Hiya guys,
I have been toying with the idea that I need a new PC but that idea has now become fact. My PC is just too damn slow for the amount I use it....
Now there are a few options available to me but one I wanted to run past you fella's
Now instead of getting a new PC to do everything (already have DVD RW, ExHD, Media Players, Internets etc etc etc) and instead of just updating the MB and GFX I was wondering.
What if a made a streamlined Gaming PC - MB, GFX, Sound Card, RAM, Power, fans fans fans. complete minimum for gaming.
I am taking one Hard Drive with one OS, solely for gaming.
Would the be any benefits for doing this apart from saving money on the missing components?
I would like to know your thoughts on this please guys.
Nope.
I'd suggest making an image of your computer and formatting ever 6 months to keep it running fast. Then it'll always run fast. OS's tend to slow down if you you them for gaming or whatever after a year or so.
Quote from: T-Bag;274617Nope.
I'd suggest making an image of your computer and formatting ever 6 months to keep it running fast. Then it'll always run fast. OS's tend to slow down if you you them for gaming or whatever after a year or so.
Well, I partly disagree. Modern clean-up tools, and some consideration with how you use Windows, can avoid/remove most of the clogging. My longest XP installation was 6 years which died with my previous hard drives. My laptop's XP-installation is on it's 3rd year now, no problems so far.
Imho, many ppl say "yay, this OS is fast again" after reinstalling - but often it is not complete and as such not a valid comparison - missing stuff such as AV-shields, drivers for tons of hardware, your favorite desktop pic, the apps you need to run windows the way you like, etc.
Zoot - I would upgrade the components needed only, and game from the same disk. What you often to do strip Windows for a more clean performance does not need to interfere with daily use anyway - well, unless you are extreme and want to stop a ton of service to save a couple of MB
But what about, saving the resources that go into these things that are unnecassary for gaming?
Quote from: Zootoxin;274629But what about, saving the resources that go into these things that are unnecassary for gaming?
What parts are you having in mind?
Hey mate,
How old is the PC that is going 'slow'?
If it's not that old then you could upgrade a couple of bits and chuck another HDD in and dual boot (reinstall 'old' OS with Linux say and Vista on the gaming PC) - not a hard and fast suggestion but would work. Only problem would be booting into each OS each time you want to do something different.
Otherwise if you want a dedicated gaming PC you might need to spend (say) £400-£500. CASE (£30+), MOBO (£50+), CPU (£120+ Core2 Duo), RAM (£40+ OCZ4Gb), GFX (£120+ GTX260 on ebuyer), HDD (£60+).
Those are just some random prices etc and I'm sure you can get cheaper and still have a great gaming PC.
Or you might want to try Game Booster first and see if you notice the difference?
http://www.iobit.com/
PC is 4 years old.
I dont think its a problem with the install (5 weeks old) I just think its too old now.
Is it really worth stripping out bits and replacing?
I could keep this one or internet, media, cd burning etc and have a new dedicated games machine
Quote from: Zootoxin;275118PC is 4 years old.
I dont think its a problem with the install (5 weeks old) I just think its too old now.
Is it really worth stripping out bits and replacing?
I could keep this one or internet, media, cd burning etc and have a new dedicated games machine
What will you gain from having the second computer for the internet? If you do not run downloads from it then the advantage is very small. You'll have two computers running costs (more electricity), more desk space taken etc. Even dual booting doesn't really seem worthwhile in my opinion.
If you decide to hook it up to your TV as a video player then I can see the advantage.
Browsing the net does not slow your computer down. Having a wide range of programs installed shouldn't either if you have enough free disk space on your main drive.
That said if I have to replace the mobo to do an upgrade I turn it into a separate computer. It could make a nice gift form a casual web browser. I've a 3200+ x64, and a 4200+ X2 that when I upgraded required me to leave the mobo behind, so pretty much left me with a system minus graphics and ram which I generally have loads of spares. If this is your point then go for it, but using in the way you suggest is of no use. Media centre, gift, server, backup machine etc, but not just splitting what you're existing computer does over two machines.