Australian Computers: Minimum & recommended requirements for Trainz TRS2004

[Red_Rattler]

Firstly, can I ask for specs that relate to Australian computers only please.

Secondly, I know I'm going against my own advice about using existing threads, but I wanted a more relevant title.

Minimum and Recommended requirements
Looking for:
Minimum and recommended system requirements for both Trainz TRS04.

Also minimum and recommended RAM, and GB of hard disk drive space.
What video card is suitable for both games?

Vista & XP
I have been given different answers about this. Some shops say that these simulator programs will work with Vista, and some say if not, that their is a work around. And can Trainz and MSTS1 work on the one computer with Vista?

And which Vista is better? Vista Basic, Vista Home or Vista Pro (not sure of exact names).

XP based computers are still available, but would that be more of a advantage or disadvantage now?

PS: Can I have the replies in plain English & not techinical speak - ie: easier to understand! (unless it can't be helped)

 

[collinsl]

How are Australian computers different from other computers?

As for XP, Microsoft stopped selling it in June, so finding a new copy of XP will be hard.

 

[johnwhelan]

No matter how powerful the machine a content creator who uses lots of polys etc will bring it to at a standstill.

So the question becomes what is economic to get reasonable performance. What is available to you? Are you able to put together parts or do you want something made up?

www.tomshardware.com is a good place to start. Think it terms of 3 gigs of memory min for Vista, 2.5 for XP if you can find it.

Realistically TRS2004 wasn't designed for Vista so i'd think TRS2006 with TC3 to improve the game engine.

Cheerio John

 

[0099]

How are Australian computers different from other computers?

As for XP, Microsoft stopped selling it in June, so finding a new copy of XP will be hard.

Cause its easier to buy a computer in your own country:hehe: .

 

[Red_Rattler]

I have to bring this up first:

Think it terms of 3 gigs of memory min for Vista, 2.5 for XP if you can find it.

Most stores (9 stores reasonably close to each other) the majority have only 2GB RAM, and either 250 or 500GB Hard disk drive space (HDD). Although I have seen just a few of either 3GB RAM & 500GB HDD, with one that is a huge 8GB RAM & 1,000GB HDD (& 3GB, 1000 GB HDD)!

How are Australian computers different from other computers?

One example is a different voltage for power, and MAY (not will) be slightly different.

As for XP, Microsoft stopped selling it in June, so finding a new copy of XP will be hard.

I still see plenty XP based, although the majority are now Vista. With Vista, most seem to have the Vista Home version, with some exceptions.

nVidia card:
I'm not sure what version we have, but most computers (about 80%) I see have about 256MB with 8600GT (??), with some having 512MB (either 8600 or 9300GT - or whatever the GT number is).

And I've noticed that when a graphics card is advertised, is that some say "nnnMB, nnnnGT dedicated graphics." But around half to three quarters leave the words "dedicated graphics" off. Is their any difference if these two words are left off?

Realistically TRS2004 wasn't designed for Vista so i'd think TRS2006 with TC3 to improve the game engine.

I regret that I have to say this, but for various reasons, I will not buy any more Auran products, but since I have TRS2004...

 

[ColPrice2002]

Probably the simplest concept is the "DIY" one.

Choose a modern motherboard from one of the premier brands that is suitable for a High spec processor. Trainz (and many programs) don't yet use multiple core processors, so you're better off (IMHO) looking for a fast single core (AMD, Intel etc).

Add in a) sound card (this should reduce the load on the CPU) and b) a graphics card that has its own memory (i.e. "dedicated graphics") - otherwise the graphics have to share the main memory and this slows everthing down as well as reducing the memory for Trainz.

Power supply:-
All computers use +/- 5 volts and +/-12 volts power supplies, choose a good one - about 650 watts - and if you source it locally it will run wqith your mains voltage (mine's 250 v 50 cycles AC - UK). This means that you don't need to worry about the internal power/voltage the motherboard receives.

Case - Id recommend one of the Akasa ones - with 2 x 120 cm cooling fans - worth every penny of the £26 I spent.

In general, the more RAM you can fit in the better - most motherboards have 4 slots - you can buy different size modules (256 Mb, 512Mb, 1Gb, 2GB) it's better to match these so 4 x 512 Kb = 2 Mb (popular size for Win XP) - or buy 2 to 3 x 1Mb = 3 Mb (Vista upwards).

HTH.

Colin

 

[johnwhelan]

In general the online retailers such as Dell or www.megapc.com.au will have cheaper prices and more up to date computers. Considering that some nVidea cards have dropped 25% in the last week this should be a consideration. Also your local store will probably be selling on commision so expect slow moving items like older nVidea video cards to be pushed as the store will wish to unload these so the commision rate will be higher. Many users will not notice the difference, with Trainz you will, especially with TRS2004.

Dell offers XP on some models but at a possible increase in price. It is also possible to specify the memory and video card. There are threads on how to get TRS2004 running under Vista on the forums. However you need some technical knowledge and its not something I'd bother with personally.

Refer to Tomshardware.com for which video card is worth getting this week.

Cheerio John

 

[psycho_aussie]

A system with 2Gb of RAM will run Trainz sufficiently. The more RAM a system has, though, the better it will run things like Trainz. If you can get a system with 3Gb of RAM, go for it. There's no reason why you couldn't get a system with 2Gb of RAM and ask for an extra 1Gb either...

Any current video card with 256Mb of RAM or more would run Trainz sufficiently, but as with system RAM, the more the better. Also, some video chips are better than others. Generally, a video card with a higher chip "name" (eg. GeForce 8800/Radeon 3870) is better than one with a lower "name" (GeForce 8600/Radeon 3650), but this isn't always true. Benchmarks like those found on Tom's Hardware would be a good way to determine which video card would suit you the best.

The Intel Core 2 Duo processors are a good choice, as are some of the Athlon64 X2's. I have an X2 5200+, which runs Trainz rather well. A "cheap" Phenom X3 processor might also be a likely choice, but you shouldn't really need anything over a dual-core.

Soundcard wise, if you are using Vista, and you also play other games that use environmental sounds (otherwise known as EAX), then you will need a seperate sound card like the Creative X-Fi, Asus Sonar or Auzen Prelude, as Vista doesn't natively support EAX. It's a bit too technical to explain why (thinking Micro$oft might help though...). Under XP, you wouldn't need a seperate sound card though, and generally the onboard sound on most motherboards will suit Trainz fine.

A 250Gb hard drive would suit your needs, but if you feel like you might download a fair bit from the DLS, or other sites, you could go for a 500Gb hard drive. Getting a SATA II hard drive is recommended, but not necessary. Any IDE hard drive will operate perfectly well, but SATA drives can transfer data faster, and almost if not all motherboards have SATA ports on them. If you don't have one, a DVD burner would help with backing up your files as well.

A 550W power supply is my recommended "baseline". You might be able to get away with a 500W, but I wouldn't recommend it. Anything over 550W would essentially be overkill.

Hopefully these tips will help you get a good system to run Trainz on.

Chris