GPU Buying Guide - (Read first post)

Bryan Evans77 said:🤦 for $180 you have an hd5670 🤦

Honestly, I just wanted it done, so why bother waiting around when you can just head out, grab it, and be finished with it?
Half those stores you mentioned don't even have half their stock ready to go, so you're stuck waiting forever, right? Plus, they don't offer financing, whereas I actually managed to split mine into six monthly payments since I didn't want to drop all my cash at once, though I could have stretched it to twelve if I needed to!🤷

So, here is how my current setup looks at the moment:
Motherboard...... Intel Dragontail peak DP35DP
Processor........ Intel Core 2 duo E8500, 3.16ghz x 2
RAM.............. 2gb RAM DDR II
Graphics Card.... ATI Sapphire HD3870 GDDR4, 512mb
Power Supply..... Antec 500 w

I am looking to perform a bit of an upgrade on this machine because I really want to be able to run some newer games with slightly higher settings than what I am currently managing.
My plan is to add another 2gb of RAM to the mix and swap out the graphics card entirely; I was leaning towards picking up the ATI Sapphire HD 6850 GDDR5, 1gb, 256bit - $467

In your estimation, would that be a better move than going for the $133 more expensive 6870 version? 😁
And also, I find myself wondering if my current power supply will actually be sufficient to handle the change?

Joshua Scott49 said:Look, here is the current situation:
Motherboard...... Intel Dragontail peak DP35DP
Processor........ Intel Core 2 duo E8500, 3.16ghz x 2
RAM.............. 2gb DDR2
Graphics Card.... ATI Sapphire HD3870 GDDR4, 512mb
Power Supply..... Antec 500 w

I want to upgrade this machine so it can actually handle newer games at decent settings.
I plan on adding another 2gb of RAM and swapping out the GPU. I was considering picking up an ATI Sapphire HD 6850 GDDR5, 1gb, 256bit - $467

Is that a better move than the $133 more expensive 6870 version? 😁
And will my power supply hold up?

The 6870 version is the better value.
I believe the power supply will be sufficient.

Like Patrick Garcia4 mentioned, if you have the breathing room in your budget, I’d really suggest stepping up to the 6870 🙂
. The power supply should handle it without breaking a sweat—that Antec unit is solid enough 🙂
. You might want to poke around in the BIOS a bit; I'm not entirely sure if that specific motherboard supports overclocking, but that processor can definitely be pushed quite a bit further than stock 😉
.

Then I think I’ll give the 6870 a shot...

I am aware that it can push quite a bit, but to be perfectly honest, I don't know the first thing about overclocking, and I really have no desire to go around making baseless claims or messing things up just for the sake of it.😁

Where there’s a will, there’s always a way 😁 If you're looking to dive into this, you actually have a really solid processor to work with 🙂
(of course, we aren't pushing you into anything—just pointing out that the option is sitting right there for you 😉)

Check the motherboard model and let me know if there's any overclocking potential 😬 Dragontail, looks like there might be 😁
When you get a chance, look up a guide; it would be a shame to leave that processor running at stock settings 😍

Buy an H50 and you'll hit 4 GHz easily.😬

The H50 is pretty mediocre. You're much better off with the NH-D14 FTW! 😍

Why would you even bother with that H50? It honestly seems to cool worse than any Noctua setup out there, plus it’s pricier and you have to jump through all those installation hoops 😛 😁

I already told him about this like a month ago 😬

In my opinion, this review is slightly inferior to the NH-D14.
The NH-D14 takes up half the motherboard, 😬

edit: installation is straightforward 👍
YouTube is a lifesaver!!

Hey everyone!

It’s been about two weeks since I picked up my Sapphire HD5770 graphics card, and there are a few things I’m trying to wrap my head around:

The jump in performance is night and day—honestly, gaming feels 100% smoother now—but now I’m looking to push my processor further by overclocking it.
Some guy actually told me I could just take the CPU down to a service center and they’d overclock it for me free of charge.
Right now, I'm running an Intel Core i3, model 530 at 2.93GHz. For cooling, I currently have $333. Can anyone recommend a high-quality cooler that would actually allow me to push this chip up to 4GHz?
And if I manage to hit those speeds, what kind of performance boost am I realistically looking at?
I'd appreciate some real answers to these questions.
And please—keep the vulgar comments to yourselves! 🙂

You missed the PDF 🙂
http://forum.com/forumdisplay.php?f=220

http://www.noctua.at/main.php?show=p...s_id=31&lng=en

🙂

You can pick some up from here: http://www.microcenter.com/

😉

I'm looking for a PCI-Express card.
I've got an Intel Pentium 4 630
Package:Socket 775 LGA
Core speed: 3000 MHz
Model:775i915PL-SATA 2 1.00

RAM: I'm at 512MB right now, but I'm planning to grab a 1GB stick as soon as I get the graphics card.

I was thinking about picking something up at Best Buy... not sure if they have anything around the $300 mark.$167

Mainly just need a card for gaming.

Honestly, I’d just stick to the used market. It doesn't really make sense to sink money into something new for a rig this old...

http://www.ebay.com/itm/graphics-card-listing-example

I guess anything more powerful than that would just be wasted on the CPU anyway...

Hey everyone, my graphics card just kicked the bucket, so I'm on the hunt for a replacement.

CPU - Intel Pentium 4 630 3.00 GHZ
RAM - 2.5 GB
Mobo - Abit AA8 duramax (Intel 925X-ICH6R)
PSU - MS 400W ATX P4

Basically, I just need something decent for $100 light tasks—ideally something that can handle older games, maybe Call of Duty 4. I usually stick to 1024x768 since that’s my monitor's resolution, though honestly, it doesn't matter too much because I have a laptop I use for gaming most of the time anyway.

So, I've been looking at the HD4350, $87 then some slightly better options (though I'm not really sure what the actual difference would be?), and the Geforce G210 ($100),
or maybe even a used 8500GT (link)

I'd love to hear your recommendations; feel free to suggest something else entirely. I really don't need anything high-end, especially since I won't be upgrading this whole rig for at least another few years.

One more thing: how much does the fan actually matter? I was factoring that into my decision.
Given what I'm trying to do, does it really make a big difference?

An 8600GTS for $67 should handle everything you mentioned pretty well, I guess. 😉

http://www.ebay.com/itm/graphics-card-listing-example

Yeah, I actually did catch a glimpse of that card in your last post. To be honest, I’m a little hesitant about buying stuff through Craigslist—I always have this nagging fear that I'll end up with a paperweight that doesn't even turn on. Anyway, is there any new info regarding $100?