GPU Buying Guide - (Read first post)

I am currently considering picking up a GTX 285.

The primary complication, however, is that my current rig is rather dated; I'm running an AMD 2.3, about a gig of RAM, and I believe the power supply is somewhere around 400W, though I can't say for certain since I am currently at work (I will provide an update later).

In any case, I suppose the real question is whether investing in such a card actually makes sense given my existing hardware configuration.

I had intended to just build an entirely new PC, but I don't plan on pulling the trigger until the spring, mostly due to the current pricing of hard drives and, frankly, my own budget constraints.

My goal would be to play titles like the newer PES, GTA 4, and the Call of Duty Modern Warfare series—specifically MW 1, 2, and 3, or whatever else is available.

swifttinker5 said:I might have a chance to pick up a GTX 285.

The only catch is my rig is pretty ancient—an AMD 2.3 with just a gig of RAM. I think the PSU is around 400W, but I’m at work right now so I can't be certain (will edit later).

Basically, is it even worth grabbing this card given my current setup?

I was planning on building a whole new PC, but probably not until spring because HDD prices are crazy right now, and honestly, money is a bit tight.

I'd mainly be playing the newer PES, GTA 4, and whatever Call of Duty titles are out, like Modern Warfare 1, 2, or 3.

Given everything else in your build, I don't think it's worth it... First off, that RAM is going to bottleneck you hard; it's way too low for modern games. As for the CPU, I'm guessing it's an Athlon X2 4400+ or something similar? It'll likely be too weak to actually tap into what that GPU can do. Plus, if your power supply is just some old junk (like MS, Codegen, aMaze, or LC Power), it probably won't even handle the load from that card.😁

Hey.

I’ve got this old rig I’m looking to beef up with a new GPU. It’s an older machine, and honestly, even back in its prime, the current graphics card was total garbage. Given what I'm working with here, I want to find the absolute best bang-for-your-buck card for gaming—or maybe just a few top-tier options so I can weigh the price against the performance. I have zero interest in bridging cards or messing around with overclocking.

Here are the specs:

CPU: AMD Athlon 64 X2 6000
Motherboard: Gigabyte M59SLI-S4, F3 version, PCI-Express, link Width/Max Support: x16
Memory: DDR 2, 4 GB 400 MHz
PSU: OCZ 700W, works like it's brand new

Current GPU: GeForce 8500 gt prositi

Need some help here.

George Alvarez3 said:Hey there.

I’ve got this old machine I’m looking to beef up with a new graphics card. It’s an aging system—honestly, even back in its heyday, the GPU was pretty bottom-of-the-barrel stuff. Given the current setup, my goal is to find something that actually makes sense—an "optimal" upgrade for gaming—so I can weigh the performance gains against the price tag. I have zero interest in pushing things too far; no bridging, no overclocking, just a clean, stable upgrade.

Here are the specs:

CPU: Intel Core 2 Duo
Motherboard: ASUS motherboard, F3 version, PCI Express, Link Width/Max Support: x16
Memory: DDR2, 4 GB 400 MHz
PSU: OCZ 700W, still running like it's brand new

Current GPU: GeForce 8500 GT

Any help would be appreciated.

http://www.newegg.com/p/product_info.php?id=7947 This one looks alright...

George Harris2 said:this one looks alright...

It probably isn't worth paying extra just to get 1GB of VRAM; it bumps the price up way too much...

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

This one is noticeably more powerful and seems like a good match for that processor 🙂

The bandwidth on the first one sucks. It really needs to be at least 128 to be decent. Honestly, I don't think you even need more than 512MB of memory... or am I wrong?

Anyway, my monitor resolution is 1680 x 1050, just in case that actually matters to anyone.

Your motherboard is running PCIe v1.1, but don't sweat it—newer cards are backward compatible with older PCIe versions. The only real catch is that the transfer rate on PCIe v2.0 is twice as fast. Also, just to be clear, x16 isn't some random number; it refers to the number of data lanes in the PCIe slot—basically the physical length of the connector—which is what drives that higher transfer rate. An x16 setup actually utilizes 32 data lanes working in pairs to allow for full-duplex data transfer in both directions simultaneously.

