP 8x)
17" HP Flat Panel

Please take a look and make suggestions. As I said in another thread, the only thing that's been replaced so far is the PSU. Should I put more money into this one by getting a bigger hard drive (and should it be external or internal) along with a more powerful graphics card or just continue to save for a new one? I am currently running all the EPs and 3 Stuff packs. I do still love this one but don't want to waste money putting more into it if I'm going to need another one within a year or after Free Time comes out. My Sims game runs smoothly most of the time but I get stop and go action sometimes like before it snows or rain or if a lot is happening on the lot. Travel time to community lots is 1.5-2.5 minutes.

No, you don't need to upgrade your system.

If you wanted to enhance the graphic, you could buy an AMD/ATI x1650 Pro, which should cost you no more than US$80.
Many people will suggest you to beef up the PSU, but I generally don't suggest that unless I find the system is underpowered. However, given the fact that that particular CPU core is an energy hog, it is more likely that you need to upgrade the PSU when you upgrade your video card.

Thanks KKai, could this system also support a PCI card or does it have to be AGP? My local Circuit City says they don't carry any AGP cards so I'll have to bring my own unless I can support either format.

PCI or PCI-E?

Could it support either of the two?

Nvm, your system has an AGP graphic interface and PCI.
Don't buy video card with PCI graphic interface.
Oh and Circuit City is closing down their stores after new year I think, and video cards I found from electronics chains like 'Best'Buy, The Fry's, or Circuit City are so pricey compared to online electronics retailers.

Here is a deal I found for you:
Sapphire ATI Radeon X1650 256MB DVI/VGA/TV-Out AGP
http://www.ewiz.com/detail.php?p=AT...66129e1a50fc7fe
Cost: ~US$70

The only advice I have is to make sure your case is big enough for this card because your motherboard is uATX. Of course, some people don't mind running their PCs open case.

If you were unable to shop online, then you might have to check the newspapers daily or whichever day when there are many ads (usually Sunday's papers), (although you will still find that their advertised prices are still much more expensive than prices that you can find online).

Thank you very much for your responses. That is a great deal, amazon is selling the same card for $199.00! Is this the card you use? I was wondering if I should stick to the brand that shipped with the PC or it doesn't matter? Also is Radeon better than Nvidia and do they supply regular driver updates like Nvidia?

No, I don't own this card.
From hardware reviews, it shows that it is about as fast as nVidia 7600GT although I think the performance is between 7600GT and 7600GS.

To me, it doesn't really matter.
There are both happy owners and angry customers in each camp, so you will hear two sides of stories.
I, on the other hand, choose a card based on performance/dollars ratio.
This card has the best ratio in this category.

Last, before you install the card, remember to uninstall nVidia's driver.

Added:
Yes, AMD/ATI does upgrade its drivers regularly as nVidia does.

Thank you for all your prompt replies, it helped a lot.

I would like to see what Callistra has to say and others?

LMFAO I've developed a reputation.. I'm quite flattered. KKai gave you some good advice though.

If TS2 is the heaviest gaming you do, I don’t think you need to spend money for a new system right now. Wait until TS3 comes out so you know what you’re going to need down the road.. assuming you’re planning on buying it.

I might say it wouldn’t hurt to upgrade your graphics.. but that’s all I would do. If you do upgrade your graphics card, the 300w PSU may or may not be ok. 300w doesn’t meet recommended minimums.. but those minimums are based on a really maxed out system. Personally, if it were me, I would rather be safe than sorry, but if you can tell me exactly what PSU you’re using I can tell you how highly I recommend upgrading.

