View Full Version : Buying new 'puter
mbrasher1
04-22-2004, 05:24
I have to use my fiancee's computer to play MTW. Neither my computer, nor my laptop, can play MTW because of the graphics card.
Any suggestions on whether newer computers can accomodate MTW or are there graphics cards to avoid?
Thanks.
The Tuffen
04-22-2004, 11:29
I run MTW on a
1.9ghz AMD
512Mb RAM
ATI Radeon 7500 128MB graphics card (hopefully upgrading to a 9800 soon)
It runs MTW well with slow down only occuring in battles when there is a lot of troops on the battlefield - and then it is usually a custom game where i've got about 4-5 armies fighting.
Lord Ovaat
04-22-2004, 14:37
Buying a computer right now with the minimum requirements for MTW may really short-change you come RTW. I haven't seen the specs on RTW, but with the new engine, I imagine the specs will be upgraded a bit. Price is always a consideration, but the three key words are processor, ram, and card. To compensate for immediate future gaming, I wouldn't go with less than 2ghz on the processor, 1g of ram, 60g hard drive (the faster the better), and a good card with 128ram. Rule of thumb is not to upgrade until you can double the specs on any one component. You will also need a versatile motherboard that can handle possible future upgrades from what you're now buying. Sound expensive? Yeah, it is. But the cost wouldn't be that much more than buying something that you may find unacceptable now, or in the near future. Memory is pretty cheap, nowdays, and graphic cards are coming out so fast that the old ones are really dropping in price. You may want to check out www.techtv.com. They have a page listing dark deals or something like that, that can give you leads to some really good online deals. Decisions, decisions, decisions. Take your time. Unless you're wealthy, you'll have to live with your choice for some time. Good luck. http://www.totalwar.org/forum/non-cgi/emoticons/bigthumb.gif
Mouzafphaerre
04-22-2004, 15:08
-
I would never ever pay for anything below P4 3.06G. Why? Because they're outdated technology. 3.06 brings hyperthreading, which allows a single CPU to operate like double.
I'm told that AMD's 64bit CPU overran it but haven't searched thoroughly yet.
Still, never pay for any P4 2.x or something...
_
Doug-Thompson
04-22-2004, 15:31
Check out the Gamepot system adviser (http://gamespot.com/gamespot/misc/systemadvisor/). They didn't have that section when I bought a computer several years ago, but it looks good.
==========
Nothing goes obsolete on a computer faster than the video card.
Budget at least 10 percent of your computer purchase as video card expense.
I don't know which cards to avoid, but I I'd definitely go with at least a 128 Video RAM if I was buying a new one today. Look for the best last year's model you can get.
heh I run MTW on a p3 500 mhz, just get a decent pc :p
JAG, that's similar to my PC, and I was thinking of getting MTW. Do you get a decent framerate in the battles?
Oh, I have a question about graphics cards, too: I've seen graphics cards called integerated and some called shared (for example Intel Graphics Extreme or something like that) are these worse than a 'normal' graphics card for gameplay purposes?
MonkeyMan
04-22-2004, 16:44
My advice:
Go for the 'Just above average' spec system, to get the best value for money. Budget systems are usually laking in overall componant quality in terms of motherboard, hard drives, graphics card etc. even though the bottom line cpu speed and ram seems comparable on paper. Cutting edge systems are a waste really given the huge premium you pay for the latest kit and the fact that at best you'll only future proff yourself an extra 6-12 months over a lessr and far cheaper machine. somewhere in the middle will combine good quality and proven componants with a good performance to money ratio.
Who you buy from is very important, make sure you go for a company that builds their own PCs and offer a decent warrany and after sales support if something goes bang. Probably best to buy from a company you actually live near to so if everything goes wrong you can turn up there with it and make a fuss until they fix it. If you tell us where you live, someone can probably recommend a few options or speak to a few friends and see what they use at work/home.
I'd recommend a general spec. in the following area budget dependant:
Pentium 4 2.6 - 3Ghz (IMHO hyperthreadding is just a marketing tool, but if it cost no extra go for it) The intel systems just edge it for me over AMD at the moment. Make sure you avoid celeron
at least 512 MB DRR RAM (ignore what type/speed is stated past this, any half decent maufacturer will match the cpu, motherboard and RAM well enough you shouldn't have to worry)
Either a decent Reaedon (9600 or better) or Geforce card, IMHO unless you are after a Geforce 6800 Ultra (the latest and greatest card you can buy) ATI with their Raedon cards have been on top for the last 2 years. Make sure its fully DirectX 9 comliant to future proof yourself.
HDD 120 GB+
The I'd spend any remaining funds getting a nice monitor :)
As a rule of thumb look at each company and see what their most expensive, up to date and fastest computer costs, half it and look just above that in terms of price. In general for computers in this spec range you get what you pay for so if an offer seems too good to be true it probably is.
Good luck, tell us how you get on :) http://www.totalwar.org/forum/non-cgi/emoticons/gc-computer.gif
BTW any decent computer from the last 2-3 years should have no problem running MTW with everything at max. However if your going to buy a new computer you may as well get one that will handle anything the next 3-4 years will throw at it, in particular RTW.
SpencerH
04-22-2004, 17:19
The 2.8 GHz P4 has hyperthreading (you'll also need XP pro)
and a faster FSB than the 2.6 so I'd say that's your starting point.
One thing to watch for if you buy a 9700 or 9800 pro is that they require LOTS and LOTS of cooling, so think big heatsink and fan.
Jochi Khan
04-22-2004, 19:13
Hi HicRic
I have a HP Intel Celeron 800MHz with Integrated Intel Direct AGP with 3D Graphics. No graphics port to slot in a graphics card.
