GPU Buying Guide - (Read first post)

You could probably grab something like this:

Look, you've got a pretty decent processor—nothing crazy, but it gets the job done—so you can definitely push that card without hitting a massive bottleneck. Honestly, though, IMHO... $67 I wouldn't bother ditching the cooler for that card just yet; it’s already served its purpose and still works fine.

feralharbor36 said:Alright, thanks. But I don't really get it—my power supply is rated at 550W, so why would this 500W one be any better? Anyway, thanks.

It’s better because it actually has decent protections and higher-quality components inside. Plus, it can probably pull a true 500W, whereas yours might only be hitting maybe 300W if you're lucky.

I just saw that the 7950 finally dropped alongside $1333, and honestly—wtf? Isn't that a bit steep... I mean, it's practically double the price of the 6950 version..

Larry Ortiz5 said:Just saw the 7950 dropped and it's priced at $1333, wtf? Isn't that a bit steep... literally double what the 6950 version was.

You’ve also got the AMD Radeon HD 7970 for $1300. It isn't a rip-off if it was sitting at $1533 just a few days ago, but since it's a brand-new release, they're obviously milking it for all they can. That's just how it goes in the tech industry.
The AMD Radeon HD 7950 is available for $1183 too.

Nathan Reyes59 said:You could also grab an AMD Radeon HD 7970 for $1300—honestly, if it was priced around $1533 just a few days ago, it isn't actually that bad. But since it's a newer card, they're definitely trying to squeeze out every bit of profit while they can, which isn't exactly surprising when you're dealing with tech companies, right?
Plus, there's an AMD Radeon HD 7950 available for $1183.

So, which budget retailers are we talking about here? Like Best Buy? Or maybe Protis?

Right now, Portio has the AMD Radeon HD 7970 for http://www.nabava.net/trazilica.php?tp=0&q=hd7970, while Protis is carrying the AMD Radeon HD 7950 at http://www.nabava.net/trazilica.php?tp=0&q=hd7950

You could have easily bookmarked this price search on Amazon by now.

We just need to sit tight until Nvidia drops their new cards... once they do, we’ll see a massive price war across both sides of the market.

I'm trying to figure out which graphics card gives me the most bang for my buck right now. My current HD 4870 is ancient, so I'm definitely ready to upgrade. Any suggestions? Thanks!

Sorry I didn't mention this earlier:
The power supply is a 550W Chieftec

http://www.portio.com/index.php?page=artikl&id=051806704
or maybe
http://www.portio.com/index.php?page=...d=051800037486

Look, I’ve got this card sitting right in front of me—it’s one of those "budget" GPUs that actually punches way above its weight class when you're just trying to get some decent gaming performance out of it.

Actually, just ignore what I said before... Benjamin King2 was basically bragging to me about how this OC version of the 6870 is pushed pretty hard—honestly, it's performing better than the VTX model. 🙂

George Harris2 said:Just ignore that... I think Benjamin King2 is right, this OC version of the 6870 is pretty well overclocked and actually beats out the VTX model. 🙂

Maybe take a closer look at those clock speeds 😬

It definitely has a much better heatsink and it's slightly cheaper too 😉

crimsonstag84 said:Maybe try paying a little more attention to the specs 😬

It actually has a much better cooler—and it’s a bit cheaper, too 😉

It’s been slightly overclocked :P—as for the cooling, just look at the attached photo.

Hey there,

So, my graphics card just decided to kick the bucket out of nowhere. My rig is a few years old now, so I’m looking to pick up a replacement. I don't really want to bother anyone by dragging my setup into a shop, so I figured I'd just buy something myself, pop it in, and see if I can get some guidance from you guys here first.

To give you the rundown, I’m running a 450 W power supply and an Intel Dual Core 2.13 processor. My old card was an Nvidia 7950.
I’m honestly not sure if it’s AGP or PCI-E, though maybe it's possible to tell from this picture.

I'm fully aware that this machine is getting pretty dated considering how lightning-fast technology moves these days, 😁 so what kind of modern graphics card could this configuration actually handle without choking?
I don't do anything heavy on this computer—just basic daily tasks and the occasional game to kill some time. I’d be incredibly grateful for some general recommendations. I usually grab my gear at Best Buy, so I was thinking about checking their stock for something suitable.

If the card looks just like the one in this photo, it's definitely PCI-E.

What are you even playing? Newer titles or what? I'd probably look at something like this:
http://www.newegg.com/p/graphics-card
I guess if you aren't running anything too heavy, you could maybe find a cheaper, quieter passive setup instead.

fadedorca66 said:If the card looks exactly like the one in this photo, then it’s PCI-E.

So, what are you actually playing? Are we talking modern AAA titles or something else? If I were in your shoes, I’d probably be looking at something like this:
http://www.newegg.com/p/graphics-card-example
Now, if you aren't trying to run anything particularly heavy, you could always hunt down a cheaper, quieter option—maybe something with passive cooling if you want to avoid that constant fan drone.

Yeah, it's identical, and I was pretty sure it was PCI-E. Thanks 😁

I'm not really hitting the latest heavy hitters, mostly because my processor isn't exactly a powerhouse, and honestly, I just don't have the luxury of time to sink hours into massive titles right now. I tend to stick to things like Lol, WoW, and other games that don't demand a supercomputer.
I think I'll end up going with a more budget-friendly route; money is a bit tight at the moment, and a cheaper card should still be plenty to handle what I need.
Thanks a million 😁

fadedorca66 said:If the card looks just like the one in the picture, then it’s definitely PCI-E.

What are you playing? Newer titles or something else? I'd probably look at something like this:
http://www.amazon.com/graphics-card-example
If you aren't running anything too demanding, maybe a cheaper, quieter (passive) solution would work too.

A decent GPU for a build, I assume—maybe an Intel C2D E6400? You can actually overclock that pretty nicely; you could probably push it to 2.5GHz on stock voltage and the stock cooler, which should be enough to keep up with the card.😉

crimsonstag84 said:That GPU should be a perfect match for the processor—I’m guessing you’re running an Intel C2D E6400? You can actually push that thing pretty far with some overclocking; if you stay on stock voltage and keep a decent cooler on it, you could probably bump it up to 2.5GHz, which would be just enough to keep pace with that card 😉

Yep, that’s the one. I’ll have to see if I can scrape enough cash together first, but if the stars align, I'm grabbing it—even though my actual understanding of how to overclock a system is basically non-existent...😁
Thanks for all the advice.

If you think that one’s a total rip-off, you could always grab this instead—it's a bit of a step down from the 6670, sure, but it won't break the bank like that other one:

Thanks!
And I’ve got one question for you—what's the actual deal with the difference between passive and active cooling? I see this one is listed as having a passive setup. I mean, I get that active means there's a fan involved, but I’m wondering if there’s a real gap in terms of overall quality or performance between the two approaches.