So, what's your GPU utilization looking like right now? Look, you're running dual 6850s. Based on what's being said here, that setup is roughly equivalent to an HD 5970—which performs about as well as an HD 7870 or even better link1 link2. - Given those numbers, upgrading to a 7950 isn't really worth your money since your current setup is already sitting right around that performance level. Honestly, jumping to cards from the $1.25 series probably won't help much either, because you're likely hitting a massive bottleneck regardless...
On another note, that fx 6100 just doesn't cut it for gaming. It's barely any improvement over a Phenom II 955 or 965, and even those struggle to push past an HD 7870. In fact, its single-core performance actually lags behind the Phenom series, and we all know single-core speed matters way more for gaming than having five or six cores link 1 and link 2.
Based on the analogy I laid out earlier, the Titan is essentially an NVIDIA GTX 780, while the GTX 770 is more like a GTX 680. If that's the case, they really ought to release a successor to the "Titan" line soon. Honestly, those cards are only for people who live solely for gaming. Bogte, anyone who picked up a Titan recently is probably kicking themselves right now—you can find a card with similar performance for a fraction of the cost 😬 . That’s just how it goes when you play in the "high end" bracket; the depreciation hits you like a freight train almost immediately .
swiftfalcon89 said:It's basically throwing money down the drain. In six months to a year, those cards will be significantly cheaper...
Of course it is. For that kind of cash, you could practically build an entire high-end PC from scratch. I'm just saying, they're available here in the States if you want them.
Larry Ortiz5 said:A massive leap would be jumping to the NVIDIA GTX 780 that just launched, though I'm not sure when that'll hit the shelves here in the States. Also, you didn't mention how much cash you're looking to drop on a card.
There is By the way, they have it for 3 $267, but locally it's more like 5 $267 ☕
From what I can tell, this new generation isn't bringing anything revolutionary; it’s just the classic rebranding trick where a "new" card is basically just a rebranded higher tier from the previous lineup. For example, the NVIDIA GTX 680 = NVIDIA GTX 770, and the NVIDIA GTX 670 = NVIDIA GTX 760Ti
If you're looking to actually play games, the setup with the Q6600 and the 4850 is the better pick, even if the parts are a bit dated. Sure, that Phenom build might have a slightly punchier processor, plus you get 8GB of RAM and a 1TB hard drive—which all sounds great on paper—but there’s a catch: neither listing specifies what kind of power supply is inside. Plus, that GT 630 is definitely the weaker card here.
Just a heads-up: watch out for those cheaper models (like the Gainward or Palit ones with just a single fan—they can get pretty loud when they really start spinning, if that kind of noise bothers you at all)
If you're currently running on DDR2 and a Quad-core pops up at a reasonable price point, then absolutely, go for it. You could probably stick with that setup for quite a while, depending on how demanding your workload is.
Andrew Fox74 said:I truly believe that even if you're running a processor in the 3650 range, you’re going to feel a massive difference once you upgrade or even just overclock it. Right now, you're almost certainly bottlenecking your GPU. That said, I still think the Sapphire HD6850 is a fantastic card—especially considering what you can pick up on the used market these days. Honestly, I have no intention of swapping it out until the 8850 drops down to that same price point.
It was exactly the same story with the 4850 and the 5850... and honestly, I expect we'll see the same pattern play out with the 8850. That ATI x850 series has always been an absolute steal. It’s definitely not overpriced, especially when you consider how solid it is for serious gaming.
The Series 7 lineup really delivered a massive leap forward—the 7850 is a total powerhouse compared to the 6950. It would be great if the Series 8 could maintain that kind of momentum. We definitely don't need a repeat of what happened between Series 5 and 6, where there was practically zero improvement.
swiftfalcon89 said:Yeah, I know it's bottlenecking the GPU. I'm trying to track down a Quad-core (LGA 775) or maybe even a Core i7, since I've heard that can push about 80-90% of the card's potential... at least, that's what I was told. I picked mine up for... $250 The Sapphire HD6850 features Vapor-X cooling, comes as a complete bundle, and includes a 1.5-year warranty—all the details are in the link.
I don't know what kind of rig you're running, but people are seriously overcharging for those used 775 Quad-core setups. Honestly, it feels like a total rip-off. $200 If you're looking for options, you could easily go with an Ivy Bridge Pentium or an Athlon 740—you can pick those up for around $40 or so. The 750K is another solid choice. Any of those will be more than enough to handle the Sapphire HD6850 without breaking the bank. Your only real extra cost would be if you find yourself needing to grab some DDR3 memory.
Honestly, you're much better off investing in a solid foundation—get yourself a reliable platform first. Once you have that established, swapping out graphics cards becomes a breeze. In my opinion, trying to squeeze value out of those old 775 Quad-core setups just isn't worth the headache anymore. $200
If you're rocking a 9800gt—just like they told you—then anything less than an 7750 1gb ddr5 or an Nvidia gtx 650 isn't actually going to feel like an upgrade.
