XFX HD-567X-ZNF3 Radeon HD 5670 vs EVGA 01G-P3-1352-KR GeForce GTS 450

[onelazyballa]

Hello, I need help deciding between these two cards.

I recently bought a refurb hp that has AMD Athlon II X4 640 3.0 and 4gb of ram. I bought a 500 watt power supply to replace the stock one. Which card would be better for this system? Or are there any cards better than those two for less than $80 dollars?

 

[Onus]

Assuming your PSU can actually put out at least 75% of its label, the GTS450 will offer notably superior performance. If it's a Logisys, Diablotek, Apevia, or similar cheap brand, it may really be only a 300W PSU, in which case the HD5670 is the most demanding GPU you'd want to risk attaching to it.

 

[onelazyballa]

the psu is a coolermaster if that makes a difference.

 

[Onus]

It does. If it is one of the "Extreme Power" series (the PCAR ones), it is inefficient, and exceeds noise limits if you exceed 400W: http://www.hardwaresecrets.com/article/Cooler-Master-eXtreme-Power-Plus-500-W-Power-Supply-Review/728/10
It should be able to handle a GTS450, but that's about it.

 

[onelazyballa]

thanks for the reply. Do you have any suggestions on a more suitable psu less than $50 that can handle the card?

 

[Onus]

Well, that PSU can handle the card (just not efficiently), but the Antec Earthwatts 430D is $44 right now, actually a dollar cheaper than the 380W version; both of those could handle your card.

 

[purple stain]

Antec makes really good quality PSU's at a decent price.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817371016

That PSU is capable of running a GTS450 and more.It is also semi modular which is always a good thing.

What resoultion is your monitor?

 

[onelazyballa]

1280x1024 and thanks for the replies

 

[purple stain]

At that resoultion the GTS450 should be able to play all games on high settings.Are you still planning on getting the GTS450 or something better since your getting a new PSU?

 

[onelazyballa]

is there any cards better than the gts450 at 80 or below? i already am going over budget. i just wanted something to play League of Legends, CS Source, and Diablo 3 when it comes out on some decent settings.

 

[purple stain]

The next best thing from a GTS450 would be the 5770.But they are out of your budget the cheapest one is $110=$90 after MIR.I would defintly reccomend spending the extra $20 for the 5770 but if your already over your budget then I guess don't worry about it.The 5770 performs better with less power than the GTS450.

But at your resoultion their wouldn't be much of a need to go for the 5770 unless you wanted some future proofing like upgrading to a 1080p monitor in the future.

 

[Onus]

On your resolution, if money is tight, you may even find the HD5670 or HD6670 satisfactory. A couple weeks ago I tested a HD6670 with my [older] games (e.g. Guild Wars, UT2K4), and they all ran maxed, including 4xAA, on my 1920x1080 monitor.

Edit: The distinction to make if you get one of those is to make sure it has GDDR5 rather than GDDR3 memory on it.