Please help in deep trouble

[divyeshk1]

I have a system having following specs
Gigabyte motherboard MA785GM-US2H
AMD Phenom 2 X2 555
4 GB of RAM
Windows XP SP 2 32 bit
nvidia GF 8400 GS
Can anyone look at the motherboard suggest me the best configuration i can get with this motherboard ???
Should i change my OS??Does this motherboard supports windows 7 64 bit ??I don't think it supports DDR3.
It has onboard 512 mb of ati hd 4200.
Can i upgrade my processor to phenom 2 X4 or phenom 2 X6??
Is there an sli support or a crossfire support ??
If there is crossfire support can i put two high end hd 7000 gpu's in it ??Will it be compatible with my slow processor??
Can i install any gtx or any kepler gpu in it ???
PLEASE GIVE THE MAX CONFIG USING THIS MOTHERBOARD AS I AM IN DEEP TROUBLE WITH THIS OLD SYSTEM.THANKS.

[Iceman0124]

If you can afford to go with 2 high end vid cards.... at first blush I reccomed going with one and upgrading the platform IE mobo, CPU and ram.

You only have one full length PCIE slot so thats one card, also note you will likely need a PSU upgrade, even for a single high end card.

It supports DDR2 only, and yes it can run a 64 bit OS.

Not sure on the CPU support as I've been an intel guy the last couple builds but it does suppor 6 core CPU's as it clearly states on the website for that mobo

GIGABYTE - Motherboard - Socket AM2+ - GA-MA785GM-US2H (rev. 3.3)

What exactly are you doing that puts you in "deep trouble" ? Kinda hard to say if a few upgrades will get you where you want or if a complete rebuild would be more practical with out more details on what you want/need to do with the machine.

[divyeshk1]

If you can afford to go with 2 high end vid cards.... at first blush I reccomed going with one and upgrading the platform IE mobo, CPU and ram.

You only have one full length PCIE slot so thats one card, also note you will likely need a PSU upgrade, even for a single high end card.

It supports DDR2 only, and yes it can run a 64 bit OS.

Not sure on the CPU support as I've been an intel guy the last couple builds but it does suppor 6 core CPU's as it clearly states on the website for that mobo

GIGABYTE - Motherboard - Socket AM2+ - GA-MA785GM-US2H (rev. 3.3)

What exactly are you doing that puts you in "deep trouble" ? Kinda hard to say if a few upgrades will get you where you want or if a complete rebuild would be more practical with out more details on what you want/need to do with the machine.

Thanks for reply.If i upgrade my processor to X6 which is the best gpu to put in to it?Will X6 bottleneck those high end hd 7000's or gtx
600 series??Please will you suggest me the best gpu??And will you suggest me the psu which goes with the gpu ???

[Iceman0124]

The best for what? As stated, more details will help considerably, what are you trying to do that you cant right now and what are your expectations from said upgrades/rebuild?

[divyeshk1]

The best for what? As stated, more details will help considerably, what are you trying to do that you cant right now and what are your expectations from said upgrades/rebuild?

I want to play all new games at decent medium settings without changing my motherboard.Games like Metro 2033 , Witcher 2 ,etc.And i want to know if i put an high end gpu with processor Phenom 2 X6 will it bottleneck that gpu and what is the best gpu that goes with X6???Thanks for reply.

[Iceman0124]

First with the CPU I would look for a good overclocking quad core...6 cores isnt going net you much in games, and can actually hold you back a bit...think fewer cores (ie quad) and higher clock speeds. Now if your doing high level productivity work with apps that are highly threaded, 6 cores can a long way (are you seeing the need for clear specifics yet) and if so you need to find a middle road based on use.

As for the vid card, what res? if your at 1920 @ 60 HZ or lower you dont "need" all that much muscle.....a solid $200-$300 card should work well. If your using a 120 HZ screen, and or going multi minitor gaming/super high res 2XXX and up, 3D gaming etc more horsepower is requierd and more robust an multiple GPUS should be considered....if you think thats you....a new platform (ie MOBO/cpu etc) is strongly advised.

Bottlenecking is importnt to be aware of but is often blown out of proportion....some folks will roll their eyes and say your wasting your time with CPU/GPU combo, as yes, the CPU cant run the GPU to its peak....BUT said combo will net you a real world gain of say over 15-25% over the next model down GPU in the apps you are using....and if your considering a new platform in the near future, bigger will be better.

You just cant look at the black and whites building a gaming rig of any scale, from entry to very high end....its finding the right balance to meet your current needs, forward thinking upgrade plans...IE buy a SASTA 3 SSD but my curruent mobo will work best with SATA2 ports....buy an SLI/xfire board though I'm not sure if I will ever go multi card.....how much really is overkill on the PSU if I am thinking multi card in the near future? etc etc...

My reccomedation is to break things down small....dont ask for "best" overall, find your wants and your need with each component....learn the difference between the two (wants and needs), then start zeroing in on specifics....otherwise you could spend a good chunk of change....and not get what you were really after.

