My opinion...

CPU - for XP can not go wrong with C2D E8500/E8600. But if you want 7 and games up to 2010 C2Q will be beneficial, so something like Q9650 would be great.

RAM - for XP 4GB. For 7 i'd call 8GB basically a requirement.

GPU - unless you are worried about compatibility with early XP games newer = better. Something like GTX750(Ti) is probably enough, but you can always go overboard with something like GTX780 or even something from 9xx series which can still be made to work on XP.

I have a system with E8600/4GB DDR2/GTX660 and it performs extremely well for XP. But i did encounter a few compatibility issues with old games and honestly - it is not really fast enough for 7. For XP/7 dual boot something based on LGA1155 would be much better IMO.

Thanks Archer57 for responds!
Well i do care for old games compabillity , so ill see what gpu to put there that will not make mess out of games from 2003/4/5 era so to speak. I may just install XP x64 on it then. Thanks for the all answeres.

FYI : You can't run games that use 16-bit windows executables on 64-bit Win OS.

Aside from that :
Dual Core with 4GB RAM for XP x86 and maybe Fermi class GPU (GTX 460/560 [Ti]), would be more compatible on older games (only an issue if you plan to play games that have compatibility issues with newer NV WinXP drivers).
Quad Core with 8GB RAM for Win7 x64 and Kepler/Maxwell class GPU would be optimal for games that require x64-bit support.
^depending what you will use more - you should lean to one hardware option for optimal experience, personally - I'd take Quad core any day over Dual core for XP/7 dual boot situation.

Note #1 : If you plan to play NV games, GeForce card enables you PhysX, while if you go for ATI solution - a seperate accelerator would be needed to get that functionality back)

Note #2 : You can use quad core + 8GB setup under WinXP x86 just fine.
Yes, more than 3.5GB (best case, under 3GB for worse) of RAM can't be used under x86, BUT worst it can do - is to decrease a bit max. OC you can get out of your CPU (due to 4 DIMMs being populated vs. 2). Not sure you care about that though (it won't be being playable vs. unplayable level of OC difference though, and that doesn't take into account if your cooler can actually take that "extra bit" of more heat on quad core).

PS. IIRC, your board has software Remap memory option in BIOS, meaning you get either full RAM capacity under 32-bit OS + only 2GB on x64 OS, or full x64 RAM capacity and get ~2GB limit on 32-bit.

Studiostriver wrote on Yesterday, 12:11:

Well i do care for old games compabillity , so ill see what gpu to put there that will not make mess out of games from 2003/4/5 era so to speak

Keep in mind that compatibility issues are actually quite rare and mostly happen with older stuff, closer to late 98 or very early XP.

Most of the games run fine and as usual there are trade-offs here. Later GPUs run cooler, are significantly more reliable and are fast enough to be able to use mid-range card instead of high end one so easier to get and again - less power, less heat.

Older cards from 8000 and partly - 200 series come from bumpgate period, are all defective and extremely unreliable. So at least avoid that.

If this is your only system trying to find something in between might make sense. If you have something else to run older stuff it may make sense to just go with newer and accept some compatibility issues may happen.

Studiostriver wrote on 2025-07-18, 22:15:

The question what you think should be healthy upgrade for mainly playing older games from above mentioned era (2003 to 2010)

Hi.
And what games of this period won't work on...
Ryzen 9800x3D
9070XT (RTX5xxx without 32-bit physix)
Creative AE5+/Titanium HD
Windows 11
I'm just curious. 😀

agent_x007 wrote on Yesterday, 12:53:

FYI : You can't run games that use 16-bit windows executables on 64-bit Win OS. […]
Show full quote

FYI : You can't run games that use 16-bit windows executables on 64-bit Win OS.

Aside from that :
Dual Core with 4GB RAM for XP x86 and maybe Fermi class GPU (GTX 460/560 [Ti]), would be more compatible on older games (only an issue if you plan to play games that have compatibility issues with newer NV WinXP drivers).
Quad Core with 8GB RAM for Win7 x64 and Kepler/Maxwell class GPU would be optimal for games that require x64-bit support.
^depending what you will use more - you should lean to one hardware option for optimal experience, personally - I'd take Quad core any day over Dual core for XP/7 dual boot situation.

Note #1 : If you plan to play NV games, GeForce card enables you PhysX, while if you go for ATI solution - a seperate accelerator would be needed to get that functionality back)

Note #2 : You can use quad core + 8GB setup under WinXP x86 just fine.
Yes, more than 3.5GB (best case, under 3GB for worse) of RAM can't be used under x86, BUT worst it can do - is to decrease a bit max. OC you can get out of your CPU (due to 4 DIMMs being populated vs. 2). Not sure you care about that though (it won't be being playable vs. unplayable level of OC difference though, and that doesn't take into account if your cooler can actually take that "extra bit" of more heat on quad core).

