GPU Buying Guide - (Read first post)

Timothy Kim60 said:So what's the actual deal with these two—they're basically the same model, right? Does it even matter if one has 512MB and the other has 1GB? Also, what does "low profile" actually mean?

And what's the point of all those different brands—like if it's the same 6670 model from ASUS, XFX, or Sapphire? I don't get why the exact same chip and GDDR would cost anywhere from $167 to $260 depending on the manufacturer. WTF?

Also, what do terms like "silent" or "passive" imply?

Low profile usually just means it comes with that little metal bracket so it can fit into those tiny slim cases, like an HTPC setup.
The memory difference isn't a huge deal, but speed matters more. So, I guess picking a 512MB GDDR5 card is probably better than a 1GB DDR3 one.
The difference is... well, maybe they have different cooling setups or different memory, but at the end of the day, it's the same product.
Passive means there's no fan on the card so it's silent, and "silent" should pretty much mean the same thing.

Alex Wood53 said:Hey!

What’s the difference between, say, an Nvidia GeForce GTX 470 from Nvidia versus one from ASUS?

Or like an AMD Radeon HD 6870 PowerColor versus a Sapphire AMD Radeon HD 6870.

The thing is, the Nvidia or PowerColor versions are actually affordable, while the ASUS or Sapphire ones are way more expensive. It's essentially the same card, so do the Sapphire and ASUS models just have better cooling? What else makes them better than the Nvidia or PowerColor options?

Is there a thread somewhere about these manufacturers so I know which ones to stay away from?

Thanks!

There's barely any difference, really; it mostly comes down to the cooling. ASUS is usually pricier because they market themselves as some "premium" brand, but honestly, it's just the same stuff as everything else.

It's probably best to just find a specific review for each card to see what kind of heatsink it uses or how loud it gets.

A buddy of mine is looking to pick up a new graphics card and needs some pointers. He'll be using the rig mostly for photo and video editing. His current setup is running an Abit AW9D-MAX motherboard, an Intel Pentium Dual-Core E8500 at 3.16 GHz, and 4GB of 800 MHz RAM. He's currently eyeing the AMD Radeon HD 6790 1GB DDR5.
Will this specific card play nice with his current build, or maybe there's a better suggestion in the neighborhood of $333?

Nvidia is definitely the way to go when it comes to photo editing—plus, if he wants to squeeze in some gaming on the side, this MSI Radeon HD 6850 is a killer choice.

He isn't looking to play games; this is for work. The real question is whether his current setup will actually play nice with the new GPU—especially since he’s likely running some cheap, off-brand 400W power supply right now. I'd suggest looking into a decent 500W unit that won't break the bank.

Edit: Isn't there a general assumption that Nvidia is the go-to for gaming while AMD is more for multimedia?

Joshua Garcia3 said:He isn't looking for this to play games; he needs it for work. The real question is whether his current setup can handle a new card, especially if he's still running that cheap, generic 400W power supply. I'd suggest picking up a decent 500W unit that won't break the bank.

Edit: Isn't it generally assumed that Nvidia is for gaming and AMD is for multimedia?

Power supply and GPU:

Actually, it's the other way around when it comes to cards. 🙂Nvidia is more focused on multimedia because of those CUDA cores.
1 x OCZ 500W CoreXSTream 2 Power Supply, Active PFC OCZ-CXS500W-US
1 x MSI GTX 550 1GB GDDR5 192bit, N550GTX-Ti-M2D1GD5 1GD5/OC, DVI x2

$437
www.newegg.com
Going with an MSI card specifically for that 3-year warranty.🙂

Power supply and GPU combo $433

Regarding what you suggested, there’s a similar thread involving issues (an OCZ ModXStream-PRO 500W paired with a GTX560) that might be worth looking into.

Does anyone know what the shipping rates are for orders coming from outside the metro area, and how’s the service been so far?

1. Which would be better for gaming: the HD 6670 with 1GB GDDR5 or the Radeon HD 4850 GDDR5?
2. If the 4850 is indeed the superior card—and I know it pulls about 110W—would you actually risk plugging it into an old, generic 400W power supply (specifically a Corsair B400ATX) that's already five and a half years old?
Buying a brand-new power supply just isn't in the budget right now.

The 4850 is better, though I guess it is a bit older...

I wouldn't go that far.

