GPU Buying Guide - (Read first post)

I've got this Samsung S22A 350H monitor sitting on my desk, and after digging through some old threads online, I'm starting to get worried... people seem to be saying that plugging an HDMI cable from this monitor straight into the GPU is a recipe for disaster because you can't actually pull a full-screen image, so now I'm thinking about switching over to DVI instead

It honestly makes zero sense to me—I mean, DVI and HDMI are basically identical when you’re just talking about video quality.
Maybe you could just grab an HDMI cable from a buddy or something and run a quick test?

I’ve already got an HDMI cable sitting here at home and tried running it through my Radeon HD 5670, but I just couldn't get the picture to hit full screen no matter what... I'm planning on picking up a Radeon HD 7770 tomorrow, so I'm wondering if anyone has any advice on what I should actually do to fix this...

I'm thinking about picking up a new graphics card, and while I've already picked up a few recommendations on what to go for, I happened to stumble upon the MSI 7770 Power edition... I was wondering if this card is actually powerful enough for some casual gaming on my 32" Full HD TV? Just for context, I usually stick to a 22" LCD monitor at 1024x768 resolution, so it'll be a bit of a jump. Also, do you think I can breathe easy knowing this card will hold its own for at least a year or two when it comes to upcoming titles?

stormytiger57 said:I'm planning on picking up a new GPU and I've already received some advice on which one to get—but then I stumbled upon the MSI 7770 Power Edition. I was wondering if this card is actually powerful enough for occasional gaming on a 32" LCD TV with Full HD resolution? (Right now I'm just using a 22" LCD monitor at 1024x768). Also, will I be set for the next year or two when it comes to newer games?

In my opinion, that card is an absolute best buy for its price range—honestly, there isn't anything better in that specific bracket. It’s got modern tech and low power consumption; everything about it is solid. However, I wouldn't call it a powerhouse for high-end titles like Call of Duty: Battlefield 3 or Batman Arkham City... you really need a beefier card if you want a decent frame rate, especially if you're aiming to play at Full HD (1920x1080). If I were in your shoes, I might save up a few extra hundred bucks just to be safe. Of course, maybe some people will disagree with me, so definitely listen to their input too. By the way, what does the rest of your rig look like?

Jeremy Moore75 said:I’ve already tried an HDMI cable at home with my Radeon HD 5670, but I just couldn't get a full-screen picture—total failure there. I'm picking up a Radeon HD 7770 tomorrow, so I'm wondering what the move is here.

Look, just test that same cable on the new card first—it's basic troubleshooting. If the issue turns out to be the HDMI port itself, then you're probably looking at grabbing a VGA adapter for your monitor.

Benjamin King2 said:Just try a different cable on the new card first, because if the HDMI port itself is the issue, you might just end up needing some kind of adapter to get that VGA port on the monitor working...

The monitor has a VGA input, but the graphics card doesn't have one; it's strictly DVI and HDMI...

If your HDMI cable decides to quit on you, you've basically got four ways to fix the mess:

DVI (GPU) to VGA (Monitor)
DVI (GPU) to HDMI (Monitor)
miniDP (GPU) to HDMI (Monitor)
miniDP (GPU) to VGA (Monitor)

Larry Ortiz5 said:In my opinion, that graphics card is a total steal for its price point because you really won't find anything better in that specific bracket, especially with the newer tech and how little power it draws—it’s pretty much perfect. That said, I don't think it's quite up to the task for heavy-hitting titles like Call of Duty: Battlefield 3 or Batman Arkham City, where you'd probably want a more beefy card to maintain a decent frame rate, particularly if you're aiming for a full 1080p resolution. If I were in your shoes, I might consider saving up a few extra hundred dollars to step it up. Of course, some people might see it differently, so it's worth listening to their take too. What does the rest of your build look like?

The rest of my setup consists of an AMD Phenom II x4 955 BE, 6 GB of DDR3 RAM, and an LC Power Green 460 power supply.
A few people have actually suggested that I should just go for the 6850 instead...

stormytiger57 said:The rest of my build is an AMD Phenom II x4 955 BE, 6 GB of DDR3 RAM, and an LC Power Green 460 power supply.
Some people suggested I should go with a 6850...

You should probably head over to these sites and run some comparisons—like seeing if the 6850 or the 7770 is the better pick, which one pulls less power, or which one runs quieter. But let's be honest, you're probably mostly interested in which one hits harder in games, right? Here are two links so you can dig in and make up your own mind.
http://www.hwcompare.com/ http://www.anandtech.com/bench/CPU/2

My 670 Windforce finally arrived... though I have to say, running Call of Duty: Battlefield 3 at 1080p on ultra settings doesn't even make me hear it... it's incredibly quiet. Honestly, the stock cooler on my i5 2500k is louder than the GPU itself 😁😁😁

So, a few days ago I picked up a card with 512MB of VRAM..
This GainForce 8500 GT I got wouldn't even work, so I'm wondering about my setup here:

AMD Sempron 3200+ 1.8 GHz
2GB RAM
Motherboard: Foxconn
Model🙂8M890-8237A

Since that one failed, does anyone know which GPU would actually be compatible? I just need something with at least 512MB of memory... any suggestions would be appreciated, I guess.

Thanks!

So, regarding this motherboard, have you actually managed to get it running on integrated graphics up to this point?

Joshua Garcia3 said:So, about this motherboard—did it actually work on integrated graphics before?

The integrated graphics worked fine, but if I plug this in, I just get a black screen. Once I disable the integrated one... it seems like this isn't even the right
it says on the SIW:

socket AM2(940)

I guess the slots are the same, but this serial number doesn't match the one in the picture.

Have you tried plugging that graphics card into another rig yet, maybe at a buddy's place or a neighbor's?

Under the K8M890 AM2 label, there are only four motherboard models available.

Joshua Garcia3 said:Maybe try testing that card in a different PC, like at a buddy's place or a neighbor's.

I guess there are only about four motherboards out there that actually use the K8M890 AM2 chipset.

The card works fine in my friend's computer though..

Maybe try pulling the CMOS battery out of the motherboard, give it a little spray with some cleaner, pop it back in, and then see if the graphics card behaves.

Joshua Garcia3 said:Maybe try pulling the CMOS battery on the motherboard, let it sit for a bit, pop it back in, and then see if the GPU works.

I did that, if you mean the BIOS battery... I checked Device Manager, uninstalled the drivers, nothing worked. It just boots straight into Windows, but there's zero image on the monitor. Just a black screen.

Someone is selling a Point of View GTX 560 OC with 1GB of VRAM. I was wondering if this specific model actually holds its own against a Radeon HD 6850, and more importantly, if the card itself is still a decent buy?
I have to admit, I've never really messed around with a Point of View graphics card before...

It’s fine, and actually a bit more powerful.