help with upgrading old computer

[chubzy]

i used to play PR a while ago on my dell dimension 9150. these are the current specs.

OS:windows XP professional 32 bit
CPU: pentium D 2.8ghz
Graphics card: ati radeon x600
RAM: 1gb, but with all the processes in the background i had approximately 512mb to use for PR

as you can imagine, it didn't run quite as smoothly as i was hoping. however, i could play on bf2 on all high settings.

i plan on upgrading my computer solely to play PR:bf2 and use the internet, and due to having a new baby, buying a new computer is out of the question for the time being.

so far i have bought 4gb or ddr2 ram at 667mhz (i think)

the plan is to buy a new processor and GPU that will give me increased performance, can anyone recommend a decent GPU that will not be bottle necked by my current processor but will perform better than my current GPU.

(processor will have to wait a while, but i want to jump back into PR as soon as possible.)

thanks.

[Cossack]

Damn man, upgrade might cost you more than buying new one. :/ Not sure though. Anyway, need mobo name, so we could know, what to suggest to put in.

[chubzy]

the mobo is a dell dxp051. its pretty bad as i can only install a max of 4gb of ram, and it only takes pentium D cpu's i believe. i did take buying/building a new one into consideration, and as soon as i have more money available that is the plan.

[Cossack]

Chubzy, you know that investing money in fairly old system is kinda lost cause. Just money you invest dont give that much performance back instead new parts for same money. But ok mate, lets see what we can do.

[chubzy]

i know mate, im not looking for anything special graphics wise, i dont mind playing on the lowest settings providing i can get a playable frame rate. maybe its best just getting a whole new pc when i can afford it, and stick to bad frame rates until i can get a new one

[ComradeHX]

For some reason I feel that buying a cheap $500 PC would be better option.

Do not forget you also might want to play other games; such as Planetside 2.

[LITOralis.nMd]

That motherboard is incompatible with Core2Duo CPUs, so you don't have much of an upgrade path there. You can upgrade the GPU, but we need some info from you.

Please tell us the Dell model name, something like "Dimension 9150" or "DELL XPS 400" or something similar. Also if possible, open it up and see if you can see what Wattage rating the Power Supply Unit has written on the white label. We need to know so we can suggest a graphics card that won't be too powerful for your PSU.

Dell XPS Desktop DXP051

Device Specifications
Memory type: 240 Pin DDR2 PC2-4200 533MHz
Slots / banks: 4
Standard memory: 512Mb or 1Gb removable
Maximum memory: 4Gb

If you already got the 667Mhz RAM, no worries, it will downclock automatically to the fastest speed the motherboard can run it.

The Dell Dimension 9150 [aka DXP051] supports Pentium 4 or Pentium D processors only and does not support any Core 2 Duo or Quad core processors.

The Pentium D 840 is your best available CPU, not going to be a huge upgrade.
List of all available upgrade CPUS for your mobo
Intel? Pentium? D Processor 800 Series
Refurbed 840's in the US can be had for US$35, you might find something similar in the UK.

Get back to us on the power supply, and we'll recommend a graphics card.

EDIT: If you already have the RAM, your only reasonably upgrade is the graphics card. Wouldn't expect to spend more than 70 quid more at max, probably more like 50 quid, and you're done with the upgrades.