Now I need help with choosing right video card

[chinesepug]

so my power supply is 300 watts. I was told to get a hd 7750 and someone else said consider hd 7770. would getting 7770 be okay and not hurt my 300 watt power supply? Also, when I go to this site

http://www.amd.com/us/products/desktop/graphics/7000/7750/Pages/radeon-7750.aspx

there are various types for 7750 and 7770. how do i pick the right one? for example, i don't understand difference between power color radeon hd 7770 1024mb vs a 1gb dr2. i would like the best one my computer can handle. also, would amd be the cheapest/best since i don't wanna spend too much. a little over $100 at most.

finally, would upgrading this video card allow me to play assassin's creed without lag and bad pixels? i downloaded the game today and the mouse moved slow and lagged like hell.

i also would like to know if i'd be able to play future games that come out for years to come. thank you


System Model: Inspiron 620

Processor: Intel(R) Core(TM) i3-2120 CPU @ 3.30GHz (4 CPUs), ~3.3GHz
Memory: 6144MB RAM
Available OS Memory: 6056MB RAM
Page File: 3034MB used, 9077MB available
Windows Dir: C:\Windows
DirectX Version: DirectX 11
DX Setup Parameters: Not found

---------------
Card name: Intel(R) HD Graphics Family
Manufacturer: Intel Corporation
Chip type: Intel(R) HD Graphics Family
DAC type: Internal

Display Memory: 1696 MB
Dedicated Memory: 64 MB
Shared Memory: 1632 MB
Current Mode: 1920 x 1080 (32 bit) (60Hz)
Monitor Name: HP 2511 Series Wide LCD Monitor
Monitor Model: HP 2511
Monitor Id: HWP293F
Native Mode: 1920 x 1080(p) (60.000Hz)

 

[Novuake]

No you would not, those cards are not amazing at 1920x1080. They can barely pay current games at that resolution.

But since your PSU is limiting you, get the HD 7750 to be on the safe side. A 7770 would strain it to much.

 

[CaptainTom]

No you would not, those cards are not amazing at 1920x1080. They can barely pay current games at that resolution.

But since your PSU is limiting you, get the HD 7750 to be on the safe side. A 7770 would strain it to much.

Wrong. A 7750 is pretty impressive. You could easily play assasins creed at 1080p at decent settings. Maybe even maxed out. As for which one to get; get the cheapest one lol. The are all basically the same.

P.S. here is a benchmark of a 7750 running BF3 on high at 35 FPS. If it can do that, ACIII is a walk in the park!

http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/radeon-hd-7770-7750-benchmark,3135-6.html

 

[blazorthon]

7750s are not all basically the same. Performance varies between some models greatly. For example, the DDR3 version barely beats a Radeon 6670 and even among the GDDR5 versions, the clock frequencies on the GPU and memory can vary quite a bit from 800MHz on the GPU to at least 900MHz and from 1125MHz on the GDDR5 memory to at least 1200MHz. The fastest GDDR5 versions can be as much as about 15-20% faster than the reference0clocked GDDR5 models, the DDR3 versions all have a little over half of the reference GDDR5 verson's performance.

There is slightly more variance between some different 7770s than there is between the GDDR5 7750 cards.

We can't make an accurate recommendation based on power requirements without more information on your PSU. What model is it? If you can't tell us the model, can you at least give us the amperage rating of each rail (this information will be on a sticker on the PSU inside the computer's case)?

 

[CaptainTom]

7750s are not all basically the same. Performance varies between some models greatly. For example, the DDR3 version barely beats a Radeon 6670 and even among the GDDR5 versions, the clock frequencies on the GPU and memory can vary quite a bit from 800MHz on the GPU to at least 900MHz and from 1125MHz on the GDDR5 memory to at least 1200MHz. The fastest GDDR5 versions can be as much as about 15-20% faster than the reference0clocked GDDR5 models, the DDR3 versions all have a little over half of the reference GDDR5 verson's performance.

There is slightly more variance between some different 7770s than there is between the GDDR5 7750 cards.

We can't make an accurate recommendation based on power requirements without more information on your PSU. What model is it? If you can't tell us the model, can you at least give us the amperage rating of each rail (this information will be on a sticker on the PSU inside the computer's case)?

Hey calm down man. I had no idea there is a DDR3 version (Who the f%$k would do that?). Obviously get the cheapest DDR5 you can.

