A question about possible gfx card upgrade, as related to cpu.

[Zukas]

I'm looking to get a new graphics card for SC2. I'm currently running on,

Intel(R) Core(TM)2 Duo CPU E6750 @ 2.66GHz (2 CPUs), ~2.7GHz
2Gigs of ram
and my NVIDIA GeForce 7600 GS


My question is, if I were to purchase, say, a NVIDIA GeForce GTX-460, like this guy did, would my CPU be able to handle it and run SC2 like he does in the video? Or anywhere near it? I want to be able to 1v1 on Ultra settings no lag at all. My worst fear is needing a new CPU for that in addition to the graphics card.

[Briggs]

I'd be more worried about how good your power supply is, then worry about your CPU, if your power supply is below say...650W even if you don't need a new CPU, it'd probably lag or freeze without a new CPU. So try figuring out how big of a PSU you need before you figure how good of a CPU you need.

[TheEconomist]

A PSU either runs it to the specifications or it craps out. It never slows down.

650W is not only enough for a fairly beefy rig, it's not a good way to judge the quality of a PSU. I have a 700W Thermaltake which performs better than a 800W Corsair which performs better than a 1000W generic POS.

I had a 7800GS and an Athlon 64 3000+ which takes up more power than that PC and it ran perfect for close to five years on a 450W generic CompUSA PSU.

[Gt2slurp]

I got a GTX260 with a dual core 2.8 ghz, if you wich to crank up the graphic you will need some more ram. I play at 82% of 4Gb, no way i can play on high without my 4Gb of ram.

Also, considering the game is cpu heavy, the gtx460 is a little bit overkill. You can take a video card a little less performant and invest in Ram.

My 2 cents ^^

[TheEconomist]

Are you sure that's 82% of RAM and not CPU? I have 6GB and I rarely use more than 2GB on 1v1 maps. Never paid attention in bigger matches or UMS.

[Briggs]

Tychus, are you hear to correct the comments or invest knowledge into the subject at hand? So far it's the prior.

The game is heavy on on the CPU, so you might want to invest into a better one, but before you do anything, don't just rely on our opinions, look into several websites, blogs, and consumer reports on what items you have in mind. Last thing you want to do is buy something that 1: doesn't get the job done and 2: isn't compatible with your system.

[TheEconomist]

Tychus, are you hear to correct the comments or invest knowledge into the subject at hand? So far it's the prior.

Whatever I feel like.

The OP is easily answered with Google searches for benchmarks so I left it alone since I can only evaluate that CPU based on other CPUs similar to it which isn't an effective way of doing things.

[dude131]

I OC'd my E6750 to 3.2 GHz
4 gigs of ram
and Nvidia GTX260
and the game runs fine on Ultra even in bigger match ups,
so id say the cpu is fine

[EvilGenius]

I believe Tychus was justified in correcting the WRONG information.

- The GTX 460 needs a minimum of a 450 watt PSU (according to nvidia)

- Your CPU/Ram will become a bottleneck for that card.

Dude131 has the right idea - a 260 would run the game very well, without being overkill. Oddly enough, the 260 has higher power requirements than the 460 - make sure your PSU is at least 500 watts.

[Crazy_Jonny]

CPU is fine (core 2 duos are still decent gaming chips), but the RAM is iffy. You usually wanna be above the recommended RAM requirements (for SC2 at least 3gb).

As for the video card, you should have at least a 450 watt PSU to make a good graphics card upgrade. The newer ones with DDR5 memory will actually serve you better due to lower power demand. Meaning if you can, go with a gtx 460. If you're not playing on a big monitor, get the 768mb version.