I've had this nimble little beast since around 2 and a half years ago. CPU - AMD 6850 2.5GHZ Quad Core GPU - AMD XFX 6950 2GB (Recently bought). RAM - 4GB 600mhz (I think, looks slow compared to the 1800mhz stuff eh?). HDD - 2 x 1TB F3. Case - Mesh PC Performance. Motherboard - ASUSTek M2N68-CM How long before I should think about upgrading? I currently do a fair amount of gaming (2 or so hours a day on average?) and am going into virtualization as well most likely.
That's a curious question... you should only upgrade when you find that applications and games run too slowly for your liking. If you upgrade before then, you won't feel any difference so will have wasted any money you spent.
It's really quite hard to tell how long a system can last, you can get games running for 3+ years as you can reduce the settings on new games, but it depends on how fast you want your applications to run and how many you run at once.
I'm in a similar situation myself. Wanting to upgrade from a Q6600 but not sure if I need to! Battlefield 3 will hopefully provide me with a answer!
Well, you've already used the system for so long I'd say most people on this forum have already gone through one or two upgrades, so maybe this isn't the place to ask for advice? That said, the setup doesn't seem too bad. Sure, the CPU is old and is limiting the performance of that graphic card, but so what, if it still runs the games you want to play, why bother spending money on a new one? Just use that as long as you can. Annnnd OT: Lizard that signature of yours is crazy long, could you probably think editing it to be a bit shorter? Thanks.
I know this isn't my thread but I read that and thought my conscience was talking to me! I knows its good enough but I want I want I want! :-(
I'd say invest in an SSD, it'll make it feel amazingly fast, even on an Original Phenom. Although upgrading could yield you some more performance; you'd have better luck waiting for Bulldozer now. If we're lucky: It'll either cause a price-drop in Sandy bridge, or, drop the Phenom II's in price, meaning it might not be more cost effective to buy an i3 2100 over a Phenom II x4, as is the case at the moment.