Upgrade

[Kallos]

Was just wondering, but as Civ IV runs very slowly on my PC (anything over tiny map tends to lag, especially in later game) I am going to update my computer, as I feel I'm missing out on most of the Civ IV experience by being limited to such small maps.
My computer currently has the following stats:
512 ram
3.2 ghz cpu
Radeon 9600 pro (128mbit)

Was just curious as to what would be best to update first? I'm thinking another 1gb of ram may be most efficient, or should i update my graphics card instead? Unfortunately can't aford to do both.

Thanks, kallos

 

[Markus5]

Graphics card, then memory.

I just moved from fx5200 to 6600gt and the results are great. Before I played at low detail on all settings on a 1600x1200 screen and got 3-5 fps. Now I play at high detail on all setting on a 1600x1200 screen and get 20-60 fps. And, its just plain faster... Lots faster. And, all the movies play without burping.

The memory will definitely help, too. I added 256 to my 512 and got a little more stability. I'm going to try more memory.

 

[Zydor]

Kallos

Thats a good setup for Civ, you certainly should not be stuck at tiny worlds only. Please post your dxdiag before buying, we may be able to sort out what is wrong - would be a shame to waste the 9600 pro card - that one is no Olympic Champion, but its no slow coach either ...

The final solution will depend on your expectation of performance - may still endup buying hardware upgrade - Markus5 solution aka 1Gb & 6600gt is spot on if you do upgrade in the end.

Regards
Zy

 

[kris55]

For the most extreme boost to system performance get an AMD-64 processor. (stick with 32-bit OS for now)

I have a AMD 4000+ 64, and a 3.2Ghz P4; and in games like Civ 4, the AMD out runs the 3.2GHz by 24 frames per second, which is a lot! also in games like eve online, i get 140 frames with the AMD and 74 with the P4.

They both have the same graphics cards ,6800's, and drivers so it is pure processor power.

AMD is THE gaming processor, its been proven time and time again, if i haven't made AMD sound good then knowing that the fastest supercomputer in world uses AMD processors may help

 

[cavguy]

System: Athlon 64 3500, PNY FX-5700 Personal Cinema, 512mb RAM, Civ4 on patch 1.52. WinXP is fully updated. I have 60 Gig free on the harddisk and defrag at least weekly. Symantec AV and Zone Alarm are running in the background.

On normal size maps the game runs flawlessly at the highest video level.

I like playing the huge earth map - here's the problem. The game doesn't hang, but it slows WAY down - shifting from unit to unit, combat, videos, turn changes, etc - it's all painfully slow and jerky. Loading a saved game can take up to 7 minutes. I have dropped the video level to medium with no noticeable improvement. I don't think it's a video problem, but I'm not sure.

I'm considering upping the RAM from 512 to 1 or 1.5 Gig. I'm curious what you experts would suggest - upgrade the RAM, the video card, or maybe do something else? Thanks.

 

[Zydor]

Little doubt is the Video card - the FX-5700 is not particularly good at 3D.

Please post your Dxdiag as a file attachment (use 'go advanced' below to post) and we can have a look at the system as a whole to give suggestions

Regards
Zy

 

[cavguy]

Thanks, Zydor. If you do think my system's deficiency is the video, any replacement card recommendations would be appreciated. I'd like to stay under $200.

 

[Zydor]

Give this a go first, may give you breathing space
http://www.nvidia.com/object/winxp_2k_81.98.html
Latest Nvidia driver set - includes DirectX 9.0c support.

Even if it works, I would still go for another card as you may still hit issues in the Huge Worlds & Large Worlds late game with that card as you saw. Probably be ok on standard maps with a bit of work / housekeeping on the PC. However give the drivers a go first.

Make sure you talk to the PC supplier/Manufacturer whether or not the card will fit the motherboard, and that it will not cause heating issues

Ge Force 6600gt would be a nice one to go for - well within that budget - with that as a budget, maybe worth going for a 6800gt.

XFX are a good card maker - so XFX 6600gt or XFX 6800gt, plenty of flavours in between- keep away from so called LE cards, marketing con. Post your final choice if you want, we can give it a look, plenty of people on the board will give opinions on the card to help you.

Regards
Zy

 

[Kallos]

Thanks for the help so far, i've decidedI may as well splash out an do the job properly, buying the much recommended 6600 gt, and getting an extra gb of ram. Could anyone recommend a decent place to buy these from for uk delivery? I've looked around, and prices seem to cary quite a bit.

Also, I'm afraid i'm not too good with computers, and din't realise there were so many different types of ram. Could someone recommend a cheap(ish) 1gb of ram package that would still be effective? I'm afraid i have no clue what all the ddr ddr2 etc means.

One last thing, I don't actually know what make my motherboard is, is there an easy way to find this out?

Thanks again for all the help so far. Sorry if some of these questions are obvious, i'm pretty hopeless at computer technicalities.

 

[Comraddict]

extra ram then everything else..that graphics should have plenty of juice until late in game.

DDR is ram you probably need. DDR2 won't match. PC3200 1GB RAM is what you need.

 

[Raider62]

Just one gamers opinion here but you should get more than 512 mb ram. It's a fairly cheap, painless upgrade. 9600 pro is a pretty good card. I would definitely considering up my ram 1st. Another tip if you have a good computer store in your area that takes returns(most will take memory back), you can try the ram and see how much it helps and if it doesnt help a bunch return it and try the video card route. Though personally I think the ram is gonna help you out more than a 6600...but then again just one gamers opinion...

 

[Zydor]

It would be a shame to waste that 9600 Pro - just do the RAM upgrade first, can always look at cards later if needed.

Regards
Zy

 

[Velvet-Glove]

Also, I'm afraid i'm not too good with computers, and din't realise there were so many different types of ram. Could someone recommend a cheap(ish) 1gb of ram package that would still be effective? I'm afraid i have no clue what all the ddr ddr2 etc means.

For UK memory purchases I can recommend Crucial.com. They may not be the cheapest around but personally I would rather have high quality, reliable memory than a cheaper alternative. Postage is free and their RAM is guaranteed for 3 years. They have some tools on the site to help you determine exactly what sort of memory you need so check that out.

I upgraded with an extra 512MB a couple of months ago for just under £39 all in. I did this expressly to improve lagging performance in CivIV (I now have 1GB) and it did help. It gave everything else a welcome boost too.

 

[cavguy]

My budget was around $200, but I spent closer to $300. "All that to make a $45 game play better" - my wife is not impressed. : ) Got another 512mb of RAM (1Gig total) and a BFG 6800GS OC AGP video card (lots of good reviews at NewEgg) with an add-on Arctic NV5 cooler. I probably won't modify the card, so I'm not sure why I wanted the cooler. Going from 512mb and a FX5700, I can honestly say that the performance change is night and day. I played about 30 minutes last night on the huge earth map with all terrain exposed. Saved games loaded in <= 1 minute (compared to 7 min before). Everything moved faster - scrolling around the map (occasionally jerky, but minimally), moving units, everything. I could alt-tab in and out of the game with no problem. I'm using the drivers that came with the card. If they're working well, I'm not sure if I should install the newer version from NVidia. I want to thank everyone on the forum who gave advice on hardware. It helped me a ton in making my upgrade decision.

 

[Zydor]

The BFG 6800 has problems which BFG have confirmed are being dealt with between NVidia & Firaxis, have not heard anything more about it. So in view of that, I would leave well alone for now if its working ok until BFG say all is well etc - wouldhate you to load new drivers and it goes bang after the pain you have been through .... loading new drivers may load the issue, we dont know what it is.

Treat that as a wise precaution until the facts are known.

Regards
Zy