I wanna play HL2. Upgrade time?

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///M-Spec

///M-Spec

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My home box is an Athlon XP 1800+. Running a slight FSB OC for 1633 mhz. 512 MB DDR RAM. Abit KR7A Mo Bo. Graphics card is a GeForce 5600 Ultra.

I wanna play HalfLife 2. I want the details high. I want to really enjoy it. Can I do it on this box? Or should I upgrade the card?

Looks like ATI Radeon 9800 Pros are going for a good price. If I get that, will my poor CPU hold it back? Or will it be "good enough" to run the ATI?

TIA for any good advice.


M
 
If you want the best experience possible you have to have the best hardware possible. That's just how it works.

However, that's not how I buy computers. I usually back off from the bleeding edge because they definitely price for the premium. I'll back off the CPU and video card by one performance level.

I was amazed at how little hardware it took to run Half-Life. I've not seen the required hardware or recommended hardware on Half-Life 2. But I bet what you've got will play it fine, just not in highest detail.
 
@ LM: Well, I don't need 120 FPS to really enjoy it. 40ish FPS with all the bells and whistles turned on is plenty for me. I just don't wanna get it home and have it run 28 FPS in an empty room and 10 when the shooting starts.


@ donbenni , thanks buddy, that's good to hear.


...anyone wanna buy a GeForce 5600U? ;)


M
 
General concensus is that you should be ok. My mate is running a 1700+ XP with Geforce Ti4200 64MB card, 768 MB ram and says Half Life 2 runs sweetly. So you should be ok to run the game at 1024 x 768 with most detail settings on high, but not AA and AF.

Sooo, at your current spec you can run with that, but upgrading to the 9800 Pro wouldn't be the worst idea, especially as they're going so cheap at the moment. I'm planning on getting a 9800 Pro myself in less than a month.
 
Yeah you should be allright, try the game first then decide if you want to go with the 9800 pro. New processor wouldn't be a bad idea either but I don't know how amd's handle games.

I just picked up my 9800 pro 128mb (for free 👍 ). I added on a vga silencer http://www.newegg.com/app/ViewProductDesc.asp?description=35-186-110&depa=0 and overclocked the speeds past an xt model. (380/340Mhz pro stock - 412/365mhz xt stock - 450/380 mine). Runs the game beautifully. For the price it packs a major punch 👍
 
MegaGames.com
The minimum machine specs for decent performance on H-L 2 will be a 1.2GHz CPU with 256MB RAM, Win 98/ME/2000/XP and a DirectX 7 capable graphics card. As you well realise such a box would not do justice to the various graphical wonders of the game so Mr. Newell was quick to add the recommended system specs which are as follows: a 2.4 GHz CPU with 512MB RAM, Windows 2000/XP and a DirectX 9 graphics card.
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Nothing like doubling what the manufacturer says you need to run it, eh?
 
TB
Nothing like doubling what the manufacturer says you need to run it, eh?
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Well the minimum hardware specs for video games don't exactly make them entertaining. If you want an enjoyable experience I would say doubling the minimum is a good start.
 
I'm running a P4 2.0ghz processor with 512mb of ram and a 9700 non-pro (128mb), and HL2 runs very well. I'm at 800x600 with all settings either on high or medium, with no AA or AF. I can run the game reasonably well in 1024x768, but at the lower res, the game runs much, much more smoothly in more demanding situations.

Your comp looks fine, but I would reccomend upgrading the vid card since not only are ATi cards outperforming their GeForce rivals in HL2, but the 5000 line of GeForce cards are just afwul. A 9800 pro can be found fairly cheaply now, or failing that, a 9700 pro for even less money.
 
Ev0, I would normally agree with you, but HL2 at 800 x 600 with none of the cool features turned on isn't exactly getting your money's worth.

I plan to wait a year, then buy a current setup for that time and play HL2 on it. That'll knock the sox off anything you guys are doing now (:
 
Listen here, yo. :sly:

The new generation of mainstream cards has finally begun to hit the market. Those are the ones to get.

Here's what I'd recommend.

Nvidia 6600GT AGP:
http://www.newegg.com/app/ViewProductDesc.asp?description=14-150-080&depa=1
(These just came out in AGP, so waiting a week or two will probably bring it down around $200)

AMD 2400+ XP-Mobile:
http://www.newegg.com/app/ViewProductDesc.asp?description=19-103-439&depa=1
(These are most likely the most overclockable AMDs ever. I have a similar one, but 45 watt[runs hotter, wont overclock quite as high] in my parents computer at 2.1GHz/400MHz FSB on $15 cooling. Remember, that's 2.1GHz at VERY stable. 50C full load)

Shuttle AN35N-Ultra:
http://www.newegg.com/app/ViewProductDesc.asp?description=13-150-045&depa=1
(Nvidia chipset, decent onboard sound, very overclockable. Stable.)

And, if your ram wont run higher FSBs, some good RAM:
http://www.newegg.com/app/ViewProductDesc.asp?description=20-220-002&depa=1
(same ram as in my parents computer, runs very stable at rated speeds, and then some.)

If nothing, get atleast the 6600GT. It has PS3.0 and other new techologies, aswell as performing better than the X700 Pro/XT and previous generation high end cards, such as the 9800XT.
 
