GPU Buying Guide - (Read first post)

ironhawk3 said:I'm with you on asking for more $833 (definitely need max Video RAM for my heavy textures and Autodesk Maya workloads), but let's be real—the current options are trash. We need to talk about bit depth and why the whole Intel vs Nvidia debate matters here.

Thanks

what else is left in this thread???

Hey everyone, I could use some help picking out a new GPU. I'm running an HP Z440 Workstation equipped with dual Intel Xeon E5430 processors at 2.66GHz, 8GB of RAM (8x1GB in quad-channel mode using FBB ECC DDR2), two 160GB Raptor drives in RAID 0 for the OS and software, and two 1TB HDDs for extra storage. My first setup was a pair of Nvidia Quadro FX 570 cards in SLI; they were great for my CAD work—mechanical engineering is my field—but they struggled with modern gaming. Later, I picked up an 8800GTX which worked wonders, though it eventually bit the dust like most 8800s do. Since then, I've been using an HD 4850 with 1GB of VRAM, which still holds its own for games, CAD, and watching 1080p content on my 27" monitor.

Lately, the 4850 hasn't been quite cutting it with newer titles, so it’s time for an upgrade. Given my budget, I'm looking at these options:

1. Nvidia GTX 460 with 1GB

2. Nvidia GTX 465 with 1GB

3. Nvidia GTX 470 with 1280MB

4. AMD/ATI HD5850 with 1GB

5. AMD/ATI HD6870 with 1GB

What are your thoughts on these? Which one would you recommend?

EDIT 2

Just caught up on the first page and realized I should mention the power supply. I have a 1200W Dell PSU.

Robert Rodriguez2 said:what about the rest of the build???

Right now, I'm looking at an ASUS Z68 Extreme3 paired with an Intel Core i5-3570K. I could probably stretch my budget up to $450 if needed...

ironhawk3 said:Right now, I've got an ASRock s1155 Z68 Extreme3 Gen3 paired with an Intel Core i5-3570K. Budget is maybe $450.

What about the power supply?

Noah Sanchez2 said:1. Nvidia GTX 460 with 1GB

2. Nvidia GTX 465 with 1GB

3. Nvidia GTX 470 with 1GB (EDIT - actually it has 1280MB)

4. AMD/ATI HD5850 with 1GB

5. AMD/ATI HD6870 with 1GB

Most of these are pretty old cards that aren't even in stores anymore (except maybe an HD 6870 here and there)...

http://www.diskont24.com/product.php...cat=390&page=4

That wasn't my question. It's pretty obvious I'm looking at a used card.

Robert Rodriguez2 said:but what about the power supply?

That’s actually a really good point, and I’m definitely looking to pick up something high-quality (and ideally quiet, too)... What would you suggest given that I'm planning on pushing the CPU overclocking to the limit, paired with a single SSD, 2x 4GB RAM sticks at 1600, and whatever GPU fits this build? I'll be working with some pretty massive textures, and since speed isn't my absolute top priority—I'd actually prefer an AMD card over an Nvidia one—I was wondering what might work best...

ironhawk3 said:That's a fair question. I'm down to grab whatever works best (quietly, too). What would you suggest considering my overclocked CPU, a single SSD, 2x 4GB RAM (1600), and what kind of GPU should I look for? I'll be working with heavy textures, so it doesn't necessarily have to be the fastest option—I'd actually prefer an AMD card over Nvidia.

You really need Nvidia if you want to use CUDA cores.
Personally, I'd go with something slightly beefier for the overclocking side.
http://www.amazon.com/details/product-link-placeholder
And for the graphics card:
http://www.amazon.com/details/product-link-placeholder

a) even if you go weaker:

but since this one's modular

b) the GPU

or

ironhawk3 said:I'm currently running an ASRock s1155 Z68 Extreme3 Gen3 paired with an Intel Core i5-3570K. You could probably find something similar for up to $400.