If medium setting is enough , (still what res??) your CPU will probably be enough for now...and I'd look at a soild mid range card like a 560TI/7870 and that should be enough to get more than you want if your PSU can handle the card..if not upgrade the PSU as well.

[divyeshk1]

First with the CPU I would look for a good overclocking quad core...6 cores isnt going net you much in games, and can actually hold you back a bit...think fewer cores (ie quad) and higher clock speeds. Now if your doing high level productivity work with apps that are highly threaded, 6 cores can a long way (are you seeing the need for clear specifics yet) and if so you need to find a middle road based on use.

As for the vid card, what res? if your at 1920 @ 60 HZ or lower you dont "need" all that much muscle.....a solid $200-$300 card should work well. If your using a 120 HZ screen, and or going multi minitor gaming/super high res 2XXX and up, 3D gaming etc more horsepower is requierd and more robust an multiple GPUS should be considered....if you think thats you....a new platform (ie MOBO/cpu etc) is strongly advised.

Bottlenecking is importnt to be aware of but is often blown out of proportion....some folks will roll their eyes and say your wasting your time with CPU/GPU combo, as yes, the CPU cant run the GPU to its peak....BUT said combo will net you a real world gain of say over 15-25% over the next model down GPU in the apps you are using....and if your considering a new platform in the near future, bigger will be better.

You just cant look at the black and whites building a gaming rig of any scale, from entry to very high end....its finding the right balance to meet your current needs, forward thinking upgrade plans...IE buy a SASTA 3 SSD but my curruent mobo will work best with SATA2 ports....buy an SLI/xfire board though I'm not sure if I will ever go multi card.....how much really is overkill on the PSU if I am thinking multi card in the near future? etc etc...

My reccomedation is to break things down small....dont ask for "best" overall, find your wants and your need with each component....learn the difference between the two (wants and needs), then start zeroing in on specifics....otherwise you could spend a good chunk of change....and not get what you were really after.

If medium setting is enough , (still what res??) your CPU will probably be enough for now...and I'd look at a soild mid range card like a 560TI/7870 and that should be enough to get more than you want if your PSU can handle the card..if not upgrade the PSU as well.

Thanks.My monitor is running at 1280x1024 at 75 Hz.Seriously i don't know anything about refresh rates.Should i change my monitor ??If i want to play games like Witcher 2 at high settings without changing my mobo is it possible??My need is to play all demanding games at high settings at 1920x1080 res and with AA,shadows all enabled.

[Iceman0124]

So your on an old CRT? If you want 1920x1080 res you will need a more modern display.....

As for the witcher 2, min CPU is an dual core at 2.5 ghz, yours is over 3ghz.....reccomended is a quad core, so you could upgrade upgrade to an x4 and grab one of the vid cards I mentioned above (and a PSU if needed)...and you'll be set to play that game at 1080P with high settings.....or you could always go the Xbox route...Personally I would do the vid card first and see how it goes...the CPU upgrade might not be worth it as you can only go so far with that mobo before a rebuild is needed. Rebuilding 3/4 of an old machine without changing platform is rarely an good investment, you'll buy a little extra life, but more roadblocks harder to get around will keep popping up.

My rule of thumb is if the board is 2 generations out of date....put as little in it that cant be transffered to a modern one (even one not yet released) as anything bors specific can just be money down the drain.

Whats your overall budget? Its not hard to make a soild budget gaming rig these days with plenty of room to expand for around $500 or if you really do your homework and cut a few extra corners a fair bit less....if the Witcher 2 is your primary concern, there is also the Xbox 360 route.

[divyeshk1]

So your on an old CRT? If you want 1920x1080 res you will need a more modern display.....

As for the witcher 2, min CPU is an dual core at 2.5 ghz, yours is over 3ghz.....reccomended is a quad core, so you could upgrade upgrade to an x4 and grab one of the vid cards I mentioned above (and a PSU if needed)...and you'll be set to play that game at 1080P with high settings.....or you could always go the Xbox route...Personally I would do the vid card first and see how it goes...the CPU upgrade might not be worth it as you can only go so far with that mobo before a rebuild is needed. Rebuilding 3/4 of an old machine without changing platform is rarely an good investment, you'll buy a little extra life, but more roadblocks harder to get around will keep popping up.

My rule of thumb is if the board is 2 generations out of date....put as little in it that cant be transffered to a modern one (even one not yet released) as anything bors specific can just be money down the drain.

Whats your overall budget? Its not hard to make a soild budget gaming rig these days with plenty of room to expand for around $500 or if you really do your homework and cut a few extra corners a fair bit less....if the Witcher 2 is your primary concern, there is also the Xbox 360 route.

I think you are correct and i would be building a new rig in few months. My one and only concern is gaming and i am not a console fan as you know by 2013 end or 2014 you would have X720 and a PS4.Thanks for your help.