Graphics card for around £120 budget

[Guest]

Im looking to buy a new GPU. I have a budget of around £120 but if i can get a good bang for the buck i'll be willing to splash a bit more. I currently have a GT 440 which is considered medium at a push now.

I have been looking at 6870's and 6850's and even some GTX 560 TI's. Was just wondering what you guys could recommend and would i need a bigger psu (currently got 450W but can find some cheap 700W ones.

Thanks and also do i need a special pin to plug into the GPU from the PSU?

 

[mocchan]

For the GPU's you're looking to get, you'll need a PCI-E 6 Pin (6870, 560 Ti will require 2 of them) plugs.

I would recommend a 550-650w PSU for those cards, and don't cheap out on them! Get a quality brand like Corsair, Seasonic, or Antec.

Anyway, I would get the GTX560 Ti if you can get it for a good price it has the best performance out of all of them. If not, a 6870 would get my vote over the 6850.

 

[Guest]

Thanks, and do you mean for the GPU's you have to plug two things into the actualy card from the PSU or into the mobo?

 

[teej]

i'm in a similar boat. There's a 6870 for £100 which i've been looking at but the card is 34cm long! On the AMD site 500w is recommended for the 6850 and 6870: http://www.amd.com/us/products/desktop/graphics/amd-radeon-hd-6000/hd-6870/pages/amd-radeon-hd-6870-overview.aspx#3

@Mocchan, what about a factory custom oc'd 6850 vs a 6870?

 

[quilciri]

The strength of your 12v rail is more important than the total wattage of the PSU.

What is the amperage on your +12v rail? It's in the sticker info on the side of your PSU.

Assuming google's conversion is accurate, and your budget is roughly equivalent to $200, here's a couple options, assuming your 12v is strong enough.

$200
SAPPHIRE 11188-22-20G Radeon HD 6950 2GB
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814102987

$205
ECS NGTX560TI-1GPI-F1 GeForce GTX 560 Ti (Fermi) 1GB
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814134131

 

[Guest]

The strength of your 12v rail is more important than the total wattage of the PSU.

What is the amperage on your +12v rail? It's in the sticker info on the side of your PSU.

Assuming google's conversion is accurate, and your budget is roughly equivalent to $200, here's a couple options, assuming your 12v is strong enough.

$200
SAPPHIRE 11188-22-20G Radeon HD 6950 2GB
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814102987

$205
ECS NGTX560TI-1GPI-F1 GeForce GTX 560 Ti (Fermi) 1GB
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814134131

I cant find any cheap ones of these in the uk they are all like 160£ +

 

[teej]

Yeah that's something i learned after i bought a cheap PSU. I've replaced it with an Antec TP 550w. Asus 560 Ti with CU on ebay for £150
http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=280881666730&fromMakeTrack=true&ssPageName=VIP:watchlink:top:en#ht_2953wt_1076

 

[quilciri]

I cant find any cheap ones of these in the uk they are all like 160£ +

/hug

 

[mocchan]

Awww that's a bit unfortunate (PSU prices):/

@quilciri
Yes I'm aware amperage is more important than wattage, I was lazy to type that out at the time :lol: shame on me...

@OP
I'd still take a 6870 over an OC'd 6850.

 

[teej]

The cheapest 560 ti i can find is £154 http://www.novatech.co.uk/products/components/nvidiageforcegraphicscards/nvidiagtx560tifermiseries/n560gtxti-m2d1gd5oc.html

But is it that much better than a 6870?

 

[mocchan]

http://www.hwcompare.com/8890/geforce-gtx-560-ti-vs-radeon-hd-6870/
Just a little bit better than the 6870 If I had to choose between a 560 Ti or 6870, I would go for which has the better price at the time. My brother opted to do this and he has no regrets :lol:

 

[teej]

http://www.hwcompare.com/8890/geforce-gtx-560-ti-vs-radeon-hd-6870/
Just a little bit better than the 6870 If I had to choose between a 560 Ti or 6870, I would go for which has the better price at the time. My brother opted to do this and he has no regrets :lol:

I guess it depends if you want PhysX or not. I've watched some of the demo videos and it looks really impressive but i know not a lot of games use it. Got my eye an a 6950 as well.

 

[deathrune]

6870 is good value and can play all games fine