Black Friday Computer... SA Capable?

[Endrik]

So we got a pretty decent computer at a Black Friday sale... Its an HP desktop running Windows 7 64-bit. Has a AMD Athalon II x4 quad core processor 620?, and 8 gigs of ram with a 1 Tera hard drive. Also came with a NVIDIA GeForce 9100 integrated graphics card. The whole package came with a 20" Monitor and a HP printer all for $499.

Now Im a little out of the loop on new computer gear, but this seemed a pretty good deal to me so we jumped at it. Anybody know if I will have any trouble running SA on this new system? I have tried it on my laptops, and it was a joke. Also tried it on my previous desk top which was a Sony Viao and that was also a nightmare. I would like to give SA a real try on a good computer, but I dont want to go through the hassle of installing it and getting all set up just to be disappointed again. Anybody know if this system will really fly, just be average, or will SA still suck on my brand new 2 day old comp?

 

[Xenobia]

So we got a pretty decent computer at a Black Friday sale... Its an HP desktop running Windows 7 64-bit. Has a AMD Athalon II x4 quad core processor 620?, and 8 gigs of ram with a 1 Tera hard drive. Also came with a NVIDIA GeForce 9100 integrated graphics card. The whole package came with a 20" Monitor and a HP printer all for $499.

Now Im a little out of the loop on new computer gear, but this seemed a pretty good deal to me so we jumped at it. Anybody know if I will have any trouble running SA on this new system? I have tried it on my laptops, and it was a joke. Also tried it on my previous desk top which was a Sony Viao and that was also a nightmare. I would like to give SA a real try on a good computer, but I dont want to go through the hassle of installing it and getting all set up just to be disappointed again. Anybody know if this system will really fly, just be average, or will SA still suck on my brand new 2 day old comp?

Hun, you got the Black Friday deal of a lifetime! You will have no problems whatsoever playing SA and I wish like hell I had been there with you to get one for myself!
Instead, I got a frontload washer and dryer and an XBOX Elite...I guess I can't complain
Oh and make sure you have a decent internet connection or your nice computer will still be just "average" when you try to play.

 

[Endrik]

Hun, you got the Black Friday deal of a lifetime! You will have no problems whatsoever playing SA and I wish like hell I had been there with you to get one for myself!
Instead, I got a frontload washer and dryer and an XBOX Elite...I guess I can't complain

LoL, ya my wife and I went and camped out from 6pm to 5am the next morning... we were 5th in line at Best Buy. My parents were visiting for Thanksgiving, and my dad camped out with us and got one too. I guess each store only had 6 in stock, and we got 2 of em. Thinking back we should have had my wife buy one too since there were 3 of us there. Oh well, so far we are pretty happy with it, but I cant wait to get everything installed and really see what she can do.

 

[Lorddog]

2 of bigest things are amount of ram (over 2 gig) and video card - which your is integrated so not as good but should be good enough for uo

 

[Xenobia]

LoL, ya my wife and I went and camped out from 6pm to 5am the next morning... we were 5th in line at Best Buy. My parents were visiting for Thanksgiving, and my dad camped out with us and got one too. I guess each store only had 6 in stock, and we got 2 of em. Thinking back we should have had my wife buy one too since there were 3 of us there. Oh well, so far we are pretty happy with it, but I cant wait to get everything installed and really see what she can do.

Good for you and congrats! You will be very happy with what you bought...I can assure you of that
We had to be at Sears at 4am to get the washer and dryer that was on sale (they only had 4 sets) but we got there too late because of my husband not wanting to get out of bed, so when he saw the daggers fly from my eyes, he bought me an even nicer set...woohoo! Cost us twice as much, but saved his hide hehe

 

[Xenobia]

2 of bigest things are amount of ram (over 2 gig) and video card - which your is integrated so not as good but should be good enough for uo

That should not be integrated...

EDIT: NM yes it is

 

[Dermott of LS]

...

If the integrated card uses DEDICATED memory and not SHARED memory, you'll be fine.

 

[Xenobia]

I read it wrong and the integrated cards are not the best...but still overall a nice machine.

I read some threads about that one and folks are playing WoW on it just fine so UO should be no problemo. With the RAM it's sporting, well...you will be fine.

