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Looking to upgrade GPU on older PC

Last response: in Graphics & Displays
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I'm running a PC I've had for about 3 years, from memory this is what I have:

AMD x2 II 250 3.0ghz
4 GB DDR2
400W CX Corsair PSU
9600 GT OC Version 512MB
XP 32 Bit

Never overclocked.

I'm a blizzard fan and have been using it to play WoW and SC2 so nothing over intensive and it is able to handle those games fine. Recently the 9600GT has been given me pixel errors here and there. With Diablo 3 right around the corner and the 9600GT on the brink, I figure Its time to upgrade my GPU. Also I'd like to atleast hit the recommended requirements for Diablo 3 which is a 4870 or a GTX 260.

Any advice on a good GPU, here is what I am looking for:

- Be able to run fine on my 400W PSU
- Won't be overly bottlencked on my Processor
- Noticable FPS difference from the 9600GT
- Must be able to play Diablo 3 comfortabally on medium/high settings & on a moderate resolution.
- Nothing over 1GB onboard Ram
- Atleast be DDR3 Ram, DDR5 preferred

Also to note I am a cheap bugger and I am using a very old 21 Inch Dell CRT Monitor, I gave my 17 Inch LCD to my partner to use with her PC.

More about : upgrade gpu older

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Graphics card Expert

You won't be able to max SC2, because you will be CPU bottlenecked. For other games, you should be fine, however. What resolution will you be playing at? 1600x1200 or 2048x1536?
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Graphics card Expert

Well, I am running an i5 2500k and a GTX 460 (OC'ed) and my Kill-A-Watt shows 278W when running furmark. lazy_mofo you should be fine with an HD 6870, that and your CPU are lower power than mine. The corsair CX 400 is a good PSU it shouldn't have trouble supplying enough power.
Graphics card Expert

fb39ca4 said:
Well, I am running an i5 2500k and a GTX 460 (OC'ed) and my Kill-A-Watt shows 278W when running furmark. lazy_mofo you should be fine with an HD 6870, that and your CPU are lower power than mine. The corsair CX 400 is a good PSU it shouldn't have trouble supplying enough power.


Corsair is a good brand but the CX line is entry level and the PSU might not like being ran close to its maximum specifications. It might be perfectly fine too but I'm the kind of person who doesn't take that kind of risk ;) 
Graphics card Authority

Well since AMD was recommended, i just gotta throw in my 2 cents, a 7750 might just be perfect for what you got, and shouldn't bottle neck you too bad. Now if it was me i would wait for NVIDIA's new kepler line for CUDA. most games your playing love some CUDA. heck thats what they're graphics engine is running from. NVIDIA's technology that is
Graphics card Master

the cx 400 should run the 6870, it really isn't a power hungry card. The cx400 has 30A on the +12v which is 360W, the 6870 systems under furturemark take less than 300Ws, closer to 250w with OP's cpu.

What is the performance difference between the 6870 & the 6850?

Also I am not looking to push my PC to the limits, just to have a comfortable upgrade. I may even buy a 2nd hand card. Also happy to step back some Gen in the 3xx/4xx series or 4xxx/5xxx series.

Time to look at some charts I think =D

Rockdpm said:
Well since AMD was recommended, i just gotta throw in my 2 cents, a 7750 might just be perfect for what you got, and shouldn't bottle neck you too bad. Now if it was me i would wait for NVIDIA's new kepler line for CUDA. most games your playing love some CUDA. heck thats what they're graphics engine is running from. NVIDIA's technology that is


I'm not sure what CUDA is, but, I am happy going for older GEN cards.
Graphics card Master

The HD6870 will run fine on that PSU, especially with a low wattage CPU like the Athlon II x2.

The HD6870 is approximately 20% faster than the HD6850 at 1080p at reference speeds.
Graphics card Master

killzone2367 said:
I'd go with the GTX 550ti or an HD 7770. I feel like a HD 6870 would slightly bottleneck your processor. My Q8300 bottlenecks my HD 6850.
don't do this.
Graphics card Expert

esrever said:
don't do this.


+1. Either go with 6850 or 6870 (depending on your budget) and sometime in the future you may be able to upgrade that CPU to a Phenom II x4 if your motherboard allows it.

OK I think I will look at buying a 6850, I like to keep on the safe side with PSU requirements and after looking at the charts the 6850 looks like it will be quite an upgrade over the 9600GT
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