Optimising computer for games/performance

[Lance]

http://www.technobabble.com.au/technobabble/html/gaming/gaming2.htmweaking

took me here. 

Here is the correct link...

http://www.technobabble.com.au/technobabble/html/gaming/gaming2.htm

Lance

[Abra]

http://www.tweakguides.com/TGTC.html

The guides on here are extremely useful! Come well recommended.  8)

[mrapoc]

Seems to be offline atm 

I spent a good £80 on my psu (600w) and its always good to check reviews on how stable the rails are. I then spent £130 ish (e6300 when it was first out) then £140 on my asus p5b deluxe (again new out). I cannot stress how helpful the reviews are!! I then won £200s worth of ram off www.overclock3d.net (the ram prices were high at the time) so that saved me a lot. Case - really as long as the airflow isnt obviously bad, it all applies to taste. I would say stick to nice brands such as Silverstone (mine is a tj05), lian li and antec as this will both look nicer and save you the hassles of cutting yourself installing hardware (on sharp edges) and potentially even an easy breaking case!!

[mrapoc]

Ill update this sometime - got a bit more knowledge over time 

Plus the IT course at college helps a bit 

[Moley]

I've got most of the things you mention, but I found Windows Startup Inspector very useful as it tells you what each thing does - handy for the uninitiated/amateur like myself 

[Rik]

You didn't say you were uninitiated, Chris, we have a ceremony to handle that. Adopt the position.

[David]

Ok I all I want to know are these tips easy for me to follow and are there any risks.I don't play any games at all but would like to think it as a learning curve and perhaps get maximum performance.thanks guys

And no Rik I have a bad back so will pass on the initiation  (ouch)   

[Rik]

I'm not into games, David, so can't really comment from my own experience...

[mrapoc]

I cant see an edit button so heres an updated/new version.

As with any PC changes make a backup! There are plenty of tools available - for example the built in Windows one. Ask in the computer discussion for advice.

First I'll start by which OS to choose. Personally I go for x64 (64 bit) everytime as I have (fairly) new hardware and peripherals - in fact the only reason not to would be compatability issues. It seems to run smoother with less hiccups and better security. It also uses all 4gb of my ram    I have been going back and forth between Vista x64 and Xp x64 - Now back onto XP. Vista seems to be ok if you set it up right, but in games it still feels a bit sluggish to me. So back to XP.

A nifty little tool I always use is Nlite (for xp/server 2003) or Vlite (for vista/server 2008). Basically:

Have you ever wanted to remove Windows components like Media Player, Internet Explorer, Outlook Express, MSN Explorer, Messenger...
How about not even to install them with Windows ?

nLite is a tool for pre-installation Windows configuration and component removal at your choice. Optional bootable image ready for burning on media or testing in virtual machines.
With nLite you will be able to have Windows installation which on install does not include, or even contain on media, the unwanted components.

Features
Service Pack Integration
Component Removal
Unattended Setup
Driver Integration *
Hotfixes Integration **
Tweaks
Services Configuration
Patches ***

So I can remove what I dont want, preinstall stuff, use various tweaks and make the whole install automatic (after formatting that is!) which results in a much smaller, a lot more responsive install. A must for me!

Once install I recommend with every PC a strong antivirus - which does not use many system resources. I have only committed to one antivirus ever and thats Eset (NOD32) - its been the best so far and I have switched between a few in my time  . Personally I think the security suite is a bit of a rip (im not a fan of suites myself tho - too much bloat).

I can recommend PerfectDisk 2008 as its currently my default defragmenter (offering automatic defrag which is surprisingly undetectable, boot time for all your system files and does a hell of a lot better job that the windows one) - all comes down to if you want to spend, but Im sure there is a trial version somewhere.  8)

I try to keep anything I install to a minimum - so there is less to go wrong or slow you down. As a rule - only install what you will actually use. If its sat there doing nothing - uninstall it.

