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So, I got a new computer a little while ago, and I want to upgrade it so i can play Skyrim on (preferably) the highest settings....as it is now I can't even run Oblivion on highest (I'm close though) Anyway some Specs....

CPU: AMD Phenom II X6 1045T Processor

CPU speed: 2.7 GHz

Ram: 8 GB

Windows 7

Video Card: ATI Radeon HD 5450

I have an Asus essentio of some kind...not sure.

Anyway any help on what I should get would be greatly appreciated, as I know little to nothing about how computers work.

New video card and if possible overcloking that cpu would help (maybe to like 3.2-3.4ghz) but your video card is the first priority. Is this a pre built pc or custom? What resolution is your monitor and do you want to use antialiasing?

Also how much money you are willing to spend? You could also sell that 6 core cpu and get 4 core cpu instead (you might get like 10-20$)

Also there is mod for skyrim that improves performance (I can't remember name but it's pretty popular). installing latest drivers will also help.

I would recommend something like gtx 560ti (200$) or 6950(250$-300$)

overclocking:
http://mediaphy.com/amd-phenom-ii-x6-overclocking-tutorial-ncix-tech-tips-66.html

Get some Intel i5 or i7, that should bring you processing power your PC needs.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Intel_i5#Core_i5
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Intel_i5#Core_i7

If you have DDR2 RAM replace it with DDR3 ( see that you get 1000 or 1666 MHZ )

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ddr3_ram

As for GPU....

See that you buy crossfire pr SLI supportive motherboard. That way you can combine 2 Graphic Cards that are farely expensive and make one uber powerful GPU.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Scalable_Link_Interface
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/ATI_CrossFire

OF course, you will then need new power unit ( wit hat least 500W, 750 would be good if you have cash ).

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Power_supply_unit_(computer)

If I may suggest, you could either go wit hone of this things I suggested ( CPU or RAM or GPU ) or buy a new PC - that way you could get all this things less expensive and with a warranty of several years.

If you have any more FAQ - just ask

illuknisaa wrote:New video card and if possible overcloking that cpu would help (maybe to like 3.2-3.4ghz) but your video card is the first priority. Is this a pre built pc or custom? What resolution is your monitor and do you want to use antialiasing?

Also how much money you are willing to spend? You could also sell that 6 core cpu and get 4 core cpu instead (you might get like 10-20$)

Also there is mod for skyrim that improves performance (I can't remember name but it's pretty popular). installing latest drivers will also help.

I would recommend something like gtx 560ti (200$) or 6950(250$-300$)

overclocking:
http://mediaphy.com/amd-phenom-ii-x6-overclocking-tutorial-ncix-tech-tips-66.html

I've already overclocked it a little bit, but i don't want to do it too much. It's pre-built AFAIK, I got it re-furbished off amazon. 1920 x 1080 resolution. And does antialiasing make it look better?...if so yes.

Anywhere from 150 - 250$

I do have latest drivers installed.

I don't think you have already oc'ed it because 2.7ghz is the stock speed for your cpu.

http://www.cpu-world.com/CPUs/K10/AMD-Phenom%20II%20X6%201045T%20-%20HDT45TWFK6DGR.html

but don't worry about your cpu it's good for now.

First thing you need to do is open up your pc and check what wattage psu has. You propably don't have to shut down your pc while doing this. But don't touch anything else than the case.

Anti aliasing: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anti-aliasing

First off, this is not a good forum to ask for computer advice. I've seem some pretty iffy advice on here. Case in point:

illuknisaa wrote:Also how much money you are willing to spend? You could also sell that 6 core cpu and get 4 core cpu instead (you might get like 10-20$)

I'm not trying to be a jerk, but.... what? I'd like to hear the rationale for this explained.

Anyway, There is absolutely nothing wrong with your CPU. It benchmarks about the same as a midrange I5. I guess you could swap to an I5 and your motherboard, CPU, and (possibly) RAM to get essentially the same (or worse) performance for only $500 or so, although that would not be how I'd spend my money. I also wouldn't bother with overclocking - you'll probably shorten the life of your components for a negligible gain, unless you're water-cooling or similar, and you aren't. There are very few games in which the CPU is the bottleneck, and fewer still where an extra 5% CPU suddenly makes it playable.

However, the video card is indeed a problem. You're absolutely going to need to replace that. You could skate by for around $150 and get something like this. If you wanted to future-proof yourself a little more, spend $250 and get something like this. I prefer Nvidia cards, and specifically EVGA (they come with lifetime warranties, generally, and have great support). I have no advice on ATI cards.

