GPU Buying Guide - (Read first post)

Here’s a shot of the power supply...

I can't make head or tail of this sticker, but if you're telling me it hits 20A on the 12V rail, that puts us at about 240W.

Then you look at that chart they have online claiming a 140W max. If it's 12V times 13A, that's 156W. Looks like even they aren't sure what this thing can actually pull.😁

I know we're not supposed to be talking shop about the PSU here, but I'll figure that part out eventually.😁

quietpilot23 said:and here’s a photo of the power supply label...

I can't make heads or tails of this sticker, but if you're saying it shows 20A on the 12V rail, that works out to about 240W.

But looking at the official specs they have online, it says 140W max. How does 12V times 13A equal 140W? That should be 156W—it feels like even they aren't quite sure what this unit can actually deliver. 😁

I know we aren't supposed to be talking about the PSU right now, but we'll figure out the power issue eventually. 😁

Like analogtiger19 mentioned, they basically slapped the same sticker on every single unit in that entire series. 🤣 You'll notice that for the 500W Power Supply model, the +12V rail is listed at 20A. So, just like you said, that's 240W. 🙂 Just keep it as is, don't bother swapping it!

I was wondering if anyone might be able to assist me with a selection. I wouldn't exactly call myself a gamer, though I might occasionally enjoy a light, low-demand title.
My current setup features a quad-core processor running at 2.4GHz.
It is equipped with 4GB of RAM and an Enlight 350W Power Supply.
At the moment, I am using an ATI 4350 with passive cooling.
I am looking to perform a minor upgrade and would appreciate some recommendations. My main priority is finding something exceptionally quiet, and I want to emphasize that I am not looking to invest in any components other than the graphics card itself. Thank you in advance for your help...

At least

To be fair, you can find much better GPUs for roughly the same amount of cash (like that $250 ASUS card over at Best Buy), but your power supply is honestly a joke if you're looking to upgrade. You could potentially grab a GTX 750 for $300 or even a 750 Ti for $105—both would be a massive step up from that Microsoft card—but it really ought to be a priority to swap out that power supply first.

Timothy Kim60 said:At the very least, check out this

Generally speaking, there are much better GPUs available for a similar price point (like an ASUS 250x from Micro Center), but your current power supply isn't really up to the task for something like that. You might consider a GTX 750 for $300 or perhaps a 750 Ti to match a 1050, which would be significantly more powerful than what Microsoft offers, though it would probably be wise to upgrade the power supply again

That is precisely why I mentioned that I wouldn't want to purchase a brand-new power supply, so if anyone has any suggestions, I would truly appreciate the help

That first one from the link draws its power directly from the PCIe slot, and honestly, I don't see the point in spending an extra 100-$67 just to pick up some weak DDR3 card. The performance jump compared to what you're running now will be massive.

Timothy Kim60 said:Then that first one from the link draws its power directly from the PCIe slot, and I honestly don't see the point in spending $100 on that...$67 You seem to be picking up some rather underwhelming DDR3-based graphics cards lately. Moving forward, the leap in performance will be absolutely massive compared to what you currently have...

Something a bit more budget-friendly, yet still reliable... any suggestions?...

Hey there...
I was recently torn between picking up an AMD Radeon series card or just grabbing one of those cheaper R9 models that support DirectX 12. Someone suggested I should just hold out for the NVIDIA GTX 950...
Well, it just hit Newegg for about $160–$170—not sure what that'll end up looking like once it hits the local shops here...
I've been digging through some comparison reviews like this: http://www.eurogamer.net/articles/di...gtx-950-review ...
They’re pitting it against the R7 370 and that beefier GTX 960...

So, basically, it's a toss-up between or this GTX 950 sitting at $160 (again, no clue on the final US retail price)...
Anyone got any advice?

I'd definitely go with the NVIDIA GTX 950. Right now, Uzishop is the only one with anything decent in stock, though one of their options is way overpriced at Best Buy.

