Does my motherboard support SLI?

[DMB2000uk]

Personally I don't see the point in SLI, by the time it is necessary to upgrade to 2 cards there will be something out that has similar performance to your SLI for a similar amount of $$.

As for upgrading, the money that you are going to have to shell out now is going to be pretty much the same amount (more expensive AGP card, or cheaper PCIe card and new motherboard) so it doesn't really matter (the AGP might work out slightly cheaper).

When you come to upgrade the whole machine, it would be easier for you if you had a PCIe card you could take with you, but you might choose to buy a new card then as well as a complete re haul of the rest of the rig.

Your Pentium 4 will not fit as it is a 478 Socket and not a 775 socket.

Dan

[Vrbas]

Thanks for all the help.

So you think i should switch over to a cheap PCI Express card that won't require me to replace all my components (Processor, RAM, etc)? Like the ones you showed me earlier? In contrast to simply getting a new rig (which you said would run me around $300, not including a video card), what do you think?

My only concern with this "magic" motherboard you've shown me is that i've done some research on motherboards and some are either hit or miss, i'm just cautious about this one cause it doens't look to be too mainstream, since i have an outdated setup as is.

[Sparky]

I have to agree with both bubba & DMB2000uk. Save the money you would be spending on a 2nd video card & get a better mobo or more RAM or better CPU or even a high end PCI-E video card (8800's are really nice!) or maybe all of the above. Three years since your last PC upgrade is an eternity in technology.

Good luck!

[DMB2000uk]

When I said cheaper PCIe i meant that PCIe versions of the card are cheaper than the AGP version.

So
7900GS PCIe = $149.99 ($129.99 after $20.00 Mail-In Rebate),
and the same card in AGP is;
7900GS AGP = $209.99.

Yeah, I tend to agree with being wary of the motherboard, but if its anything like its DUAL VSTA 775 cousin (that one has both AGP and PCIe too on a 775 socket) then it should be OK.

See what I mean about having to spend the same either way?

Dan

[Vrbas]

The motherboard itself just looks really small. Isn't it a microATX? Don't know much about mobos but i would assume bigger is better, at least when it comes to how much a card can handle as far as all the crap that plugs into it.

Anyways, should i go ahead and do an overhaul or just find a mobo compatible w/ my processor and RAM that's PCI Express and stick w/ that? I mean, a 3.0 GHz HT processor isn't that weak is it? As far as DDR RAM goes, shouldn't i be ok w/ just DDR1, or am i really missin' out here?

[DMB2000uk]

MATX are ok, unless you're an overclocker (they don't tend to fare too well with high FSB speeds) yeah you can't use as many expansion cards (but do you have that many?).

As to your processor being outdated. Its still reasonable for day to day things and ok for game performance, but the charts over here show just how much its bettered by the new core 2 duo line:

Chart the first, Chart the second

These charts are with all processors equally clocked at 2.4Ghz, so even if you increased the P4 to 3Ghz (aka your current processor), and compared it to the entry level core 2 duo (1.8GHz), you still would have better performance with the core 2 duo.

Its all about how much money you want to spend. If you can justify spending the cash to get all new things now then I would really recommend it. But if not, then it might be best to just stick to what you have and get an AGP card and then start saving for a new rig. I'm going to say that its not worth getting the new mobo now, as although that will give you more options to upgrade your graphics in the future, your CPU will hold back the card too much to warrant getting the next card without a CPU upgrade too, which means a whole new setup next upgrade time.

For an idea on how much your processor would hold back the graphics card by (the percentage gap is probably more comparable to your next upgrade, i.e. not the 7900GS/X1950Pro your looking at now but the one after that) (although there will still be a slight holdback caused by your CPU in the case of the 7900GS/X1950Pro, but not as drastic as this chart shows)

Chart Graphics

Your CPU and a Core 2 Duo E6400 are highlighted.


I know the stats I'm showing you are more than likely me trying to convince you to upgrade everything now, but only go for what you can justify to spend. Provided that your PSU is big enough and you are happy with your current hard drives, you could get a new rig (graphics included) for ~$450.

So, decide...

Dan

[Vrbas]

I think for now i'm gonna stick w/ what i got, simply upgrade to the Radeon X1950 Pro, then save up for a new rig. Those charts are very helpful and i love the setup of the website, makes things easy.

I did, however, read somewhere that the average human eye can register max 60 fps (maybe less?) or around that frame-rate when it comes to video games, so anywhere above that isn't all that big of a difference, just bragging rights for one's rig. Thought it was interesting, correct me if i'm wrong though because i know this is a monster debate question, so feel free to educate me.

PS, where is this "new rig" you're talking about for $450? I won't upgrade for a while, but i always entertain myself by looking ahead. My power supply is 480 W, should it be ok?

[DMB2000uk]

Should be Ok power supply wise.

The rig I would recommend would be:

mobo: 650i Ultra $109.99 ($99 after MIR)
CPU: intel core 2 duo E4300 $114.50
RAM: generic ddr2 1GB $28.99
Graphics: 7900GS (or x1950) $150 ($129.99 after MIR)

Subtotal: $403.47 (not including MIR's or shipping costs)


The beauty of the E4300 is that it runs on a 800Mhz FSB so if you tell it to run on a 1066MHz FSB it will run the processor at 2.4GHz (same speed as the E6600!) and your motherboard won't even be overclocked!

Dan