Am i bottlenecking my 5870?

[mjpd1983]

Hi guys,

This is my first post here, i have been a big reader of this forum and i appreciate any help i can get. I'm not a PC noob as ive worked in IT for a long while and been a gamer for quite some time. I am just terrible at making my mind up on buying things :)

I'm in the middle of currently upgrading my modest gaming rig components, my current rig isnt the greatest but its not too bad. I'm trying to decide if i should upgrade my CPU from a core 2 duo 3.06ghz (e7600) to an i5 750.

I appologise if this is a topic that has already been discussed at length but i'm terrible at making my mind up as the reviews are all different.

My main goal is to have a well balanced rig that is balanced for both GPU and CPU, my MAJOR concern is bottlenecking my GPU.

My current set up is below, please let me know your opinions on upgrading because im having trouble determining weather or not i am currently bottlenecking my GPU in any way. (i suspect the Mobo and CPU might be)

OS: Windows XP Pro 32bit
RAM: 4gb DDR2
CPU: e7600 (3.06ghz)
GPU: Saphire HD5870
PSU: HX Corsair 750
Mobo: P5QPL-AM (pretty average i know)

If i upgrade to an i5 750 with a P55A-UD3R Mobo would i notice any fps or general performance at all in games such as Crysis, Dirt 2, BFBC2 etc..? or any game for that matter?

Is my current set up limiting my 5870?

All games do run very well but im still just curious, cheers in advance for the advice guys.

-M

[supaflyx3]

well one thing is, why are you using a 32bit OS with 4gb of ram?

[mjpd1983]

Im not sure i understand you?

I know 32 bit can't make use of it all but i have 2 2GB sticks so the only option is to plug them both in?

Or did you mean why am i using such a low amount of RAM?

[supaflyx3]

i mean 32bit OS's can't utilize 4gb of ram, and 32bit programs can't use more then 2gb of ram IIRC

[mjpd1983]

I see, and yes that's all well and good as i am aware of all this

My post was concerned with CPU + GPU and bottlenecking

Did you have any decent suggestions on my OP or are we just going to compare minor technical knowledge back and forth

cheers

[_dangtx_]

dont spend the casho. oc the cpu if you like.

[mo' power]

If you go with i5, are you aware you will have to switch to ddr3 ram? You might get a small oc out of that board, but nothing spectacular.

Your psu and video card are ok. Maybe a mb/ram/cpu swap is what is needed if you can afford it.

[mjpd1983]

Thanks for all the suggestions

I think i'm going to get the i5 750/Mobo/RAM upgrade, should go well with the 5870

Cheers guys

[rjbarker]

^^^ Don't forget to also upgrade your OS....W7 x64 FTW ;)

[CroSsFiRe2009]

You'll of course gain a fps increase going to i5 but the improvement might not be as big as you hope. Overclock your cpu and work from there. A much better ugprade would be to get an ssd