Posts by brightviper13

vividmoose33 said:Hello.
Purchased. Check out this graphics card listing on Links: http://www.links.com/graphics-card-listing-example

Now I can't even boot into macOS. I power on the computer and nothing happens. There isn't even the standard POST beep code when it starts up. I guess I'm stuck. What now?🙂🤷

So, where exactly did you go to pick up that card? Did you actually walk into the store, or was this an online order? There is always the possibility that you were dealt a dud right out of the box; I have heard people complain about their service before. As far as I can tell, this card doesn't require any supplemental power—I don't see a dedicated connector on it. I believe they are categorized as low-end, though I suppose that changes if you're trying to push Full HD at max settings. Either way, there is no need for extra power cables here. You really only need a 400 or 450W power supply for a setup like this. Actually, I suspect your PC might be staging a protest. It probably worked so well with the old card that now it’s just acting out. Just kidding, I guess.
I had a similar experience with my RAM. Even though I'd applied contact cleaner, things just wouldn't cooperate. It’s possible the PCIe slot where you seat the graphics card might be oxidizing. However, if you aren't hearing a beep code during startup, I guess it might be an issue with the motherboard or perhaps the power supply.
My friends have run into similar issues. One of them swapped out a component but didn't properly engage the power supply switch—he just unplugged it, which ended up frying his motherboard. Another one tried to pull out his graphics card and damaged the board in the process. There are plenty of ways this can go wrong. I’d suggest taking your setup to a shop or trying it in a different PC entirely. You might also want to check if a cable is causing some kind of short or if the PSU connection is loose. Try unplugging everything and reseating it all, though I wouldn't touch the CPU; leave that alone. You didn't mention if you hear any activity at all—like the CPU fan spinning or anything else. I actually have a power supply with a built-in surge protector. If you press the power button too quickly, it seems to trip a safety mechanism inside the unit. It makes a clicking sound, and then you have to toggle the main PSU switch off and on again. Sometimes I have to hold the power button for about a second or two before it finally boots. At first, I assumed the unit was defective, but the repair tech suggested I might just be hitting the button too fast. When I don't rush it, it works fine. If I just press it and hold it briefly, it goes up without an issue.

Alexander Moore67 said:then what about this for $1433
www.bhphotovideo.com

Dell Inspiron, 15.6" LED Backlight (1366x768) TFT, Intel Core i5, DDR3 4GB, DVD Super Multi, NVIDIA GeForce 1GB, Wi-Fi, BT, 640GB HDD, Web Cam, HDMI, 6 cells, no OS, Royal Brown, Warranty: 24 months

I agree. I had the chance to test it, and it’s quite a beast for that price point. It runs the latest games without any real issues, though I suppose you might need to turn down the anti-aliasing in-game to keep things smooth—not that it's strictly necessary if you use minimum settings. Everyone seems obsessed with what kind of high-end graphics card you need to play anything these days, but if you're content playing on lower settings, it doesn't matter much. Personally, I have a high-end rig, so those settings don't bother me, but when you're actually playing, you barely notice the difference. Lower settings almost feel nostalgic, reminding me of the older era before anti-aliasing was even a thing—back when we played on much weaker machines, or even stuff like Commodore, PlayStation 1, or Sega. Those were the games we truly appreciated. Now it's all about HD this and anti-aliasing that; it feels a bit excessive. Sure, having more power is better, but you have to be able to keep up with the costs. As for this laptop, it should serve you well for a few years, unless you insist on playing on massive screens with top-tier hardware.
If you pick it up, you won't regret it. You'll get a very slim, compact device with enough hardware under the hood to genuinely surprise you with what it can handle.

placidgull21 said:The main issue is that I don't have any images, no Windows rating system, no Aero, no RAM, no 64-bit Windows, and I don't even have an Radeon HD 4670 🤣

I suppose I might have misread things. I haven't been paying close attention since I spend most of my time browsing on my phone, scrolling left and right just to see the whole page. It looked like you had listed Home Edition earlier. Now that I've actually looked, I realize I missed where you specified your actual configuration. I'll try to be more observant moving forward.

placidgull21 said:I suppose I'm just worried that opportunity has already passed us by.🙂

I don't see much of a reason to complain about that Radeon HD 4670 of yours. It’s got a 128-bit bus and 320 stream processors; the benchmarks look decent enough. It should run most games fine—maybe not at max settings with anti-aliasing enabled, but halfway through the settings should work, and 512 MB of VRAM is plenty for what it is.
Maybe you could clarify what exactly is lagging or what issues you're running into? Also, what is your Windows experience rating? If you're hitting a 5.5 for Aero, that's more than sufficient, if not better.
If you aren't running enough RAM, that's likely where the bottleneck is. You really need at least 4 GB, especially if you're running a 64-bit version of Windows.

crimsonstag84 said:Better move fast before they're all gone 😛

That's fine, though I suppose it would be better if a 5770 becomes available. I actually wanted one, but sourcing it is proving difficult. I tried to get my hands on it, but there was no telling how long the wait would be, so we eventually gave up on that option. You might want to check with Best Buy to see if you can work something out directly; they're pretty straightforward. I dealt with them once for $186, brought in a whole list of GPUs I wanted to check availability on. It seems like the 6770 is obtainable, but right now, the price is just absurd.

