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| Thread ID: 78588 | 2007-04-21 06:15:00 | Up-grading a CPU | meg_h_nz (6960) | Press F1 |
| Post ID | Timestamp | Content | User | ||
| 542889 | 2007-04-26 22:36:00 | What is the exact model of P4 that you have? What type of PC is it? (Desktop, tower etc) EDIT: how long did you have Prime 95 running for? EDIT EDIT: just thinking about it, that is rather high... depending on you actual CPU model it could even be close to the max recommended temperature... CPU: P4 LAG775 3.2GHz, 800MHz FSB, 1MB L2 Cache. Case: FSP Midtower Case with 350W Power Supply. Ran Prime95 for 5 hours with no errors. This may sound silly but I was hoping that one of these tests would turn up a problem so I could at the very least identify the issue and work on fixing it. No luck so far:( |
meg_h_nz (6960) | ||
| 542890 | 2007-04-27 02:39:00 | Now try running Sim. What temperature does that provoke? ;) There seems to be a consensus that you have a computer with specifications that most of us would love to have, and you shouldn't need to upgrade. Next thought: I wonder if it is the RAM after all. :horrified Memtest probably doesn't stress the CPU much, so the board/box temperature won't be very high. You could try Memtest immediately after Sim has crashed, or after running Prime95 to get the temperature up. If this is the problem you should get errors very quickly. |
Graham L (2) | ||
| 542891 | 2007-04-27 04:19:00 | Based on the test you've conducted so far I'm fairly confident that the CPU and memory aren't the problem. Assuming its not a software issue my suspicion would be the video card, the easiest way to test would be to run in through a loop of 3DMark, unfortunately unlike Prime95 or Memtest its not a small download, are you on dail-up or broadband? | Pete O'Neil (6584) | ||
| 542892 | 2007-04-27 08:26:00 | OH cr*p. I am on dail up. How big is the download? I always intedned to upgrade my graphics card around the two year mark (thats six months ago) When I did the original build I put as much bang-for-my-buck (for back then) as I could into my MB, CPU & RAM knowing that the graphisc card would be the first thing I would upgrade. So the next question: What graphics card should I upgrade to? Keeping in mind I dont have $1500 to spend on one :) |
meg_h_nz (6960) | ||
| 542893 | 2007-04-27 08:55:00 | CPU: P4 LAG775 3.2GHz, 800MHz FSB, 1MB L2 Cache. Case: FSP Midtower Case with 350W Power Supply. Ran Prime95 for 5 hours with no errors. This may sound silly but I was hoping that one of these tests would turn up a problem so I could at the very least identify the issue and work on fixing it. No luck so far:( No, that is the specs of it, I was meaning the actual model :p I think it is a P4 541. Cooling should be OK, I know that the desktop cases (CPU under HDD or CD drive) get the CPU really hot... That would be long enough to get an error or crash if the sims does in less than that... Try upgrading your motherboard drivers and see if it is a driver issue. OH cr*p. I am on dail up. How big is the download? I always intedned to upgrade my graphics card around the two year mark (thats six months ago) When I did the original build I put as much bang-for-my-buck (for back then) as I could into my MB, CPU & RAM knowing that the graphisc card would be the first thing I would upgrade. So the next question: What graphics card should I upgrade to? Keeping in mind I dont have $1500 to spend on one :) 3D Mark 06 is 580MB :p I would say a 7600GT PCI-E (ascent.co.nz) card would offer you good performance vs cost and the CPU will still handel it. ofcourse you can go higher, but then the CPU might start to limit the GFX cards performance... |
The_End_Of_Reality (334) | ||
| 542894 | 2007-04-27 09:27:00 | Found the CPU box. It says Intel Pentium 4 Processor 540 (I imagine that the 541 was one step up???) |
meg_h_nz (6960) | ||
| 542895 | 2007-04-27 10:34:00 | Not sure, it looks like they are classed as the same thing... Anyway, according to this (download.intel.com) and tables 5.1 and 5.3 you max safe CPU temp is 67.7°C... hmm... how confident are you of opening the case and taking a look at the CPUs heatsink and fan? to see if it is clogged up* |
The_End_Of_Reality (334) | ||
| 542896 | 2007-04-27 12:28:00 | I have opened the case quite a few times to blow out the dust and clean the fans etc. It never makes any difference. | meg_h_nz (6960) | ||
| 542897 | 2007-04-27 13:44:00 | It would seem you're getting far too close for comfort judging by previous posts, could be that the heatsink isn't seated properly or the thermal paste needs replacing. If you want to do this yourself make sure not to touch the thernal paste with your fingers. As for Graphics card I don't know much about ATI but for nVidia the best bang for buck options listed from least powerful up are: 7600GT - good budget card will play all games at least 1024x768 7900GS - a bit better should handle 1280x1024 7950GT - getting pretty good can turn on AA and AF with this 8800GTS 320M version, any more performance than this will cost a fortune there are a lot of other cards but these represent the best value between $250-$600 for example a 7900GTX is slower than the 8800GTS and costs a lot more, a 7900GT is barely any faster than the GS and again more expensive. |
dugimodo (138) | ||
| 542898 | 2007-04-27 21:55:00 | have you got all the latest patches (if any) available for the Sims game, might help | borax (7078) | ||
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