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    Question about upgrading M1530

    Discussion in 'Dell XPS and Studio XPS' started by jwebb37, Mar 13, 2009.

  1. jwebb37

    jwebb37 Newbie

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    This question is actually for my brother. He has an M1530 1.8ghz T5550. He plays alot of games on this. He recently got Empire Total War and it is running slow. He wants to upgrade his processor but I told him that probably would not help. The min. requirements for the game I believe was 2.4 single core and a 256 mb graphics card. I believe he has the Geforce 8400. What are your thoughts on this? Would upgrading the processor help? TIA
     
    jwebb37, Mar 13, 2009
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  2. Hirohata

    Hirohata GBF Danchou

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    Upgrading the processor may help improve gameplay a bit if it's to either a T8x00 or T9x00. However, then the GPU would be the bottleneck. I don't really play Total War so I can't really tell how much of an improvement it would make though...
     
    Hirohata, Mar 13, 2009
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  3. fluffboy

    fluffboy Notebook Evangelist

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    yes since its takes alot of CPU muscle to "move" those AI's. But i dont know how much of an improvement it will make since he has the 8400 its pretty weak.
     
    fluffboy, Mar 13, 2009
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  4. paper_wastage

    paper_wastage Beat this 7x7x7 Cube

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    bottleneck is definitely GPU

    dont waste money on the processor
     
    paper_wastage, Mar 13, 2009
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  5. 3kAdept

    3kAdept Notebook Geek

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    I'll be able to give you a game performance difference from experience as I am doing a processor upgrade from a T5750 to a T7500 very soon. :)
     
    3kAdept, Mar 13, 2009
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  6. tmaxxtim

    tmaxxtim Notebook Evangelist

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    Definately upgrade the 128MB 8400 to the 256MB 8600GT. The 8400 is a pretty weak card for a game like that.
     
    tmaxxtim, Mar 13, 2009
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  7. bhuelsman

    bhuelsman Notebook Consultant

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    Well, you can't upgrade the graphics card but you can swap the mobo for one with the 8600GT. That's exactly what I did and it was the best upgrade I've made. I've upgraded:

    -120GB 5400RPM HDD to 320GB 7200RPM
    -1.5GHz T5250 to 2.5GHz T9300
    -1GB RAM to 4GB
    -8400GS mobo to 8600GT

    I was skeptical at first, purchasing parts from ebay, but the upgrades were cheap and went flawlessly. I purchased the 8600GT mobo for $165 and I'm selling the old one on ebay and it already has a bid for $110. So at most I spent $55 on upgrading to the 8600GT.

    I probably saved around $400 purchasing upgrades over the course of a year as opposed to buying a fully loaded M1530 from Dell.

    If anyone needs a new 8400GS mobo then check out mine on ebay. Good luck!
     
    bhuelsman, Mar 13, 2009
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  8. tmaxxtim

    tmaxxtim Notebook Evangelist

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    When I said "upgrade the graphics card" that's essentially what I meant, but I probably should have gone into more detail.

    In my mind I look at it as upgrading the 'video card' since nothing else on the motherboard is different, they just happen to all be soldered together into one board.

    The 8600GT Motherboard/Video Card Upgrade will definately make a huge difference in gaming compared to the 8400.

    If you do decide to upgrade the processor later (I'd follow through with the vid card first). I'd recommend a T8300/T9300 if you want the best performance without spending a lot as the T9500 is waaayy overpriced if you ask me. If you are looking for the best price/performance value then I would get a T7500 as it is 2.2Ghz and has 4MB Cache.
     
    tmaxxtim, Mar 13, 2009
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  9. Koer

    Koer Notebook Deity

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    ive had both cards on my xps m1530, and the 8400gs gave me about 38FPS . when the 8600gt gave me 102FPS in the same game in the same place-res-quiality etc :D

    So it IS a very large upgrade and well worth the USD, its a shame dell soldered it into the mobo, but i guess its necessary since the lappy is so thin...
     
    Koer, Mar 13, 2009
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