| Upgrading my computer |
Author: American Jet 509 Posts Status: Instructor Astronaut  | Date 02-01-08 03:19 |
Ok, right now I have an eMachines computer
here are the specs
AMD Anthlon XP 3000+, MMX, 3DNOW, 2.2GHz processor (Type: Socket A Processor)
1GB of RAM
160GB of memory
Nvidia GeForce 7600GS 512mb (AGP)
Well I'm trying to upgrade my motherboard that it is able to take Socket AM2 OR Socket F Processors, has a PCI-E slot, & can take at least 2GB of RAM.
I'm planning on getting the AMD Anthlon 64 FX Dual Core, the Nvidia Geforce 8600GT or 8800GT graphics card, and 2GB of RAM. The only problem is, is
that I know NOTHING about motherboards. I went to the AMD website and found a list of motherboards that were recommended for me
http://www.amd.com/us-en/recmobo/ResultsHandler/1,,30_182_869_9480%5E9481~73948,00.html. I was hoping that someone knew a lot about computers could
help me choose a motherboard. (I have tried calling Emachines and asking for their help...a goldfish is smarter than they are.)
Flying For American Virtual Airlines!
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| Re: Upgrading my computer |
Author: fs2004josh 113 Posts Status: Confirmed Pilot  | Date 02-01-08 12:46 |
why are you getting AMD if you said that AMD isnt great?
AMD Phenom X4 9950 BLACK EDITION
CORSAIR Dominator 2048MB DDR2 1066 Dual Channel
Asus nForce 780a Crosshair II Formula
GTX 260 OCX MAXCORE 896MB PCIe 2.0
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| Re: Upgrading my computer |
Author: Buckfast 166 Posts Status: Instructor Pilot  | Date 02-01-08 12:51 |
MSI K9N SLI Platinum,nForce 570 SLI,ATX, Socket-AM2,2xGbLAN,DDR2,Firew,2xPCI-Ex16 is a good motherboard for a good price. Itīs
stable and runs fine! You got everything you mentioned in your post, go for 2gig RAM DDR2 2xPCI ect. But if you are into overclocking and
stuff, this motherboard has weaknesses. My guess is that you do not overclock today due to your knowledge of motherboards 
I would recommend this one for stability and good price!
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| Re: Upgrading my computer |
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Author: American Jet 509 Posts Status: Instructor Astronaut | Date 02-01-08 21:36 |
fs2004josh wrote:
why are you getting AMD if you said that AMD isnt great?
What are you talking about?
And my budget is around $600.
Flying For American Virtual Airlines!
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| Re: Upgrading my computer |
Author: Joeflyer 7791 Posts Status: Living Legend  | Date 02-01-08 21:50 |
fs2004josh wrote:
why are you getting AMD if you said that AMD isnt great?
I certainly believe many people have stated AMD isn't as good as Intel right now. I agree. My first rig had AMD and I really liked the
chip...even though it was single core. When researching for dual core processors, I found that Intel was much better than AMD. Who's to
say AMD won't pass up Intel sometime down the road? It's really no big deal. Either one is going to get my business if it proves to be a
winner of a product. Now, I'm talking about particular chips, not across the board.
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| Re: Upgrading my computer |
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Author: boom_box 35 Posts Status: Student pilot | Date 02-05-08 12:56 |
Any Intel C2D can beat AMD FX... even a Intel C2D E6750 can beat quadcore AMD Phenom.... check the CPU charts at tomshardware.com
For flight simulation use only. NOT FOR REAL WORLD NAVIGATION!
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| Re: Upgrading my computer |
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Author: richardcysneros 15 Posts Status: Young recruit | Date 12-11-08 12:17 |
Hello my name is Richard AKA RDC-(Chobits)-Airways and i need some help Plz!!
you see i am a big BIG fan of fs2004 and FSP and i need to know if i need a new system or not i dont think so
but i will let you tell me. here is what i was told my bro told me becuse i use my computer day and night for flying
and only let it rest for 30 or so minits before the next flight he sed that it will die on me if this is so i need a new system
to keep up with my flying hobby. so anyway here are software and system spec's
Hardware -> HP 2004 tower a 2004 model
CPU: intel P4 2.66Ghz
RAM: 1024MB
OS: Windows XP Pro and FS2004 and FSP and thats it no other software installed!
Video: Invidea 5800 256MB
HDD: basic maxter 40GB
Sound: onbord!
the room is always at 72.0F to on hot days 79.8F dagress on cold night its at 69.4F
All fS2004 settings are maxed out exept for sight is at 60miles FPS locked at 24 no AI traffic i get 24 most of the time and at large
airports like KORD i get 18FPS i need to know and the computer is never off and for the most part always in a flight!
the computer has never givein me one error EVER but i need to be shure do you think i need a new computer?
am i stressing this one to much? or is it safe to continue flying like always have 24/7
exsept the 30 minits brake time in between each flight?
i geuss what i am asking is it safe to run fs2004 24/7 with out harming my system now remember my room is at 72F for the most part
and the computer has vary good fans and i clean it evey 45 days so tell me is it safe? is my bro right or rong?
