GPU Buying Guide - (Read first post)

Timothy Kim60 said:Wait, that price seems way too low for an NVIDIA GTX 760—is there some kind of discount going on?

EDIT - or am I misreading this and it's actually an NVIDIA GTX 660?

Nope, definitely an NVIDIA GTX 760. And the "discount" is basically just: "Hey, if you buy our servers and storage, we'll throw this in."😬

NVIDIA GTX 760 and we're all set 👍

Matthew Anderson said:Alright, here’s the lineup.

NVIDIA GTX 660 - $406
Palit GTX 660 2GB OC - $363
NVIDIA GTX 760 -$533

Definitely go with the last one. 🙂
Plus, that Asus cooler is just as solid as the ones from MSI or Gigabyte. 🙂

It’s an ASUS. 😬 Man, where did that extra performance come from? Thanks, guys! 👍

darkskipper5 said:Hey there,

I'm still rocking the build from this thread and I've finally decided it's time to upgrade my GPU.

(...)

Timothy Kim60 said:Basically, yeah. The beefiest passive ones I've seen locally are those HD 7750 DDR5 models. There used to be plenty of those high-end ultimate versions available back in the day.
You can't find this one here (plus, it'd cost me over $1,200)

http://www.legitreviews.com/powercol...rd-review_2213

I haven't actually played it myself, but judging by the reviews, CoD2 is a total beastin terms of system requirements (if not the most demanding game out there), so if I were you, I'd ditch the idea of a passive cooler and just grab something with more raw power.

crimsonstag84 said:The HD 7850 runs pretty cool anyway. You're better off grabbing an AMD card with dual fans so you can dial the RPM down to whatever you want; they can handle pushing 80+ degrees without breaking a sweat.

Hey,

The folks at IBM recommended the MSI R9 270 Twin Frozr to me. It's a bit north of my initial budget (they gave me a price of $480, but I still need to double-check that), but looking at the reviews and everything, it seems like a solid way to go, even if it isn't passive. What do you guys think about this card in terms of price-to-performance ratio?

Also, is it worth paying $42 for someone to install it if you're totally clueless about hardware (like me), or is it easy enough that I won't break anything?

Thanks again for all the help.

Have a good night...

Installing a GPU is pretty straightforward...

You could also go with this one; it’s a bit more powerful than the MSI R9 270 Twin:
http://www.newegg.com/p/product_info.php?c...ducts_id=14025

crimsonstag84 said:Installing a GPU is actually pretty straightforward...

You could also go with this one; it’s got a bit more kick than the MSI R9 270:
http://www.newegg.com/p/product_info.php?c...ducts_id=14025

Thanks a ton. I'll dig through some reviews to see if it's just as quiet—I heard good things about the MSI being silent, so if this one checks out, I'm grabbing it. If not, back to the MSI!

Huge thanks to everyone who chimed in and helped me out. Cheers!

darkskipper5 said:Hi there,

The folks over at IBM recommended the MSI R9 270 Twin Frozr to me. It’s a bit above my initial budget (they mentioned a price of $480, but I still need to verify that), but based on the reviews, it seems like an excellent solution, even if it isn't passively cooled. What are your thoughts on this card in terms of the price-to-performance ratio?

Is it actually worth paying $42 for installation if you're a complete novice (like me), or is it simple enough that I shouldn't worry about it?

Thanks again for all the help.

Have a good night...

The Twin Frozr coolers are high quality; you really can't go wrong with them, and the value for the performance is solid.

Whatever you do, don't pay $42 for it if you have even a tiny bit of technical skill (just unscrewing a few screws and plugging in a cable)—it is definitely a DIY job. You'll get instructions in the box, or you can just search YouTube for "how to install/remove a GPU," like this one—your card is similar to this more powerful model where you have to plug the power supply cable directly into the card.

right here

http://www.custompcreview.com/wp-con...c-review-8.jpg

Timothy Kim60 said:Those Twin Frozr coolers are solid; you really can't go wrong there, and the price-to-performance ratio is pretty decent.

Whatever you do, don't pay $42 for this if you have even a shred of technical ability—like, being able to turn a screwdriver or plug in a cable. This is a total DIY job. You'll get instructions with the purchase, or just look up "how to install/remove a GPU" on YouTube, something like this. Yours is more like the higher-end version where you actually have to plug a power cable from the PSU into the card itself.