My bro runs HL2 flawlessly on his Dell Inspirion 9100 (i think it's a 9100) with an ATi Mobility 9800 Pro. He ran Doom 3 excrellently as well. His benchmarkss are slightly higher than mine (9800 Pro, 512MB DDR400, XP 2600+) b/c of his 2.8ghz P4 with HT and 1024MB RAM. Also, his card is overclocked.
 
An overclocked video card will definitely make a difference.

Good to hear that laptop gaming is going well. I've wanted to get a nice laptop for a while to make LAN gaming easier. Lugging a computer around gets old pretty fast.
 
i have a 2ghz athlon 64 in my laptop with 512ram and a 32mb geforce 4 go vid card.

for some reason i think it's a 64 though.....it plays rome total war flawlessly on good looking settings, and plays doom3 fiine on low settings.

no lag whatsoever.
 
If anyone is looking for a new video card or wants to know how their card stacks up in HL2, AnandTech has an awesome article and benchmarks.

Part 1 (High-end and mid-range DX9 cards)

Part 2 (Low-end and entry-level DX9/DX8 cards)
 
LoudMusic
Ev0, I would normally agree with you, but HL2 at 800 x 600 with none of the cool features turned on isn't exactly getting your money's worth.
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Actually, I'm not missing out on many of the good graphical goodies. Water reflections look stunning on my comp, and lighting is turned all the way up. The only thing I really notice when I'm playing are the medium res textures on ingame models. But, for a PC that is nearing the end of it's gaming life, I think my comp is doing an excellent job of handling HL2.

And would a gaming laptop be worth buying now or in the next half year? I'm going to be probably heading off to University in August/September and I am considering getting a laptop as my comp for when I do go away.
 
///M-Spec
Thanks for the thoughts, everyone. My new 9800 Pro should be under the tree in a few weeks.


M
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A Few Weeks? Why not get it now? :p
 
Okay, just my $0.02...

Being an AMD fanboy I suggest you go and get yourself a nice shiny new Athlon FX55 and while you're at it grab an Abit Mobo, latest and greatest technology. 1GB DDR2 800FSB RAM, set alongside your new GFX card, should run HL2 and about 7 other games side-by-side at the same time without so much as a hop, skip or jump... :trouble:

Though I don't condone running 7 games side-by-side... ! :irked:
 
Event Horizon
A Few Weeks? Why not get it now? :p
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Because we just totally blew our holiday budget on some new furniture, gifts, family dinners and crap like that. And contrary to what people think of BMW owners, we're not made of money. :p Besides, I can wait.


M
 
///M-Spec
Thanks for the thoughts, everyone. My new 9800 Pro should be under the tree in a few weeks.


M
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Godd choice. I'm getting mine on 20th Dec. Gonna have a huge computer overhaul this coming holiday. Parents are getting a new PC, i'm getting their old PC and my bro is getting my old PC. Loads of bits need moving around (data and hardware wise) and it's going to be a mission. Three PC's lined up in the lounge. Gotta get it all done in before Christmas. That's 5 five days. The mission is on :sly:
 
How are Sapphire's 9800 Atlantis cards? Any good? There's gotta be a reason they're so much cheaper than ATI's own 9800s.


M
 
///M-Spec
How are Sapphire's 9800 Atlantis cards? Any good? There's gotta be a reason they're so much cheaper than ATI's own 9800s.


M
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The on board memory may be cheaper and the card may run at a lower clock speed, the hsf on the card may not be as good there are a whole load of different things it could be. It depends, maybe you should checkout a good hardware review site. I can only think of www.tomshardware.com at the moment though.
 
Yea, I've used THG often in the past, but they don't have a review of the Sapphire card. The sites that have reviewed it don't compare it to ATI's.

I just saw that Gamespot did a HL2 specific test HERE. A must read. It confirms my original fear that I was going to be CPU limited. I'm starting to think it's about the end of the road for my old KR7A based machine.


M
 
I just installed ATI Radeon 9800 so it sounds like I am in good shape for this game too. I think mine is the 128 or 256. But the cost was $130 from Best Buy. I will look at the box tonight to verify what I bought to make sure our comp will play it. I also have 1gig of ram and a 2.8 processor.
 
CAMAROBOY69
I just installed ATI Radeon 9800 so it sounds like I am in good shape for this game too. I think mine is the 128 or 256. But the cost was $130 from Best Buy. I will look at the box tonight to verify what I bought to make sure our comp will play it. I also have 1gig of ram and a 2.8 processor.
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At that price, it sounds like you got the 9800, not the 9800Pro, which would be a bit of a shame. Like to hear the exact specs when you get them.

MSpec: I'm getting the Sapphire 9800Pro Atlantis on the basis that Computer Shopper have voted it the best AGP card for < £150 and i trust their judgement. Also i checked around a load of sites and most people still seem to be running 9800Pro cards and a very satisfied with it. In general i found that the Sapphire 9800Pro was similarly priced to other brand 9800Pros.
 
donbenni
At that price, it sounds like you got the 9800, not the 9800Pro, which would be a bit of a shame. Like to hear the exact specs when you get them.

MSpec: I'm getting the Sapphire 9800Pro Atlantis on the basis that Computer Shopper have voted it the best AGP card for < £150 and i trust their judgement. Also i checked around a load of sites and most people still seem to be running 9800Pro cards and a very satisfied with it. In general i found that the Sapphire 9800Pro was similarly priced to other brand 9800Pros.
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Careful with the Atlantis, some come in 128-bit.
 

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