Need advice on upgrade...

[IG-88]

One of my sons is wanting to play Age of Empires 3 on the game cab but the machine inside is a little outdated for it. (works great for mame). Heres' the specs:

# 2.5gig CPU
# 512mb ram
# on-board graphics (don't know the specs for it)
# WinXP home
# 2 open PCI slots
# 40 gig HD

The minimum specs for the game are:

# Microsoft Windows XP
# PC with 1.4 GHz equivalent or higher processor
# 256 MB of system RAM
# 2 GB available hard disk space
# 32x speed or faster CD-ROM drive
# 64 MB video card with support for hardware transformation and lighting

It would seem to be enough hardware-wise but when he installed the game it was un-palyable. (I'm assuming because of the onboard vid) My question is, should I upgrade to say a 128mb video card or maybe double the ram? Both?

By the way I have no idea as of yet whether the mobo will allow a vid card, or what the max ram it will take.

Any of you guru's have an idea or 2? What would you do? Anybody play this game much?

[Kangum]

i think you should upgrade your memory. operating system is going to use a piece of it. especially if its xp. you wont have much left for the game. its cheap these days at newegg. i added a gig to my laptop for 30 bucks.

you should see a huge jump with dedicated video vs onboard graphics as well. it doesnt have to be overkill. i wouldnt spend more then 75 or 100 dollars.

[IG-88]

you should see a huge jump with dedicated video vs onboard graphics as well. it doesnt have to be overkill. i wouldnt spend more then 75 or 100 dollars.

Ok. I was looking at a 128mb PCI card for around $40 on newegg. You think I oughta double the ram too...?

[markrvp]

Running graphics through the PCI slot is a bottleneck.  You will be much better off with an AGP video card.

[MrMojoZ]

Ok. I was looking at a 128mb PCI card for around $40 on newegg. You think I oughta double the ram too...?

The amount of ram a video card is pretty much meaningless, the chip on the card is what determines the performance. So buying a "128mb PCI card" may or may not be much of an upgrade. Also for low end cards the interface doesn't matter as they aren't fast enough to push the slots anyway.

[Kangum]

you should see a huge jump with dedicated video vs onboard graphics as well. it doesnt have to be overkill. i wouldnt spend more then 75 or 100 dollars.

Ok. I was looking at a 128mb PCI card for around $40 on newegg. You think I oughta double the ram too...?

i would upgrade your ram first. 512 really isnt alot for xp. so i would do that first. i think you should find out what your video is too.

did you try clicking start->programs->accessorys->system tools->system information

once in systeminfo look at components -> display type

it should show what kind of video adapter you have along with size.

[IG-88]

Running graphics through the PCI slot is a bottleneck.  You will be much better off with an AGP video card.

Unfortunately there are no AGP slots. It's PCI only. I should have been thinking of that when we got it. 

Ok. I was looking at a 128mb PCI card for around $40 on newegg. You think I oughta double the ram too...?

The amount of ram a video card is pretty much meaningless, the chip on the card is what determines the performance. So buying a "128mb PCI card" may or may not be much of an upgrade. Also for low end cards the interface doesn't matter as they aren't fast enough to push the slots anyway.

What kinda chip would you suggest? What do I look for?

you should see a huge jump with dedicated video vs onboard graphics as well. it doesnt have to be overkill. i wouldnt spend more then 75 or 100 dollars.

Ok. I was looking at a 128mb PCI card for around $40 on newegg. You think I oughta double the ram too...?

i would upgrade your ram first. 512 really isnt alot for xp. so i would do that first. i think you should find out what your video is too.

did you try clicking start->programs->accessorys->system tools->system information

once in systeminfo look at components -> display type

it should show what kind of video adapter you have along with size.

I will check this out and let you know. Thanks

[weasel-like_animal]

I'd agree that RAM makes a huge difference in machine speed. See how much your motherboard will accept before buying anything though! If you are keeping this machine for a while, try and stuff as much RAM in there as you possibly can. My MAME box holds 1GB, my Mac Power PC holds 16GB... major difference!

[XyloSesame]

I tend to purchase my PCs one to two years out of date, so I can sympathize with you and your outdated machine. Budget never seems to allow for a Super-PC...

It would seem to be enough hardware-wise but when he installed the game it was un-palyable.

What do you mean by un-playable? Frame-drops? Unresponsive? Audio glitches? Online lag?

One of my sons is wanting to play Age of Empires 3 on the game cab but the machine inside is a little outdated for it. (works great for mame). Heres' the specs:

# 2.5gig CPU
# 512mb ram
# on-board graphics (don't know the specs for it)

Seems like the CPU should be OK, but the RAM ought to be bumped to at least 1Gb.

If your son wants to play any graphics-intense PC-based games, then you'll need to get off of the onboard GPU. The trouble is the sub-$200 market for GPUs is not all that great. Check out an ATI X1950; I've heard generally good things about this card, and, for under $150, it's the right price. I think most are PCIx, so you'll need to check your system support. Also, make sure your PC case can accomodate a full-size PCI card; most of these GPUs are loong.

I don't game, but know when editing video, XP processes can be killers. Make sure nothing is running in the background and take some of the XP bling down (try Windows Classic Theme). Optimize the OS as much as you can...

[xmenxmen]

Your onboard video is your main problem.  I have attached a chart from 2005 (when the game was release) showing what the minimin video chipset require to run the game decently.  You need at least 30 fps to consider a game playable.  The chart is with everything set to the lower side (according to todays standard).  Hopefully it should give you a clue on what you need to purchase.  Just looking at it, I would say you would need at least a Nvidia 6600GT or ATI X700 or higher.

Games like these require 'real' 3d card, which most onboard card are really NOT.

Here's link if you want to check it out too...
http://www23.tomshardware.com/graphics2005.html

Once you elimiate the video problem, you can probably add more ram, but 512mb be okay.

[knave]

I don't remember what Proc they used in that Toms chart so if it were me...

Upgrading ram is fine...But this won't make the game playable...you need a video card.

I think you could get by with a PCI card, you might find a one on for cheep.

If you are going to keep this pc for a while, I sugest a new Mobo.  It's not going to be expensive for that older Processor, you can re-use all your original equipment. the 2.5 gig cpu is plenty.

Get one with a pci-express slot. and then pick up a pci-e GPU.

Do what you want with the ram but just be sure the new motherboard takes your ram type. Just as a point of contrast I have one XP box that has 256 mb of ram and it's is fine for most things. (though it is not for gaming anymore)

Good luck

[IG-88]

Great advice everybody! Thanks a bunch. I will do some investigating and let you all know on what I get and how it works later on.   

[IG-88]

Real quick. This is what I found last nite on newegg that I like so far. Any thoughts on it?

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814161010

I know it wasn't on the list ^ above. You think it's got enough "horsepower" to run the game?

[knave]

Yes, I think it will be enough (Please note that this is the express opinion of knave and is in no way a guarentee that the above Hardware solution will work for you.) 

Oh and it was on the list...

...you need a video card.

I think you could get by with a PCI card, you might find a one for cheep.