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Doubt about real advantage on upgrading from 8800GTX to 285 or 295 now

Forum Graphic & Displays : Graphics Cards - Doubt about real advantage on upgrading from 8800GTX to 285 or 295 now

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marciotf   04-19-2009 at 11:50:53 PM

Hi,

I am thinking about buying a new video card to replace my Geforce 8800 GTX. I currently have a Q9550 CPU in an Intel DQ45CB motherboard. My monitor is 22" so I cannot go above 1680x1050.

I have the following doubts:

1 - Will a GTX 295 work on my mobo? If not, what would be a middle cost motherboard to go? (I am not planning on upgrading the cpu now)

2 - With my current mobo+cpu+display setup, will a Geforce 285 or 295 be significantly better than my 8800 GTX in demanding games like GTA 4?

3 - I dont currently plan on getting a bigger LCD anytime soon, will the GTX 295 have any advantage over the GTX 285 in this case?

PS: I wasnt thinking about changing the video card now, but I live in Brazil where the taxes are prohibilive high, but now a friend will go to US, so I am thinking about using the chance to buy the card for a reasonable price, but I would like to know if it is worth.

Thx

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geofelt   04-20-2009 at 12:04:20 AM
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What would you consider significant?
Read this article, looking for your games and resolution, and what is considered good gameplay.
http://www.guru3d.com/index.php?page=vga_charts

I think something like a GTX260-216 or a GTX275 would be fine. GTX295 is probably not worth it.

Reply to geofelt
irkjab   04-20-2009 at 12:06:27 AM
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The gtx cards will work in any motherboard with a PCI-E 16x slot. What power supply do you have? Are you currently getting satisfying framerates with your 8800 gtx? If yes, then there is no point in getting a new gfx card, since you wont see any significant improvement.

Message quoted 1 times
Reply to irkjab
marciotf   04-20-2009 at 12:23:38 AM
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irkjab wrote :

The gtx cards will work in any motherboard with a PCI-E 16x slot. What power supply do you have? Are you currently getting satisfying framerates with your 8800 gtx? If yes, then there is no point in getting a new gfx card, since you wont see any significant improvement.




I wasnt expecting to upgrade now, but I want to use the opportunity to get one for a good price. As I said I live in Brazil, and here these cards are sold by around 6 times the price in US. I do not know when I will have the opportunity again.

I did some more research in the net and found out that the gtx 275 is much cheaper than the 285 and performs about the same.

Is this correct? If it applies to current games, in future games will the 285 perform bettet than the 275?

I am now in doubt between spend a lot of cash and get a gtx 295 (is this really a good board?) or getting a single gpu (285 or 275?) for maybe going for sli in the future (can the 275 go sli?).

PS: I have a 750W Enermax PSU with lifetime warranty, so it shouldnt be a problem.


Message edited by marciotf on 04-20-2009 at 12:28:47 AM
Reply to marciotf
irkjab   04-20-2009 at 12:30:29 AM
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All the new nvidia cards can go sli. Your motherboard cannot, it only has one PCI-E slot. Games perform slightly better on the GTX 285, but it is not a noticeable difference. Maybe 4-5 fps.

The 275 will be fine with 1680x1050 resolution.

What power supply do you have? If it powers a 8800gtx, my bet is that it'll run a 275, but that may not be the case with a 295.

Reply to irkjab
cliffro   04-20-2009 at 12:35:57 AM
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I haven't paid too much attention to the GTX 275, since its a marginal upgrade path for myself.

Here is a link to a review of the GTX 275: http://www.guru3d.com/article/geforce-gtx-275-review-test/ It compares it to the GTX 260/285 and the ATI HD4890.

As to whether you should or should not upgrade, well that depends on how your 8800GTX is performing, if its showing its age, and you can like you said get a replacement at considerable savings, then I think you should do it while you can get it cheap.

------------------------------ Intel Xeon E3110@3.4ghz/GA-P35-DS3L/4gigs DDR2-800(@756)/EVGA GTX 260 Core 216 55nm
/2xSeagate 320 1x160/Corsair 850 TX/21" Dell P1130 & M781s/ Vista Ult. 64 SP1

 

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B-Unit   04-20-2009 at 01:09:27 AM
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Ordinarily I would say stick with your current card, but with your special situation, it may well be worth it to have him pick up a new card. It really boils down to A) do you really want/need to upgrade, and B) when the next time such an opportunity may present itself.

------------------------------ http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3073/2578392638_2827857d10_o.png
 Reply to B-Unit
irkjab   04-20-2009 at 01:12:37 AM
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If you do decide to upgrade, I would go with a 275 or a 4890 though. They are about equal in speed.

Reply to irkjab
geofelt   04-20-2009 at 01:47:34 AM
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If vga cards are so expensive(6x?) in Brazil, go ahead and get a new card, you can probably sell your 8800GTX for enough to pay for your new card, and then some. At your resolution you will not get much value from anything better than a GTX275.

Reply to geofelt
marciotf   04-20-2009 at 05:16:07 AM
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I will be getting a GTX275. the prices are good, and as i said I have the chance to buy one in US now, later will be hard for me, otherwise I would wait a little more.
thx very much for the advice.

Message quoted 1 times
Message edited by marciotf on 04-20-2009 at 05:16:40 AM
Reply to marciotf
rewindlabs   04-20-2009 at 05:32:13 AM
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marciotf wrote :

I will be getting a GTX275. the prices are good, and as i said I have the chance to buy one in US now, later will be hard for me, otherwise I would wait a little more.
thx very much for the advice.


Great choice that card will be right up your alley ;)

------------------------------ http://i151.photobucket.com/albums/s145/RSSRM/ay14s5-1.jpg
 Reply to rewindlabs
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