Posts by Lawrence Phillips

How much does the CPU core count actually matter these days when you're worried about hitting a bottleneck while picking out a new GPU?

So, I’m thinking about overclocking my E8400—trying to see how high I can push it without cranking up the voltage too much. I'm really hoping to hit somewhere around 3.8 to 4 GHz, though I know for sure I can get to 3.6 GHz since I've already tested it! Anyway, I'm looking at grabbing a Radeon 6580.

Do you think that processor is gonna be a total bottleneck for a card like that?

I mean, everything you guys said actually makes a ton of sense.
I only brought this up because I feel like I’ve kind of lost track of just how much hardware tech has moved forward lately—it's crazy, right?

Honestly, I’m pretty happy with my current setup. Whatever I throw at it, it handles well enough for me—I guess I use Crysis 2 as my little benchmark...

I'll probably give that black Call of Duty: Battlefield a shot, but I'm not exactly losing sleep over whether it runs perfectly or not.
Besides, I'm mostly just waiting for Diablo 3, and I'm pretty sure that'll run smooth as butter.

I was really just trying to see if there's a way to get a noticeable performance boost without totally breaking the bank.

The plan was basically: grab a new GPU, sell the old one, maybe be out a few hundred bucks, and call it a day. But hey, if the upgrade isn't going to be a huge jump, I might just skip the whole headache.

It takes me back to that one time years ago—back in the early internet era, if anyone remembers that 🙂—when I went all out $233 buying a card that didn't even really help me much. It was technically newer than what I had, but man, it just left a bad taste in my mouth.

none, thanks everyone!👍

wanderingviper7 said:If you're already feeling bad about losing those $233, honestly, just don't buy anything at all.

If you're actually gearing up for Call of Duty: Battlefield, trust me—nothing like a 6770 or a GTS 450 is gonna make you happy when you try to launch it.

Maybe the smartest move, if you really want to get things done right, would be to sell that Core 2 Duo for maybe $167, the 8800GTS for around $133, the RAM for about $67, and the motherboard (not sure which one you've got) let's say roughly $83.
That puts you at about $450 total, and then you just tack on that 750 you were planning to spend on a new GPU.
That gives you over 1,000 bucks to work with, and man, you could build something way more interesting with that—but only if you've got a decent power supply. I'm assuming the hard drive is probably fine along with everything else, like the case, DVD drive, and fans.

In that scenario, I'd personally look into an AM3+ board ($233), a Phenom X4 955 BE ($262), 4GB of DDR3 ($53), and then just see what kind of GPU you can squeeze out of it—you know, just think it over.

Man, I've definitely been burned before too.

Yeah, forget it all... honestly, better to just sell the whole rig. My power supply isn't exactly top-of-the-line either... so that's something I gotta worry about too... It's probably too big of a bite to take right now.

So, yeah, the bottom line is I probably can't help much with just a graphics card upgrade. Shoot...

Casey Long2 said:It's a solid pick—he could probably even handle a GTX 1060 or a Radeon HD 7850, though those might be a bit pricier 👍

See, you basically answered my next question right away, which honestly just opens up a whole bunch of other questions—not just about GPUs, but about upgrading stuff in general.

It's always such a struggle trying to find that sweet spot between upgrading my current rig or just biting the bullet and buying a whole new one. With all these new i3s, i5s, and whatever else out there, I can't help but wonder if investing in a new graphics card is even worth it at this point?

Then there's the whole bottleneck issue with the CPU. I guess the next big step would be swapping out that black processor too. Moving from dual-core to quad-core sounds great, but man, once you start looking at the cost of a new motherboard plus a newer gen CPU... yeah, I think I'll pass for now.

What I really want to know is, what’s the absolute ceiling for a GPU before my processor starts choking it out? Are those GTX 1060 and Radeon HD 7850 cards I mentioned basically hitting the limit?

If I knew that, I could finally make a decision and call it a day. Maybe I'll drop a few hundred bucks on a card and another 300 on some RAM, then I'd know my PC could hang in there for a while longer before it's totally obsolete... I'd know that after that, I won't have to constantly stress over whether an upgrade is actually worth the cash or not.

