Graphics on ddr2

[Jake]

Hey, today I'm here to ask a question I have a GT 630 graphic card on my DDR2 sell desktop modified a little, I wanna play a steam game but it's a little laggy so I was wondering if I'm able to use a DDR3 graphic card to get better graphics and stop the lag?

 

[Frick]

You need a new GPU, with GDDR5. How much do you want to spend, and where do you live? Your best bet for a cheap upgrade is most likely a used GPU.

Also, what is the rest of the system specs?

 

[hat]

I think you're going to run into issues quickly with that machine. You can upgrade your graphics card, but...

•You're probably going to need a better power supply to power it.
•The new graphics card and power supply may not physically fit in that case.
•The rest of your hardware might become a problem. Is your CPU capable of running games at an acceptable performance level? Do you have enough RAM?

That said, with your current system, this card is probably your best shot. It's miles faster than your current GT630, and takes no external power connector (like your GT630) so you won't need to upgrade your power supply. Judging from your picture, it looks like you should probably have room for the cooler this card has, but it's tough to say from this angle. Just make sure you've got a little more room to go before you start hitting that shroud over your CPU cooler before you buy.

 

[Jake]

I would say £70 I live in the U.K, and the machine is old but it's weird the game says 2Gb graphics needed I have a graphic card 2Gb but still a lag on it even low specs, cpu seems to be 100% constantly when running the game.

What would I need to even do to make it smooth play?

 

[Tatty_Two]

What resolution are you playing at?

 

[P4-630]

Fill out your complete system specs:
https://www.techpowerup.com/forums/account/specs


After seeing the photos more clearly, if you want to get serious in PC gaming you'll just need to build a new system.....

 

[brandonwh64]

As some others have mentioned, according on your current PSU you may not be able to get a better GPU due to power requirements. PLEASE let us know what PSU you have?

 

[NdMk2o1o]

Just get a 750ti or similar that doesn't need extra pcie power, should be OK on that budget

 

[Papahyooie]

@Jake

I think it needs to be said that "2gb graphics card" doesn't *really* mean anything performance-wise. Sure, games will say they require such and such video ram. But the truth is that a graphics card maker can stick 2gb of ram on any crappy old video card. That card doesn't need anywhere near 2gb of ram for the speed of the chip. It's just overkill. And the manufacturer will stick an obscene amount of ram on that video card to lure people into buying it. So the amount of ram on a card really means nothing until you get into the high end and really start optimizing.

What @NdMk2o1o said is your best option. I have a machine like that Dell, and it games just fine at your resolution with a mid-range modern video card. So get a 750ti or something that doesn't require a new PSU, and then make sure you've got 4-8 gb of system RAM. (not video ram) and I think you'll be satisfied with the results without paying tons of money to totally build a new computer.

 

[Aquinus]

Just get a 750ti or similar that doesn't need extra pcie power, should be OK on that budget

While I typically would agree, the OP did state:

cpu seems to be 100% constantly when running the game.

Which would indicate that a new platform might be in order and that a faster GPU might still not solve the OP's problems. One of the reasons why I upgraded to the i7 3820 from the Phenom II 940 was because of memory bandwidth. There were some rare cases where the 940 appeared to be starved for memory bandwidth since overclocking RAM and the IMC would surprising yield performance. I wouldn't be surprised if the platform itself has been pushed that direction.

 

[Jake]

Isn't the GeForce 750TI a ddr5?

What I've been trying to ask is "my board is ddr2" wouldn't that require a ddr2 graphic card? Or even at least a PCI?

Yes as explained the game runs, but it's like a jurred lag, not majority just move lag move lag move fine, move lag... cpu is trash I'm aware of that! I've already got a replacement.

 

[Tatty_Two]

No there is no correlation between system memory (Ram) and graphics card memory.

 

[KainXS]

looks like an old optiplex or something, maybe a 750Ti used would work in it like everyone else said. That videocard in your system also looks like a vamery.

 

[_JP_]

It looks like an old optiplex 755...so at best you have a 300W PSU, which should hold-up with a 750Ti (w/o the power connector), for example.
But, IIRC, those optiplexes had Core 2 chips on them, part of the bad performance you notice could be from an aging (dual-core) processor.