If you're looking at the Radeon HD 4850 GDDR5 version, then it's a noticeable step up. If it’s just the DDR3 model, they're pretty much on par, though maybe an HD 7750 might be a better bet? It is a bit pricier, but it pulls about 50W under full load and should handle more demanding games on medium settings... 🙂

crimsonstag84 said:If it’s the Radeon HD 4850 GDDR5 version, then it’s significantly better; if it’s just DDR3, they're basically mediocre. Maybe consider an HD 7750 instead? Even though it costs a bit more, it only pulls about 50W under full load, and it’ll actually handle demanding games on medium settings... 🙂

I see your point, but it feels overpriced to me—I think a more realistic price would be around $200, maybe slightly higher. And honestly, if someone has that kind of cash lying around, they might as well put it toward a much better card altogether.

On another note, what kind of AMD processor do you think is enough to actually get the most out of a 5670 or 6670?
An Athlon 64 X2 5000+? Something weaker, or something beefier?

Timothy Kim60 said:So, what kind of processor (AMD's) do you think would be enough to actually make use of a 5670/6670?
Maybe an Athlon 64 X2 5000+? Something weaker or stronger?

An Athlon 64 X2 5000+ should be plenty, maybe even a Black Edition? You could probably overclock it slightly to squeeze out a bit more performance. 😉

Z!

About a year ago—and I swear this is just a weird coincidence—I picked up a desktop PC...[Link]).
I managed to pull this specific configuration together:
AMD Phenom II X4 840 3.20 GHz
Nvidia GT 440Check out the official specs for this card over at MSI: http://www.msi.com/product/vga/N440G...=Specification)
8 GB (2x4 GB) of DDR3 running at 1333 MHz.
I’ve been looking into the MSI 870-C45, and honestly, I have some thoughts. It’s one of those components that really makes you stop and think about where modern hardware is heading. Let me know what you guys think.Check out this MSI motherboard: http://www.msi.com/product/mb/870-C45.html)
Corsair 500W

Like I already stated at the beginning of this thread:

I need a computer strictly for college and work. I'll be watching movies too, but that's really not a big deal.
Programming? It means having several text editors open alongside a massive pile of documentation—all visible at once (which is why I need this 2x22" setup) while ensuring nothing freezes up on me due to insufficient RAM.

I had considered the integrated graphics as an option too, but...

I've been trying to get back into gaming lately, but honestly, I'm pretty disappointed with how things are running. I'm thinking about picking up a new graphics card—would that actually make a difference?
I was thinking along these lines (I can't find the link you're talking about. Could you post it again?I’m looking at a budget of around $110, though I might stretch that a bit higher if I don't have to go out and buy a brand-new power supply.

Here’s what I really want to know:
Would a new graphics card actually make a noticeable difference here? I’m currently running games like Need for Speed and Grand Theft Auto IV on medium settings at 1280x800, which honestly feels pretty underwhelming on a 24-inch monitor. From what I can gather, the GTX 560 offers twice the bandwidth of the Nvidia GT 440. Is that enough to justify the jump?
Does anyone actually need a more serious power supply here? Aside from the parts already listed, you've got two drives, three 12cm fans, and an LED potentiometer for them—plus, there's no optical drive in the mix.
How much do you think I could get for my current graphics card? I’m thinking of knocking about 30% off the current retail price for a new one.

It would be pretty ideal if I could hook up a third monitor too. Right now, I’m just running two—a 22" and a 24".

Thanks!
🙂

Yeah, that graphics card is pretty weak... which LC Power series are we talking about? If it's the ProLine, you should be fine, but if it's an Office / Silent model or something similar, I'd probably look into swapping it out. 😉

I think AMD cards usually offer better multi-monitor support at that price point (like the Radeon HD 6850 or 6870), but I'm not entirely certain...

So, I was poking around, wondering what kind of integrated graphics I actually had on this new motherboard of mine... then I head over to Game Debate to run some comparisons against my current setup, only to find out that the integrated chip is supposedly 18% faster!😲 Now, the site claims that, but I’m sitting here wondering if that actually holds up in the real world once you start running stuff. I'm looking at an Asus EN210 512MB paired with Intel GMA X4500 integrated on an Asus P5G41T-M LX3 board 🍿

Jeffrey Peterson said:I was curious about the integrated graphics on my new motherboard... I hopped onto a gaming forum to compare them, and apparently, this one is 18% more powerful!😲 Now, that's what the site claims, but does it actually hold up in real-world use? I'm running an Asus EN210 512MB with Intel GMA X4500 integrated on an Asus P5G41T-M LX3 board.🍿

http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/...ce,2997-7.html
It's not related.

crimsonstag84 said:Yeah, that GPU is pretty weak... which Corsair series are we talking about here? If it's the ProLine, you're fine, but if it's an Office / Silent model or something similar, you really ought to swap it out.😉

AMD cards usually offer better multi-monitor support in that price bracket (like the HD 6850/6870), but I can't say for certain...