Check it out

http://www.custompcreview.com/wp-con...c-review-8.jpg

Thanks a ton. Now that you've cleared that up, I'm heading out tomorrow to pick up the GPU.

One last question: is a 400W power supply enough for my setup? (Intel i5 CPU, 2 x 7200 rpm HDDs, 1 DVD drive, and this new GPU? I think I also have 2 extra fans in the case.) I checked some online PSU calculators and they said 354W is fine, but recommended 405W. If 400W isn't cutting it, I'd rather just go with a weaker card.

Thanks everyone. Seriously, you guys need to add a donate button for tech support so we can send over some cash for a beer or something. 🙂

Which 400W power supply? 😁

EDIT: Never mind, found it in my old posts...

It's a Corsair 400W, from the CX Series CMPSU-400CXEU, with a 12cm fan.

That should hold up...

I'm looking for a PCI-Express card, since I've got a Gigabyte P31-DS3L motherboard sitting here

So, I was wondering if anyone could maybe recommend a graphics card that’s actually decent enough to run Assassin's Creed IV, Battlefield 4, and stuff like that for $200 if there happens to be any out there

What kind of CPU and power supply are you running?

darkskipper5 said:Thanks a ton! You've cleared everything up for me, so I'm heading out tomorrow to pick up the GPU.

One last question: is a 400W power supply enough for my setup? (Intel i5 CPU, 2 x 7200 rpm HDDs, 1 DVD-ROM, this new GPU, plus maybe two extra case fans). I checked some online PSU calculators and they said 354W is fine, but recommended 405W. If it's not enough, I'd rather just go with a weaker card.

Thanks everyone! You really need to add a "Donate" button for tech support so we can send you guys some cash for a beer or something. 🙂

It'll hold up. That's made by the highest quality manufacturer (an OEM Seasonic unit), which means you're getting actual, honest-to-god 400W. Whoever built this rig for you definitely knew what they were doing.
Basically, those online calculators aren't perfectly accurate—they tend to overestimate. Your configuration will likely pull under 300W even at full load.

Also, you could overclock that CPU for a little extra juice if you have an aftermarket cooler; those processors can easily push past 3 or 4GHz.
Bottom line: that graphics card is a massive upgrade over what you have now. It’s going to feel like a whole new machine.

crimsonstag84 said:What kind of processor and power supply are you running?

http://www.newegg.com/p/graphics-cards/ati/0901807/

It’s an Intel Core 2 CPU 4400 clocked at 2.00GHz
I think the power supply is around 400W, though I'm not entirely certain, and I suppose I could try to find a way to actually check it if I really needed to be sure.

Your processor is a bit too weak for those games—honestly, upgrading the graphics card isn't going to do much of anything for you here.

Benjamin King2 said:Your CPU is probably just too weak for those kinds of games, so honestly, upgrading the GPU might not actually do you much good at all.

I guess, how much would that end up costing me? And if you happen to know of any decent ones—nothing crazy expensive, just something reliable enough to handle newer titles—maybe you could point me in the right direction.

http://www.ebay.com/itm/processor-listing-example-1

http://www.ebay.com/itm/processor-listing-example-2

It really depends on what you're playing, but if you're looking at Battlefield 4 or the latest CoD, I guess a Q8200 might struggle a bit.

crimsonstag84 said:http://www.ebay.com/itm/processors/listing-example-10055772

http://www.ebay.com/itm/processors/listing-example-10120190

I suppose it really just depends on what kind of games you're into, but if you're looking at stuff like Battlefield 4 or the newer CoD titles, you'll probably want something better than a Q8200, I guess.

Alright, thanks, but look, if you're offering me that processor and it's sitting somewhere in, say, Seattle while I'm all the way out in Miami, I feel like the gas money for the drive would end up costing more than the chip itself, so maybe there's a chance he could just ship it via USPS or something?

Jack Torres4 said:Fine, thanks. But let's say you offer me this processor and it's sitting in Seattle while I'm out in Miami. Shipping would cost more than the chip itself. Can he just send it via a parcel service or something?

Ever heard of the USPS?🙄

Robert Rodriguez2 said:Ever heard of mail order?🙄

Yeah, I mean, I just wasn't entirely sure if you had to cover shipping costs or whatever else they tack on at checkout.