Need help choosing a card for my Q6600 2.4Ghz :'(

Galea

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Hello,
I need help choosing a video card because I can't really upgrade my CPU/Mobo right now and if I understand correctly it'd bottleneck if I pair a high-end video card with an old CPU.

I've had this GeForce 8500 GT for 3 years, it can't run Battlefield, Brink or any of the newest games. It's giving me Data Execution errors whenever I close TF2 and driver crashes while playing Magicka. Since I recently changed PSUs and a defective memory stick I'm guessing the video card is the one at fault.

Right now I'm looking at: nVidia GTX 460 1GB , nVidia GTX 560 1GB, nVidia GTS 450 1GB

Will they be fine with an Intel Core 2 Quad Q6600 @ 2.4Ghz / 8GB RAM / 64-bit Vista ?

Other system specs:

MoBo is an ASUS P5B SE
(NEW) Corsair TX650 PSU
8 GB RAM

My CPU is not OC'd and I'm not sure I should try it with a 3yo CPU and a factory heatsink/fan =( I'm just a gamer gal, new to overclocking and other mods.
 
Solution
No you will be fine with any of those choice in fact you can go all the way to a GTX 580. The mother board is very good and overclocking is simple. Just enter your BIOS and up the FSB to 1333 = 3.0 GHz You may have to change the DRAM Ratio so the ram isn't overclocked too much. I don't that BIOS very well but you should be able to find someone with that board here or a Youtube vid on overclocking with that board.

Inferno1217

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First full system specs will hep us help you. PSU wattage and brand.

Those will overclock to 3.0 GHz at stock voltage with a stock fan. If you have an OEM computer by Dell or another company you will not be able to overclock at the BIOS level. The only other option is a conductive pen ($10 at Radio Shack) mod on the Pins of the CPU. I do not suggest this method unless you have experience with it. If you can bump the speed up it would help you overall. The Q6600 was massively under-clocked from the factory. I hit 3.6 GHz with my Q6600 G0 stepping on a Gigabyte P45 board.
 

Galea

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Thank you for your reply. It's a custom-built system. MoBo is an ASUS P5B SE, Corsair TX650w PSU . Does that mean I shouldn't get any of those graphic cards unless I can OC the CPU?
 

Inferno1217

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No you will be fine with any of those choice in fact you can go all the way to a GTX 580. The mother board is very good and overclocking is simple. Just enter your BIOS and up the FSB to 1333 = 3.0 GHz You may have to change the DRAM Ratio so the ram isn't overclocked too much. I don't that BIOS very well but you should be able to find someone with that board here or a Youtube vid on overclocking with that board.
 
Solution

Galea

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Will I need a new heatsink/fan for my CPU if I OC it to 3.0ghz? I'm basically choosing the cheapest route at the moment but I still want to be able to run games like Deus Ex. I'm just worried this old CPU won't be able to handle the OC for too long and I'll have to replace my Mobo/CPU :( .

I'm leaning towards the 560 right now since it comes with a rebate + Batman Arkham City.
 

Inferno1217

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Most Q6600 are fine with a stock heatsink fan @ 3.0 GHz. A Nice Cooler is $30 if your really worried. You should be fine unless you are going higher. Download RealTemp (Freeware) http://www.techpowerup.com/realtemp/ or a trial of Everest Ultimate Edition http://www.lavalys.com/