how can i tweak my system to run games as fast as possible?

Question

heres my setup: pentium D 925 3ghz dual core, 2gb ddr2 pc5400 ram, 200gb hdd (about 80gb free), and a nvidia 8400 256mb video adapter.

games run ok, but i want more. im saving for an 8800, but for now, i want to get this system as fast as possible with what i have. i can overclock the gpu by 100mhz (dont want to heat it up too much, its already pretty warm in there) so its got a 600mhz core with a 500mhz memory clock.

how else can i speed up my system? i only want it faster for games, everything else works fast enough for me.

i have a 450w psu, will that have enough output to run an 8800?

Answer 1

Your remaining option would be to overclock your D925. You may have to start on this and look for a better cooler. At stock speed it will just bottleneck your future Geforce 8800 series.

As for power supply, your 450 watter can only handle the 8800 series if it has 30 amps or more on the +12V rails. 8800 series draws from 9 to 13 amps on the +12V rail. Your processor circuit could draw about 10 amps on the +12V rail. Fans and drive motors also draw from same rail. 30 amps would be a minimum for stable operation.

Consider this cheap but good one:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817339001

Answer 2

Nvidias new cards are gonna be out soon, supposedly in November but for sure by Xmas. When they do you will be able to get a great deal on an overclocked 640MB 8800GTS. the 256MB of ram on your card is cramping your style so as you up the resolution you frame rates go down.
Video games depend on 1--video card 2--ram 3-cpu, in that order so save your money for an 8800 and a bigger power supply to run it if you dont already have one. Not much else you can do with a 256MB 8400.

Answer 3

If your virus/spyware free, there are a couple things you can do get your computer games working faster. If you using your laptop for normal stuff and not gaming. You got a good setup. You don't need more RAM you just need to perform a few maintenance task.

Firstly, if you haven't cleaned your registry in a while. This is necessary. Your registry holds all the information regarding updates, installs, un-installs etc. Each one of those events has
a key. That key needs your PC's resources and free space. So, if you clean your registry, you make more resources available for spped. Do a registry scan if you got more than 20 errors you should clean it.
http://www.delete-computer-history.com/what-is-the-best-registry-cleaner.html

2. Clear your Windows cache files, this is your temporary file. It can grow up to a large volume and stop your computer from using RAM properly. In a sense slow it down by preventing it from using free space.Here is how:

1. Quit Internet Explorer, Firefox, or any other web browser
2. Click Start, click "Control Panel", and then double-click "Internet Options".
3. On the General tab, click "Delete Files" under Temporary Internet Files.
4. In the Delete Files dialog box, click to select the "Delete all offline content" check box , and then click OK.
5. Click OK.

3. Manage your startups. Your excess CPU usage is due to too many programs running in the background. You can cut these to barebones by alter your msconfig. Here is how:

1. Open your Start menu.
2. Click Run
3. In the command screen type "msconfig.exe"
4. In the "system configuration utility",click either "service" or "startup" tab
5. Uncheck all programs that your are no longer using.
6. Click "OK"

Other great tip is increasing your virtual memory to simulate more RAM. This will give you a bit more resources for multiple program use or CPU heavy programs. Check the link to alter your virtual memory spec.

Hope this link helps. Shows you how to do everything step by step. You should get a least 60% more resources and speed
if you follow the tips.