Nice! I have 980ti in my XP build. It works great on anything 2002 or later I have tried. Plus with the right version of nvinspector you can force super resolution and other fun stuff.

Nice, I think winXP gaming is gonna respect clock speed most, and architecture tweaks beyond SSE3 very little.

Although I might have spare C2D class hardware when I've built everything planned, I don't think I'm going C2D on XP here. Out of what is currently in hand, I am thinking the s939 X2 4400+ with two GF9600 might be the highest I'll take an XP dedicated config. Though I am quite likely to have at least dual boot, so maybe the "Vista" systems might see some XP use, and anything around 1ghz might have it as the OS up from 2k or 98. Then also I might also have my wife's old Dell Dementia as an XP machine, upgraded to a PentiumD and 7600GT, or I might do that on an Intel s775 DDR board instead... the Dell's pecularities drive me nuts.

Well anyhoo, playing at win7-modern right now, so it's backburner.

I7 will also work, if you're somehow lacking cpu. I have one 2600k in windows xp. Great build bf2 will be fun with that one.

sacri wrote on 2022-11-05, 17:02:

I7 will also work, if you're somehow lacking cpu. I have one 2600k in windows xp. Great build bf2 will be fun with that one.

I have been thinking about upgrading to an i7.

In benchmarking the system Crysis gets about ~62 average FPS on the GPU benchmark @ 1920x1200 and everything at High.

Meanwhile F.E.A.R. only gets ~40 FPS average @ 1920x1200 and everything at Maximum.

Overclocking the E8600 helps a little bit, but not a whole lot. I'm curious how much of a difference an i7 board + CPU + faster RAM might make. I would really like to get F.E.A.R. up to 60 FPS average at least, if not full 75 (which the monitor natively supports).

I do want to also retain full 16-bit backwards compatibility though, since I do play games like Civilization II and SimCity 2000 on this rig (since they support native widescreen).

Your build is terribly slowed down by CPU. Pair it with I7 2600k or i7 3770k (or nonK is good too). you will see massive boost especially in min. framerate.

complain77 wrote on 2022-11-05, 18:48:

Your build is terribly slowed down by CPU. Pair it with I7 2600k or i7 3770k (or nonK is good too). you will see massive boost especially in min. framerate.

Yeah, I've started researching upgrading this to an i7 3770k probably with a Z68 motherboard (Asus P8Z68 or similar).

That will likely be the next (and possibly final) upgrade for this particular system.

Wonder if a Q9650, QX9650 or QX9770 would be enough to get the wanted fps out of the platform, or raw single thread performance is more important than doubling core count ...

H3nrik V! wrote on 2022-11-05, 20:54:

Wonder if a Q9650, QX9650 or QX9770 would be enough to get the wanted fps out of the platform, or raw single thread performance is more important than doubling core count ...

From what I've researched it seems like single core performance is the most important. I do have a Q9650 processor, but haven't tried it out yet (partially because reattaching the heatsink is a royal pita).

At any rate, I did just pull the trigger on an Asus P8Z68-V PRO with an i7 3770k processor. So we'll see how that runs.

I might even consider doing a dual-boot Win 7 / XP setup.

P45 platform Xeon variants ie. X5460 are great option for cheap. They overclock easily 4ghz+ with FSB increase on stock voltage and run a lot cooler than QX parts.

Z68 setup is nice upgrade with fast DDR3/SATA3/USB3. It will probably double Crysis minimum framerate in the tank level.

@Shponglefan

You can run XP on a Ryzen 5950x if using modded drivers is not an issue for you.

Duffman wrote on 2022-11-07, 12:16:

@Shponglefan

You can run XP on a Ryzen 5950x if using modded drivers is not an issue for you.

Modded drivers aren't an issue, but the price of a Ryzen 5950x just to run 32-bit Win XP on the other hand... 😉

timsdf wrote on 2022-11-07, 11:05:

Z68 setup is nice upgrade with fast DDR3/SATA3/USB3. It will probably double Crysis minimum framerate in the tank level.

Yup, I'm hoping for a decent performance boost. Especially curious to see how much more performance I can coax out of F.E.A.R., since that seems to be the worst performing game I've tested so far (even lower FPS than Crysis).

Hopefully within a week or so I'll have everything I need and do one more upgrade. 😁

Upgraded my 'Ultimate' Windows XP build.

Previously I was using an Asus P5Q-E motherboard, E8600 CPU and 2x2GB DDR2 RAM.