A Quadro 2000 should be within that budget. Just forget about Radeon if you're planning on touching any Autodesk software—unless you're looking at FirePro cards, because otherwise, the driver situation is a total disaster. As for consumer-grade Nvidia cards, from what I’ve gathered over on the Polycount forums, Kepler architecture performance in Maya is pretty pathetic since the hardware support just isn't there yet—honestly, an old GTX 460 will smoke a GTX 670 any day of the week. If you aren't going the Quadro route, you're better off grabbing a GTX 570, because those older cards actually play nice with Maya.

Larry Ortiz5 said:Exactly! No point rocking a $667 if your CPU is a total snail because it just won't keep up.. Plus, we're talking about a gaming card here—it needs a solid, reliable power supply, not some cheap junk you'd grab at 😁Walmart
.

I'm running an AMD Phenom X4 3.0 GHz, so this one:

?

I need to get a graphics card installed in an HP Compaq 7800 SFF for the kids. It's running an Intel Celeron 1.6 GHz with 2GB of RAM and a 250W power supply. I'm strictly looking at low-profile cards because of the case size, and price is obviously a factor. I found these two options, but I'm really worried about the power supply... especially since the Asus specs say...
Power Consumption reaches up to 75W... no extra PCIe power cables needed.
Regarding the Palit card... the minimum recommended system power is 300 W...

Which of those two cards would be the better fit...

The specifications for the Palit card... listed here. It seems straightforward enough... provided the power supply meets the requirements.

Checking out the official specs on the Asus site... just trying to get a clear picture of what we're dealing with here...

Hey there, could anyone point me toward some graphics cards that sit in the same ballpark as this GTX 460 http://www.gigabyte.com/products/pro...px?pid=3530#sp? I'm open to both AMD and Nvidia options here. Honestly, even if they run about 5-10% slower than this one, I wouldn't mind.

@boldfox15/">@@boldfox15

Honestly, just grab this one instead—it's a newer card and barely pulls 30W:

And for what it's worth, those recommended PSU requirements you see on manufacturer websites? They’re almost always wildly overblown.

swiftfalcon89 said:Hey, can anyone point me toward some GPUs that sit in the same ballpark as this GTX 460 http://www.gigabyte.com/products/pro...px?pid=3530#sp? I'm open to both AMD and Nvidia options—honestly, I wouldn't mind if they were slightly weaker than this one by maybe 5-10%...

The HD 7770 is a bit of a step down, and if you're looking at Nvidia, any upgrade actually worth your money would be the GTX 660.

Benjamin King2 said:@boldfox15/">@@boldfox15

I'd suggest going with this one instead... it's a newer card and barely pulls 30W:

Manufacturer specs regarding required power supply wattage are almost always exaggerated on every site out there...

but I really need a low profile model... and I don't think this one qualifies...

I mean, can't you see that half of it is missing? 🙂

There’s a much more detailed breakdown right here if you actually want to look at it: http://www.scan.co.uk/products/1gb-p...hz-48-cores-lp

Hey everyone, I was hoping you could help me hunt down a decent used GPU for gaming up to $167. I don't have the budget for anything brand new, but I'm crossing my fingers that I can find something solid for this kind of cash, especially since I'm currently stuck using an old ASUS EAH3650 512 MB 😁 ...

Here’s what my motherboard looks like: http://oi49.tinypic.com/11h7a6h.jpg

And this is my current power supply. I have a feeling I might need to swap it out soon; the box says it's 400W, but everyone tells me these cheap units are pretty low quality: http://s9.postimage.org/72888l3sd/DSC00793.jpg

Thanks!

$33 It’s a bit more, but maybe try talking the guy down to $33? Of course, unless you happen to live in Springfield, he’d probably just ship it via FedEx. It’s an older card, sure, but honestly—it’ll absolutely demolish your current setup by a landslide 😁. My only real worry is that since you're running such a cheap power supply, I'm not sure if it can handle the load—this card pulls about 160W at full tilt. Maybe the guys here have a better suggestion?

Benjamin King2 said:Yeah, you can see that half of it is missing. 🙂

There's a more detailed description over here: http://www.scan.co.uk/products/1gb-p...hz-48-cores-lp

The main issue is the card height, since this case is only 10cm tall. He'll have to hunt down a card that actually fits those dimensions.