Whoops, I guess I went on a bit of a rant there!
What do you guys think?

Is the processor enough to avoid being a bottleneck?

Lapsus🙈
My bad!

The PCIe is the slot

* So, are you looking for an AGP or a PCI-E card?
AGP
* What’s your current or upcoming setup look like, and what kind of power supply are you running?
E8400, 3GB of RAM, and an 8800 GTS
* What resolution are you playing at?
1650x1050
* How much cash are you planning to drop?
up to $250
* Any specific stores you're eyeing?
doesn't matter really
* Got any other specific requirements or things I should know?

Honestly, I'm pretty happy with my current card and build—it's doing okay! But, I guess I haven't really been keeping up with the market lately, so I was wondering if spending around $250 might actually make a massive difference compared to what I have now.

Looking at some Benchmarks (nothing too crazy), I didn't really get the feeling that I could grab a GPU for that price that would give me a huge performance boost...

Any suggestions?

Oh, and... I think my power supply is a Corsair 450W

Walter Miller45 said:Hey everyone!
I play handball and I'm 14—really looking for ways to level up my conditioning, specifically how to hold those sprints longer since I play wing.
Also, I'm trying to boost my vertical/jump by maybe 20cm... right now my best jump (measured at school) is about 3.90m, but I'd love to hit at least 4.10m.🙂 If anyone has some tips or advice, please help a guy out!😁 😉
Thanks in advance!

Wait, is this long jump?

I’m drinking protein from Dollar General🤣

My little strategy is basically just mixing some "real" protein powder into my Dollar General tub... you know, just to keep the peace at home.

😬

But honestly, I guess even the stuff from Dollar General is better than nothing at all. 🤣

briskjackal5 said:If you think that's a ton—just throw in 40g of protein. 😁

Honestly, 100g of carbs isn't even that much. Not really.
That's basically just a liter of juice or something.

-Joe

Fair point...

Well, I guess I'll give it a shot that way then.

Thanks!👍

briskjackal5 said:Some crews are out here taking maybe 50 or 60g, while others are smashing like 120g.
It really just depends on whether you're bulking or cutting.
Usually, you'd grab your post-workout shake with water.

If I were you, I’d aim closer to that higher end—100g sounds about right for you.

-Joe

Wait, so you're saying 100ish grams of sugar for every 30g of protein powder? Isn't that, like, a massive amount?🤷

Hey guys, can I get some advice here on how much grape sugar I should be mixing into my protein shake?

I'm thinking about doing 30 grams of protein powder in about a cup of milk + ???? amount of grape sugar?

Thanks!

feralbison4 said:You’re kind of right, Jason Campbell70, but only halfway—a huge chunk of these guys are naturals and aren't touching steroids at all...

I’m not saying what you're doing is bad, but I get the feeling that if people see your insane results, they might think MuscleTech is totally unnecessary for their own routines, which could actually end up hurting them...
What I mean is... it’s definitely not impossible to make progress without MuscleTech, but having it is better. And honestly, being "enough" is usually the biggest enemy of getting "great"...
To back that up... after an intense session, our bodies are basically screaming for fast-acting proteins and simple carbs because our ATP and glycogen stores are totally bottomed out. If you just rely on eating steak, it would take hours for your body to actually get what it's starving for right away...
You mentioned you haven't seen much difference with or without MuscleTech... but man, what were you expecting? A 150lb jump on your bench press or maybe adding 10 pounds to the scale in a month? Building a physique is a long game that takes years of grit and patience—especially for those of us staying natural...
Cheers...

I’ve been thinking about maybe using some whey after my workouts and trying to bump up my daily protein intake through regular meals.

My goal isn't really to step on a bodybuilding stage or anything; I just don't want all that hard work in the gym to go to waste because my body didn't have the fuel it needed to repair the muscle.

Years ago, I used to train like this—super intense sessions paired with terrible nutrition and way too little protein. I basically didn't give a damn about what I was eating back then.

I can't say the gym didn't change how I looked at all, but back then, my main focus was just putting on mass. Any mass, really, since I was barely 180 lbs standing 6'6''...🤷

Jason Campbell70 said:Spot on.
I don't even touch supplements.