Look, if your CPU isn't one of those newer Intel dual core chips like a Celeron g5xx or a similar Pentium—think more along the lines of Sandy or Ivy Bridge—you probably won't even be able to push a better card to its full potential (especially when you're playing modern multiplayer titles). In that scenario, my advice is to just stick with what you've got while it still works and start saving up for a completely new platform down the road.
Alternatively, if you're dead set on getting DX11 support, you could sell your current card and toss a little extra cash toward a 6670 ddr5. But honestly, you aren't going to see a massive jump in raw performance; the only real benefit would be having access to DX11 and cutting your power consumption nearly in half.
Jesse Brown90 said:I'm trying to run Crysis 3 but I'm stuck because of DX11 issues, and I have no clue why they haven't released a patch for this yet. This Radeon card supposedly supports DX11, so why do they keep churning out such weak hardware instead of making cards that can actually handle everything at lower resolutions like they used to? Games aren't even advancing that fast or becoming that demanding, yet these manufacturers act like they're in a race to see who can release the most outdated card possible.
I'm pretty sure there's a patch out there, but don't just take my word for it. Check out http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0hhUdbndd3s 🤷
By the way, what kind of Processor are you running, what's your PSU (specific model), and how much RAM do you have?
It’s easily worth at least $700, excluding the case—and since I have no clue what kind of chassis we're dealing with here, I wouldn't want to give you an inaccurate estimate. Just wait for Fosna to give you a precise valuation.
Look, here’s the bottom line: that power supply is absolute junk—it’s barely worth fifty bucks. The hardware itself is dated and honestly feels a bit ancient by today's standards. On the bright side, the RAM still holds its own, and the processor is actually decent enough for what we consider modern performance. But the real issue is... $100 I just picked up a new Celeron from the shop that’s actually a bit of an upgrade. The motherboard is decent enough, though it’s running on an outdated socket—nothing too surprising, really.
I think I saw someone mention that an ASUS motherboard they picked up from Best Buy came with a 3-year warranty🤷 whereas it wasn't the case elsewhere. From what I've seen at other retailers, it's usually just MSI (both motherboards and GPUs) that offers that 3-year coverage.
Noah Campbell52 said:Check this out—I found a Corsair 680W unit for $133. It’s listed as "lightly used," and I think it would fit perfectly with my current components!
I have no idea which specific Corsair 680W model that is, so honestly, I'd pass. You don't even need a brand-new power supply rated at $133, let alone some sketchy used one from a stranger. A Corsair CX 430W could likely handle your setup with half its capacity to spare. At the end of the day, the quality of the model matters far more than just chasing a high wattage number.
You definitely overpaid for that setup... For $167, you could have easily snagged a quad-core Athlon, paired with a decent $150 motherboard and about $350 for a high-quality power supply. But hey, what's done is done; the CPU and board are solid, and that 9800GT isn't a bad card either.
Even a 7750 can run on a cheap power supply because its draw is so low (maxing out at 55W), and even the 7770 (80W) pulls less juice than your 9800GT (105W). That said, investing in a better PSU is always a smart move—you don't need anything top-of-the-line for those cards, especially since the processor is also quite efficient.
If I were in your shoes, I’d prioritize buying a used graphics card and a brand-new power supply instead. It all depends on what kind of deals you find. Just be careful not to get scammed on Craigslist or similar sites. The card that swiftfalcon89 suggested is an absolute steal if it's still available.
As for the PSU, if you're tight on cash, this or maybe a Redwing Corsair Vengeance 250G or a 480W unit from the list below $100 should be your absolute baseline.
Ideally, these two options are high quality, which would give you plenty of headroom to upgrade to something more powerful down the road.
If you swapped out your power supply and now you're having trouble booting up, there's a good chance the PSU is the culprit rather than the graphics card. Whenever you see some ultra-cheap brand (I've never even heard of them) claiming an absurd amount of wattage, you know you're in trouble. A decent unit from a brand like Corsair or EVGA rated at 400W would likely outperform that junk Mentol unit claiming "720W" any day of the week.
As for what to do next, I'm stumped—maybe wait for someone with more expertise to chime in. Your best bet would be to borrow a higher-quality power supply to rule that out. If the PSU is indeed the issue, try returning it or trading it in for a better model if you just bought it. That 9800GT of yours pulls about 100W; it’s possible your current power supply is just too low-grade to handle the load. I have no idea what you could get for the card on the used market, though, maybe $100
That Nvidia GeForce GT 730 draws much less power, so it should work fine, but you really ought to ditch that sketchy power supply regardless. If it were me, I’d pick up a card at a local retail store. You can usually order from Best Buy even if it shows as out of stock, or just find it elsewhere. http://www.amazon.com/details/vga-card
MSI offers a year's extra warranty compared to the other brands.
Looking at more powerful options, the Nvidia GeForce GT 730 fits your build quite well. Anything stronger than that wouldn't be worth the investment since you wouldn't be able to fully utilize its potential in modern games.