Looking for a 5770 upgrade

[bnot]

Hey guys


I'm looking into updating my GPU and was wondering if there are any worthwhile upgrades to a single 5770 for roughly £120-150. I'm looking for a single card, so please don't say just get another 5770.

 

[maxh22]

Hey guys


I'm looking into updating my GPU and was wondering if there are any worthwhile upgrades to a single 5770 for roughly £120-150. I'm looking for a single card, so please don't say just get another 5770.

You can get a radeon 7850, the cheapest one is $179.

Here is a good one

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814127663

 

[nbelote]

http://www.amazon.co.uk/XFX-Radeon-7850-Edition-GDDR5/dp/B0083GA9WM/ref=sr_1_11?ie=UTF8&qid=1350069166&sr=8-11

Radeon 7850 2GB for £159, get it

 

[Onus]

Make sure your PSU is up to the task, although if you can run a HD5770, you should be able to run a HD7850 as well. Both have a single PCIe power connector. A quality 400W-430W PSU like an Antec Earthwatts or Corsair Builder would be sufficient.

 

[bnot]

My other specs are:

2x2GB DDR2 RAM
AMD 630 2.8GHz x 4
Corsair VX550w (One 6pin connector? Not too sure)
1680x1050 resolution Monitor
Biostar GF8100 M2+ SE Mobo


I would also like to ask if any other of my components will bottleneck a new card.

 

[maxh22]

My other specs are:

2x2GB DDR2 RAM
AMD 630 2.8GHz x 4
Corsair VX550w (One 6pin connector? Not too sure)
1680x1050 resolution Monitor
Biostar GF8100 M2+ SE Mobo


I would also like to ask if any other of my components will bottleneck a new card.

Your cpu and ram will bottleneck.

 

[spentshells]

na your fine for the upgrade, don't worry about a bottleneck

the post above isn't wrong but you will see a massive improvement beyond 25 frames per second in an upgrade to a 7850

 

[nbelote]

The GPU will push the CPU to its limits, that's for sure, but you will reap most of the benefit of a 7850.

 

[Onus]

^What they said. There is ALWAYS a "bottleneck;" that component that is the greatest constraint on your system's performance. Getting a HD7850 will shift it to the CPU. That would be a solid upgrade. Your PSU will have no trouble with it.

 

[bnot]

So how bad of a bottleneck are we talking? How badly under stress will my CPU become?

 

[bcarlo25]

Just go with the 7850 and upgrade the other parts as needed. You gotta start somewhere! My wife runs a 640 with a 5770 and I know if she upgrades her gpu to a 7850 the 640 will not bottleneck and if it did it would be minimal. If you were talking a 7970 or above with a 640 then that is a waist of gpu power.

 

[Onus]

Your CPU is not going to be damaged, if that's what you're worrying. Sure, it will be working hard, but that's what it's supposed to do. The GPU upgrade will let you get the best possible out of your CPU.

 

[mohit9206]

even the radeon hd7770 is a worthy upgrade over the 5770. since he is gonna game at 1680*1050 i dont see why he should spend the extra money over the 7850. 7770 is more than sufficient at that resolution. anything higher will definitely be bottlenecked by the cpu and ram. so just get the 7770 ghz edition

 

[Onus]

The HD7770 is on the same tier as the HD5770. While I would agree that it is a stronger card (perhaps belongs a tier up), it is still not a major change over the HD5770 and I don't think worth the cost. If a GTX560 or GTX560Ti is in that price range, one of those is probably the smallest performance jump I'd want.

 

[bnot]

I was looking around the internet at different 7850's and I found on LinusTechTips channel there 7850 required two 6pin power connectors for a single card where as most of the websites say it only requires one? How many connectors does a single 2GB model require?

 

[Onus]

Many of them only require one; there are a few (e.g. the highly factory-overclocked ones) that need two. I tend not to OC my GPUs, so if I were the one buying I'd go for a card that only needs one.

 

[bnot]

The problem is most retailers don't actually say if the card advertised requires 1 or 2, I keep having to check the manufacturers site for it.

 

[spentshells]

then dont find the model the go to new egg I only suggest this as it is quicker so company websites out there

 

[spentshells]

are tough to navigate