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Dimension 8400 Memory and Video Upgrade
I am considering upgrading a D8400 (3.4gHz P4) from 1g memory to either 2g or 3g with the addition of 2 - 512m or 1g memory modules in slot 3 and 4. I am also considering upgrade my existing video graphics card(s) (RADEON X300 Series 128Mb and a RADEON X300 Series Secondary 128Mb) to a 256 card such as the nvidia 7600GT pci-e or Radeon X1650 pro or XT pci-e X16. I am wondering whether these upgrades, which will cost $300 to $500 would be worthwhile considering my current and future usage.
My current video demanding usage is 3D modelling with Turbocad and Sketchup Pro and digital photography processing with Paint Shop Pro X. I am running XP SP2. I am considering adding a game such as Flight Simulator and upgrading to Photoshop CS. Also, with Windows Vista coming out, I might need added memory or video capability.
I would appreciate any opinion as to whether this possible upgrade would be cost effective. Also, since my current video configurations shows a primary and secondary card, would I need to add two video cards?
Schmungles
2 Posts
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Posted December 5th, 2006 17:00
Second, if you are considering purchasing Photoshop, I would definently max out the Ram (4 GB). Photoshop is a very resource-intensive program, and having plenty of RAM will enable you to run it much more smoothly. As for the video card, I have the same card, and it works just fine for me. If you want something better, here's a little factoid for you to consider:
Although Ati and NVIDIA cards are quite similar, tests have consistently shown that Ati cards, across the board, have a slight performance advantage over NVIDIA when running DirectX applications, and NVIDIA cards have a slight advantage when running OpenGL applications. Depending on what your CAD and other programs run on (DirectX or OpenGL), you should choose the card that is better optimized for them.