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GPU Buying Guide - (Read first post)

Started by Sarah Turner98 · · 👁 49 views · 1K replies

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Participants Sarah Turner98Sandra Garcia5Jacob Wilson76James Castillo8Drew Mendoza3crimsonstag84neonmoose15Roger Phillips82Alexander Moore67Casey Long2Paul Wright7James Fisher11Henry Wood92boldcanyon14Patrick Garcia4stormywolf39Sean Rivera4dustyskipper77Amy Vaughn12Frank Adams26Kevin Kim6northerncyclist32Roger Booth86Sam Hayes14 …
Kyle Martin67 Kyle Martin67 Member
28 messages
joined May 2013
#841 ·
Benjamin King2 said:I mean, why would you even need a powerful card just for Photoshop? 😕

Well, it isn't strictly for Photoshop—he'll be using it for gaming too—so I'm really just trying to figure out which one to pick that offers a decent step up from what he's running now. Honestly, I'm mostly asking on behalf of a friend; I have no idea why they're so insistent on it, but they just want something more capable than their current setup, ideally around the $333 mark.
Benjamin King2 Benjamin King2 Active Member
138 messages
joined Apr 2007
#842 ·
Look, if you're trying to squeeze every bit of power out of your budget, it’s basically a toss-up between the Radeon 6850 or the GeForce 550 ti—that's pretty much the ceiling for what you can grab at that price point.
crimsonstag84 crimsonstag84 Regular
518 messages
joined Jun 2010
#843 ·
Kyle Martin67 said:It's not just for Photoshop, it's for gaming too, so I'm trying to figure out which one to pick that actually beats what he's using right now. That's pretty much the whole story—it's for a friend, and I have no idea why they're so picky about it. He just wants something more powerful than his current card, ideally around $333.
rapidheron12 rapidheron12 Newcomer
2 messages
joined Oct 2011
#844 ·
Need some help here. My old graphics card just bit the dust—it was an Nvidia 7300 GS with 256MB. I found an Nvidia 8500GT with 512MB listed on Craigslist. Would this actually work? The motherboard box (ASRock 939N68PV-GLAN) says it "supports Nvidia GeForce 7 series." System specs: 1.5GB of DDR RAM at 400MHz. Thanks in advance!
ruggedcyclist7 ruggedcyclist7 Newcomer
9 messages
joined Feb 2015
#845 ·
All you really need to know is that it uses a PCI Express interface, not AGP...
rapidheron12 rapidheron12 Newcomer
2 messages
joined Oct 2011
#846 ·
I can clearly see from the motherboard that it's PCI. So, there shouldn't be any other issues, right?
gentlemaker82 gentlemaker82 Newcomer
4 messages
joined May 2010
#847 ·
I need some advice regarding my GPU. Right now, I'm running a SAPPHIRE HD 4890 1GB DDR5 PCIE (New Edition)
http://www.sapphiretech.com/presenta...n=&lid=1&leg=0
I also have a 22-inch monitor capped at 1680x1050, which I plan to swap out for a new 24-inch Full HD 1920x1080 setup. Since I'm moving to a larger screen and higher resolution, people are telling me I'll need a new graphics card because my current one won't cut it for titles like Battlefield 3 or Modern Warfare 3 - call of Duty since it lacks DX11 support.
If that's actually the case, I want to know what my current card is worth after about two years of use. Also, what should I pick up to ensure smooth gameplay without stuttering? It doesn't matter if it's ATI or Nvidia, as long as it stays within the $667 range and has an HDMI port, since I use this PC as a media player for my TV.
The rest of my build consists of an I7-920, an Asus P6T SE, 6GB of DDR3, and a 550W Scythe power supply.

