Build a PC for Rome 2 / Hardware Recommendations and Advice Thread

[alQamar]

I am happy to hear this. The teaming in this thread still works great

[Aenima]

My brother recently upgraded his MacBook with some extra RAM and an SSD hard-drive, and I've been toying with the idea of getting my laptop some upgrades as well. Despite being a gaming laptop with decent specs, it struggles to run high end games. Even worse, it's recently decided to stop playing certain games altogether - games like Rome 2 and even Call of Duty 2, which worked just fine months ago, now just have the screen go black when loading up, even though I can hear it going through the loading menus and trailers etc.


So like I said, I'm toying with the idea of upgrading my laptop. I figure that if I upgrade my components then it'll start running these games again and run them a lot better than before. Only thing is that I don't know a damn thing about computers and components, so I figured it'd be best to ask here for advice on what to look for and what would/wouldn't be compatible, assuming that's an issue. I found a pretty in-depth summary of my laptop specs at this link here, but here's a brief summary:

Novatech nSpire 2760 Black edition
Intel i7 2760
2.4 GHZ
8GB DDR3 (quad core)
NVidia GT 555M card, 2GB

I'm thinking that a SSD might be good to get things running smoothly and efficiently, but mainly I figure that a better graphics card and some more RAM would benefit my laptop most of all...it seems laptops need more hardware to run at a similar level to lower-level desktop computers, which explains my laptop's poor performance with high end games, despite some respectable specs.


Any ideas on what I could look at to upgrade it with? Thanks

[SamueleD]

My brother recently upgraded his MacBook with some extra RAM and an SSD hard-drive, and I've been toying with the idea of getting my laptop some upgrades as well. Despite being a gaming laptop with decent specs, it struggles to run high end games. Even worse, it's recently decided to stop playing certain games altogether - games like Rome 2 and even Call of Duty 2, which worked just fine months ago, now just have the screen go black when loading up, even though I can hear it going through the loading menus and trailers etc.


So like I said, I'm toying with the idea of upgrading my laptop. I figure that if I upgrade my components then it'll start running these games again and run them a lot better than before. Only thing is that I don't know a damn thing about computers and components, so I figured it'd be best to ask here for advice on what to look for and what would/wouldn't be compatible, assuming that's an issue. I found a pretty in-depth summary of my laptop specs at this link here, but here's a brief summary:





I'm thinking that a SSD might be good to get things running smoothly and efficiently, but mainly I figure that a better graphics card and some more RAM would benefit my laptop most of all...it seems laptops need more hardware to run at a similar level to lower-level desktop computers, which explains my laptop's poor performance with high end games, despite some respectable specs.


Any ideas on what I could look at to upgrade it with? Thanks

Short answer: no upgrade that you can make will improve gaming performance.
Long answer: You can't change your laptop graphics card or CPU (not easily at least), but buying an SSD will help you in many ways, and in other respects. First of all, the overall feel of the system will be faster, because the read speed from is SSD is so much more files will open faster, the OS will boot up faster, programs and games will launch faster, but nothing will run faster, only start faster. Also you won't have to worry too much about moving your running laptop, since you can't mechanically damage an SSD in the same way you would an hard disk. Also, if you move to SSD you might do a clean re-installation of your OS, which will also help with overall system responsiveness and solve your problems with games no longer starting.
Laptops hardware is always crappier than desktop hardware, and don't believe for a moment that 760M = 760 or 550M = 550, they are completely different parts, and the M version is much, much slower.
Your laptop is relatively old, the GPU in particular, you might think it's recent, but it's using an old architecture, which is far behind the current one, however, you are only running a 1366x768 monitor, so it might not be a big problem.
Unless you want to get a new laptop, the best you can do is get an SSD and do a fresh install of the OS on it, which will restore your laptop to its original (and maximum) performance (which won't be much, but might be enough), plus the added responsiveness and fast loading due to the SSD, which you will certainly enjoy.

[Aenima]

Oh....well that sucks. Thanks for the explanation, I just wish it was better news!

What makes you say that the graphics card/CPU can't be upgraded? I was under the impression that while it's a bit tricky and involves knowing what goes where inside the laptop itself, it's still doable.

[SamueleD]

Oh....well that sucks. Thanks for the explanation, I just wish it was better news!

