GPU Upgrade

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HaGGardSmurf

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Hey guys I have an asus m2n-e board. I have a geforce 7900 gs graphics card, I'm looking to upgrade to a better gpu so I can play pc games.

When I say that I mean games like dead rising 2, need for speed, mafia II etc, im not talking crysis, forza 3, etc turned up to full spec, just average games.

I have a amd athlon duo core 2.21 ghz. (I am looking to upgrade to a phenom II x4 810 but I'll probably go buy that in a few weeks.)

So what would a decent GPU upgrade be? I'd like to only spend about $100

My board has a pci-e slot, but as far as I know 2.0 is backwards compatible, and 1.0 is forward compatible? Anyhow, I dont know much when it comes to graphics cards there are so many things listed under spec's that I dont know what the hell it means, and how it will relate to performance.
 
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HaGGardSmurf

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First, nice avatar, im going to see the boy's on the 22th they're on another comedy tour, I saw them like a year ago they were funny as hell.

I went on newegg.ca (yep im canadian) and they have the same card for $124 with a 30 dollar mail in rebate which would put it at about $100 (shipping incl)

This looks like a good card for the price, based on the clock speed and the memory, also 800 stream processors.

I've seen cards with less stream processors and ~700 mhz clock speed being sold for like $400 on newegg.

Why is this card so cheap? Its crossfire also... (Which is awesome since I am planning to build a new comp soon, I'd use this card in crossfire on my new rig)

Also, this is ATI, it will work on my board right?

Forgot to include, I have a 500 watt psu, here is a pic of the box:



Will it be enough to power that card? It lists 450 watt as minimum, but I dont want issues :p

Also, I have 2 monitor's so the dual dvi out is pefect, I forgot to mention thats something I need.
 
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HaGGardSmurf

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I'm looking at the card, and it says it has 2 6 pin power connector's but I only have 1 6 pin power cable going into my current card, do I need both plugged into the 4870, if so, based on the pic above will I be able to use 2 6 pin cables?
 
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dalta centauri

dalta centauri

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I would go for a 5770 as it requires a single 6 pin connector and matches, if not performs about 2% better then a 4870 while demanding less power. It also supports dx11, if you have Vista or windows 7.
The manufacturer normally includes two 6 pin connectors with the box(depending if it needs two.) So the psu shouldn't have any problems if you do go for the 4870.
 
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HaGGardSmurf

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Well the overheating shouldnt be an issue I have a large fan sitting directly beside my graphics card, I assume its main purpose is to cool the gpu.

Anyways, I think i'd rather go with the 5770 and spend the extra $30 for dx 11...

The cards are just about all dual slot's (that I can find) now when you look at the card does it pulg in so that the fan is facing the bottom of the case? If so I'll have room for the dual slot if not then it may be a problem.
 
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HaGGardSmurf

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The only thing I'm particularly 'worried' (if thats the right word) about is the fact that its a 128 bit card, and the 4870 is a 256 bit card.

The 5770 does have a higher clock speed, and supports dx 11
but the 4870 is 256 bit.
 
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HaGGardSmurf

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Whats the difference between brand's? Is there any, or are there standards in place?

Should I be worried about the memory interface of 128 bit? I mean if i'm spending nearly double the price of the 4870 I want this card to crush the 4870.
 
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ionut19

ionut19

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The 5770 has 128 bit memory bandwidth but it compensates with the speed of the RAM. The 4870 is more powerful than the 5770 but not by much. The main difference would be that it consumes a lot more than the 5770, it heats up and does not have DX11. The advantage is price.

If you are prepared to invest more money and buy a 5770 it is ok.

When you buy the new CPU if you do not want to overclock it, get one that has above 2.6Ghz because it helps in games. -EDIT: never mind, the CPU is at 2.6 :).


EDIT: you are not spending double then the 4870. If you want a card that can beat it by a good margin get a gtx460 or a 5850 witch will wipe the floor with the 4870.
 
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HaGGardSmurf

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Well I'm planning on OC'ing the phenom to 3 ghz.

Anyhow, the 5770 is ~200 canadian and the 4870 is ~100 canadian. I do like the dx 11 support, and do like the fact it draws less power.

I am looking at the 5850 its 229 at my local electronics store, which is apperently $90 off. Its XFX and I do really like the 256 bit memory interface, and the 1440 stream processors.

Is it a dual slot card, I cant find anything about it on the page I am looking at. Reason I'm thiking about dual slot is I'll probably be buying a new board, cpu and psu before xmas and I'd like that comp to be high end, so I'd probably like to crossfire this graphics card in the future. It'll be a pain to find a board that I can do this with a dual slot card.
 
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HaGGardSmurf

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I want the 5880 so screw the 30...

Ive googled it a bit and it seems like my PSU wont be enough to handle the card, also the 5880 needs 2 6 pin 75 watt pci connectors. Like the 4870

Guess I'll need a new psu...
 
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dalta centauri

dalta centauri

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You want the 5850? 5870?
A good 600-650w psu should handle either just fine.
Remember, the actual gpu package also comes with 2x6pin connectors. It's not the best idea to use them if your psu isn't strong enough or doesn't have a 6pin connector already.
 
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