Upgrading Graphics Card. Advice Please?

I've decided to upgrade my graphics card so I would like some advice please.
I know nothing about my computer as its Trainz I love, and the workings of my computer are of very little interest.
I've listed below my computer specs and was wondering if a better graphics card would improve performance.

Asus P5N-E SLI Motherboard
Intel E6400 Core 2 Duo processor
N-Vidia 8600GT 512MB PCI-X Graphics Card

Thanks in advance for information offered.

Michael

ekin1972 said:

I've decided to upgrade my graphics card so I would like some advice please.
I know nothing about my computer as its Trainz I love, and the workings of my computer are of very little interest.
I've listed below my computer specs and was wondering if a better graphics card would improve performance.

Asus P5N-E SLI Motherboard
Intel E6400 Core 2 Duo processor
N-Vidia 8600GT 512MB PCI-X Graphics Card

Thanks in advance for information offered.

Michael

Click to expand...

hi ekin1972

i use a little prog called (game booster) i works for me .just look on the net for it . just give it a go be for parting with a lot of cash for a g card . hope it helps out . you have better pc than me :hehe: i run on a 250mb g card at mo . o by the way the prog is free .

:wave:

Hey

Thanks for the reply. I shall check that out when I turn my Trainz PC on.

madtrainz14 said:

i use a little prog called (game booster) i works for me .just look on the net for it .

Click to expand...

I installed game booster after reading this earlier on this afternoon. I was a bit skeptical but do you know what it really works.

I have a pretty high standard HP system which I have always known has quite a lot running in the background which is difficult to shut down. I have built a very big route of my own and have noticed a slight stutter at started in some high density areas.

However, after installing this little app and telling it to switch to game mode I sat and watched in amazement and with some trepidation as all the background programs were shut down. Launching Trainz 2010 with my route running it ran as smooth as silk.

After shutting down Trainz and telling the app to switch back to normal modeI sat back and watched again as all the background programs were started up again and I was immediately able to go to all my e-mails which are held online at Google.

Great little program, I would not say it would solve everything for everybody but if you're PC is just running on the edge it might well give it that little extra boost it needs. Well worth a try

All the best
Bill

I've just tried it but its not what I need. It made a very slight improvement but I still think its a graphic card upgrade.

I've decided to use more realistic content created for 2010 and and its that, that has slowed the game down.

But thanks for the suggestion

Michael

Hi Ekin
I think you are right there using 2010 content only can make quite a bit of difference. Also try to stay away from the new high-definition textures for want of a better phrase. I noticed when I installed them in a cutting the frame rate dropped considerably.

Also placing speedtrees close to the track also seems to cause a drop in the frame rates (at least that's my experience, I know others would differ).

However, if it comes to having to buy a new graphics card they have come down considerably in price over the last couple of years. Just make sure that you won't have to upgrade your power supply to run the new card otherwise that can get quite expensive.

All the best with it
Bill

I've put aside £150 for a graphics card and I may have to pay extra for a power upgrade. Which I'm prepared for.

Mainly because I would like to use the new high definition content.

Michael

What do you have now?
OOPS! Never mind.

Hi Michael.
sounds like that sort of money should do it easily. I know one of the computer magazines online published quite a big report on upgrading graphics cards and what to look for plus the problems that can be encountered. I cant remember the name of the magazine but if you type into your browser "upgrading graphics cards" it comes up (at least it did for me)

I'm just about to upgrade my speech to text software which I am using now. That's going to cost me about 80 pounds even with a loyal customer discount. Then there is all the trouble of transferring my speech files from one program to the other but like you it should all be worth it in the end. It has in the past anyway

All the best with your project and I hope you're favorite Trainz route runs as smooth as silk at the end of it.


Let us know how it goes on
Bill

SuperFudd said:

What do you have now?

Click to expand...

Read his opening post.