I have no idea what series the power supply belongs to. It's a real pain to open up the case, but I think back when I bought it (about a year ago) I paid roughly $30, and it has a 12cm fan. Can I figure it out from that, or do I actually need to crack the thing open?

Would upgrading to a better card actually make gaming significantly smoother? I assume the rest of my specs won't be an issue, right?

I don't even know where to start with this one. It’s just... it's a mess. Honestly, I feel like I'm losing my mind trying to make sense of the sheer chaos of it all. Sometimes you think you've seen everything, you think you've hit rock bottom with the nonsense people pull, and then—bam—something like this happens. It's exhausting. Just completely draining. I need a drink. Or a nap. Probably both. kaže:
I’ve been sitting here staring at this Tom's Hardware review for the latest hardware, and honestly? My head is spinning. It’s one of those deep dives that makes you realize just how much we take for granted until we start looking at the benchmarks. I spent the better part of my afternoon trying to wrap my brain around these numbers, and frankly, I feel like I need a drink. Or a nap. Probably both. There's a lot of technical jargon flying around—typical for these kinds of write-ups—but if you strip away the fluff, the core message is pretty clear. Performance is up, sure, but at what cost? It feels like every single leap forward requires us to dump an entire paycheck into a new rig just to see a marginal improvement in frame rates. It’s exhausting. I find myself nodding along to some of the points made by Jeffrey Peterson, but then I hit a section where the logic seems... well, let's just say "questionable" would be a polite way to put it. He’s got a point about the thermal throttling, but his take on the power draw feels a bit hyperbolic, don't you think? And don't even get me started on the price-to-performance ratio. We’re being sold this dream of seamless, high-fidelity gaming, yet the reality is often just more heat, more noise, and a much emptier wallet. I was talking to crimsonstag84 about this the other day—well, I was mostly venting at him while he tried to explain why my old setup wasn't cutting it anymore—and we reached the same conclusion. It's getting harder to justify these incremental upgrades. It’s all very well and good to talk about teraflops and clock speeds, but for those of us who aren't living in a lab or working at Intel, it starts to feel a bit disconnected from reality. I suppose I'll keep reading, though. Someone has to stay informed, right? Even if it means a headache.

Based on what I'm seeing here, the integrated graphics are nowhere near strong enough. Honestly, looking at all these different sites... it’s all just incredibly sketchy. One page says this, the next one says that... it's completely inconsistent.

I can't say I quite follow that. It sounds like one of those nonsense words people toss around when they aren't paying attention, or maybe just some inside joke I'm too out of the loop to catch. Honestly, if this is some new slang popping up on the forums, I'm going to need a manual and probably a coffee to make sense of it. Anyway, moving on... kaže:
Doesn't matter.

I’m going to try running this through Google Translate... ☕

If we're talking about the GeForce 210, there isn't much of a real difference here... both are basically just meant for HTPC setups, right? They aren't built for any serious gaming.

Joseph Carter9 said:I honestly have no clue which power supply series this is. I'm not exactly thrilled about opening up the case, but if I remember correctly (about 12 months ago), I paid around $30 for it and it has a 12cm fan. Is that enough to figure out what it is, or should I just go ahead and open it up?

Would gaming be significantly smoother with a card like that? I assume the rest of the build shouldn't be an issue, right?

Man, if it was $30, it’s probably most likely the Office series 😬

The processor seems totally fine—it's a bit punchier than my Athlon, so I don't see any issues there (even though I mostly just play rFactor 😁)—and the RAM is more than enough.

Here's a suggestion... maybe try the EVGA 500W 🤣 specifically the ProLine series, which is better than the GP3 line, which is actually considered pretty solid. The HD 6850 is probably three times more powerful than the GT 440, so you really won't have to worry.

crimsonstag84 said:Man, if we're talking $30, then you're most likely looking at a Microsoft Office suite 😬

The processor is perfectly fine; it's actually a bit more powerful than my old Athlon, so I don't run into any issues (even though I mostly just stick to rFactor 😁), and there is more than enough RAM.

Here is my suggestion... go with the 500 W Power Supply 🤣 but specifically the ProLine series, which outperforms the GP3 series—and the GP3 is already considered pretty reliable. As for the graphics, the HD 6850 should be about three times more powerful than a GT 440, so you won't have anything to worry about.

Alright, thanks for the help. 🙂