Search
Sign in with
Sign up | Sign in
Closed

Need GPU upgrade, roughly $200 budget

Last response: in Graphics & Displays
Share

Hey guys, I'm looking for some advice on a new graphics card for my desktop computer. This upgrade is due to my computer's graphics card not being able to handle a large amount of games that I would want to play. As of some benchmarking, it is very, very clear that my graphics card is bottlenecking my computers ability to handle these games.

Here are some specifications of my current computer - Dell Studio XPS 8100:

Processor: Intel® Core™ i5-760 Processor (8M Cache, 2.80 GHz)
Graphics Card: ATI Radeon 5450 HD 1 GB
Power: 350 Watts
Chassis: Height: 16.1" (40.9 cm) Width: 7.3" (18.5 cm) Depth:17.9" (454.67mm)
RAM: 8 GB (4 x 2GB) Dual-Channel DDR3
Motherboard: Dell 8100 System Board MotherBoard - 0G3HR7

Some games I would like to be able to run on high-ultra settings (if even possible with my budget =/) with a good stable fps(30-60):

Skyrim
Deus Ex: Human Rev.
Starcraft II
Crysis 2
GTA V
Batman: Arkham City

My budget is around roughly $200. I would be willing to go slightly above, if it was clear that it would be worth it. Also, if it a seems necessary, I would be willing to invest in a more powerful power supply unit. If you have any recommendations for that as well it'd be great! Thanks in advance guys!

More about : gpu upgrade roughly 200 budget

Register or log in to remove
Graphics card Expert

GTX 560 Ti. Some can be had for less than $200 after a rebate.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E168...

You would need a better power supply though. If you really don't want to bother with that an HD 7750 (no external power connector needed) would work with the 350W PS you have. Another factor with a pre-built PC is cooling. They oftentimes don't have the airflow needed in those cases for a strong video card. In a situation like that the low power HD 7750 would again be a good choice.

Thanks for the suggestions guys, but I am not sure how I would know if cooling would or wouldn't be a problem. I am currently not using any cooling systems other than what the computer came with. Would that mean I would have cooling problems with some of those cards?
Related ressources
Ask the community
Graphics card Expert

Okay, if I was looking at the right product page, it looks like the XPS8100 only has one cooling fan - meaning it's only got one fan sucking air through the case (and possibly one exhaust fan). Powerful GPUs put off a lot of heat, and the easiest way to get rid of it is to have constant cool air flowing through the case to pull it out the rear (or wherever it exhausts to).

Tl;dr - one fan = little cooling. I'd recommend getting that first 6870, the XFX Double D, since it's pretty capable of keeping itself cool. I don't think you'll be able to put more case fans into the XPS, so you may eventually want to swap out to a different case (although the XPS is pretty snazzy).

Best solution

Graphics card Expert

I know it's out of budget, but for $240, you could pick up a 7850. It's a more powerful card (about on par with a gtx 570/480), and you wouldn't need to change your power supply.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E168...

If it's any consolation, the 7850 saves you 100 watts at load or more over $200 cards, so the 7850 will make up the extra $40 in a year, to 1 1/2 years, depending on how much electricity is where you live and how long your computer is on.
Graphics card Expert

You make a convincing argument, quilciri. I mostly deal with low-end hardware, so I haven't actually looked at the 7800 series - it's good to know they're that efficient too. +1 for the 7850, if you're willing to go that high!

I don't have that much faith in the PSUs of pre-built systems, but I've heard Dell tends to not put terrible ones in, so you should be good to go.
Register or log in to remove
 
Ask the community
Read discussions in other Graphics & Displays categories
!