Computer Questions - Need Techies!

[Rhyela]

Hi all, I have a computer question that I'm hoping someone can answer, because my husband and I are both complete and utter noobs when it comes to this stuff.

Our problem is that our computers lag like crazy when playing SW:TOR, even on low settings. We just bought new video cards - NVIDIA GeForce GTX 460 v2. I thought that would alleviate some of the problem, but it didn't. It doesn't seem hardly any better at all. So, now I'm thinking it might be the processors/CPUs. We bought these systems roughly three years ago. They are model Gateway DX4200-09 and have the following hardware:

650W PSU (we upgraded from 300W)
AMD Phenom X4 9100e 1.8 GHz quad-core processor
4 GB RAM (2 x 2 GB sticks)
NVIDIA GeForce GTX 460 v2 GPU (according to NVIDIA's auto-detect feature, anyway - I didn't realize they were "v2")
Windows Vista 64-bit

The recommended system requirements for SW:TOR are:

AMD Phenom 2 X4 2.5 GHz quad-core or better / Intel Core 2 Quad Processor 2.4 GHz or better
Windows 7 64-bit
4 GB RAM
ATI/AMD Radeon HD 4850 or better / NVIDIA GeForce GTX 260 or better (so I think we're actually okay there)
512 MB minimum video RAM

After installing these new GPUs and still experiencing horrid lag, we're thinking our processors are the culprit.

So, my question to you kind and knowledgeable folks is, what all is involved with upgrading a processor? I've never done it before. How do I know what a suitable upgrade would be? I have no idea whether the socket is AM2 or AM2+. I do know that the motherboard chipset is AMD 780G. I looked on newegg for some processors, and they don't even sell the Phenom X4 anymore, all they carry are Phenom 2 X4. I didn't see any socket AM2 or AM2+, either.

Can we even update the processor with what we've got? Would I be able to stick a Phenom 2 X4 in there? Should we look into upgrading the motherboard as well? That task seems even more daunting to me. I'm thinking he and I will probably just need to have someone build some PCs for us in the future. I wish we knew more about this stuff, but we don't. In the past we've just gone to Best Buy and bought some new systems, but they're pretty much the bare minimum of what we need and I'd like to start building a real computer. I just want to play SW:TOR and be able to fight in combat or run through Coruscant without lagging hardcore.

Anyway, I just wanted someone with some PC experience to answer, if you can.

Thank you!

[Vephriel]

I asked my boyfriend to take a look at this since this is his brand of knowledge. He agrees it's most likely the processor. Unfortunately it's an older processor unit, which is harder to find and it will be trouble to find an upgrade for. You might have to bite the bullet and get a new system. You could try ebay and see if people have some older ones listed. You'd want a socket AM2. (Trying to type what he's saying, hopefully this makes sense. xD)

If you could find more specifics on the motherboard, like the model number on it, he could probably tell you more.

[Rhyela]

Oo, thanks Veph! Let's see, this is what Belarc Advisor said I have:

Board: Gateway RS780 Rev 1.0
Serial Number: U007084802750
Bus Clock: 200 megahertz
BIOS: American Megatrends Inc. 7B3P091G 08/06/2008

Hope this helps!

[Vephriel]

Ooh, so you might be in luck. You can install an AM3 socket.

He recommends something like this: http://ncix.com/products/?sku=53854&vpn ... acture=AMD
It should be able to run on your system. You're going to be looking for something AM3 socket, since the motherboard is AM2+. You may need to order it online unless you have a good computer store around. You could also try going to the AMD site and ordering off of there. This CPU is older and it's getting harder to find, but he thinks that one should work.

Again, trying to paraphrase what he's telling me (I really don't know much about hardware, haha), so hopefully that helps. ^^

[cowmuflage]

Ah the downside to PC gaming hope that stuff Veph's been saying helps!

[Rhyela]

You and your boyfriend are amazing, Veph! I will talk to my husband about it and see what he thinks. Those aren't too expensive, we could buy them soon! Yay! Make sure to thank him for his help for me.

Edit: If he feels relatively sure about that, we can buy them now. I found one on http://www.newegg.com for $99 that sounds like the right thing:

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.a ... 6819103871

Does he think that would work?

Edit again: And does he think it will make any sort of noticeable difference? I assume that 3.0 GHz is vastly better than 1.8 GHz, but I don't know that for sure.

[Vephriel]

Yup, he says that looks like it'll work. He says he wishes he could be there to take a look at things himself, but that seems to be the way to go from what he can tell from here. If you want to be safe, I'd say just check return policies and such and ensure you can return it if for some reason it wasn't suitable. And yes, it should definitely make a noticeable difference. ^^

[Rhyela]

Awesome, thank you for double-checking! Not that I don't trust you guys, just that I'm so nervous about messing with the processor. It's not something we've ever done before. But, I'll get them and see what happens. Thank you so much!!!

Edit: Okay, I bought them! They should be here in two to three days. I think I'm going to call some PC repair shops tomorrow and see if they can install them for us. I really don't feel comfortable messing with the processor.

[AdamSavage]

Awesome, thank you for double-checking! Not that I don't trust you guys, just that I'm so nervous about messing with the processor. It's not something we've ever done before. But, I'll get them and see what happens. Thank you so much!!!

Edit: Okay, I bought them! They should be here in two to three days. I think I'm going to call some PC repair shops tomorrow and see if they can install them for us. I really don't feel comfortable messing with the processor.

It's actually not as complicated as you may think. Here is a video explaining how to do it. After the video, you can go from there on what you wanna do. When he mentions giving the heat sink a wiggle, he means from side to side. You should never attempt to pull the heat sink off the CPU straight up. Wiggling it from side to side will loosen it up, and it should just pop right off with great ease.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vLVHFaokdgA

[Vephriel]

Awesome, thank you for double-checking! Not that I don't trust you guys, just that I'm so nervous about messing with the processor. It's not something we've ever done before. But, I'll get them and see what happens. Thank you so much!!!

No worries, totally understandable. ^^ It's a bit trickier to offer advice without being there in person, but hopefully that helped a bit. G'luck!