Justin Davis75 said:Hey guys,

I am looking to pick up a new graphics card. My current one, an NVIDIA GeForce GT 210 with 512 MB of VRAM (not sure if it's DDR2, it doesn't specify), is struggling a bit with games. My CPU and RAM are fine, but the GPU is the bottleneck. I want an upgrade, but I don't want to spend a fortune since I'm not exactly a hardcore gamer. If we are talking about a budget around $167, I was wondering what you all think of this one --> LINK <-- (it's actually $17 cheaper at Phoenix than at HG spot).

Any suggestions would be appreciated. Thanks in advance!

Don't look at the first digit; focus on the second. For example, with the 4670, the 4 represents the series, and everything from the second digit onwards improves as you go up—like how a 6400 is mediocre, a 6500 is decent, a 6600 is very good, and a 6700 is great, and so on. So, your 4670 won't necessarily be worse than that new 6470 you found, see
http://www.hwcompare.com/10333/radeo...-6450-oem-1gb/
In all honesty, that new card you're looking at is likely worse than your current setup. Here is a comparison. I was even offered an NVIDIA GeForce GTX 260 for $187, but the issue is that it's a discontinued model; since the newer 6000 series is out, stock is getting difficult to find. You might end up settling for a cheap 5550, but that won't be much better than what you have now, see
http://www.hwcompare.com/318/radeon-...adeon-hd-5550/

crimsonstag84 said:It’s weaker than your NVIDIA GeForce GT 210... this might be a better bet:

http://www.bestbuy.com/product_info.php?c...ducts_id=10658

What kind of motherboard and CPU are you running, and how much RAM do you have?

So, here is how it looks: the NVIDIA GeForce GT 210 512MB vs. the HD 6670 1GB. It is a bit frustrating that they don't let you choose between the DDR3 or DDR5 versions. This specific HD 6670 DDR3 only has a Memory Bandwidth of 28000 MB/sec, whereas the DDR5 version hits 64000. I suppose there isn't much of a meaningful difference between those two cards.
Mine is the HD 6670 DDR3. Windows Aero gives it a 6.8 rating, and its gaming performance is similar; it's actually a decent card, which surprised me somewhat.
http://www.hwcompare.com/10911/radeo...-6670-oem-1gb/

I ended up picking up an HD 6670 DDR3. The clerk at the store tried to push an HD 5670 DDR5 on me because it was cheaper by $17. I looked at the performance specs for both, and the HD 6670 seemed marginally better, maybe by a few percent. However, I just realized after getting home that I actually grabbed the HD 6670 DDR3 version. I might have misread things in the shop, but that’s what happened. I was browsing online and apparently, this HD 6670 DDR3 shouldn't technically be weaker than the HD 5670 DDR5, since the HD 6670 is supposed to be a slightly improved successor to the older HD 5670 design. The problem is, I can't find any actual benchmarks or comparisons online specifically for an HD 5670 DDR5 VS HD 6670 DDR3 setup.
If anyone knows where to find that kind of data, please let me know. I can find plenty of stuff for HD 5670 DDR5 VS HD 6670 DDR5, but nothing comparing the DDR3 vs DDR5 versions specifically.

When I was putting together my last PC, I felt pretty confident about most components, but I lacked clarity regarding graphics cards. Consequently, I made a mistake and picked up an Nvidia GT 210 1GB DDR3.
The card isn't quite as terrible as some people on various forums claim, provided you run at a resolution of 1024*728
with anti-aliasing disabled. At medium settings, titles like Resident Evil 5, Call of Duty, Tom Clancy's Rainbow Six Vegas 2, and Call of Duty: Black Ops run adequately. However, once I attempted to play Crysis 2, even on the lowest possible settings, the limitations became obvious; the image quality was poor and heavily distorted.
I have decided to upgrade to a better card, but I am struggling to choose because my budget is quite limited.
I found an option for roughly $133, an Nvidia GT 430 1GB DDR3. From what I've read, it isn't specifically designed for heavy gaming, but by my estimation, it should perform several times better than my current GT 210. I looked at other brands, though I am hesitant to stray from Nvidia.
Does anyone have a recommendation that stays under a maximum of $550? It doesn't strictly have to be an Nvidia chipset, though I find Nvidia reliable; I've always used their chips, and I suppose the drivers are more straightforward.
Aside from VRAM capacity, what other specifications should I prioritize when evaluating these cards?