 

[blazorthon]

Hey calm down man. I had no idea there is a DDR3 version (Who the f%$k would do that?). Obviously get the cheapest DDR5 you can.

There are three Radeon 7750 DDR3 models at Newegg, one PowerColor, one MSI, and one HIS.

It's GDDR5.

Why just the cheapest? A few bucks more can get noticeable performance improvements.

Even better, if OP's PSU can handle a 7770, is the fact that 7770s are going for about the same price as 7750s, making any 7750 a poor buy unless you can't power the 7770 or don't want a significant performance boost.

 

[Novuake]

Wrong. A 7750 is pretty impressive. You could easily play assasins creed at 1080p at decent settings. Maybe even maxed out. As for which one to get; get the cheapest one lol. The are all basically the same.

P.S. here is a benchmark of a 7750 running BF3 on high at 35 FPS. If it can do that, ACIII is a walk in the park!

http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/radeon-hd-7770-7750-benchmark,3135-6.html

Keep in mind that 35 FPS is AVERAGE FPS. As soon as that drops below 30 you can notice and feel it. And it will happen often!

Don't get me wrong, its an AMAZING card for what it was made for(HTPC and the like), consider it can draw all power needed via the PCI-e port.

 

[blazorthon]

Keep in mind that 35 FPS is AVERAGE FPS. As soon as that drops below 30 you can notice and feel it. And it will happen often!

Don't get me wrong, its an AMAZING card for what it was made for(HTPC and the like), consider it can draw all power needed via the PCI-e port.

So drop a few settings, problem solved. Even a Radeon 6750 can game at 1080p with lowered settings just fine, so a much faster 7750 or even better, 7770, shouldn't have any problem with it, especially with current drivers. Current drivers compared to the drivers used in February can increase performance dramatically, especially in BF3.

Also, the 7750 is way too high end and expensive to be worth putting in an HTPC. A far cheaper Radeon 6450 or 6570 can do that job just as well and the 6450 even uses less power than the 7750 (the 6570 uses slightly more power, but is still much cheaper up front).

 

[Novuake]

So drop a few settings, problem solved. Even a Radeon 6750 can game at 1080p with lowered settings just fine, so a much faster 7750 or even better, 7770, shouldn't have any problem with it, especially with current drivers. Current drivers compared to the drivers used in February can increase performance dramatically, especially in BF3.

Also, the 7750 is way too high end and expensive to be worth putting in an HTPC. A far cheaper Radeon 6450 or 6570 can do that job just as well and the 6450 even uses less power than the 7750 (the 6570 uses slightly more power, but is still much cheaper up front).

\

LOL with that mentality you may as well use Intel HD4000 graphics.

Let me say it again. You can not expect to reliably game at HD resolution with a HD7750. It would be outdated too soon.

That benchmark you linked is for one segment in the Single player campaign. Trust me when I say when tanks and planes start shooting, it will not keep 35 average FPS, not even close...

 

[CaptainTom]

There are three Radeon 7750 DDR3 models at Newegg, one PowerColor, one MSI, and one HIS.

It's GDDR5.

Why just the cheapest? A few bucks more can get noticeable performance improvements.

Even better, if OP's PSU can handle a 7770, is the fact that 7770s are going for about the same price as 7750s, making any 7750 a poor buy unless you can't power the 7770 or don't want a significant performance boost.

Let's be honest here how much more power will you get? Will a $110 7750 perform 10% better than a $100 one? Hell no! If you want to spend more money, get a different card lol. Also yes a 7770 is a great deal right now!

 

[CaptainTom]

\

LOL with that mentality you may as well use Intel HD4000 graphics.

Let me say it again. You can not expect to reliably game at HD resolution with a HD7750. It would be outdated too soon.

That benchmark you linked is for one segment in the Single player campaign. Trust me when I say when tanks and planes start shooting, it will not keep 35 average FPS, not even close...

That is before the driver update that made it even better, and like the other guy said YOU CAN LOWER SETTINGS. I guarantee it would be fine on medium. Also who cares if it briefly drops to 20-25 FPS? That's quite playable as long as it is brief (And doesn't go lower).

 

[Novuake]

Let's be honest here how much more power will you get? Will a $110 7750 perform 10% better than a $100 one? Hell no! If you want to spend more money, get a different card lol. Also yes a 7770 is a great deal right now!

Are you sure his 300watt PSU can run the 7770? I would also suggest that card but you can't suggest it if you do not know.