Looking for some expert input here...
Kyle Martin67 Kyle Martin67 Member
28 messages
joined May 2013
#848 ·
Sure, thanks—though honestly, comparing an HD 6970 to a GeForce 550 ti is a bit like apples to oranges, isn't it?
The bottom line for me is that I really need to check in with my buddy first—he needs to decide if he’d rather have raw speed or if he wants something a bit slower, but with much better image quality.
stormywolf39 stormywolf39 Member
17 messages
joined Dec 2008
#849 ·
gentlemaker82 said:I need some advice on a GPU upgrade. Right now, I'm running a SAPPHIRE HD 4890 1GB DDR5 PCIE (New Edition)
http://www.sapphiretech.com/presenta...n=&lid=1&leg=0
and a 22-inch monitor capped at 1680x1050. I’m looking to swap that out for a new 24-inch Full HD 1920x1080 setup. Since I'm moving to a larger screen and higher resolution, people are telling me my current card won't cut it—apparently, it'll struggle with titles like Battlefield 3 or Modern Warfare 3 - call of Duty because it lacks DX11 support.
If that's the case, I want to know what my current card is worth after about two years of use, and what I should pick up next to ensure smooth gameplay without stuttering (doesn't matter if it's ATI or Nvidia) for up to $667. It absolutely needs an HDMI output since I use this PC as a media player for my TV.
The rest of the rig is an I7-920, an Asus P6T SE, 6GB of DDR3, and a 550W Scythe power supply.

Looking for some expert help here.

You could probably sell yours for about $233....my suggestion would be either an Nvidia GeForce 550 ti or an ATI 6950 somewhere in the $160-$$567 range. If you're willing to shell out a bit more, look at a gtx 570 or a 6970 for $220+
Amy Vaughn12 Amy Vaughn12 Active Member
121 messages
joined Mar 2009
#850 ·
and you could always grab two Radeon 6850 cards. I guess they'd actually fit pretty nicely into that build.
gentlemaker82 gentlemaker82 Newcomer
4 messages
joined May 2010
#851 ·
stormywolf39 said:You could probably flip yours for about $233....my suggestion would be an nvidia gtx 560ti or an ATI 6950 for somewhere around 1600-$567. If you're willing to shell out a bit more, look at a gtx 570 or a 6970 for 2200+

The gtx 560ti or ATI 6950 sounds reasonable since I'd only be adding $333 and still have some cash left over. Are there any major differences between those two models? Also, which manufacturer should I go with? I noticed there are tons of different versions of the same cards and the prices vary quite a bit
gentlemaker82 gentlemaker82 Newcomer
4 messages
joined May 2010
#852 ·
Ryan Hayes82 said:you could also just grab two Radeon 6850 cards. they'd fit pretty well in that build

Not sure about that. Running two cards might push my power supply past its limit...

Maybe a dumb question, but can I pair two different ATI cards together? That’s really the only way this makes sense for me...
Patrick Garcia4 Patrick Garcia4 Newcomer
4 messages
joined Apr 2011
#853 ·
You can certainly pair cards from the same series, such as a Radeon 6850 and a Radeon 6870.
stormywolf39 stormywolf39 Member
17 messages
joined Dec 2008
#854 ·
gentlemaker82 said:Deciding between a gtx 560ti or an ATI 6950 seems like a solid move since I'd only have to shell out an extra $333 and still have some cash left over. Are there any massive performance gaps between these two, and which manufacturer should I trust? I'm seeing tons of different versions of the same cards with wildly different price tags.

They're pretty close in raw power... NVIDIA pulls more juice from the wall, but you get a card that runs cooler and quieter.
James Fisher11 James Fisher11 Newcomer
9 messages
joined Apr 2011
#855 ·
From what I can gather, the GTX 560 ti actually pulls less power than the HD 6950—about 30W less when it's under load.
Patrick Garcia4 Patrick Garcia4 Newcomer
4 messages
joined Apr 2011
#856 ·
rapidheron12, you have it backwards. The GTX 560 consumes barely any more power than the 6950.
Essentially, the difference is negligible.
James Fisher11 James Fisher11 Newcomer
9 messages
joined Apr 2011
#857 ·
http://www.hwcompare.com/8888/geforc...n-hd-6950-2gb/

Power Draw (Maximum TDP)

GeForce GTX 560 Ti 170 Watts
Radeon HD 6950 2GB 200 Watts
Patrick Garcia4 Patrick Garcia4 Newcomer
4 messages
joined Apr 2011
#858 ·
My apologies, that was my mistake.
I could swear I read somewhere that the gtx 560 actually pulls more power.
gentlemaker82 gentlemaker82 Newcomer
4 messages
joined May 2010
#859 ·
It’s buried somewhere in this test, so you might be better off just grabbing the cheaper one
stormywolf39 stormywolf39 Member
17 messages
joined Dec 2008
#860 ·
The price point is somewhere in the mix too... personally, I’d end up opting for a quieter model 😁 specifically those MSI or Gigabyte versions of the gtx 560ti

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