Upgraded to:

• Asus P8Z68-V Pro/Gen 3 motherboard
• i7-3770k CPU
• 2x2GB DDR3 RAM

Previous average FPS w/ the E8600 in F.E.A.R. and Crysis was:

FEAR perf. test: 39 FPS
Crysis CPU bench: 57.7 FPS
Crysis GPU bench: 62.9 FPS

New average FPS with the i7-3770k are:

FEAR perf. test: 74 FPS
Crysis CPU bench: 114.0 FPS
Crysis GPU bench: 106.0 FPS

* All tests run @ 1920x1200 resolution, max settings.

sorry for offtopic, but couldn't resist.
Sound card: Creative Labs X-Fi Titanium Fatal1ty Champion
This is very entry level of X-fi.
Mid - X-fi Titanium HD (sb1270), or AUZEN X-Fi Forte 7.1
Ultimate - Onkyo SE-300PCIe



But 300 USD even now. But Ultimate

Titanium HD doesn't have official drivers for WinXP, I think you will need moded ones (like Daniel_K's) for it to work.

agent_x007 wrote on 2023-05-02, 06:34:

Titanium HD doesn't have official drivers for WinXP, I think you will need moded ones (like Daniel_K's) for it to work.

Yep, but all derivatives of SB880 (champion,profession, Fatal1ty and others) are "audigy4 with EAX5".
The level is very entrity, despite the light bulbs and a beautiful shield.
The most top-end and authentic under XP will be Sound Blaster X-Fi (SB0550) Elite Pro with quad`s top-level DAC from Cirrus

At now - around 150+ usd

Or Auzen X-Fi Prelude 7.1

It is more authentic, but worse in measurements.

While a higher quality DAC will certainly give you more sound clarity, your average gamer probably won't really notice or care about that.

For WinXP retro gaming purposes, the base X-Fi feature set is what matters. Meaning, hardware support for EAX 1-5, better CMSS for headphone users and the improved resampling algorithm are the most important bits. Having top of the line build quality and a superior DAC are awesome extras to be sure, but not everyone is willing to pay a premium for that.

Joseph_Joestar wrote on 2023-05-02, 07:16:

While a higher quality DAC will certainly give you more sound clarity, your average gamer probably won't really notice or care about that.

For WinXP retro gaming purposes, the base X-Fi feature set is what matters. Meaning, hardware support for EAX 1-5, better CMSS for headphone users and the improved resampling algorithm are the most important bits. Having top of the line build quality and a superior DAC are awesome extras to be sure, but not everyone is willing to pay a premium for that.

Alas, it is not.
On the SB0880, effects are almost inaudible.
Titanium HD in headphones in UT2004 + X-Fi_patch gives a radically different feeling.
I had 0880 and now I have TiHD - the difference is VERY noticeable.
PS. Naturally, you need headphones of at least the Sennheiser 5xx series level.
Without normal headphones, all CMSS and EAX are a profanation.
It`s like a 4k gaming at Radeon RX 7900 XTX on 640*480 monochrome monitor via D-SUB.

shevalier wrote on 2023-05-02, 06:25:

sorry for offtopic, but couldn't resist. Sound card: Creative Labs X-Fi Titanium Fatal1ty Champion This is very entry level of X […]
Show full quote

sorry for offtopic, but couldn't resist.
Sound card: Creative Labs X-Fi Titanium Fatal1ty Champion
This is very entry level of X-fi.
Mid - X-fi Titanium HD (sb1270), or AUZEN X-Fi Forte 7.1

FWIW, I do have an Auzentech X-Fi Home Theater HD. Just haven't bothered to make the switch.

Shponglefan wrote on 2023-05-02, 10:50:

shevalier wrote on 2023-05-02, 06:25:

sorry for offtopic, but couldn't resist. Sound card: Creative Labs X-Fi Titanium Fatal1ty Champion This is very entry level of X […]
Show full quote

sorry for offtopic, but couldn't resist.
Sound card: Creative Labs X-Fi Titanium Fatal1ty Champion
This is very entry level of X-fi.
Mid - X-fi Titanium HD (sb1270), or AUZEN X-Fi Forte 7.1

FWIW, I do have an Auzentech X-Fi Home Theater HD. Just haven't bothered to make the switch.

Looking forward to comparison.
With headphones, of course.

Auzentech X-Fi Home Theater HD, X-Fi Titanium, X-Fi Titanium Fatal1ty and Titantium HD use identical DSP chip, so 3D audio features are identical. There's no difference outside of DAC quality.