Good graphic card upgrade for my system

unsung_0

Honorable
Apr 17, 2012
66
0
10,640
Hello,
I am looking to upgrade my graphics card without having to upgrade my components as I do not have the means to do so right now. Here are the specs of my setup:
Asus M2N-SLI Deluxe
Nvidia GT240 graphics card
AMD Athlon 5600+ dual core CPU
Windows home premium 64bit
Antec 600W PSU
NZXT Phantom 410 case

Any help is greatly appreciated thank you
 

tonytober

Honorable
Apr 16, 2012
7
0
10,510


You don't really have to upgrade your components if you're stuck with a budget. What is your budget limit? I suggest you to buy an ATi HD 6950, does the job well. Best for the price paid.
 

unsung_0

Honorable
Apr 17, 2012
66
0
10,640
I can spend about $200 maybe more if I wait a little bit. I'm not a fan of Ati cards. Do you know of a good nvidia card? I've been searching online but a lot of forums I find are old and have been no help. I'm new to computer builds and have the basic idea, I transferred all my components from my old case to the new phantom I bought without needing help and it works great. If I were to go with a Ati card would I have to remove all the drivers for my nvidia card to have it work on my computer properly? Sorry for such a noob question just trying to get more info, thanks!
 

unsung_0

Honorable
Apr 17, 2012
66
0
10,640


Do you know of a god nvidia equivelant?
 

unsung_0

Honorable
Apr 17, 2012
66
0
10,640


Was thinking of upgrading my CPU to a phenom II X4 940 as my mobo BIOS is 5001 and from Asus's website it is a CPU that is compatible with this bios rev
 

unsung_0

Honorable
Apr 17, 2012
66
0
10,640



I was reading up on that CPU this morning and it's 125w power consumption where my mobo max is 95w. Found another CPU that will work with the bios rev and is 95w it's a phenom 945. The difference is the 940 is a am2+ socket where the 945 is an am3. Now I'm not super savvy with this quite yet but upon reading forums with the 5001 bios rev flashed to my mobo it should be am3 "compatible" bbut it seems others have had issues with an AM3 socket CPU even though it should work. Do you have more insight on the best route for me to take? Thanks
 

tonytober

Honorable
Apr 16, 2012
7
0
10,510
I'm fan of ATi, but I do like Nvidias' too.
Usually,
AMDs' run better on ATi graphic cards; and
Intels' run better on Nvidia graphic cards

If you still want to get an Nvidia, GTX 560 is the way to go. I suggest you to select one that has a lifetime waranty, because all Nvidias finish by frying one day. All my friends Nvidias fried (about 6 of them) and mine too. That's why I stick to ATi with XFX :p
 

unsung_0

Honorable
Apr 17, 2012
66
0
10,640


Ya I hear ya about ati. Also my mobo has an nvidia chipset from what I read, idk is that really matters though. As far as that card you mentioned, I wouldn't need to do anything with my current setup for it to work properly?
 

monsta

Splendid
Here is the list of the cpu's that are supported by your board, pick the best one possible from there and give it a good overclock, and also make sure you have a good amount of system ram.
As far as Nvidia cards go , I have never had any of mine fry. I've owned more than a dozen of them in my time and installed hundreds of them and have never needed to cook breakfast with them. There always one to say rubbish like that , Tonytober if you like ATI good for you , dont troll and make dramatic comments that all Nvidias finish by frying one day , its bad advice and just untrue.
The Nvidia chipset you have in your board is for SLI. whichever brand you choose to use a single graphics with the motherboard is compatible. Please dont listen to bad advice from a fanboi.
Either a 560ti or 6950 is a good choice, you have a decent psu.
Upgrade the cpu , give it a nice overclock , add more ram if you need and grab yourself one of those cards, you will have a huge performance jump from what you currently have , the GT240 isnt good for gaming.
Heres a list of the supported cpu's
http://www.asus.com/Motherboards/AMD_AM2/M2NSLI_Deluxe/#CPUS
 

unsung_0

Honorable
Apr 17, 2012
66
0
10,640


Ya I was going to say, over the years that I've owned computers (new to building but it doesn't seem too hard) I have used nvidia cards and I have never had any go bad on me, even this gt240 has been in this system for years and never a hiccup. I've never OCd a CPU but I have a bud that can help me out so I'm good there and I'm sure I'll learn a thing or two when the time comes. I have checked that list and the phenom 945 Seems like a good choice, I'm not looking to have a crazy comp just yet I'll invest in a whole new setup for that another time. I only play WoW anyway but want to play witches 2 and skyrim and a couple shooters i.e. mw3. Just curious, as far as the new CPU would I need the heatsink for it? Thanks again for sharing some your knowledge monsta it's been very helpful
 

