Buying a graphic card for a P8B75-M LE MoBo

[JordyB]

APPROXIMATE PURCHASE DATE: Next week BUDGET RANGE: €200-€250

USAGE FROM MOST TO LEAST IMPORTANT: Gaming (no shooters, not online, I play games with GTA-style, racing and driving simulation games), internet.

CURRENT GPU AND POWER SUPPLY: intel HD2500 chip and Spire 420W (SP-ATX-420W-C1-PFC) PSU

OTHER RELEVANT SYSTEM SPECS: i5 3570 @ 3.4 Ghz, 8 GB DDR3, MoBo: Asus P8B75-M LE, a big Cooler Master case

PREFERRED WEBSITE(S) FOR PARTS: Dutch, but I will find the shops to buy them myself COUNTRY OF ORIGIN: Netherlands

OVERCLOCKING: Maybe SLI OR CROSSFIRE: No

MONITOR RESOLUTION: At the moment 1280 x 1024, but somewhere in the future something like 1920x1080

ADDITIONAL COMMENTS: Want a card that can play my kind of games on high quality, and for the couple of years to come. I want to achieve that by buying a -too good for my games at the moment- card.



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I was considering to buy one of the next GPU's:

ASUS GTX660-DC2T-2GD5
http://www.asus.com/Graphics_Cards/GTX660DC2T2GD5/#specifications

And

SAPPHIRE HD 7870 2GB GDDR5 XT WITH BOOST
http://www.sapphiretech.com/presentation/product/?cid=1&gid=3&sgid=1160&pid=1790&psn=&lid=1&leg=0

My MoBo:

ASUS P8B75-M LE
http://www.asus.com/Motherboard/P8B75M_LE/#specifications

My MoBo isn't very big, and I'm wondering if one of the two GPU's will fit in it.
Also I need a new power supply. When one of those GPU's fit, what do you recommend?

I also made an image of the inside:
http://nl.hardware.info/forum/attachment.php?attachmentid=18224&d=1360343052
The yellow/black cable, who's crossing almost the whole mobo, is in the way for a GPU. Does another power supply has a longer cable so it isn't in the way for a GPU?

Thanks in advance

 

[austing]

I'd recomend the 7870, but your case may not fit its length.

I own the ASUS GTX660 and its a great card.

 

[geofelt]

Spire is not a psu brand with which I am familiar.
If it is of top quality with at least 24a on the +12v rails and has a 6 pin connector, then you can probably run a GTX660.

A 7870 is not as efficient, and will likely want more than your current psu can safely deliver.

Here is a handy chart of psu requirements:
http://www.realhardtechx.com/index_archivos/Page362.htm

If you need to replace the psu, insist on a quality unit.

Length of the card will not be an issue.

 

[JordyB]

Thanks for your reply!

With case you mean my computer case?
I have this one:
http://i1108.photobucket.com/albums/h405/dodoon99/IMG080.jpg
It is really a big computer case way to big for my mobo.

And is the ASUS GTX660 smaller in size than the Sapphire HD 7870 XT?

 

[completelyrandomname]

Guys, that's the 7870 XT. This means that it will perform like a 7950 but at a $230 price point. No brainer, get that card.

EDIT: They should be roughly around the same lengths.

 

[JordyB]

The PSU is very, very bad. So it really does need a replacement.

But when I buy the HD 7870 XT, it will fit on my mobo, despite it is so small?
And which PSU do you recommend for the HD 7870 XT?

I really want that card

 

[geofelt]

Your photo of the motherboard shows a standard M-ATX sized motherboard which is about 244mm(9.6") square. Past that, there looks to be plenty of space for a very long card to extend way past that into the case.

 

[JordyB]

Sorry, I'm completely new with this, I thought I had a small mobo. Maybe it's because the space seems so little and the card looks so big..

But I'm glad that I can order the Sapphire HD 7870 XT
Now I really need your advice for a decent PSU for that card, also one with enough length in the cable so it doesn't get in the card's way what it does right now.

 

[geofelt]

Sorry, I'm completely new with this, I thought I had a small mobo. Maybe it's because the space seems so little and the card looks so big..

But I'm glad that I can order the Sapphire HD 7870 XT
Now I really need your advice for a decent PSU for that card, also one with enough length in the cable so it doesn't get in the card's way what it does right now.

If your psu is sufficient, I would just solve that cable length problem with a extension cable.
This is often needed in a large case, regardless of the psu. It looks like this: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16812200496&nm_mc=KNC-GoogleAdwords&cm_mmc=KNC-GoogleAdwords-_-pla-_-Internal+Power+Cables-_-N82E16812200496&gclid=CJHB6dP_p7UCFQeynQod6BwA4Q

If you feel you need/want a different psu, check this list sorted by psu quality tiers.
http://www.eggxpert.com/forums/thread/323050.aspx

It is not wrong to get one stronger than what you need, it will only use the power that is demanded of it.

 

[JordyB]

Thank you very much for your reply!

I really need a new PSU, the one I have now is very bad (+only 420W), and costs something like €25, so it is bad quality.

I was thinking of buying the Corsair Builder Series CX600 V2 (http://www.corsair.com/builder-series-cx600-v2-80plus-certified-power-supply.html. Do you think that PSU is good enough for the Sapphire HD 7870 XT? I've read in a lot of Dutch forums that Corsair is a good psu branch.

Also, I definitely going to buy an extension cable. Thank you very much for that!

 

[geofelt]

The Corsair 600w unit should be fine. It can deliver 40a.
Here is one list of quality psu units sorted by quality tiers:
http://www.eggxpert.com/forums/thread/323050.aspx

 

[JordyB]

Thank you. I saw that the Corsair CX series is in Tier 3, so I looked up in Tier 2 and found a Corsair GS600, just a few bucks more than the CX 600.

I checked it, but because I'm not that good in it, can you confirm that the Corsair GS600 is good for the HD7870 XT and it can connect to my mobo?

 

[geofelt]

Thank you. I saw that the Corsair CX series is in Tier 3, so I looked up in Tier 2 and found a Corsair GS600, just a few bucks more than the CX 600.

I checked it, but because I'm not that good in it, can you confirm that the Corsair GS600 is good for the HD7870 XT and it can connect to my mobo?

Looks good to me.

 

[JordyB]

Thank you very much! I really appreciate all the help!

Well, it looks like I'm getting myself a Sapphire HD 7870 XT + Corsair GS600 next week

 

[Octivius]

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