Upgrading First Build

[Bluecanoe]

Hi everyone,

My first and only PC build has been running strong for 3 years, but recently my son has been experiencing problems (lockups) when playing Call of Duty 4.

What do you guys think - is it time to upgrade, and if so, what would you recommend as a reasonable, budget minded upgrade? Other than COD a couple times a week, it is just a home PC used for email, internet surfing, etc.

One more queston: Is my board compatible with Windows 7 and, if it is, do you guys like it over Widows XP?

See specs below. Thanks for your help.

Processor: Intel E6600 Core 2 Duo 2.4GHz
CPU Cooler: Arctic Cooling Freezer 7 Pro
Motherboard: Intel D975XBX2
Memory: 3G (1Gx2 + 512MB x 2) Crucial Ballistix DDR2 800 (PC2-6400) CL4
Video Card: Sapphire ATI Radeon X1950XT 256 MB
Power Supply: Seasonics S12 Energy 550W
Hard Drive: Seagate Barracuda 7200.10 320G
Optical Drive: Pioneer DVR-111DBK
Optical Drive: Samsung SH-S182M
Case: Lian Li PC-60B Plus II
Monitor: Samsung SyncMaster 205BW
Operating System: Windows XP Pro SP2

 

[mfenn]

Hi everyone,

My first and only PC build has been running strong for 3 years, but recently my son has been experiencing problems (lockups) when playing Call of Duty 4.

What do you guys think - is it time to upgrade, and if so, what would you recommend as a reasonable, budget minded upgrade? Other than COD a couple times a week, it is just a home PC used for email, internet surfing, etc.

One more queston: Is my board compatible with Windows 7 and, if it is, do you guys like it over Widows XP?

See specs below. Thanks for your help.

Processor: Intel E6600 Core 2 Duo 2.4GHz
CPU Cooler: Arctic Cooling Freezer 7 Pro
Motherboard: Intel D975XBX2
Memory: 3G (1Gx2 + 512MB x 2) Crucial Ballistix DDR2 800 (PC2-6400) CL4
Video Card: Sapphire ATI Radeon X1950XT 256 MB
Power Supply: Seasonics S12 Energy 550W
Hard Drive: Seagate Barracuda 7200.10 320G
Optical Drive: Pioneer DVR-111DBK
Optical Drive: Samsung SH-S182M
Case: Lian Li PC-60B Plus II
Monitor: Samsung SyncMaster 205BW
Operating System: Windows XP Pro SP2

Your system will easily handle Windows 7. It's a huge leap forward from Windows XP. You should upgrade the OS no matter what.

Can you describe the problem's he's been having with COD4? The solution may be as simple as removing dust that's been accumulating in the heatsink.

An E6600 is still no slouch. If you want to upgrade anyway, the GPU will give you the biggest jump in gaming. Get whatever Radeon 5000 series fits your budget (they're all good) with one caveat. If you're planning to spend less than $100 (5670), then don't bother. 5670 and up should all be a nice upgrade from an X1950XT.

 

[Bluecanoe]

Thanks for your reply - exactly the type of feedback I was hoping for.

After about 5 minutes of play, the game just freezes up. He says sometimes he can hear the video card fan increase speed just before this happens, so maybe it is a dirty heatsink. I will try to give it a good cleaning and see if that helps.

 

[mfenn]

Thanks for your reply - exactly the type of feedback I was hoping for.

After about 5 minutes of play, the game just freezes up. He says sometimes he can hear the video card fan increase speed just before this happens, so maybe it is a dirty heatsink. I will try to give it a good cleaning and see if that helps.

Yes, what you're describing certainly sounds like a heat issue. You may have to disassemble the heatsink/fan combo in order to give it a thorough de-dusting.