Additionally, as was said, you will almost certainly require a new power supply. Crack that case open, and check to see how many watts it is. If it's less than 600 watts (and I bet it is), you'll need to replace that as well. Don't get cheap on the PSU, since a cheap PSU will happily eat your other expensive components to balance the universe. Get a nice Corsair or Thermaltake, like this - if it's not on sale and it was less than $120, you spent too little.

bombboy1252 wrote:So, I got a new computer a little while ago, and I want to upgrade it so i can play Skyrim on (preferably) the highest settings....as it is now I can't even run Oblivion on highest (I'm close though) Anyway some Specs....

CPU: AMD Phenom II X6 1045T Processor

CPU speed: 2.7 GHz

Ram: 8 GB

Windows 7

Video Card: ATI Radeon HD 5450

I have an Asus essentio of some kind...not sure.

Anyway any help on what I should get would be greatly appreciated, as I know little to nothing about how computers work.

Upgrade your graphics, I run skyrim on max settings and my rig is pretty much the same as yours other than the graphics card.

I'll put my vote in with the others for upgrade the video card and overclock the CPU. You can probably go to 3 ghz with the stock fan without any serious risk.

Everything else seems good. These upgrades will probably buy you another 3 years on it.

Ouze wrote:First off, this is not a good forum to ask for computer advice. I've seem some pretty iffy advice on here. Case in point:

illuknisaa wrote:Also how much money you are willing to spend? You could also sell that 6 core cpu and get 4 core cpu instead (you might get like 10-20$)

I'm not trying to be a jerk, but.... what? I'd like to hear the rationale for this explained.

Reasoning behind this is that most games (including skyrim) rarely utilize 6 or more cores (as far as I know only bfbc2 and bf3 support more than 4 cores) so in this case more clock speed>more cores and if op were tight on money he could sell current cpu for a "poorer" one without actually losing performance.

But like you said only real issue with op's build is the gpu and possibly psu (CPU WATTAGE PLZ BOMBOY, brand would also be nice)

That 560ti is nice indeed but as the bomboy said he has 1920x1080 screen and wants AA (4xmsaa and fxaa) I would recommend amd radeon hd 6950 as it has 2gb of vram. Also if he can find one of those earlier revisions of 6950 he could bios flash it to 6970.

First thing you should do is EDIT: Not Troll. -Mannahnin

Bad Joey.

Joey wrote:First thing you should do is delete C:\Windows/System 32, that's probably slowing your computer down a hell of a lot.

Hey I did that, but it gave me a message saying "Joey is a troll, he should learn some common courtesy, or shut up"

......weird.................huh?


Automatically Appended Next Post:

Ouze wrote:First off, this is not a good forum to ask for computer advice. I've seem some pretty iffy advice on here. Case in point:

illuknisaa wrote:Also how much money you are willing to spend? You could also sell that 6 core cpu and get 4 core cpu instead (you might get like 10-20$)

I'm not trying to be a jerk, but.... what? I'd like to hear the rationale for this explained.

Anyway, There is absolutely nothing wrong with your CPU. It benchmarks about the same as a midrange I5. I guess you could swap to an I5 and your motherboard, CPU, and (possibly) RAM to get essentially the same (or worse) performance for only $500 or so, although that would not be how I'd spend my money. I also wouldn't bother with overclocking - you'll probably shorten the life of your components for a negligible gain, unless you're water-cooling or similar, and you aren't. There are very few games in which the CPU is the bottleneck, and fewer still where an extra 5% CPU suddenly makes it playable.

However, the video card is indeed a problem. You're absolutely going to need to replace that. You could skate by for around $150 and get something like this. If you wanted to future-proof yourself a little more, spend $250 and get something like this. I prefer Nvidia cards, and specifically EVGA (they come with lifetime warranties, generally, and have great support). I have no advice on ATI cards.

Additionally, as was said, you will almost certainly require a new power supply. Crack that case open, and check to see how many watts it is. If it's less than 600 watts (and I bet it is), you'll need to replace that as well. Don't get cheap on the PSU, since a cheap PSU will happily eat your other expensive components to balance the universe. Get a nice Corsair or Thermaltake, like this - if it's not on sale and it was less than $120, you spent too little.

What if I got the new video card, than waited some time and got the power supply? Would that work for a littlewhile, or should I get them simultaneously?

bombboy1252 wrote:What if I got the new video card, than waited some time and got the power supply? Would that work for a littlewhile, or should I get them simultaneously?

Do it the other way round if you can't afford both at the same time (but if you can, the same time is handy since you only need to get into the case once).

A high end video card can kill a low end PSU the first time you turn it on, and then you have no computer until it's fixed... You should get your PSU first. Best case if your under-railed PSU doesn't flat out die, you'll see random reboots, hangs, and BSOD's.

Most people don't think much about their power supply, but it's really the foundation you lay the whole thing down on.

What power supply do you have at the moment?

What is your psu?