 

[blazorthon]

\

LOL with that mentality you may as well use Intel HD4000 graphics.

Let me say it again. You can not expect to reliably game at HD resolution with a HD7750. It would be outdated too soon.

That benchmark you linked is for one segment in the Single player campaign. Trust me when I say when tanks and planes start shooting, it will not keep 35 average FPS, not even close...

That's just stupid. Playing at just below maxed settings is the whole point of entry level 1080p gaming. You're taking it to an irrelevant extreme. Dropping settings slightly is nothing like dropping them to minimums like you'd need to do just to hope to play with HD 4000.

multi-player gaming inhibits the CPU far more than the GPU compared to single player.

 

[blazorthon]

Are you sure his 300watt PSU can run the 7770? I would also suggest that card but you can't suggest it if you do not know.

You can suggest it, you simply shouldn't outright recommend it. Suggesting it as a possibility is not bad just because we haven't confirmed it as an option, although recommending it would be premature.

 

[CaptainTom]

Are you sure his 300watt PSU can run the 7770? I would also suggest that card but you can't suggest it if you do not know.

A i3-2120 uses 65w, a 7770 uses 85w, and that still leaves 160w. That would be fine I think. Unless it was the worst of worst PSU's. But if its a DELL or HP it should be fine enough.

 

[chinesepug]

Operating System: Windows 7 Home Premium 64-bit
Language: English (Regional Setting: English)
System Manufacturer: Dell Inc.
System Model: Inspiron 620

Processor: Intel(R) Core(TM) i3-2120 CPU @ 3.30GHz (4 CPUs), ~3.3GHz
Memory: 6144MB RAM
Available OS Memory: 6056MB RAM
Page File: 3034MB used, 9077MB available
Windows Dir: C:\Windows
DirectX Version: DirectX 11
DX Setup Parameters: Not found

---------------
Card name: Intel(R) HD Graphics Family
Manufacturer: Intel Corporation
Chip type: Intel(R) HD Graphics Family
DAC type: Internal

Display Memory: 1696 MB
Dedicated Memory: 64 MB
Shared Memory: 1632 MB
Current Mode: 1920 x 1080 (32 bit) (60Hz)
Monitor Name: HP 2511 Series Wide LCD Monitor
Monitor Model: HP 2511
Monitor Id: HWP293F
Native Mode: 1920 x 1080(p) (60.000Hz)

 

[chinesepug]

hey, thanks guys. I will have to open my pc up tonight as soon as I get the right screwdriver so I can tell you the Rail Amperage.

 

[chinesepug]

btw, if i'm planning to hook up my stereo speakers to my pc, won't that raise my wattage use level and go over the 300 watt limit?

 

[blazorthon]

I doubt that stereo speakers will use much power from the PC, but that's me.

 

[chinesepug]

okay, and one more question before i go to work. so in a few years, when better graphics cards come out.... will i need a more wattage power supply or will technology actually reduce the amount of power supply wattage needed as new cards come out b/c i feel like i'm at my limit with the 300 and i will have to buy a whole new pc in a year or two. I'm hoping to just switch out a graphics card at least once before i get a new pc and upgrade to better core processor. thanks

 

[Sunius]

Well, nobody knows what nvidia and AMD have in mind. The current trend is that power consumption of the graphics cards is dropping. Also, you can always upgrade the power supply unit .

 

[Novuake]

btw, if i'm planning to hook up my stereo speakers to my pc, won't that raise my wattage use level and go over the 300 watt limit?

Stereo speakers will will use almost zero power on your system. They usually have an added power source.

Yes at the moment power consumption is going down dramaticly PER PERFORMANCE. They don't really just go down. Only from what they can perform with given power.

I think you will have to upgrade your PSU in the future anyway.

 

[chinesepug]

thanks guys. Hey blazothorn, i have to get screw driver to pull apart my computer and tell you the details of my power supply, so I'll let you know by tomorrow early afternoon or whenever you see this post.

 

[blazorthon]

OK then.

 

[chinesepug]

also, blazothorn. do you have any recommendations for a power supply? would something like this work?

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817371034&nm_mc=AFC-C8Junction&cm_mmc=AFC-C8Junction-_-na-_-na-_-na&AID=10446076&PID=4176827&SID=bgt8paanf3vn

some guy was recommended this b/c he also had 300 watt power supply. do you have any recommendations on a quality/cheap power supply i could buy?