Update for UT3 or not?

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GreatEmerald

Khnumhotep
Jan 20, 2008
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Lithuania
As all Steam servers are too slow and usually the speed is only 50 KB/s for some odd reason, I didn't have a chance to try out UT3 myself... So, what do you think I should do - update my PC for UT3 or get UT3? Here are my current specs:

CPU: 2.33GHz Intel Core 2 Duo
RAM: 2GB
GPU: ATI Radeon HD 2600XT (256 MB)
Free Space: 103 GB

As you can see, it fits onto the "recommended" requirements of UT3... Yet the Beta Demo runs strangely. Earlier, just when I installed, without changing any settings, it gave me 30FPS in VCTF-Suspense. And now it gives me nothing more than 15-20 FPS there, and it doesn't improve even if I set the detail level to 1.

So, any suggestions? Should I upgrade my PC before getting UT3 or not? And what's the weakest point in my PC? Windows 7 suggests that it's the GPU, is that right?
 
shoptroll

shoptroll

Active Member
Jan 21, 2004
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Beta is horribly optimized. You should be capable of playing the game with those specs.
 
G

GreatEmerald

Khnumhotep
Jan 20, 2008
4,042
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Lithuania
What changes are between my card and 4850? And why are everyone referring to model names, and not the actual card specifications?
Also, what do you think about CrossFire? My card is compatible with it, so if I get another ATI card that is compatible, will I get a performance boost? I don't really feel like throwing out the current card, provided that it's fully usable :)
And I'm aware of the power supply, yet how do I check how powerful it is and how do I know how much new components require?
 
Darkdrium

Darkdrium

20% Cooler
Jun 6, 2008
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Model name of the graphics card tells what the specifications are.
Crossfire is good, but not the ultimate solution. If your card is even slightly old, you can get a single card today that is twice as powerful as your current one, and since Crossfire/SLI don't give you exactly twice the power, getting the single card is often a better solution. ;)
 
C

Crowze

Bird Brain
Feb 6, 2002
3,556
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Cambridgeshire, UK
www.dan-roberts.co.uk
While not always the most reputable of sources, the charts at Tom's Hardware are often useful indicators of performance. Here, for example, is a comparison of your card alone and in Crossfire, against the cards I mentioned.

As for the power supply, just looks up the make and model - normally the wattage is labeled on the PSU as well, but that can often be misleading. As for how much the components require it's a bit of a grey area, but I wouldn't have thought a single new card would use much more power than your current card, which isn't the most power-efficient of cards.
 
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GreatEmerald

Khnumhotep
Jan 20, 2008
4,042
1
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Lithuania
Ooh, thanks for the link. Pretty much seems that crossfired 2600 gets 50% speed boost, while a single 4870 is 150% better. I see that it's currently $200, while my one is at $100. Not bad, I should say...
And Crossfire works only between the same types of cards? :(
My power supply states "230V~/50Hz,5A", any info about this?
 
shoptroll

shoptroll

Active Member
Jan 21, 2004
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Crossfire/SLi usually isn't worth the additional cost. The 4870 1GB should be around $200 now which makes it a really good deal.
 
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GreatEmerald

Khnumhotep
Jan 20, 2008
4,042
1
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Lithuania
After all I managed to download UT3 in time, and after tweaking, it's still not that good: FPS is 20-30. Yet it still feels a lot better than the Demo, so I guess I can cope with it.
 
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GreatEmerald

Khnumhotep
Jan 20, 2008
4,042
1
0
Lithuania
Sorry for a double post, but cool, I've found a way to get good FPS! Just lower the resolution. 1680x1050 was too big for my card to handle, while I can run 1440x900 just fine. It doesn't look as good, but I can then put details on the maximum level so it looks even better than before!
 
shoptroll

shoptroll

Active Member
Jan 21, 2004
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I was going to say... there's no possible way that rig was getting framerates as bad as mine.
 
Darkdrium

Darkdrium

20% Cooler
Jun 6, 2008
3,239
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36
Montreal
It's just there to tell you what comes out of your wall plug. All power supplies for your location have the same ratings.

Here in N.A. it's 120V 60Hz AC, in Europe it's 240V 50Hz AC.

You've got to find a wattage (W) indication somewhere, the figure should be around a few hundreds. You might have to open the computer case to take a look. Or look for your computer model online.
 
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