Looking to upgrade a graphic card

[henrikas11]

Hello

I am looking to upgrade my current graphics card to something newer and better. I've built this rig about 4 years ago and I think its time to make some upgrades. I do need help finding the right card for me though as I have been out of the loop for the last 4 years and have no clue whats good and whats not. Any help is appreciated. This is what I have:

Win 7 Pro (64bit)
Gigabyte Mother EP45-UD3P
Intel Core 2 Duo at 3.00Ghz
OCV 700W power
4 GB of RAM
ATI Radeon 4800 series with 512MB GDDR3 (PCI 2.0 x16)

I play games on 1900 x 1200 sometime 1900 x 1080. Some newer games I can't play on high setting anymore and anti-aliasing is out of the question. I figure getting a better card should remedy some of that. My price range is around 200-300.

Thank You for your time and help!

-Henry

 

[abbadon_34]

http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/gaming-graphics-card-review,3107.html

 

[Jojocalypso]

Take a look at this GPU chart:
http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/gaming-graphics-card-review,3107-7.html

With a budget around 200-300 you can get quite a nice new video card. If you prefer sticking with Radeon, the HD 7850 is ~ 200, while the HD 7870 is ~ 260. You can use the chart to find a similar Geforce card.

One thing to keep in mind before buying a new card is the SIZE. Just make sure whatever new card you buy fits inside your tower.

 

[henrikas11]

The Radeon 7970 looks pretty good. Will it work on my motherboard? Its PCI 3 and I have 2,0 I believe. Is this brand good:

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814150586


?

Thanks!

 

[ipwn3r456]

The Radeon 7970 looks pretty good. Will it work on my motherboard? Its PCI 3 and I have 2,0 I believe. Is this brand good:

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814150586


?

Thanks!

The HD 7970 is good, however, your system will heavily bottlenecked by your current hardware. Get something like a HD 7850, or a GTX 660 will be better with your system. Or, get a completely new computer.

 

[henrikas11]

I dont have the money to get a completely new system. What do you mean bottlenecked? Would it help if I got a new CPU too?

 

[CaptainTom]

I dont have the money to get a completely new system. What do you mean bottlenecked? Would it help if I got a new CPU too?

There is a 7950 for $300 on newegg right now. It will overclock to 7970 levels. I recommend that! (PLUS 3 FREE GAMES)

 

[swifty_morgan]

I dont have the money to get a completely new system. What do you mean bottlenecked? Would it help if I got a new CPU too?

it's the dual core processor. a quad is a must now but the 775 processors are way too expensive almost making it mandatory to upgrade the entire system.

as far as video cards go. I game on a 775/q9550 and run a 2gig 6950, so anything from there on up would be good enough. You may be able to get some more mileage out of your system but the video card has got to go.

edit: @1920x1200 res.....................

 

[ipwn3r456]

I dont have the money to get a completely new system. What do you mean bottlenecked? Would it help if I got a new CPU too?

Read bottlenecking here:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bottleneck

Well, there isn't much you can upgrade to the CPU, since its socket 775, the best you can get are the Intel Core 2 Quad CPUs. But it's hard to get them now... plus those CPUs are quite expensive also.

 

[henrikas11]

OK which one between these three you think I should go with? Or is there another brand you would suggest? Thanks!

gtx 660

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814127696

or

hd 7850

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814161405

or the one with 3 free game the hd 7950

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814202006

Would 7950 bottleneck my system tho?

 

[swifty_morgan]

tough call. the 7950 is way overkill but comes with 3 games. the 660ti isn't worth the premium over the standard 660. if you plan on upgrading the rest soon ( 12 month's ? ) go for the card w/games. if not the 660 non ti version.. ?? about $220-ish.

 

[henrikas11]

I mean 7950 is not gonna slow my system down is just not gonna perform at the umpfff it could right?

 

[ipwn3r456]

I mean 7950 is not gonna slow my system down is just not gonna perform at the umpfff it could right?

It will not, just that the HD 7950 will not get it's full potential. You will probably get similar performance by just using a HD 7850 or a GTX 660. Might as just get one of the two cards I recommend, and save the money for a new computer later on.

I would say get one of those cards:

GTX 660:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814130833

HD 7850:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814125451

swifty_morgan, I think you forgot the bottlenecking factor. Did you see his specs at all? Or you don't even know what bottlenecking is?

 

[abbadon_34]

IMO there is nothing wrong with getting an "overpowered" card and having something to look forward to when you upgrade the cpu (as long they are done in a reasonable amount of time). You're aways going to be trading one bottleneck for another, whether you notice it or not.

 

[henrikas11]

Is there a possibility though if I get the 7950 that it would make my gaming experience worse? Cause those three 3 games sound very enticing.

If so would overclocking the cpu make things better for the meantime?