 

[Endrik]

...

If the integrated card uses DEDICATED memory and not SHARED memory, you'll be fine.

How can I check this?

 

[Dermott of LS]

...

What is the model of the system... HP what? (usually something like Pavillion 9600 or some such moniker). With that I can check the specs. Or it might state it on the box for the system what type of graphics memory it uses (generally it will say "dedicated 512 meg" for dedicated memory or "up to 2 gig graphics memory" for shared or something like that).

Edit a quick search shows one close to your specs with the 9100 card in it with the following info:

NVIDIA GeForce 9100 graphics
With 256MB integrated shared memory and up to 2943MB total available graphics memory as allocated by Windows 7. High-definition audio with 8-speaker support.

256MB shared is probably not going to give you the best of performance for the EC. You'll likely find it a bit sluggish

 

[Endrik]

HP Pavilion p6214y

It does not say on the box which leads me to believe its probably shared and not dedicated.

 

[Dermott of LS]

...

Yep... shared. The one I found on the search was the model number under yours, p6210y. They use the same 'card' which is shared memory.

The problem with shared memory is that it's usuing the system's RAM instead of its own video RAM which tends to run at a much slower rate than a card the has dedicated video RAM on it.

Good for general home use, not so much for actual gaming and one of the reasons why I tend to not like pre-constructed systems... they always seem to skimp on something... sometimes video, sometimes harddrive space, sometimes memory... it's weird, but usually one of the specs will be stupidly low compared to the rest.

You can try the EC with it, but don't expect the best of outcomes.

 

[Demonous]

system requirements for SA client are not high at all compared to almost every other decent game on the market, uo requirements are very low, the problem is many people have like 10 yr old computers cause of 2d, hell i got a new comp last yr but i still play 2d on it

 

[HillBilly]

You have 1 PCI Express x16 slot available. Upgrading the graphics can be an option.

Heres a pdf spec sheet for that model.

http://slickdeals.net/forums/attachment.php?attachmentid=284145&d=1258218417



EDIT: Copy paste link into browser to download pdf.

 

[Xenobia]

You have 1 PCI Express x16 slot available. Upgrading the graphics can be an option.

Heres a pdf spec sheet for that model.

http://slickdeals.net/forums/attachment.php?attachmentid=284145&d=1258218417



EDIT: Copy paste link into browser to download pdf.

Yeah for what you paid for the system, you can go on out and purchase a decent video card.
I still don't think you will have too much trouble though.

 

[Nok]

Hi Endrik,

Nice PC, and a great deal... you just need a video card. Here are some deals from Newegg. Some things to look for...

• 256bit or higher memory interface.
• 512m of video RAM or higher.
• Video outputs that match your new monitor... DVI, HDMI, etc.
• DirectX 11 compatible or ready (standard of the near future).
• Make sure the video card will work with your new PC's power supply.
• Good user ratings, read through the reviews for the cards you're interested in.
• Considering a slot fan for a some extra cooling even if the card has it's own fans.

Good luck!

 

[Mitzlplik_SP]

Endrik Siege, if all your going to do is play UO on that pc....you don`t need another card.

I`d load up SA and try it before ya go buying new hardware already. Contrary to popular belief you don`t need a 512/1 gig pci-e 2.0 card with all the bells and whistles to play UO.

IMO you will see very little difference between what you have now compared to throwing another $100+ at it for a vid card.

If your going to play games with a huge video demand like CoD for example....you`ll definately see a difference and will need a better card.

For UO......not so much.

 

[Schuyler Bain]

Endrik Siege, if all your going to do is play UO on that pc....you don`t need another card.

I`d load up SA and try it before ya go buying new hardware already. Contrary to popular belief you don`t need a 512/1 gig pci-e 2.0 card with all the bells and whistles to play UO.

IMO you will see very little difference between what you have now compared to throwing another $100+ at it for a vid card.

If your going to play games with a huge video demand like CoD for example....you`ll definately see a difference and will need a better card.

For UO......not so much.

/agreed

If UO is your main game what you have will do just fine! Adding a video card will not do all that much for UO (I have played both ways on my current machine), but again, if you play other "newer" MMORPGs or FPS the extra money for a video card will be a great investment.