GPU Buying Guide - (Read first post)

I'm not quite sure where you're located since you didn't mention—but if you aren't near the sellers, maybe ask if they can ship via USPS? Personally, I think these cards are actually pretty solid for the price you're looking at... As long as you aren't planning on building a whole new rig anytime soon, of course. Since you were running a Radeon HD 4850 before, you probably won't even need to worry about upgrading your power supply...

Ideally, you'd look at a Radeon HD 7750, an HD 7770, or maybe a GeForce GTX 650. Honestly, moving down to those 240 cards would be a performance downgrade, even if they are DX11 compatible and much more power-efficient.

http://www.ebay.com/itm/example1
http://www.ebay.com/itm/example2

There's a guy over on a tech forum selling an MSI R7 260 with about a year of warranty left for $117 (assuming it hasn't sold already).

If I were in his shoes, I’d honestly just make the jump to a 6850 😁

Thanks for getting back to me so quickly.
So, I'm basically choosing between the 6850 or the 7770, especially since that one is from right around Indianapolis, where I grew up.

The HD 7770 is a bit more efficient and newer. Performance-wise, they’re pretty much identical, I guess.

I'm heading out to Springfield, but I'll be driving my car this time. It's about 62 miles total.

Hey, I'm back, alive and well. Total cost ended up being 57 miles. They dropped it down to $350. Man, if only the graphics card actually works!
Moving slightly off-topic here: the 4850 was hooked up to an extra cable—probably the power supply, though he also mentioned something about a 6-pin connector. Will that setup work with this new card too? Anyway, I don't have the case with me right now; it's still at the repair shop. He doesn't work for a big firm anymore; he's doing freelance stuff over near the Indianapolis theater district 😬, you know, in Indianapolis.
I have to wait until tomorrow to test everything out, otherwise, I’d be diving in right now.

It’ll work, don't sweat it.

It draws less power, feels more modern, and packs more punch—honestly, even the weaker 7750 was roughly on par with an old 4870.

It’s somewhat curious that nobody has suggested a GeForce to him. For that specific budget, you can easily pick up a 550ti, a 560ti, or even a GTX 650 on Newegg

mellowtiger83 said:It's pretty interesting how nobody bothered to suggest a GeForce card to him. For that kind of budget, you can easily pick up a 550ti, 560ti, or even a GTX 650 on Newegg.

What? 😁

Timothy Kim60 said:If you're looking for the best pick between an HD 7750 DDR5, an HD 7770, or a GTX card, it really comes down to what you need. Generally speaking, the HD 7770 will outpace the 7750, especially if you grab the DDR5 version. Between those and the Nvidia options, your choice depends entirely on which driver ecosystem you prefer for your specific setup. GTX 650 and everything else.

I’d personally put those older Fermi cards, along with the AMD 6xxx and 5xxx series, on the back burner in favor of anything more recent.

I’m still one GPU short of a fully functional main rig...
Should I just sit tight and wait for some big sale on Best Buy to grab a 1080... or would it be smarter to hold out for the 1080ti coming in about two months?

What kind of discounts are you even talking about? 😬

Timothy Kim60 said:What kind of discounts are you even talking about here? 😬

I mean, there were some Black Friday deals and stuff at the tech expos...

I have a quick question for the group.

If I decide to pick up a new graphics card—let's say an AMD Radeon RX 470—does that mean I'm also on the hook for a brand-new motherboard and a new CPU cooler? I'll be the first to admit, I'm definitely not exactly a seasoned pro when it comes to PC building.

As long as you have a PCI-E x16 slot that follows the standards from roughly a decade ago, you should be fine.

Here is what actually matters:

a) Your power supply needs enough juice to handle the card. Do you know the exact model number? If not, I'd recommend pulling up the case side panel and checking the label on the PSU itself.

b) It has to fit your build's performance profile—meaning your CPU won't bottleneck it. There is zero point in dropping a high-end GPU into an ancient machine if it's only going to run at 20% capacity. You can download a tool like Speccy to get a full rundown of your components (though that won't show your PSU or case specs).

c) Physical dimensions. You need to make sure the card actually fits inside the chassis, though in 99% of cases, that shouldn't be an issue.

Finally got a chance to look at this. Turns out I still have an issue; only the HDMI output works. Apparently, the guy says it happened because he had his TV and computer plugged in at the same time. He’s fine with me returning the graphics card, but honestly, it's a long drive and I really don't feel like making the trip again 62 miles. I actually took the PC to a repair shop earlier because I was reaching my breaking point. The technician told me the DVI port wasn't working. I ended up buying an adapter ($17) and now it functions, but I still can't hook up the TV. That’s the big fail here, and I'm not exactly thrilled about it.
Anyway, thanks again to everyone for the advice.

Timothy Kim60 said:Look, if you've got a PCI-E x16 slot—which has basically been the industry standard for about a decade now—you don't really need to worry about

What actually matters is this:

a) Your power supply can actually handle the card. Do you know the exact model number? If not, you should probably pull up the manual for your case or just peek at the sticker on the PSU itself.

b) It actually fits the build—meaning, can your CPU actually keep up? There’s zero point in dropping a high-end GPU into an ancient relic where it'll just be sitting there performing at maybe 20% of its potential. Grab a tool like Speccy; it'll give you a rundown of your components (though, obviously, it won't tell you anything about your PSU or your case).

c) It physically fits inside the chassis—which, let's be honest, shouldn't be an issue in 99% of scenarios.

Alright, here are the specs.

There’s nothing else you need to bother with. Just plug the card in, install the drivers, and you're good to go. 😁

The only thing we don't know is what kind of power supply you're running. Pop the side panel off and snap a photo of the PSU sticker.

Robert Rodriguez2 said:Honestly, you shouldn't need to touch anything else—just swap out the card, install the drivers, and you're good to go.😁

The only real variable here is your power supply—we don't know what you're running. Pop the side panel off and snap a photo of the sticker on the PSU so we can check the specs.

Do I need to buy any other new components if I decide to go with an Nvidia card?