I regularly play 4v4 games in MTW/VI with no problems and have done for the past 18 months, since MTW came out
...Jochi
Quote[/b] (HicRic @ April 22 2004,16:43)]JAG, that's similar to my PC, and I was thinking of getting MTW. Do you get a decent framerate in the battles?
Yes it is fine. When a battle starts and the AI moves all its army straight off it an go slow for a few frames but apart from that it is fine. Plus I always have mirc, winamp and other programs running at the same time I am sure you would be fine.
Xecthilor
04-22-2004, 20:14
I know I'm not saying anything thats already being said, but if your getting a new system you should go for the best you can get. Anything up to date should be able to handle MTW easily, and keep you in position for RTW. Plus, they just released the next geforce card http://www.totalwar.org/forum/non-cgi/emoticons/wink.gif
Lord Armbandit
04-22-2004, 21:22
Quote[/b] ]heh I run MTW on a p3 500 mhz
I thought I was the only one
I bought this computer for a hundred pounds last year, and I can't beleive it runs Medieval so well Curiously, I had more slowdown on Shogun.
Basically, If you buy anything new now, it should do for medieval and Rome, without a problem. You don't need to spend big bucks, and I would recommend buying a couple of PC magazines to read the reviews and check out the adverts for the non-high street suppliers - they usually give better value.
Jochi Khan
04-22-2004, 22:18
Check out this link for some computer prices.
http//:www.savastore.com
Might find something to suit you.
....Jochi
Mouzafphaerre
04-22-2004, 22:52
Quote[/b] (Lord Armbandit @ April 22 2004,23:22)]
Quote[/b] ]heh I run MTW on a p3 500 mhz
I thought I was the only one
-
550 here. http://www.totalwar.org/forum/non-cgi/emoticons/wave.gif
_
son of spam
04-22-2004, 23:20
MTW runs fine on my system except when there are big battles.
P4 1.6 gig northwood
768 meg DDR PC 2700
Geforce FX 5600 ultra
Gigabyte 8IEXP mobo.
IMHO the best option is to skimp on the CPU and go for a good graphics card. But then again, I mostly play game for the graphics so...different strokes for different folks
Still, judging from the RTW screenies, it looks like any system with less than a geforce 3 is gonna go *poof*
http://www.totalwar.org/forum/non-cgi/emoticons/tongue.gif
Gregoshi
04-23-2004, 05:06
In the time since MonkeyMan made his post above, the GeForce 6800 Ultra is now obsolete...just kidding. http://www.totalwar.org/forum/non-cgi/emoticons/biggrin.gif
My philosophy has always been to get one step down from the fastest CPU available. The price difference is substantial between one step down and paying for top of the line. One step down doesn't lose you much performance, though maybe that isn't the case with the hyperthreading.
To drag out my old war story on PCs, when MTW first came out I was running it on a P2 350 and an unsupported video card (Voodoo3). In fact, I was able to play online just fine (1v1 or 2v2) when the minimum system spec for online was a P3 700. And that's the truth.
Crimson Castle
04-23-2004, 05:12
Quote[/b] (son of spam @ April 23 2004,11:20)]MTW runs fine on my system except when there are big battles.
P4 1.6 gig northwood
768 meg DDR PC 2700
Geforce FX 5600 ultra
Gigabyte 8IEXP mobo.
IMHO the best option is to skimp on the CPU and go for a good graphics card. But then again, I mostly play game for the graphics so...different strokes for different folks
Still, judging from the RTW screenies, it looks like any system with less than a geforce 3 is gonna go *poof*
http://www.totalwar.org/forum/non-cgi/emoticons/tongue.gif
I thought MTW was processor intensive.
I have a P3 800, Geforce4Ti 4800 card and 550mb Ram (windows 2k)- I play MTW ok but on big battles the game slows down quite badly.
Quote[/b] ]To drag out my old war story on PCs, when MTW first came out I was running it on a P2 350 and an unsupported video card (Voodoo3). In fact, I was able to play online just fine (1v1 or 2v2) when the minimum system spec for online was a P3 700. And that's the truth.
Fantastic I'm running a 450 mhz processor with a voodoo3 graphics card right now. I'm so buying MTW as soon as possible.
BTW, this thread has been extremely helpful to me. Thanks all
MonkeyMan
04-23-2004, 09:34
I did start playing MTW on an athlon 550 with a GF2 MX (rubbish card) and lets just say it really wasn't up to the job so I built myself a nice new computer. More than a year on I'm finally starting to see the generation of games it was meant to run.
Gregoshi
04-23-2004, 15:28
HicRic, if you run into any problems, drop me a line. I found a set of 3rd party drivers for the Voodoo3 card that helped performance a little.
Voigtkampf
04-23-2004, 15:36
Quote[/b] (Gregoshi @ April 23 2004,09:28)]HicRic, if you run into any problems, drop me a line. I found a set of 3rd party drivers for the Voodoo3 card that helped performance a little.
No wonder people are building shrines for Gregoshi… You simply must love this fella http://www.totalwar.org/forum/non-cgi/emoticons/biggrin.gif
I play MTW on Pentium II something with 128mb ram 32mb graphics card.. I give orders and the next thing I see is the routing enemy http://www.totalwar.org/forum/non-cgi/emoticons/biggrin.gif http://www.totalwar.org/forum/non-cgi/emoticons/wacko.gif
SpencerH
04-23-2004, 16:31
I think you're missing a big part of the game http://www.totalwar.org/forum/non-cgi/emoticons/wink.gif
ShadesWolf
04-23-2004, 22:55
Current machine is
P4 3ghz
1 Gb Ram
Radeon 9600 (256MB)
and this machine flys http://www.totalwar.org/forum/non-cgi/emoticons/biggrin.gif
vBulletin® v3.7.1, Copyright ©2000-2025, Jelsoft Enterprises Ltd.