RDC (Chobits)
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| Re: Upgrading my computer |
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Author: SkyAirWorld 1546 Posts Status: Forum Moderator | Date 12-11-08 12:35 |
Mate, give it atleast one day off...
Close FS on say for example a sunday... so a virus scan, and windows defender scan, do all your computers updates...
then turn it off and leave it off...
It needs at least one day off, if you want to keep it for a while....
Also... if you wanted to get it better, try and get 2GB of Ram rather than 1024MB
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| Re: Upgrading my computer |
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Author: Jason 389 Posts Status: Astronaut | Date 12-11-08 13:24 |
it's a personal decision on your part, and unless you state a budget your going to get every reply in the book from just keep it defragged to
scrap the whole thing and build a new $2,500 monster computer.
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| Re: Upgrading my computer |
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Author: Joeflyer 7791 Posts Status: Living Legend | Date 12-11-08 16:25 |
IMO, if anyone is wanting a pc that will run FS9 and FSX smoothly, you should build a system primarily for flight simming. That means a
good Core 2 Duo/mobo combination that can be overclocked to 3.6Ghz or higher, at least 2G of ram, a high end graphics card, and really
good hard drive like a SATA II.... especially if you intend to start populating the sim with numerous addon aircraft and sceneries.
I've spent quite a bit of $$ trying to find a good combination as mentioned above. I'm at the point now that I am quite pleased with the
performance of my system, but I still intend to upgrade the graphics card(from 8800GT 512 to GTX280 1G) and power supply (700W to
1000W) fairly soon. Together they will cost around $700 at current prices. So, what will a person invest in order to achieve really smooth
performance in FS9 and FSX? LOTS!  OF course, this is MY opinion...
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| Re: Upgrading my computer |
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Author: Jambone 1436 Posts Status: Living Legend | Date 12-11-08 21:57 |
As pointed out many times, the key to performance is the high CPU clock rates - E7200 will fit the bill nicely
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| Re: Upgrading my computer |
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Author: Jason 389 Posts Status: Astronaut | Date 12-12-08 11:23 |
Also most people will disagree with me but sorry it's been proven, you can check the CPU charts yourself... a good quad like a Q9550 or
Q9450 will only be 2 ~ 3 frames per second slower than a dual core if the quad is overclocked say 400MHz vs the dual core being over
clocked nearly a full gigahert.
FSX is multithreaded and uses a quad nicely, C2D isn't worth the money compared to a quad.
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| Re: Upgrading my computer |
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Author: Drew 5525 Posts Status: Living Legend | Date 12-12-08 15:21 |
Jambone wrote:
As pointed out many times, the key to performance is the high CPU clock rates - E7200 will fit the bill nicely
Only if you are going to overclock it to at least 3ghz
-------------------------
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| Re: Upgrading my computer |
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Author: richardcysneros 15 Posts Status: Young recruit | Date 12-12-08 15:55 |
hello RDC is back!
Yes i know that a 2 core or even 3 core wood be good but i like the basic P4 i don't trust the 2 cores and i cant get XP
to work that well on a 2 core anyway and the only OS out there that use's a 2 core well is Vista and before i use Vista
i wood like to be splated insted i dont trust Vista and FS2004+FSP gets only errors when i do so i am sticking with my HP
however i do need to know if i need a new system from runing FS2004 all the time i dont get virus's becuse this PC in not
internet ready and any add-ons that are installed get a good virus scan from 3 of my other computers before install and they
are updated ever day for new virus's and scan them selfs every night so virus's are no big deal I just need to know if runing FS2004 24/7 will harm my
system i have use this PC for over 4 months and never get any errors of any kind i clean it every 45 days and defrag it every week this system is
terned off for 14 hours every 45 days so the cleaning can be done Speed is never a problem becuse i get 24FPS and even at KORD its geting
about 18 to 24 when i check my system when i am flying it is telling me that out of my 1024MB ram i am only useing 592MB thats with all add-ons runing
too so i think that this system is ok however like i sed in the post be for this i need to know if my computer is needing to be replaced becuse i use
it every day and night i am a very VERY deatacaded FS2004 player so much that my room has a real like cockpit and a sound system that makes it sound
like a real plane is in the room good thing my other family and naybers are cool with it! Anyway i know this is a long post and that my spelling sucks
sory about that just need to know becuse like before my bro told me my PC will die on me becuse i use it to much
he not smart about computers but i was wondering if this maybe a factor or not plz let me know!
thanks to every one who takes the time to read this have a good flight to all !
http://www.fspassengers.com/forum/smileys/0008.gif
http://www.fspassengers.com/forum/smileys/0008.gif
RDC (Chobits)
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| Re: Upgrading my computer |
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Author: Jason 389 Posts Status: Astronaut | Date 12-12-08 21:31 |
I have several questions for you to consider thinking about.
