GPU Buying Guide - (Read first post)

I used to run FIFA 11 on my old Nvidia 8500 gt with high settings, but that card finally gave up the ghost. It was about three years old at the time. Honestly, I don't need anything fancy—just something similar to what I had, maybe a tiny bit better. I can't really justify blowing a ton of cash right now. That 6670 is 81 miles, around $75, which is a bit steep for my current budget 🙂 but I'll see. Thanks for the advice; I'll try to scrape some money together for this 512 MB HD 6670.

copperscout3 said:In my opinion, I had an Nvidia 8500 gt that ran FIFA 11 on high settings just fine, but it’s outdated and gone now. That card was about three years old; honestly, I don't need anything fancy, just something similar or maybe a tiny bit better. I can't really go crazy with my budget right now. The 6670 is 81 miles, which at 72 bucks is a bit steep for me 🙂, but I'll see. Thanks for the advice, though—I'll try to scrape some cash together for this HD 6670 512 MB.

plus 7.5% sales tax

The Nvidia 8500 gt performs about the same as an ATI 6450, so if you're happy with that, go ahead and grab it.
http://www.hwcompare.com/10370/gefor...-6450-oem-1gb/
The 6450 is actually 67% better.

Alexander Moore67 said:The 8500gt is about on par with the ATI 6450, so if you're happy with that, go for it.
http://www.hwcompare.com/10370/gefor...-6450-oem-1gb/
The 6450 is actually 67% better.

What about the HD5450 1 GB? It's around $45, pretty affordable... and looking at YouTube clips, it seems to handle newer games reasonably well?!

copperscout3 said:I found an HD5450 with 1 GB for about $45, which seems like a pretty solid deal. From what I’ve seen on YouTube, does it actually handle newer games reasonably well?

The ATI 6450 is about 20% better than that card.

Alexander Moore67 said:The 6450 performs about 20% better.

Heh, looks like you know your stuff. Tell me, buddy... I've got a 300W power supply, a 3.4 GHz Dual Core, 4 MB cache, and 2 GB of RAM. Will an HD5450 actually hold its own on this rig?

copperscout3 said:Heh, looks like you're a bit lost here. Listen, man, I've got a 300W power supply, a 3.4 GHz Dual Core, 4 MB cache, and 2 GB of RAM. Will this HD5450 card actually work on my rig?

Hey, is anyone sane left in here? The ATI 6450 is better, cheaper, and only pulls 30 watts. If you can find one for $12, grab it right now.

Alexander Moore67 said:The 6450 is about 20% better than that card.

And maybe just a little bit more 😉

Even if everything with a 64-bit bus ends up being a waste of money... I guess you're better off grabbing an Nvidia GT 220 (the 512MB GDDR3 version). It costs barely any more, but it's way stronger since the memory bandwidth is so much higher.

The HD 6450 pulls less power than the 8500 gt... so, you know, draw your own conclusion.

Just go with that one then 😛

crimsonstag84 said:And they're also a bit 😉

Even if all those 64-bit bus options end up being a waste... you'd be better off grabbing an Nvidia GeForce series card like the GT 220 (the 512MB GDDR3 version). It costs just a tiny bit more, but it's way stronger because the memory bandwidth is much higher.

Do this graphics card or the previous ones mentioned require a specific power supply, like 400 or 500W? Mine is only 300W...

Hey, quick question—what’s the consensus on this card? Honestly, the only thing I actually play is WoW, so I'm just wondering if it can even handle that without dying a slow death. (My setup is an Intel Core series CPU, 4GB of DDR3, and my monitor tops out at 1900x1080). Thanks!

rustywalker17 said:Hey, I was wondering what you guys think about this card... since World of Warcraft is basically the only thing I play, I want to know if it can handle it? (The setup is an Intel Core 2 series CPU, 4GB DDR3, and my monitor maxes out at 1920x1080). Thanks.

If it's just for WoW, even a 6450 will do the trick. It's cheaper, and WoW isn't exactly a heavy hitter.

I'm looking to digitize some old VHS tapes onto my computer. I currently have a few different graphics cards lying around that I could potentially use:
Nvidia GeForce series
Nvidia GeForce series
Nvidia GeForce series
I was wondering if any of these happen to have a dedicated video input?
If none of them work, what would you recommend as a budget-friendly TV tuner card? I really just need something cheap to help me transfer about ten tapes over to a disc.
Best,

Hey everyone! I am in desperate need of a new graphics card to play $167! So, here is my current situation: I’m running an HP Compaq series desktop in a small form factor chassis, specifically this one . Since it’s a compact build, space is a bit tight, isn't it? I was thinking about picking up a 5570 1GB DDR3 from Microsoft, but I have a burning question: does anyone know if a 5670 1GB DDR5 would actually fit inside this tiny case? That would be my absolute dream find! PLEASE, I NEED YOUR HELP!!!

The 5670 Ti is about 7 inches long—just grab a trash can and measure it yourself—but honestly, it should fit inside without any issues at all.

Hey, I am seriously stumped here—can someone please tell me, is that thing actually just that long, or what on earth is going on??

I’ve been reading through the threads, but I figured I should just ask directly—every setup and upgrade path is its own unique beast, after all.

Here’s the deal: I’m looking to upgrade my current rig so I can hand it off to my son. His main "work" would involve watching HD movies and cartoons, plus some gaming at resolutions no higher than 720p—mostly because he'll be hooked up to an old Sony plasma that isn't Full HD anyway (right now, I'm stuck running things at 1360x768 on mine).
My current specs are as follows—everything runs fine for me since I don't really game much these days;
The motherboard is an ASUS with a 780G chipset and integrated Nvidia GeForce series graphics.
2GB of DDR2 RAM.
An AMD Athlon series CPU.

The big question is: would it be smarter to grab an HD 3450 card and try to run a Crossfire setup, or should I just pick up a single dedicated card to handle everything on its own?
Naturally, it needs an HDMI output to carry both video and audio to the TV.

Upgrading the RAM is a non-negotiable at this point, but if there's any way to keep the existing CPU, I'd prefer that. Ideally, the build should be able to run Gran Turismo decently enough.
🙂

An HD 3450 for Gran Turismo? No way. 😬

Even if you try some crazy overclocking on that integrated graphics, it probably won't help much... I guess the CPU is decent enough, but the GPU is the real bottleneck here.

You should probably look for something more like this:

Alright, at least I have some kind of direction now—thanks for the reply.

velvetcrane38 said:Man, that sounds super sketchy—is it actually that long or what?

Yeah, that's the length—height is probably sitting around 3.5 or 4 inches.

Man, I just went ahead and measured the length, and oh boy... it’s practically identical to my old 4650! But here's the kicker—my 4650 is only about 3 inches tall, whereas this 5670 is sitting at nearly 4 inches. What am I supposed to do then? I won't even be able to close my PC case! :S Does anyone out there know of a decent Low Profile option that fits the $167 graph? I was originally leaning toward that 5570
model.