Dual 800mhz => 933mhz?

[Mark J]

This is related to my other thread about what sort of new computer I should buy - except IÂ’m trying to figure out if I even do need a new computer at the moment, or if I can use the one I have a while longer.

My question is about how processor speeds are generally handled when you read system requirements, because IÂ’m trying to find out whether I can run a program (World of Warcraft, a game) on my Mac. In every other area, I exceed the requirements, but IÂ’m not quite sure how the processor speeds work:

It says I need at least a 933mhz processor. I have dual 800mhz processors. Does the fact that mine are dual make up for the remaining 133mhz, or should it still be considered 800mhz, regardless of that fact?

 

[g5orbust]

Dual 800 should be fine for world of warcraft. I think it is dualproc aware and if it isnt, it doesnt matter much, it still should be playable.

I have a 933MHz G4 and running the open beta it ran well enough. I dont think a 133MHz drop would be a problem as long as your graphics card is solid and you have a lot of RAM.

 

[Mark J]

Thanks for the help I've got 768MB RAM, and nVIDIA GeForce2 with 64MB VRAM... think that should work?

 

[g5orbust]

If you can manage Id say you should try to get an upgrade for that graphics card. You can easily get something like a Radeon 9000 mac edition for around 150 bucks that should do the trick, though obviously the more powerful the better (world of warcraft, when I ran it, was on a Geforce 4 ti 4600 mac edition) because its a pretty new game with a lot of rendering needs.

 

[Mark J]

Great suggestion. I'd be willing to spend quite a bit more then $150 if it meant I'd have better graphics on WoW, since that would also mean I could delay buying a new computer for another one or two years.

But I know next to nothing about graphics cards... are there any others that you would recommend? Would something like a Radeon 9800 even be compatible? Or is buying a better card just not worth it? I imagine the quality of the game's graphics would be controlled by other things, as well - so I could end up buying a great card and the processor speed and RAM would still keep the graphics at a "okay" level, not anything special?

And I assume I could find a guide on upgrading somewhere? Because I don't know how to do that. I take it it isn't too difficult.

Again, thanks for the responses. They've been extremely helpful.

 

[g5orbust]

Great suggestion. I'd be willing to spend quite a bit more then $150 if it meant I'd have better graphics on WoW, since that would also mean I could delay buying a new computer for another one or two years.

But I know next to nothing about graphics cards... are there any others that you would recommend? Would something like a Radeon 9800 even be compatible? Or is buying a better card just not worth it? I imagine the quality of the game's graphics would be controlled by other things, as well - so I could end up buying a great card and the processor speed and RAM would still keep the graphics at a "okay" level, not anything special?

And I assume I could find a guide on upgrading somewhere? Because I don't know how to do that. I take it it isn't too difficult.

Again, thanks for the responses. They've been extremely helpful.

Games, surprisingly enough, dont really rely much on processors. Theyre usually used just for sound and general application management, but really arent involved in the heavy duty computation, which falls to the graphics card. Naturally anything the GPU cant pick up is tackled by the processor, but sicne the GPU is quite a bit faster than a processor, a major drop is performance is noted. Thus you want a top notch graphics card (though really a top notch all around system is obviously preferred). A radeon 9800 pro mac edition will work with your dual 800. A graphics card is really easy to replace. Open up the case (be sure to touch metal prior to dissipate static!), unscrew the screws holing the current card in, remove the card, replace the card with the new one, replace the screws and close up the case. You dont even need drivers. Just start back up (make sure all work is done with the machine off) and it should work like a charm.

 

[Mark J]

My apologies for asking so many questions (I'm sure you're sick of answering them by now!), but I just had two more:

- Would it be possible to predict what fps rate I could expect in World of Warcraft? Any guesses, based on your experience? And how high I could set the quality to? I'm really happy just to be able to play it on my Mac, but I wouldn't be complaining if I could get good graphics, too.

- Just to make sure before I go and buy it, you are recommending that one, correct? As opposed to any other card?

And for the third time, thank you for the answers - I have no idea what I'd do without you, and without this forum in general.

Edit:One online shop is saying "Requires connection to your computerÂ’s internal power supply for operation." I guess that won't be a problem for me to do? Also, from the picture of the card it doesn't look like it'd work with my monitor (seems to have screws, my Apple 22" display "clips" in). But I can get an adaptor, I guess?

 

[mac_mogul]

Mm, that doesn't sound right. If you are looking for a Mac Version Video card, it should be one hundred percent compatible with a Mac display and not need direct hookup to a PowerSupply. (Because as far as I know, Macs don't have very accessable P/S's.)

 

[Mark J]

Ah. Well, it did say Mac version. But it was an ebay listing, so perhaps it wasn't too reliable.

Edit: Few more things I forgot to mention: do you know of any good places to buy video cards? Also, I've just been thinking - do you think it'd benefit me more to get the top-of-the-line card, or a slightly less expensive one along with a RAM upgrade?

 

[g5orbust]

Other World Computing sells Radeon graphics cards for Macs. Check this out (scroll down to AGP graphics cards)

Yes, some of the higher level graphics cards need molex (power) connectors (easy stuff, youll have a free two if you dont have a floppy drive)

Third party ATI cards for macs dont have ADC (Apple's display connector). Youll need an adaptor.