EDIT: Doesn't help that the board is BTX form-factor, meaning you can't easily just swap it without getting a new chassis

EDIT2: What is the game you're trying to play anyway?

 

[Papahyooie]

Isn't the GeForce 750TI a ddr5?

What I've been trying to ask is "my board is ddr2" wouldn't that require a ddr2 graphic card? Or even at least a PCI?

Yes as explained the game runs, but it's like a jurred lag, not majority just move lag move lag move fine, move lag... cpu is trash I'm aware of that! I've already got a replacement.

Nope. System ram and video ram don't talk to each other. You can have DDR2 in your motherboard and a DDR5 graphics card. No problem there.

 

[thebluebumblebee]

Just get a 750ti or similar that doesn't need extra pcie power, should be OK on that budget

Or if you can find one of the GTX 950's that doesn't need a power cable, that would work even better.

 

[qubit]

You seem quite confused with the basic technical aspects of this. That computer is pretty old and not worth upgrading, so I think a prebuilt gaming PC might be best for you if you can afford it. You'll get peace of mind, tech support and a single warranty for the whole thing.

 

[Derek12]

100 CPU while gaming = The CPU is bottlenecking

No new video card will help.

 

[peche]

Why the f*ck people ask for help and always ignore the point of filling sys specs or ignore people asking details to provide a better opinion ....

 

[qubit]

Why the f*ck people ask for help and always ignore the point of filling sys specs or ignore people asking details to provide a better opinion ....

Agreed. This is when I stop bothering to help them.

 

[peche]

Agreed. This is when I stop bothering to help them.

also me too, sometimes i didnt help when see the missing sys specs and people asking about how something they are supposed to have works or could be replaced

 

[SomeOne99h]

Why the f*ck people ask for help and always ignore the point of filling sys specs or ignore people asking details to provide a better opinion ....

qubit hinted to that before by saying

You seem quite confused with the basic technical aspects of this...

peche, he doesn't know almost a thing -I am not trying to offend you Jake- that he wouldn't know filling specs and mentioning other important info helps his issue in the first place. (not just spec, like the name of the game he is trying to play).
There are games that are laggy and stuttery by nature, being buggy and stuff, or even by design. Also, I don't know if you are sure about the game taking 100% of CPU is by you observing that or just your assumption which can be wrong or right. But then it can happen if the game has a problem or your computer has a problem or it is just your luck with the game since people have problems with a game while others zero problem.
What is the game you are playing and what resolution as Tatty_One said?

EDIT2: You said £70 in UK. If a new card, probably a good nvidia 740 GT video card (there are slow card by the same model name). However, Can you wait for nvidia 1040 cards? I think they will be faster than 740 GTs. Also, it should be small so that it can fit inside your computer as _JP_ said. A second hand video card will give you a better card if you can do it, as some mentioned here earlier.

 

[Papahyooie]

Also, I don't know if you are sure about the game taking 100% of CPU is by you observing that or just your assumption which can be wrong or right. But then it can happen if the game has a problem or your computer has a problem or it is just your luck with the game since people have problems with a game while others zero problem.
What is the game you are playing and what resolution as Tatty_One said?

This is exactly why I said he should get a new graphics card rather than overhauling the entire system. I doubt that his CPU is truly bottlenecking a GT630. I have a C2D machine that games fine at medium/low settings in most games, with a GTX760. Judging from the look of the tower it's a Dell Optiplex, and I assume some kind of C2D. That's plenty of CPU for most games, unless you get caught up into the hardware marketing arms race...

 

[Derek12]

[...]I doubt that his CPU is truly bottlenecking a GT630. [...]

My old Celeron G530 bottlenecked a HD5450 on Fallout 3 and New Vegas in some areas of the games

All depends on the game, and without knowing it, we can only speculate

 

[Tatty_Two]

My old Celeron G530 bottlenecked a HD5450 on Fallout 3 and New Vegas in some areas of the games

All depends on the game, and without knowing it, we can only speculate

And the resolution your playing it at.... hence we still wait for an answer on that question after some 3 weeks.