I have no clue what my PSU is, I've looked up how to find it, but I would have to open up my computer, and I have no clue how to do that, or what I should do to put it back together...( I was going to ask a friend of mine to put in the new graphics card)

But I did find this link with a review of my computer...if that helps at all...

http://compreviews.about.com/od/maindesk/gr/ASUS-Essentio-CG1330-05.htm

Have you actually tried running skyrim on full graphics? the graphics card on that isn't that bad.

corpsesarefun wrote:Have you actually tried running skyrim on full graphics? the graphics card on that isn't that bad.

I don't have Skyrim yet, but from how I see it if i can't run Oblivion on max, how can I play Skyrim on max?

You have a decent graphics hard, more than enough RAM, a decent processor and as your PC isn't dying a few times a day already I'm guessing you have around a 500W PSU.

The only thing that would be holding you back is your motherboard and even that shouldn't stop you running oblivion on high graphcs.

I'm going to double check that I have everything updated, right now I'm checking that through Catalyst, and it's updating to a newer version of catalyst....

That said it's not great, it's a pretty average rig for gaming but as skyrim has mediocre textures and is effects heavy you should be fine.

Another thing, I can play oblivion relativly high graphics....with the exception of shadow. As soon as I turn those on my game runs at like 10-15 fps.

Gtx 560 ti +1 vote for me, the card is a bad boy for the price. Like other said buy a psu ,you can get both off new egg for 300$ or so. I had never changed out a psu before and it wasnt too hard. The one problem I did have was the 560 ti's a big card and had to move my sata cables around a little but theinstall of the psu and gfx card took little over an hour and worked great.

Deathshead420 wrote:Gtx 560 ti +1 vote for me, the card is a bad boy for the price. Like other said buy a psu ,you can get both off new egg for 300$ or so. I had never changed out a psu before and it wasnt too hard. The one problem I did have was the 560 ti's a big card and had to move my sata cables around a little but theinstall of the psu and gfx card took little over an hour and worked great.

The GTX 560 isn't that much more powerful than the one he has if he has the ATI Radeon HD 5750 (the graphics card from the review) although his OP says he has the ATI Radeon HD 5450 so I'm not sure which he actually has.

corpsesarefun wrote:

Deathshead420 wrote:Gtx 560 ti +1 vote for me, the card is a bad boy for the price. Like other said buy a psu ,you can get both off new egg for 300$ or so. I had never changed out a psu before and it wasnt too hard. The one problem I did have was the 560 ti's a big card and had to move my sata cables around a little but theinstall of the psu and gfx card took little over an hour and worked great.

The GTX 560 isn't that much more powerful than the one he has if he has the ATI Radeon HD 5750 (the graphics card from the review) although his OP says he has the ATI Radeon HD 5450 so I'm not sure which he actually has.

I went into the catalyst control panel and it said I have "ATI Radeon HD 5450"

Not sure how good this site is but at least take a look.

http://www.hwcompare.com/8908/geforce-gtx-560-ti-vs-radeon-hd-5450/

bombboy1252 wrote:

corpsesarefun wrote:

Deathshead420 wrote:Gtx 560 ti +1 vote for me, the card is a bad boy for the price. Like other said buy a psu ,you can get both off new egg for 300$ or so. I had never changed out a psu before and it wasnt too hard. The one problem I did have was the 560 ti's a big card and had to move my sata cables around a little but theinstall of the psu and gfx card took little over an hour and worked great.

The GTX 560 isn't that much more powerful than the one he has if he has the ATI Radeon HD 5750 (the graphics card from the review) although his OP says he has the ATI Radeon HD 5450 so I'm not sure which he actually has.

I went into the catalyst control panel and it said I have "ATI Radeon HD 5450"

Ok then upgrade that, the ATI Radeon HD 5750 will be fine.

With my googlefu

I found out that you have 300w psu which sucks ballz

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16883220058

Good news:

You don't have to upgrade mother board which saves loads of money.

Well your gpu isn't too bad

Bad news:

you can't do anything without getting new psu. A psu from corsair at 500-600w is fine

You cpu might pose a problem especially for skyrim (or any bethesda game)

You case is mid tower which might be too small for higher end gpu. You need to check how much room there is for gpu (lenght and height). your gpu is roughly 7" when higher end start nearing 11".

http://i.i.com.com/cnwk.1d/sc/34121960-2-440-OVI-4.jpg
If we believe this pic then you should be ok

Okay, if I can save up a little over 300$ I can get these...

Video card: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814130604

PSU: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817139027

Would these work?

They have a 560ti now with 488 cores it's $ 279, not sure how much better it is. I would shop around for a while, I can only tell you how my evga 560 ti has been really good and cool, maybe corpsegirl has a point with ati. Do lots of homework.