metalhead1023

The big talk right now is Crysis and the demo somewhat proves that you need good hardware to run this game so get your upgrade cap on, strap on your anti-static wrist band, and get some new components.

Video Cards: Well not only does Crysis ride the cpu really hard its also a graphics hog so a 8600gts wont work or that old 7600 either. So I thought of 3 graphics cards that will give you the eye candy you want.

Top o' the line: EVGA 8800GTX
Why? Well if you want to try to run Crysis on max settings (not including resolution or AA & AF) but honestly I do not recommend this because the benchmarks that we have seen show that it is just a hair above the next card.

Near Top: XFX 8800GT
Why? Well this right here is best bang for buck. Pros -- DX10, newest DirectX but remember it NEEDS vista -- I recommend this card if you want to move into the next generation in PC games.

XP Top o' the line: X1950GT 512Mb PCI EXPRESS X16 -- x1950GT 512Mb AGP 8x
Why? Well these are the top of the line DX9 cards they perform about 20-30% below the 8800GT, but none-the-less this card is awesome I highly recommend this especially if you want to stick with XP for a little while longer.

CPU: Crysis demands a good CPU be prepared.

Top: Intel Core 2 Quad Q6600 2.4GHz
Why? Best bang for buck in the quad core game and this is about what you want if you want to run Crysis in high settings.

Medium Dual Intel: Intel Core 2 Duo E6750 2.66GHz
Why? If you got a board that supports Core 2 Duo and want to spend about $200 this is most defiantly the best buy right here.

Budget Dual Intel: Intel Pentium D 920 2.8GHz
Why? This is the Intel chip for budget gamers but remember these run HOT get a good Heatsink and Fan. Here is a budget Heatsink and Fan its actually very good too.

Dual AMD: AMD Athlon X2 6000
Why? Well basically this is the CPU you want if you have an AMD compatible MOBO.

Overclockers CPU AMD: AMD Athlon X2 4000
Why? Well $65 free shipping overclocks to 2.4-3.0 easy.

__________________

pioneerisloud

Interesting read. So you're saying that I'd be better off then (money wise) to get a Sapphire X1950GT than an 8800GT? I'm saying that since I really don't have the money for the 8800 working 10 hours a week at minimum wage. That would be a decent step up for me then? What would you say I could run Crysis at with the 256MB 1950GT with my sig rig?

__________________

metalhead1023

Well the 1950GT is a good bet especially if your running XP and good news the 512 version is only about $10 more than the 256. With your opty which I assume is dual core you should be able to scrape 30-40 fps at a low resolution with medium to high settings (remember people are saying it looks better than any game at medium). Also another thing to think of is when the 9000 series comes out the 8000 series's prices will go down. So I'm saying yes get the 1950GT.

__________________

C-bro

Since when is the X1950GT the top of the line for XP? I was thinking something like X1950XTX or 7900GTX.

__________________

Automatically backup files - Why computers have clocks

metalhead1023

I was looking for those but I could only find a few of each but the GT was in complete stock at zipzoomfly and newegg its a great card and its available.

__________________

pioneerisloud

Well sweetness! I'm hoping I can scrape by on Crysis with 1280x800 min. res with medium settings. My 7600GT can do this, but it gets about 8-10 FPS at the most...not playable. This might just do the trick! Sweet!

__________________

metalhead1023

I highly think that the 1950GT will at least scrape you about 30 average FPS.

__________________

sonicmat

my 8600gt plays it fine on medium settings with shadows and post processing on low. Average 50fps in the bench.

Also it only uses about 70% of my cpu so i dont think its too cpu demanding unless they made the demo to only use 1 core.

__________________
98% of the internet population has a Myspace. If you're part of the 2% that isn't an emo bastard, copy and paste this into your sig.

rottenotto

Where does the 7950 gt fit into this scheme? Why is a quad going to give you better performance than a 6750?

__________________
http://www.overclock.net/specs.php?d...system&i=10644

North Carolina Overclocker

metalhead1023

I've been wondering how the 8600gt will fare with Crysis thank you for the information. About the processor your using medium settings do of course it will be less demanding I recommend raising the specs that use only the cpu but keep the VC specs low to get a better looking game.

Well first of all the 1950gt is cheaper and performs about the same so I chose that to display. But Crysis was developed with multi-cored cpus in mind so yes a quad core will do better than a 6750 but the 6850 and the Q6600 are about neck and neck the Q6600 does about 10-15% better.

__________________