 

[abbadon_34]

no chance, as above just not using full potential

overclocking helps a little, but i wouldn't expect wonders

 

[henrikas11]

So you wouldn't recommend getting intel core 2 quad? Just save up for a new system altogether? Also, build my own vs. buy pre-built?

 

[ipwn3r456]

So you wouldn't recommend getting intel core 2 quad? Just save up for a new system altogether? Also, build my own vs. buy pre-built?

Build your own is always the better and chaper choice. You probably have to pay couple hundred dollars more for pre-built than you build your own computer with the same specs.

 

[abbadon_34]

save your money for a new system, going from a c2d to a c2q isn't much of an upgrade these days unless you get the proc for free. you should be looking at current generation to upgrade cpu

 

[swifty_morgan]

[quotemsg

swifty_morgan, I think you forgot the bottlenecking factor. Did you see his specs at all? Or you don't even know what bottlenecking is?[/quotemsg]

yes, I saw his specs. did you see my first post ?

 

[ipwn3r456]

Keep your power supply, case, optical drive, your OS, monitor, and maybe your hard drive (I put one at the list as well, in case you need it). This system should be good at your needs.

PCPartPicker part list: http://pcpartpicker.com/p/n7sq
Price breakdown by merchant: http://pcpartpicker.com/p/n7sq/by_merchant/
Benchmarks: http://pcpartpicker.com/p/n7sq/benchmarks/

CPU: Intel Core i5-3570K 3.4GHz Quad-Core Processor ($169.99 @ Microcenter)
Motherboard: Gigabyte GA-Z77X-UD3H ATX LGA1155 Motherboard ($148.98 @ Amazon)
Memory: Corsair Vengeance 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($33.99 @ Newegg)
Storage: Western Digital Caviar Black 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($79.99 @ Newegg)
Storage: Samsung 830 Series 128GB 2.5" Solid State Disk ($89.88 @ Amazon)
Video Card: Sapphire Radeon HD 7950 3GB Video Card ($279.99 @ Newegg)
Total: $802.82
(Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available.)
(Generated by PCPartPicker 2012-11-09 22:12 EST-0500)

 

[ipwn3r456]

[quotemsg

swifty_morgan, I think you forgot the bottlenecking factor. Did you see his specs at all? Or you don't even know what bottlenecking is?

yes, I saw his specs. did you see my first post ?[/quotemsg]

Yes, I forgot to see that. I apologize for that.

 

[henrikas11]

What is the solid state disk for? Thanks for the info btw. I think I could afford it pretty soon

Keep your power supply, case, optical drive, your OS, monitor, and maybe your hard drive (I put one at the list as well, in case you need it). This system should be good at your needs.

PCPartPicker part list: http://pcpartpicker.com/p/n7sq
Price breakdown by merchant: http://pcpartpicker.com/p/n7sq/by_merchant/
Benchmarks: http://pcpartpicker.com/p/n7sq/benchmarks/

CPU: Intel Core i5-3570K 3.4GHz Quad-Core Processor ($169.99 @ Microcenter)
Motherboard: Gigabyte GA-Z77X-UD3H ATX LGA1155 Motherboard ($148.98 @ Amazon)
Memory: Corsair Vengeance 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($33.99 @ Newegg)
Storage: Western Digital Caviar Black 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($79.99 @ Newegg)
Storage: Samsung 830 Series 128GB 2.5" Solid State Disk ($89.88 @ Amazon)
Video Card: Sapphire Radeon HD 7950 3GB Video Card ($279.99 @ Newegg)
Total: $802.82
(Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available.)
(Generated by PCPartPicker 2012-11-09 22:12 EST-0500)

 

[ipwn3r456]

What is the solid state disk for? Thanks for the info btw. I think I could afford it pretty soon

You would love the Solid State Disk, SSD, or Solid State Drive, whatever you want to it to be called, in simple, its a type of storage, that is about five times faster in read and write speeds than a traditional Hard Drive, much faster boot time, applications will be open almost instantaneously, etc. SSD is much more efficient in power, and reliability. They are much lower risk to fail than a traditional Hard Drive, due to the fact SSD don't have moving parts as tradition HDD does. But due to it's pricing per GB, it's recommended to have a SSD for your windows OS and programs, and a seperate HDD for your storage. You can always use google to get more info about SSDs. Once you get a SSD, you would love it that you can't go back to traditional HDD's speeds.

 

[CaptainTom]

Is there a possibility though if I get the 7950 that it would make my gaming experience worse? Cause those three 3 games sound very enticing.

If so would overclocking the cpu make things better for the meantime?

Honestly a 7950 will be fine. It just won't reach its MAXIMUM frame rate. You will still get good performance, just not 70+ FPS. Oh no! Oh and those 3 games are great. If you want those games, the 7950 really costs about the same as the 7850. It would be silly not to get it.