Aaron Sanchez4 said:Looking for something more budget-friendly but still reliable on Craigslist...

http://www.craigslist.org/video-cards...listing-16388859
http://www.craigslist.org/video-cards...listing-16158662 (should have plenty of warranty left; Best Buy offers 3 years and this GPU isn't old)
http://www.craigslist.org/video-cards...listing-16241037 (going to try and lowball them)
http://www.craigslist.org/video-cards...listing-16389206 (this listing looks sketchy)

Timothy Kim60 said:http://www.craigslist.org/f/graphics-cards/listing-16388859
http://www.craigslist.org/f/graphics-cards/listing-16158662 (this one should still have plenty of warranty left, since Best Buy offers 3 years and this GPU isn't that old)
http://www.craigslist.org/f/graphics-cards/listing-16241037 (I might try to negotiate the price down)
http://www.craigslist.org/f/graphics-cards/listing-16389206 (this listing looks a bit suspicious)

Well done, now that is what I call a proper response!

So, here’s the situation—I’m rocking a Corsair CX400, an Athlon X2 running at 3 GHz, and 4 gigs of RAM. I’ve decided to hunt around eBay for a used GPU, ideally staying under about $83. My first thoughts were either a 9800 GT or a GTS 250, but I'm stuck. I just want to play stuff like Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3, Crysis, and Project Cars at a 1600x1050 resolution. If anyone knows of a better card than those two, please, hit me up. When I was upgrading my rig a couple of weeks back, some mods on a forum suggested I grab an HD 4830, but honestly, it didn't really do it for me. So, what can I actually get for $83 that won't suck?

You’ve got a few GTX 460 listings for $100, which is probably your best bet. It’s more than twice as powerful as an HD 4830 (and honestly, way better than a GT 9800 or GTS 250 too).

That said, I wouldn't count on running Project Cars smoothly... even high-end rigs from $1333 seem to struggle with it, even on lower settings.

You should be able to run Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3 just fine, though Crysis might be a bit of a stretch.

Forget about the 9800 or a GTS250. Those things are ancient history, and they were probably being revived in kitchen ovens just to stay alive.

Look, I didn't realize the 9800 and GTS 250 were such absolute garbage—so, naturally, I found a GTX 460 for about $100. According to YouTube, this thing can handle basically anything on high or medium settings without breaking a sweat. Now, the real headache is whether my motherboard actually supports it—it’s some Gigabyte GA-ME61-S2L or something like that, I think I blanked on the exact model 😉—so if anyone knows of another solid card for $83 besides the GTX 460, let me know. I'm definitely no hardware expert, and since I'm out of town for the next few weeks, I can't exactly order anything to my house because there's nobody home to grab the package 😉.

Hey everyone, I'm looking for some advice on a decent GPU upgrade—nothing crazy, maybe up to about $133—to fit this setup:
Dell Inspiron Desktop
Intel Core 2 Duo E6550 clocked at 2.33 GHz
4 GB total memory type DDR2 to 401.32 MHz

I’ve been running an NVIDIA GeForce GT 730 in here so far and it was doing alright, nothing special. Any suggestions? Thanks

frozenpanther said:I didn't realize the 9800 and GTS 250 were such low-quality, weak cards... so I ended up finding a GTX 460 for that price instead. $100 I see on YouTube that it can run everything on High or Medium settings without a hitch. Now I'm just sitting here wondering if my motherboard actually supports this card—it's a Gigabyte GA-ME61-S2L, or something like that, I think I blanked on the exact model... 😉 ... so if you could just toss over some other decent graphs for... $83 I'm looking at the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 460, since I don't really know my way around hardware that well. If it sells out on eBay in the next couple of weeks, I might miss my chance... I'm away from home right now, so I can't have anything shipped to the house because there's nobody there to pick it up.😉.

You can pair just about any GPU with a more "modern" motherboard. As long as there's a PCI-E x16 slot, you're good to go—and honestly, every motherboard being sold today has one. You don't really need to stress about compatibility between the board and the card. Plus, that NVIDIA GeForce GTX 460 is going to be a perfect match for your build in terms of price and performance. It’s definitely a solid deal. 🙂 So... This is it.

Nancy Edwards49 said:Hey, looking for some GPU suggestions up to about $133 for this build:
Dell Inspiron Desktop
Intel Core 2 Duo E6550 clocked at 2.33 GHz
4 GB total memory type DDR2 to 401.32 MHz

I was using an ATI Radeon HD 4670 before and it was doing fine. Thanks

Look for something used, maybe a 5750, 5770, 6750, 6770, 6850, 7750, or 7770... You could even grab a 4870 or 4890, provided your power supply isn't absolute junk.

Buying anything new will cost you way more than what you had. Honestly, there's no point in going any stronger than those listed—your rest of the rig wouldn't be able to keep up anyway.

Is the Dell OptiPlex actually enough?

Yes