Should I Upgrade?

[Mithness]

I Don't Know if i should put this in the ATI part or Nvidia part but i have an ATI Radeon HD 4350 should i upgrade to a 9500GT 1gb? I'm more of an ATI/AMD person but my card sucks and i need a new one and the only card thats avaible to me at the moment is the 9500GT (someone posted an add for it and thats the only one in my area, and all the other places that sell cards "offically" have ridiculous prices)

 

[jwdurden]

I suppose that you have tried Newegg and Ebay then? If so, then I'm thinking that you are going to have to bite the bullet and buy an "official one."

 

[Mithness]

Well the thing is i know Newegg is the cheapest and such. but my parents buying stuff online. so thats why i've just been trying to find and add or a reasonable price for a retail seller.... like common a 5770 179.99 when you can get them for like 149.99 on newegg. All I'm asking is should i upgrade to the 9500gt or just save up and buy a 5770/5670 or whatever

 

[jaguarskx]

The 9500GT will give you a decent boost in performance, but the question is how much is it selling for? Also what resolution do you play games at? To give you an idea about general price / performance (lowest prices I can find on Newegg):


GeForce GT 220 - A little faster than the older 9500 GT. Performance is between the 9500 GT and 9600 GT. Not bad for $45 (after $15 rebate) + $3 shipping.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814150493&cm_re=gt_220-_-14-150-493-_-Product

Radeon HD 4670 - Definitely faster than the GT 220. This card is overall a tiny bit faster than the newer HD 5570, and it lacks DX11. Then again the HD 5570 is rather weak for a DX11 card. Price is $50 (after $10 rebate) + $4 shipping. Only a little bit more than the GT 220 and definitely worth the small price difference.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814150450&cm_re=hd_4670-_-14-150-450-_-Product

Radeon HD 5570 - Overall, slightly slower than the older HD 4670. It uses a little less power (30w vs 45w) than the HD 4670. While it is a DX11 card, DX11 features lower the performance of this card. Price is $55 (after $15 rebate) + free shipping. I would get the older HD 4670.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814102875&cm_re=hd_5570-_-14-102-875-_-Product

GeForce GT 240 - Better performance than the previously mentioned cards. It is slightly faster than the older 9600GT. Price is $55 (after $20 rebate) + Free shipping. THE REBATE EXPIRES TODAY - 1/20/2011. Definitely the best card so far in the $50 - $60 range.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814125304&cm_re=gt_240-_-14-125-304-_-Product

Radeon HD 5670 - This is a mainstream DX11 card. It has good performance for an inexpensive card. Also there is no performance difference between 512MB of VRAM and 1GB of VRAM, so might as well go for the cheaper model. Price is $65 (after $15 rebate) + $2 shipping. It's $10 more than the GT 240, but I think the jump in performance is worth that $10.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814102871&cm_re=hd_5670-_-14-102-871-_-Product

Radeon HD 5770 - Of course this is the most powerful card in this line up, but it is another $33 more than the HD 5670. Priced at $100 (after $20) rebate + free shipping.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814161338&cm_re=hd_5770-_-14-161-338-_-Product


Below are some benchmarks of all the card at 1680 x 1050 resolution. There are also other resolutions a well in the review. Be aware that all of the card mentioned above have rebates involved so if you are not going to buy them soon, then prices will change. But you can always wait for new rebates. I think the GT 240 is the best card if you are really on a tight budget. The HD 5670 is not that much more and if you can scrape up the extra $12, then that's the card to get. I assume the HD 5770 costs more than what you currently have, but this card should last you a while. So spending more now, can save you money in the future.

Make a deal with your parents to loan you the extra money for the HD 5670 or HD 5770. I don't know how old you are, but maybe you can get an advance on your allowance (if they give you one) or tell them you will help out with some extra chores. I think offering to do extra chores is the way to go since you are not simply begging for more money.


Source of benchmarks: http://www.techpowerup.com/reviews/Powercolor/HD_5570/1.html

 

[Mithness]

Like i said i can't buy online for some reason.

The Zotac GT 220 is 82.99 plus tax so like 100 dollers rounded.
The 9500gt is selling for 80 (it's an add so no tax or shipping)
and the Zotac GT 240 is 139.99 plus tax

 

[Mithness]

Sorry for double post but it won't let me edit it. umm my Resolution is 1280x1024 but i ussally play at 1280x720

 

[coozie7]

Is this for the system in your 'more information' ? If so the single core Athlon is going to be a severe handicap to a fast card.
Have a look here:

http://www.tomshardware.co.uk/gaming-graphics-card-radeon-hd-6870-geforce-gtx-570,review-32094-7.html

For a single core CPU I'd not want to advise you go for anything higher than the GT240 or HD4670 class of card, particularly at such a low resolution, either is going to be a good upgrade and neither requires an extra power lead so they'll run on your system without an PSU upgrade.
I'd suggest you keep an eye out on the local ads and store prices rather than pay over the odds (that GT240 is very expensive).
Or you can kidnap the cat and get your parents to buy online

 

[Mithness]

Oh yea i forgot to change that.

Specs
AMD Athlon 64 x2 5600+ OCed 3.0ghz
ATI Radeon HD 4350 512mb
2Gb 800mhz Ram
160gb Harddrive
500 Watt Thermaltake PSU

 

[rocky41]

Better to get an hd 4650. It's price will be somewhat same as that of 9500gt but performance will be way better than it.

 

[Guest]

I'm posting to confirm that jaguarskx's post is the best one and what a coincidence, I was about to post a reply recommending the exact SAME cards.

I'll also have to add that the 9500 GT is not more than 5-15% faster than your current card the 4350, go with one of jaguar's recommendations.

 

[Mithness]

Yes i do want the 4670 but i can't find one in retail anymore and im not aloud to buy online i want the 5770 the most but the one retail one is 179.99 they said they'll accept my old card for 40 dollers so i need another 140 to buy it....

 

[Mithness]

Brockville, Ontario. theres a GTX 260 for sale but i don't need that lol (probably to expensive)

 

[Mithness]

This is not a custom unit it's a Acer Aspire t180 and the mobo is an em61sm/pm its a modified foxconn mobo from what i've found. and i have a 500watt PSU what does the 260 require? and how much do you recommend i email him for?

 

[Mithness]

as far as i know it should fit. the length may be the only problem if the power connectors are at the end and not the side.