monsta

Splendid
You're welcome , I'm glad I could be some help. Updating some parts on an older pc can give you some good performance gains without spending a fortune.
A new cooler for the 945 to overclock is definately recomended, there so many to pick from, it all depends on your budget, no need to go nuts and spend too much on a cooler, you could go for something cheap but half decent like a CoolerMaster Hyper TX3 or spend more on a Noctua cooler.
Grab your bud to help you install it and overclock it together, its always good to learn something new and its fun. You will be able to play those games well with the upgrade of the cpu and the graphics card at decent settings.
The increase in performance from upgrading that GTS240 will be substantial.
Have a look on ebay for the cpu and get one second hand at an affordable price.
How much ram do you have in the pc now?
What resolution is your monitor?
 

unsung_0

Honorable
Apr 17, 2012
66
0
10,640


I actually have a CPU cooler that is similar to the tx3 already on my current setup looks exact but not sure what model as I bought this setup a year ago and can't remember everything I was told haha. Can't wait to snag the CPU I found one on eBay for about $115. And the Gpu for about $180+ any good brand u recommend (pny, evga, etc). I have 4GB ram right now and my screen res is 1920x1080
 

monsta

Splendid
Ah thats great , use that cooler if you think its ok, should do the trick , just make sure you apply thermal paste to the new cpu when you reuse the cooler. Thats a good price for the cpu and the card. I really like the EVGA cards also due to their warraty , step up program and customer support.
4GB of ram is good , 8GB would be recomended for more intense games like BF3, see how you go with 4GB of ram , if you feel its sluggish or it stutters on ultra settings then upgrade the ram to 8gb.
Which graphics card have you decided on getting?
 

unsung_0

Honorable
Apr 17, 2012
66
0
10,640


Ya I think I'll get a new one just to be safe. Ya the Evga is about $200 on eBay and as good reviews. I decided more for the 560ti. Not to be "fanboish" lol but I prefer nvidia cards over ati. For me they just seem to work better without hiccups, pus with my mobo it seemed a lot of driver issues with ati cards but that can be for anything nvidia included, a long as I delete the old drivers I should be okay right? Also as far as the CPU since I have the bios required to use it should it just work once installed or is there anything special in the bios screen to help my mobo recognize the CPU?
 

unsung_0

Honorable
Apr 17, 2012
66
0
10,640


http://www.ebay.com/itm/AMD-Phenom-II-x4-B95-3-0GHz-8M-AM3-95W-C3-Processor-Quad-Core-Same-x4-945-/261005635935?pt=CPUs&hash=item3cc525f15f#ht_1518wt_689

Was checking this out but idk if it would be a smart buy
 

monsta

Splendid
Good choice the 560ti is a decent card, all you have to do is uninstall your current driver, download the latest Nvidia Display driver and do a clean install, you will find it when you select custom installation when installing the software and you will be good to go. Adjust the settings to your preference once its installed. Use evga precision sofware which you can download the latest version , to overclock the 560ti and also adjust the fan profiles.
Since you have upgraded the bios for your motherboard, the pc will pick up the cpu as soon as you boot it up , check your device manager and you will see the cpu is there. Also check in the bios that all cores of the cpu are enabled, in power options in win 7 set it to high performance , otherwise the cpu will clock down to save power. Check also that you have the latest drivers for your motherboard from the Asus website for the model of motherboard you are using.
Just be aware if you are buying a 560ti 1GB that the vram in games like BF3 and Metro 2033 are quite high and you will need a 8gb of system ram as it will stutter when it starts to eat into your system ram. You also have the choice of purchasing a 560ti 2GB model , shop around there should be some great deals on these cards right now.
 

unsung_0

Honorable
Apr 17, 2012
66
0
10,640
That's pretty cheap I think ill go with that. I was also going to get 4 more GB of ram. Did you check that link for the CPU I found on eBay? Would it be more wise to just buy the actual 945 rather than another CPU that is "like it"
 

unsung_0

Honorable
Apr 17, 2012
66
0
10,640
Ya it's about 165 for it. I was anticipating spending about $150 for a new CPU at the beginning of this post so I'm not crying about it. From your experience is using 4x2gb ram better/slower/same as using 2x4gb ram. I use patriot Gseries 2x2gb currently and I plan on OCn my ram as well as the CPU
 

monsta

Splendid
4x2gb or 2x4gb wont make a diffrence, it pretty much the same, as long as you fit all your memory in pairs you will have the best performance , if you fit any in single mode thats when you lose performance. Just grab another pair of the exact same memory you have.
 

tonytober

Honorable
Apr 16, 2012
7
0
10,510


Actually, there is a difference. Two 4GB is better than four 2GB. It is more stable for the CPU, even more for overclocking in the future.