1. Why don't you trust multicore? Have you thought about the fact that the processor instruction and clock cycles are also much more
efficient? Even for a single threaded application, a new dual core or quad core socket LGA775 intel will execute much faster, even at
essentially the same "clock speed" that's posted on the box so to speak. In otherwords my Q6600 at 2.4GHz is going to spank a P4
Northwood running at 2.4GHz.
2. Why can't you get XP to work in a multicore environment? It performs just fine, and utilizes multithreading as well.
3. I don't understand peoples beef with Vista... except for the development world, Vista is an entirely new set of headaches for them. BUT
for the basic user, not only is vista good, it's better than XP.
4. What does HP have to do with any of those topics?
5. Running FS2004 24/7 will not harm your computer any more than just leaving it on and sitting idle 24/7. What WILL harm your
computer though is the heat generated from use, so if that sucker is getting hot, then give the computer a break from time to time.
6. You have 1024MB of memory? You will benefit greatly by doubling that to 2GB. The reason your computer is telling you that it's only
using 600MB is because that's all it's going to allocate because it needs the rest for background and OS processes. FS2004 will use
more memory if you put more memory in your computer, and in turn you will see a little bit better performance.
7. You want to know if your computer needs replaced? Use it till it dies dude, unless you are ready to spend the money on a new one...
by the way you are not going to be able to upgrade that computer. P4 processors are socket 478 and the new intels will not work on that
motherboard which means a new motherboard which means new memory. Also new graphics cards are PCI-x and i would be willing to
bet money that your graphics card slot is AGP bus.
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| Re: Upgrading my computer |
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Author: richardcysneros 15 Posts Status: Young recruit | Date 12-12-08 22:51 |
RDC here thanks for responding so fast!
No i cant get winXP to work well on a 2 core i dont understand ether however i do know that Vista has some problems now for the basic computer user
yes Vista is better then XP in more ways then one but my beef with Vista is that FS2004 as well as FSP has problems running right on Vista my best
buddys use Vista on there computer and have had Error after Error after Error not with the PC its self and not with basic tasks but when it come to
FS2004 or FSP it has Big problems such as frezzing and other stuff i cant have a frezz up when in a flight that wood be catastrofic!! and for thows
out there that use FSX well good for you but i like FS2004 and becuse FS2004 works so well on basic 1 core system i dont need a 2 core plus money is
not easy to make over here so i make do with what i got AMD I AM HAPPY!! but as far as overheating i do know that will kill the PC as before i
needed to know if useing it 24/7 will harm it now i know that it will not harm it as far as heat go's i have a thermomiter about 1 foot from the
computer it is always saying its about 79.0F or 81.0F sometime is 80.0F good temp? and as far as memory go's i will look into one more stick of ream
that way i will have 2048MB and see if i get a boost it FPS if not back to 1024MB ok last (?) i need to know if 80.0F is a good temp to run at if
not time for some fans if it is good then all i need is a good night's sleep then back to flying for Chobits hahaha
thanks for reading fellow simmers have a good flight
RDC (Chobits)
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| Re: Upgrading my computer |
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Author: Jason 389 Posts Status: Astronaut | Date 12-12-08 23:16 |
You cannot accurately determine the temperature of your computer with a thermometer next to the case. I recommend that you google
search two programs:
CPUz and CoreTemp
Download them and look at the information they provide when you run them. They do not need to be installed, just download them and
run the application. From there you can see the temperature that your computer is running. Try to stay below your processors threshold
temp, which is usually quite high, for safe measure try to stay below 60* C (yes that is celsius)
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| Re: Upgrading my computer |
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Author: richardcysneros 15 Posts Status: Young recruit | Date 12-12-08 23:20 |
RDC Here!
Thanks you Jason for you help i will go find that free software and install in right now just to be safe and ahen thanks for your help
RDC (Chobits)
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| Re: Upgrading my computer |
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Author: Joeflyer 7791 Posts Status: Living Legend | Date 12-13-08 18:25 |
I have temp probes directly attached to the base of the CPU cooler and a CPU temp. digital display on the case...gives a very accurate
reading. Keep in mind, the ambient temperature plays a big role in the CPU temp. as well. I keep my computer room quite cool most of
the time. Right now the CPU temp is 23C(73F) with an overclock of 3.8Ghz Under heavy loads, the CPU temp gets up to 28C. I still
haven't finished with overclocking The cooler I've used for the past year or so is the Vigor Monsoon Lite. Does a fantastic job but it's fairly
bulky. If you have a small case, it's not for you. I am thinking seriously about getting Big Water's liquid cooling kit soon...it fits in 2 drive
bays and will free up room in the case. I can take that CPU cooler out of there and put more ram in if needed in the future. I have the
CoolerMaster Stacker 830 case.
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