Temporary files, dirty registry and other junk can bog you down. I have recommended it previously and will continue to do so. Ccleaner does the job  Get it here Ccleaner

ill be back with more tips as i think of them (tired atm)

[dysonco]

Hi All,

My pennies worth, all the above are very useful, both specifically for gaming and for generally keeping your PC running smooth and quick in general use.

Another useful thing if you're willing to give it a go, is to overclock your computer.  This pretty much involves running certain components at a higher speed than their standard, and with modern Intel and AMD CPU can offer up to 50% or greater increase in performance.

Several things to be aware of before you even consider this are:

1. Don't even attempt this unless you are happy to do a fair amount of research and learn how to actualy acheive it.  If you go in half cocked you can seriously break your computer.

2. cooling, cooling cooling.  Faster speeds mean higher amounts of heat generated, before you start make sure you are happy that you have a decent amount of airflow though your case and install appropriate temperature monitoring software to make sure you PC stays within appropriate thermal limits.

3.  If you break it, its your responsibility! It may invalidate your warrantly if the manufacturer, supplier find out that you have overclocked your computer.  So either don't break it, or keep mum about how it broke if you do.

For a good beginners quide on how to overclock go to here

For example my CPU is an intel core duo Q6600 quad core which without adding any additional voltage to the chip or even generating much additional heat will happily overclock from its stock 2.4Ghz to a considerably faster 3.0Ghz. A rise in performace to that of a processor 4 x more expensive.

With a bit more tweaking, a bigger CPU heatsink and fans and a good quality power supply, motherboard and decent RAM, mine actually runs rock solid stable at 3.5Ghz. Thats a CPU that cost £130 running at a speed similar, or better, than Intels most expensive extreme addition CPUs with a price tag of around £900.

Now as far as longevity of the components is concerned people often say that if you overclock your components they fail quicker.  Thats not striclty true, it's heat that shortens the life of components, so as long as you deal with the heat generated there should be no decrease in the life of your components.

As an example my rather silly Q6600 CPU running at 3.5 ghz rather than its stock 2.4 actually has a maximum temperature reached with all four cores at 100% CPU usage of about 55 degrees.  Thats actually as much as ten-twenty degrees lower than your average PC World/ advent cheap and cheerful PC would typically run on full load.

Now I'm not saying everyone go out and try this, and I'm certainly not suggesting people go to quite the extent that some enthusiats go (theres people out there who use refrigiration/ freezer technology to cool thier CPUs to sub zero temperatures to acheive ridiculous levels of performance) My main PC has quite a lot of fans and a very large heatsink on the CPU which is necessary for me to reach 3.5 Ghz, but I could happily and safely reach 3.0ghz on the stock Intel heat sink and fan and a fairly standard good quality computer case with reasonable air flow.

It also teaches you an awful lot about what parts of you computer do what, so even if you only read about it and don't do it, its very interesting!

Anyway, this all adds up to increased performance for relatively little additional outlay.

[Fox]

Now as far as longevity of the components is concerned people often say that if you overclock your components they fail quicker.  Thats not striclty true, it's heat that shortens the life of components, so as long as you deal with the heat generated there should be no decrease in the life of your components.

Not strictly true, while excess heat does lower the life of components excessive voltage can cause electron migration within the chip and cause it to degrade. For 24/7 use I would not recommend using above 1.40v for the CPU on the 65nm intel CPUs (Q6600, Q6700 etc) and preferably lower and 1.35v for the 42nm CPUs (Q9400 Q9500 etc).
The amount you will be able to overclock a processor is dependant on so many things (motherboard, RAM, a good clean power supply). I currently run an Intel Q9550 at 3.8GHz in my gaming machine at only 1.25v totally stable but it helps that the processor I have has a really low VID of only 1.100 volts. Overclocking is a balancing act trying to get the best speed with the lowest voltage while controlling the heat. I can run the processor at over 4GHZ stable but it runs a lot hotter and needs a lot more voltage to do it and to be honest I cannot tell the difference in game, as long as the game isnt limited by your processor (and with a quad core at 3.8GHZ I havent found one that is).