Big LAG Problem. :(

[Ricky54326]

Hey guys. I lag really badly in games, like more than I know I should. I'm not a total noob with PCs, I built several of my own, but I'm not an expert either when it comes to buying things under a budget.

I get around 25FPS average in crysis, on HIGH.. with 8800GT as my graphics card.. my friend has the same card, RAM, and mobo, and he gets around 50. So i'm guessing it's my processor. Also we had both installed XP Pro x86 on the same day to test out our new 8800GT's.

Here are my specs:

Windows XP Professional Edition 32-bit (Just reinstalled about a week ago)

320GB WD SATA II HD

BFG 8800GT OC

AMD 64 x2 4400+ 2.2GHz

2GB DDR2 PC6400 Dual channel US Modular RAM [I was told the brand was good, and it's actually okay.]

MSI K9N4 SLI Motherboard

Yellow = I'm a bit worried

Red= I'm pretty sure this is bottlenecking me.

Please help me decide what INTEL motherboard and processor I should get, that is fairly cheap. I was thinking Q6600 + 680i, for 300$ at TigerDirect. But if that isn't a good processor, and I can get a better deal for less, please let me know.

Thanks, and it's nice to be here

-Ricky

 

[gotmaxpower]

Theres no need to spend so much money, any budget C2D will give you a noticeable difference. Try an E8400.

 

[Ricky54326]

Thanks for replying.

I realize I don't have to spend so much money, but I wanna make one upgrade that will at least last me till I have a full time job, so about a year, maybe a year and a half.

 

[Nick R]

In that case q6600 ftw

 

[gotmaxpower]

In that case q6600 ftw

Despite the fact that Nehalem will be here soon, a Q6600 is a good futureproof upgrade that should keep you going for a couple of years.

 

[Ricky54326]

Despite the fact that Nehalem will be here soon, a Q6600 is a good futureproof upgrade that should keep you going for a couple of years.

Thanks, that's what I was told

Also i'm not buying till like late august, so if anything better comes out by then i'll be sure to pick that up instead. if its not too much more.