What makes you say that the graphics card/CPU can't be upgraded? I was under the impression that while it's a bit tricky and involves knowing what goes where inside the laptop itself, it's still doable.

It depends on the laptop, but while desktops are made to have swappable parts, laptops are not. On a desktop you can easily take the CPU out of its socket, take the GPU out of its slot, etc, a laptop is not meant to have replaceable parts, often you simply cannot take the part out of the motherboard, even if you could in your case, there is no guarantee that you will find a compatible replacement, and even if you could find it might simply not fit inside your laptop, because of its size or overheat, because the laptop cooling system was not designed for the new part. It would also cost a lot, so much that you'd be better off buying a new laptop.
Desktop PC don't have to worry much about size, so they are designed to have interchangeable parts, laptops are optimized for size, so they are designed to be small, at the cost of having almost no interchangeable parts.

[sander454]

Hi guys,
I will posted here rather than in Tech forum as this place is more active.

At this moment I have 2 x HD6870 in CF mode. They are great cards and so far I don't complain as I can play every game on max settings. However recently I noticed that cards are getting very hot. During recent play in AC4 reading of main card was 102 C and second was 94 C. I cleaned my tower from dust, installed MSI Afterburner and managed to get it down to around 85 - 88 C. Problem is that PC now is very loud, so I decided to buy a new single card.
My 2 candidates are:
Gigabyte GTX770 OC 4GB - http://www.scan.co.uk/products/4gb-g...es-1536-dport-
Sapphire Toxic 3GB R9 280X - http://www.scan.co.uk/products/3gb-s...reams-dvi-hdmi

I believe both cards will offer me similar experience in terms of raw power and they should be able to match or even be better than my current setup.
So my question is which one is quieter and which one will work better with R2 - (currently my AMD cards have problems with displaying black boxes on ground - apparently typical AMD problem)

Thanks in advance

[SamueleD]

Hi guys,
I will posted here rather than in Tech forum as this place is more active.

At this moment I have 2 x HD6870 in CF mode. They are great cards and so far I don't complain as I can play every game on max settings. However recently I noticed that cards are getting very hot. During recent play in AC4 reading of main card was 102 C and second was 94 C. I cleaned my tower from dust, installed MSI Afterburner and managed to get it down to around 85 - 88 C. Problem is that PC now is very loud, so I decided to buy a new single card.
My 2 candidates are:
Gigabyte GTX770 OC 4GB - http://www.scan.co.uk/products/4gb-g...es-1536-dport-
Sapphire Toxic 3GB R9 280X - http://www.scan.co.uk/products/3gb-s...reams-dvi-hdmi

I believe both cards will offer me similar experience in terms of raw power and they should be able to match or even be better than my current setup.
So my question is which one is quieter and which one will work better with R2 - (currently my AMD cards have problems with displaying black boxes on ground - apparently typical AMD problem)

Thanks in advance

I would suggest checking out reviews of the two cards and looking for comparisons of various after-market cooler, I think Tomshardware made a comparison of almost all after-market coolers for the 280X, and since the Gigabyte 770 uses the same Windforce cooler as a Gigabyte 280X, it should be enough of a comparison, overall I think Asus DCII cooler is the quietest, but don't take my word on that, I might be wrong. This isn't really the best place to ask this question, it is unlikely that many here have the possibility of comparing the two cards directly, so I strongly suggest googleing a comparison between the two coolers and check review sites, who usually have the possibility of making this kind of comparisons.
If you want to know which one is best for Rome II, you can check this out http://www.anandtech.com/bench/product/1041?vs=1037, but know that new drivers and patches might have changed the situation.

[Totalheadache]

Hi guys,
I will posted here rather than in Tech forum as this place is more active.