The bottom line is you need an x16 slot. If you’ve got a long card, you can't exactly jam it into an x8 slot, though you could easily plug an x8 card into an x16 slot without any issues.

Thanks for the heads-up. I already knew about the x16 thing, but I remember back in the day they’d just label stuff "x16" or "2.0 x16," so I just assumed by default that version 2 wouldn't work in a version 1 slot—you know, how it usually goes. Honestly, I was expecting much lower numbers for the GPU itself. From what I can see in the benchmarks, that card crimsonstag84 is running is definitely bottom-of-the-barrel low end, and $233. @.@

Look, this thing is about 4x faster than that old card you were running—though, to be fair, it’s still trailing behind the 6750 by maybe 30% or so:

Honestly, it’s pretty much the cheapest option out there that isn't total garbage.

I’d probably grab that one up top, honestly. Seems pretty solid to me. Might have to roll the dice on it though. =D

If you could share some recommendations along with links to online retailers 🙂

Thanks 🙂

Daniel Brooks31 said:If you guys could just drop some suggestions along with links to US online stores, that would be great.🙂

Thanks, 🙂

I already posted this above—it's right there. $200 😬

Do you need an AGP or a PCI Express card? AGP
What does your current or upcoming setup look like, and what kind of power supply are we talking about? I've got an Intel Celeron, 1.5GB of RAM... do I really need to list everything else?
What resolution are you playing at? I have no clue
How much cash are you looking to drop? $67
Which stores are on your radar? Any store works for me
If there's anything else specific you're looking for, just let me know.

Look, $67your best bet is checking Craigslist or some local classifieds—you won't find these in a retail store, and honestly, the ones they actually stock are bottom-tier junk priced way too high for what they are. What kind of graphics card are you running right now? And seriously... how on earth do you not know your monitor's resolution?

I'm stuck with an Intel Graphics card

I did a little digging on Craigslist (typed in AGP and scrolled through all the pages)☕ and honestly, most of this looks alright to me. I'll probably reach out to some of these folks and see if I can negotiate a better price...

http://www.craigslist.org/listing/graphics-cards-ad-4020037
http://www.craigslist.org/listing/graphics-cards-ad-4014888
http://www.craigslist.org/listing/graphics-cards-ad-3985796
http://www.craigslist.org/listing/graphics-cards-ad-3980330

Listed them from strongest to weakest...

The HD 3850 definitely packs more punch than the HD 4650... 🤷

I thought I saw 4850 mentioned in the ad... my mistake!🙈

Alright folks, here’s the situation: I’m looking for some advice on which graphics card would give me the best bang for my buck—ideally staying within the $500 range up to $200. Right now, I’m stuck using the integrated graphics that came built into my motherboard. I picked this PC up about a year and a half ago, and looking back at the total build, that integrated chip is easily the biggest bottleneck in the entire system. To give you guys enough context to work with, I’ll lay out my current specs first. Based on these, I’d love to hear your honest take—how would you rate my current setup, and just how much of a massive difference would a dedicated GPU make for my overall performance, especially when it comes to gaming and video tasks? Here is what I'm running:

Of course, that specific part—your graphics card—is definitely your biggest bottleneck right now.
I'm guessing you grabbed one of those pre-built bundles for $1000, which usually means you got a whole bunch of extra peripherals you might not even need, right?
As for picking up a GPU in the 500-$200 range, I wouldn't touch it until you can shell out at least $333. If you want my two cents, though, I’d suggest looking at an Nvidia GeForce GT 210—honestly, I've used one myself and it's surprisingly solid; I've been able to run just about everything I've played so far on max settings without any hiccups. Anyway, what motherboard are you running? A buddy of mine picked up a similar setup, but he's stuck with integrated graphics because his board doesn't even have a PCI Express slot... so he'd basically have to swap out the entire motherboard just to plug in a decent card. P.S. Looking at the rest of your hardware, it feels a bit underwhelming to me—most modern games really need at least 4GB of RAM and a quad-core processor to run smoothly these days.