Newegg is also cheaper on the card. Same card but 512MB instead of 256mb. If you take into account shipping, it is a little bit cheap and the card is a little bit better. http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produ...N82E16814102086

As for Nvidia vs. ATI..for the price, yeah specs looks good. The comparable Nvidia card (7600GT is what it’s generally compared to) is quite a bit more expensive. Compare here: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produ...N82E16814130099 I can’t say a whole lot for either card out of personal experience. I can tell you that I had the ATI x1600 card in a laptop which wouldn’t even begin to run TS2, but I really do think it wasn’t a fair test. My best guess is that it was Acer’s fault for lack of proper cooling. I have always gone with ATI until my most recent upgrade. I switched after reading the terrible reviews on newegg and other places which seem to suggest a high rate of failure and underperformance on the newer models. Plus I got a serious steal on ebay for a card that runs somewhere between a 8600GT and 8800 performance wise. Anyway, Sapphire always had one of the the best, but quite a deal lower, customer satisfaction rate than the ATI made cards themselves. ATI stopped making their own cards, I watched the customer reviews plummet and I decided I didn’t particularly want to risk the headache. To cap off all the other fits of failing cards and extremely low benchmarks, there’s a not easily dismissed number of people screaming about how only the outdated drivers from the included CD work and the ATI website don’t work at all.. but then some say there are no problems… If you do a search for the card and driver problems there’s rather a lot that comes up, but you can see what I mean by looking at the reviews on newegg. BUT on the other side there’s the whole TS2 and Nvidia compatibility problem that so many seem to have. Personally, I’ve not experienced this, but it does happen to quite a few people. Good thing with Newegg is if you get it and it doesn’t work you can always send it back and try another one of the same or the other card. They have great customer service. I would go with either the ATI X1650 or the Nvidia 7600GT for your purposes.

eta: I tried to find someone with your model pc who had successfully upgraded their graphics card, just for a size fit confirmation and I really couldn't find any mention. :\ There's this Tim guy running around these forums who worships HP. He may know the answer off the top of his head.

eta2: Found reference for somone claiming to have put a 7600GS in your exact model, so it looks like you'll prob be ok.

Yes, I have come to value your opinion very much. Thank you for all the info. I am planning on buying TS3. TS2 is the heaviest gaming I do. I don't do any other high powered things on the machine. How do I find this information on the PSU? I hope I don't have to open the PC. When my PSU was replaced is it likely they put the same watts in or could it be a little higher? I hope I can run the 7600GT on what I have.

Yeah if you don't know off the top of your head what PSU is in there, I'm afraid you're going to have to open it to find out. The PSU should have some kind of sticker with the make/model and W.. hopefully LOL. Any retail one will. Not sure about a standard HP replacement. If HP replaced your PSU then they most likely replaced it with the same one that is standard for your system. Not all 300w PSUs are created equal, and HP stock PSUs are not very good.. If that’s what you have, then I would really recommend replacing it. You could be okay.. but it’s not a risk I would recommend taking. I would look at something with a single rail and 80+ efficiency would be even better. No use spending $120 on a new psu though.. not for that system. OCZ, Enermax, Corsair, and PCP&C (my personal favorite) all make good PSUs. Antec is okay on a budget crunch.

This is my personal PSU and it runs really nice. I'm very happy with it: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produ...N82E16817703011

eta: ETA nvm apparently you need an ATX 20+4 or 20 pin connector. 24pins like that PCP&C won't work for you. But PCP&C makes others.

This one looks alright: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produ...N82E16817194011


I don't normally recommend Rosewill, because I've just read so many contradictory reviews and articles. Some people swear by them and many people don't consider them of high quality. However, I need to be realistic here and realize the challenge with you is getting you the most bang for your buck. You're certainly not going to be stressing the thing out with any heavy activity, and you’re not looking for a gaming build. While I've heard both a lot of bad and a lot of good about the company, there is most certainly *nothing* else I would recommend in the price range. So if the Enermax just looks like it's too much, try this: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produ...N82E16817182064 It's a very tenative reccomendation based on budget so if it fails don't kill me :D

On the other hand, rather than spending $75 on a PSU and another $125 on a card, why not get a less powerful card like the GeForce 7300 which will support what I already have? Like this one. 7300GT

All of the current cards you're going to buy ask for a 350w or greater PSU. The 7300GT has the same recommendations by EVGA as the 7600gt does. You can always try running the card on what you have. It's just not something I personally would ever mess around or leave to chance. I've had one totally fried system over a PSU going out, and that was one too many.