It's just food, food, and more food for me.

I mean, I'm guessing there isn't a single day where I don't eat meat, right?🤷

Jason Campbell70 said:If you're talking about a Post-workout meal—like mixing whey with some glucose right after hitting the gym.

Anyway, just so you know, I don't actually do that myself.
I mean, I used to, back in the day.

But honestly? I just don't notice any real difference.

Wait, so does that mean you aren't using anything at all?

feralbison4 said:--well, like Nicholas Kern90 was saying, hitting 2-3 grams is definitely way better than just sticking to 1. You gotta think about it—your body needs that building material to actually grow, and you're basically deciding how much fuel you're giving it...
if you only aim for 1 gram per kilo of body weight, you'll probably be waiting about 650 years to gain a single pound of pure muscle.😁
You can totally use whey instead of almost any other meal except for your Post-workout meal, but you really should slow down the absorption by pairing it with something else—usually milk (like a scoop of whey mixed with about a cup of milk)...
Some people find it super expensive or just too much of a hassle to carry around multiple different protein powders, so they use tricks like this. But honestly, if that's not an issue for you, just grab some whey with water and glucose right after your workout, then swap your other meals for casein or a multi-component protein blend that absorbs slower—that way your body gets to fully utilize everything over a longer period...

And what's that?

feralbison4 said:Basically, if you’re hitting more than 1 gram of protein per kilo of body weight daily—anything over that 1g mark helps build muscle mass—that's the general theory. It totally varies from person to person, obviously, but that’s roughly where it sits...

If you push it to 2 or 2.5 grams per kilo, your body will actually use it too, meaning muscle gains should be pretty optimal... anything beyond that is super debatable for natty lifters, though if someone's using gear, they might go up to 4 grams per kilo, but that’s a whole different ballgame entirely...
I should mention that some big-shot experts actually suggest even natty guys go up to 4-5 grams per kilo—I don't really buy into that personally, but hey, it's your call...

Anyway, you really need to spread those proteins out across several smaller meals every 2-3 hours, so we're talking maybe 6-7 servings throughout the day...

As for supplements, I’d say just buy whatever fits your budget. Prices vary wildly compared to actual quality, and honestly, most of the hype you see about specific brands and their products is just based on old wives' tales, personal biases, or just random hearsay...

And one more thing... try to get as much of your protein from real food as possible! Use supplements just as a supplement if you can't manage to eat high-quality food (if you know what I mean), and of course, a whey and glucose combo right after your workout is a must...

So, basically, if I make sure my diet hits at least one gram of protein per kilo of body weight, I shouldn't miss out on progress, right?

I’ve been reading up on whey and how much it helps with recovery and muscle growth after training.

Is it okay to use nothing but whey as a supplement? Like, if I can't grab a decent snack during the day, would it be alright to just have a whey shake instead, alongside my mandatory Post-workout meal?

What’s the absolute bare minimum I need to take if I’m trying to pack on some muscle and build serious strength in the gym—mostly just to level up my game on the basketball court?

Let's say I'm hitting the weights every other day.

Which supplements would you guys actually recommend?

Tyler Bishop56 said:Honestly, I don't really mind if we repeat threads—I mean, I rarely say anything super brilliant on them anyway, they’re mostly just a way to joke around. But man, it feels like all the interesting characters have vanished lately... you know, the real intellectuals and even the lovable idiots? It’s just not as lively as it used to be.

I get the feeling that there are fewer of you guys—the folks I actually enjoy hanging out with here—and, well, there's less of me around too. 🤷

Yeah, I was thinking the exact same thing...

Once all those specific people finally head out, I guess I'll be heading out right along with them.🤷

Morgan Rodriguez57 said:maybe that’s actually the whole issue? 😉 🙂

So basically, I guess the "old guard" should just head straight to the graveyard🤷

Every single newbie popping up with a fresh thread is just gonna get on our nerves—I mean, we've seriously seen a million posts already about massive or tiny junk, anal sex, random pregnancies, and all that stuff.

There you go...

I don't know... I just kind of feel like everything used to look way better back in the day.🤷