Getting the most out of a dual core processor
 

So it's been awhile since I got this PC, and I feel like it should be running a lot faster than it should for what the specs are:

+Pentium(R) Dual Core 3.4Ghz processor
+2GB of DDR RAM
+500GB HDD
+ATI Radeon X1300/X1550
(I don't know a great deal about PCs, so I'm just listing the specs I understand)

The games I play regularly are HalfLife2, Oblivion, and CS:Source.

I understand that only some games support dual core processing, but I know Oblivion is one of the games that is supposed to support it, and the performance I've seen thus far seems to be rather lacking. (the video options are either disabled or set really low)

I tried finding an optimizer, but it seems like only AMD has released one for their processors :(.

PS: I've already considered things such as spyware and programs running on the background, I clear these things up regularly and tend to only have MSN up while I game.

If you're getting poor performance in games it's likely due to your X1300. It is a huge bottleneck in your system, and you should replace it when you can because it's much slower than the rest of your system from what I can see of it.

Pentium D, huh? Your room was be burning.

Get a nVidia 7900 or something to that effect. Even then, Oblivion will be taxing your system. On the other hand, HL2 and CS:Source will be quite nice and I believe you'll be able to ratchet the seatings to pretty high level.

xiao: Huh? Pentium D's run rather cool compared to most other modern CPUs.

Gaming is more video card than CPU. The Video Card is definitely the bottleneck.

D'oh, I was hoping that wasn't it. Other than nVidia 7900, can anyone suggest me a card that would go well with my system, and that can play games with next gen console graphics smoothly? Without completely destroying my wallet lol.

I've been browsing for them since reading this thread, but there is so many choices.

Even the 7900 is already last-gen. The 8800 is the new top of the line.

Isn't the 8600 supposed to be a decent mid-range card?

8600 is the replacement for the 7900. I thought the 8600 was more expensive than the 7900, so I recommended the 7900. However, they are around the same price once I checked the interweb. It looks like a good card for the money.

8600 GT: ~$125
7900 GT: ~$120

Testing/Benchmarks:
http://www.anandtech.com/video/showdoc.aspx?i=2970&p=6
http://www.anandtech.com/printarticle.aspx?i=2975

Really? My suitemate's pentium d setup was burning hot at a steady 50 C without any load...

8800GTS 320mb version. Unless you're playing on a 24"+ monitor, the 640mb version would do nicely.

There are a couple revisions of the Pentium-D. The newest Smithfield revision is much much much better with heat and power that it's previous brothers. Also, there are a lot of factors in CPU heat: poor heatsink, old/crappy thermal paste, poor airflow inside the case, etc.

My recommendation on a new vid card is mixed, to say the least. A few benchmarks are showing that the 8800 series is going to suck with DirectX 10 games. Of course, the 8600 would then be terrible for the new games coming up. Current games [DX9] should be fine on all counts. Unfortunately, nVidia doesn't have the 9xxx series coming until the beginning of next year, so it'd be a long stretch if you waited until then.

If you wanna play the games coming out this year, get the 8800GTS. (around $300) If you aren't gonna play them, get the 8600. But more than likely, you'll want to play new games. :)

Having recently built my new computer, (thanks to all the guys here who helped me), I'd say a new video card depends on your budget and how important eyecandy is to you. I used an 8600GTS card in my computer running on an E6600 processor. This card works fine for me for the games I play (CS Source, AOE3, Oblivion). AOE3 was able to crank out maximum quality, as was CS Source. Oblivion needed some notches turned down to be enjoyable (namely grass). I'm playing my games at 1280x1024, so if you plan on going higher than that and have some cash on you, the 320MB version of the 8800GTS will fit you nicely (lots of places report that the 8800GTS is MUCH MUCH more powerful than the 8600GTS). The 8600GTS I got was sitting at $149.99 after mail-in. The cheapest 320MB version of the 8800GTS I saw was sitting at $269.99 (I don't know about rebates). Granted, my 8600GTS was significantly cheaper than most (most are around $180 - $220), so the difference in prices isn't THAT much.

For newer games, it's not so much about eye-candy as it is about playing at a frame rate that doesn't make you feel like your watching a damn slide show. :/

Though, one could always reduce the resolution, but any idiot with eyes in their skull will quickly realize that there are always limits to how bad a game can look before it's ridiculous. :3