I tried to look up performance test reviews for you, since I'm not really familiar with the 7300GT. What I found out is the 7600GT is about twice the card the 7300GT is. Which doesn't surprise me because the 7300GT is bottom of the barrel lowest card in the series. I saw a lot of comparison between the 7300GT the older 6600GT.. with the general consensus being that as far as performance goes the 7300gt is a step BACKWARDS. Now the 6600GT is certainly a step up from the 5500 though.. Doesn't say much for the 7300GT does it? LOL If you want to save money on the card I would look at the ATI X1650 before i stepped back to the 7300gt

Of course you're right. I might as well update them both because even if the PSU I have right now could take a 7600GT card it'll be a chance I'm not willing to take. Thanks for all your help also thanks to KKai. I'm going to get that card and a new PSU in maybe a couple months. When I get things down I'll come back and update. I'm curious to see the difference in graphics from my GeForce FX 5200 to the 7600.

Happy New Year to you both! :blow:

Good luck with your upgrades!

Thanks, and you too

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produ...N82E16817139003

I would get this PSU. :P

That's a pretty big difference when it comes to graphics, as I went from a 5200 to a 7600 myself.

5200:



7600:

Thanks for the comparison screen shots! How did the loading times improve when you upgraded from the 5200?

I actually bought a new PC, not upgrade.

Loading times were much faster, but its more on the CPU and the RAM, rather than the video card. Sims 2 isn't really heavy graphics-wise, although you need LOTS of juice (CPU) on your PC in order for the game to be playable.

I wouldn't say you need that much by the way of your CPU..Certainly not compared to other current games, which are starting to demand dual core technology. In comparison, TS2 can't even make full use of the new CPUs. My mom has a 2.4ghz P4 which went the way of the dinosaur a while back and it plays great..I have another friend who plays on even less.. But you’re right, loading times aren’t affected by the graphics card. It's the speed of the RAM, and Hard drive which seem to play the biggest part in this, though I'm sure the CPU does some too (though my CPU is nowhere near being maxed out during loading and it still takes my game a half an hour to load, which suggests that’s not what’s holding things back.. likewise I know someone who has a dual core and without any custom content their game doesn’t even begin to move from the first screen for a full 10min.. without custom content my P4 loads faster than that).

The graphics card does play a significant role in game play though. It determines how nice your game looks and most importantly how smoothly everything plays. I've played on a X800XT and now a 7950GT KO and even though the X800XT was no light runner my 7950GT (as limited by my P4 as it prob is) still plays TONS better. As far as that goes 8600 GT I imagine should be a nice step up. The 7950GT btw runs faster than a 8600GT but falls somewhere short of the 8800.

I am so mad :mad:. I opened up my PC this morning and checked the power supply like Callistra suggested and it's only 200w! They (Circuit City Advange) replaced it with lower than what I had. Here is the model number Callistra BST ATX-1956F B2 by Bestec.

OUCH you are REALLY going to have to upgrade that to put a new card in it. Sorry, that does suck

I went into Circuit City yesterday for their free PC check up and evaluation and ended up updating my graphic card to the ATI Radeon HD 2400 Pro OC 256MB AGP 8x without needing a new PSU. Now, I CAN SEE FISH for the first time. Unfortunately, the images on my Sims' TV and computers aren't visible to me anymore. Is there something I need to enable/disable or update? I haven't been able to find a solution to this problem so far.

I'm enjoying the new card though. The images are sharper and more detailed so I can imagine how my game will look with a high end card! I'm still planning to get a new computer around the release of TS3 so this should hold me over til then.

I went to systemrequirements lab to see what games I could run now. I know for sure I couldn't run Spider-Man 3 then but can now and some others I'm not familiar with.