PS. IIRC, your board has software Remap memory option in BIOS, meaning you get either full RAM capacity under 32-bit OS + only 2GB on x64 OS, or full x64 RAM capacity and get ~2GB limit on 32-bit.

I see, hm. Thanks for al infos provided. Is it possible to run two XPs, 32 and 64 with dual boot?

shevalier wrote on Yesterday, 14:27:

Hi. And what games of this period won't work on... Ryzen 9800x3D 9070XT (RTX5xxx without 32-bit physix) Creative AE5+/Titanium H […]
Show full quote

Studiostriver wrote on 2025-07-18, 22:15:

The question what you think should be healthy upgrade for mainly playing older games from above mentioned era (2003 to 2010)

Hi.
And what games of this period won't work on...
Ryzen 9800x3D
9070XT (RTX5xxx without 32-bit physix)
Creative AE5+/Titanium HD
Windows 11
I'm just curious. 😀

I dont know, thats why i ask here on forum. I never had too much experience with multiple computer, but i want to play on systems that were meant to be used, beside that finding drivers for XP on new systems is not something i wish to encounter.
I have modern computers, but i`m into music production and want to make something more simple for era above mentioned period. Thats just the way i decided to go.

Archer57 wrote on Yesterday, 13:21:

Keep in mind that compatibility issues are actually quite rare and mostly happen with older stuff, closer to late 98 or very ear […]
Show full quote

Studiostriver wrote on Yesterday, 12:11:

Well i do care for old games compabillity , so ill see what gpu to put there that will not make mess out of games from 2003/4/5 era so to speak

Keep in mind that compatibility issues are actually quite rare and mostly happen with older stuff, closer to late 98 or very early XP.

Most of the games run fine and as usual there are trade-offs here. Later GPUs run cooler, are significantly more reliable and are fast enough to be able to use mid-range card instead of high end one so easier to get and again - less power, less heat.

Older cards from 8000 and partly - 200 series come from bumpgate period, are all defective and extremely unreliable. So at least avoid that.

If this is your only system trying to find something in between might make sense. If you have something else to run older stuff it may make sense to just go with newer and accept some compatibility issues may happen.

Oh yes, its my only system for this era. I have more modern computers, but i use them for music production and dont want to put games there, its just not my thing. I got old systems for sake escaping modern computers. There is certain charm, at least for me playing authentic stuff, its simple, and has its limitations and thats why i like it.
If i have to choose i would rather enjoy playing older games then newer on this configuration so i would play mostly i guess games from 2003 up till 2008/9.

I`ll see if its possible to get dual boot system with 32x and 64x XP, if i find some old games i prefer to play or they work better then my Pentium 3 configuration. I`m personally fond of era between 95 and 2010 games. New games are not my thing. So i want without any mods and GOG/STEAM modern wizardry just to play game as they are installing them old school via cd`s and that it, plain simple experience.
Beside this i plan to get mayb Pentium 2 just for sake playing ancient adventures and early 3Ds.
I have no interests playing anything more nor i want to have too much computers. 3 configurations would be my highest limit in future.
Maybe it sounds very weird but old systems relax me, offline experience, and i find music from old games to be exceptional, gives me inspiration when i compose my own music. One of the biggest reasons i keep returning to them, simply i find no memorable thematics and original tunes in modern games, they all sound the same to me, mix of dubstep and symphonic orchestra like Hollywod movies in last 15 years.

I`m greatfull for all directions provided. Cheers.

Studiostriver wrote on Yesterday, 21:11:

shevalier wrote on Yesterday, 14:27:

Hi. And what games of this period won't work on... Ryzen 9800x3D 9070XT (RTX5xxx without 32-bit physix) Creative AE5+/Titanium H […]
Show full quote

Studiostriver wrote on 2025-07-18, 22:15:

The question what you think should be healthy upgrade for mainly playing older games from above mentioned era (2003 to 2010)

Hi.
And what games of this period won't work on...
Ryzen 9800x3D
9070XT (RTX5xxx without 32-bit physix)
Creative AE5+/Titanium HD
Windows 11
I'm just curious. 😀

I dont know, thats why i ask here on forum. I never had too much experience with multiple computer, but i want to play on systems that were meant to be used, beside that finding drivers for XP on new systems is not something i wish to encounter.
I have modern computers, but i`m into music production and want to make something more simple for era above mentioned period. Thats just the way i decided to go.

Unreal Tournament 1999 - a Win98 game
Glide + A3D doesn't even run on Windows XP.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U38uTnbarqk

Unreal Tournament 2004 - a typical XP game
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j-QRohg_YXM
And also, FarCry, Crisys, STALKER, BIOSHOCK, FEAR and everything else

Buy yourself an Audigy 2 for EAX compatibility, SSD and that's it.