At this moment I have 2 x HD6870 in CF mode. They are great cards and so far I don't complain as I can play every game on max settings. However recently I noticed that cards are getting very hot. During recent play in AC4 reading of main card was 102 C and second was 94 C. I cleaned my tower from dust, installed MSI Afterburner and managed to get it down to around 85 - 88 C. Problem is that PC now is very loud, so I decided to buy a new single card.
My 2 candidates are:
Gigabyte GTX770 OC 4GB - http://www.scan.co.uk/products/4gb-g...es-1536-dport-
Sapphire Toxic 3GB R9 280X - http://www.scan.co.uk/products/3gb-s...reams-dvi-hdmi

I believe both cards will offer me similar experience in terms of raw power and they should be able to match or even be better than my current setup.
So my question is which one is quieter and which one will work better with R2 - (currently my AMD cards have problems with displaying black boxes on ground - apparently typical AMD problem)

Thanks in advance

290 would be a better option i reckon....

[sander454]

290 would be a better option i reckon....

Unfortunately the price is too high for me. First card that is not using stock air cooler cost almost £350 which is almost 70 more than toxic and 50 more than 770gtx.

send from my Note 2. Apologies for any grammar and spelling mistakes

[sander454]

Thanks

[Conzor]

My rome II is veeeery laggy, my hardware: Intel Core Duo 2.93 Ghz, 4GB RAM, big free space on disk and graphic card - ATI Radeon HD 5700 series. What is wrong ;c?

[alQamar]

My rome II is veeeery laggy, my hardware: Intel Core Duo 2.93 Ghz, 4GB RAM, big free space on disk and graphic card - ATI Radeon HD 5700 series. What is wrong ;c?

You are playing the wrong game Conzor. That's unfortunately all I can say at the moment,

However I would like to know if there is a chance to help you. Could you run the Rome 2 benchmark and post the result screen and aswell a screenshot of your settings?

[Conzor]

Ok :c what is my worst problem with hardware? Which part i should swap with sometin better? Can u write some reswap better, not so money heavy options?

[Martyka21]

Test

[revan.be]

Hello , i am from belgium and would like to buy a new pc from a store here in belgium.
My budget would be 1000 euros thereabouts,
and i would like to use it for TW games.

Since both warscape and the previous engine appear to need a lot of processor Ghz on a per core basis;
i am thinking a haswell might be in order.

if anyone here could take a look at any belgian sites for me and recommend me something ,
a build using the parts from one site only , or a great deal on a good pre-built that would be great.
i'll even list these sites i found for your convenience,
these have the advantage of having a physical store, which is a must for me.
tones.be
http://www.tones.be/category/index/pc-onderdelen

MyCom
http://www.mycom.be/desktops-randapparatuur

CoolBlue
http://www.computerstore.be/category...?cb-ref=topnav

http://www.computerstore.be/category...biedingen.html

2Compute
http://www.2compute.net/shop.aspx?RM...aspx?type=CMPD

Even though they are in my language (dutch),
the computer stuff language , although i have a basic enough grasp of it ,
is another thing , since compatibilities , wattage and all that other stuff also needs considering.

little dictionary:
korting = discount
aanbieding = special
gratis = free
geheugen = memory
behuizing = casing
promotie = promotion
onderdelen = parts
toestellen = appliances
toebehoren = accessories
voeding = power supply
grafische kaart = graphics card
moederbord = motherbord
ventilator = fan

[alQamar]

Hi revan, thanks for your request it should be easy to build one with that budget, I think. Either me or anyone else will be there to help you. I think I could have a look on that this afternoon.

[revan.be]

that would be awesome , thx.

[alQamar]

Hi revan, I will do this on Tuesday. Whenever I think I have free time to spent on my computer, wondrously something different will happen.

[Brewskii]

Hello folks,

I'm currently running rome 2 at low/medium settings with fairly decent frame rates but I would ideally like to upgrade my pc to be able to run the game at high/ultra maybe extreme with good consistent fps.

Here is my current rig:

Geforece 9800 GT

AMD Athlon II x4 630 processor

6 GB of ram

Not too impressive I know, So my question is, what components would I need to upgrade and what would I need to upgrade them to in order to get significantly better performance out of this game?

[SamueleD]

Hello folks,

I'm currently running rome 2 at low/medium settings with fairly decent frame rates but I would ideally like to upgrade my pc to be able to run the game at high/ultra maybe extreme with good consistent fps.

Here is my current rig:

Geforece 9800 GT

AMD Athlon II x4 630 processor

6 GB of ram

Not too impressive I know, So my question is, what components would I need to upgrade and what would I need to upgrade them to in order to get significantly better performance out of this game?

All of them.