Best nvidia budget cards for swtor

[Eckoman18]

My computer came stock with an onboard geforce 6150 SE card. I know it is terrible and need an affordable upgrade. the model of my computer is FK562AA-ABA a6614f,
6gb of ram,
phenom x4 processor,
and just bought a 750w corsair PSU.

so just need a new card to upgrade and i can start playing swtor. would like to spend around a $100 or less, don't need anything fancy just something to play swtor on medium or high settings that will stay cool in a stock hp case. would like to stay with nvidia card since thats what my rig was designed with and has drivers for. any suggestions would be appreciated. gt, gts or gtx series is fine and brand and model numbers to. not sure which are best.

thanks

 

[Eckoman18]

M2N68-LA is the motherboard

 

[jaguarskx]

For under $100 (after rebate) the best nVidia card you can buy (at least from Newegg) is the GTS 460 for $85.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814134119

The best AMD card you can buy is the Radeon HD 6770 for $90.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814150540


Of the two the HD 6770 is faster by a good margin on average based on the following review:

http://www.xbitlabs.com/articles/graphics/display/powercolor-pcsplus-hd6770-vortex-ii_6.html#sect1

 

[jaguarskx]

Actually, there's the nVidia GTX 550 for $100 after rebate. It is almost as powerful as the Radeon HD 6770 based on the link above.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814127573


Above the $100 mark, the GTX 560 would be next powerful nVidia card for $155:

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814134137

It's competition would be the Radeon HD 6790 for $120:

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814150534

Both cards trades blow for blow in games, but overall the HD 6790 seems to be slightly better based on the following review:

http://www.xbitlabs.com/articles/graphics/display/radeon-hd-6790_6.html#sect4

 

[jaguarskx]

While the $120 HD 6790 is the main competitor for the $155 GTX 560, for $120 you can also buy the HD 6850 which is clearly the superior card.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814161384

But, for less than the $155 price of the GTX 560, you can also buy the HD 6870 for $140:

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814131378

 

[Eckoman18]

Height: 38.7 cm (15.23 inches)
Width: 17.5 cm (6.89 inches)
Length: 41.4 cm (16.29 inches)
Bay size Total Bays*
13.33 cm (5.25 inch) 2
8.89 cm (3.5 inch) 3


this is my case size, with all the stock componets in it, will the cards you listed fit inside it? don't want to order something and it wont fit inside. also what are your thoughts on the gtx 550 ti? any good compared to those cards you listed above

 

[jaguarskx]

Generally speaking the more powerful the card the longer it is. You need to visit the manufactures' website to check the length of the cards. Newegg usually has those links in their product page. Simply measure the back of the case to the hard drive cage to determine the length of the video card you can insert. That if the hard drive cage can potentially block the PCI-e slot.

Did you bother reading what I've written? Did you bother clicking the links to the benchmarks?

The GTX 550 is slower than the less expensive HD 6670.

 

[tlmck]

I can personally vouch for this 6670 card. http://www.microcenter.com/single_product_results.phtml?product_id=0363815

With the included software, I have it overclocked to near 6770 levels. I play pretty much everything at high settings on my 1440x900 19" WS Samsung monitor.