GPU Buying Guide - (Read first post)

Roger Mitchell4 said:Is a Fortron Hyper 500W power supply strong enough?

Yeah, it is.

Timothy Kim60 said:Try to hunt down a used GTX 1060 6GB for that price. Then just overclock your CPU.

Could an RX 570 4GB work? A new one costs about $400 here in the States. I can't find a GTX 1060 anywhere. Is there any other way to get similar results without overclocking my CPU? I'm too nervous to mess with those settings.

I’m trying to breathe some life back into an old PC, but I’m missing a graphics card.
The motherboard features PCI-E 16X and PCI-E 1X slots.
It has a 250W power supply and an Intel dual 2,66 ghz processor.

What would be the most powerful GPU that could actually work with this setup?

Will this actually run on a 250W power supply? It says Suggested pas 350 w here.

neontinker5 said:Will it run on a 250W power supply? It says Suggested pas 350 w...

It should be fine—especially that first card. It doesn't even have a dedicated power connector, so it just pulls everything it needs straight from the PCIe slot. You shouldn't have any worries there..

Roger Mitchell4 said:Would an RX 570 4GB be a good move? A new one would cost about $400 here in the States. I can't track down a GTX 1060 anywhere. Also, could I pull off a similar setup without having to overclock my CPU? I'm a bit too nervous to mess with those settings.

An RX 570 works just fine. It's a solid price point and represents the realistic performance ceiling for that CPU in modern titles, especially if you aren't planning on overclocking.

Yo, can anyone throw some recommendations my way for a video editing GPU? I'm looking to spend maybe like 50 to 70 bucks, tops. Obviously, I’m talking about picking up something used on eBay or something, obviously. I don't mind if it's an older card as long as it actually gets the job done without choking out on me.

Kenneth Fowler10 said:Anyone got a recommendation for a video editing card for maybe $50-$75? I'm looking at used stuff. Even older cards are fine as long as they get the job done.

Cards in that price range are basically just for getting a picture on the monitor. If you're lucky, maybe find a GTX 750ti or a GTX 760, something like that...
but it really depends on what software you're running.

Robert Rodriguez2 said:Cards in that bracket are basically just enough to get an image on the screen. Maybe if you stumble upon something like a GTX 750ti or a GTX 760...
but then again, it all depends on what software you're running.

Look, a GTX750Ti or a GTX760 isn't exactly "just" for showing an image. For that price point, they actually do some work.

Same goes for the GTX650(Ti) and stuff like that.

Just watch your power supply. A GTX760, for instance, pulls a bit more juice.

Robert Rodriguez2 said:Honestly, cards in that low-end bracket are basically just there to push a signal to your monitor, though if you can stumble upon something like a GTX 750ti or maybe a GTX 760, you might actually get somewhere...
but then again, it all really boils down to whatever software you're running.

Look, I'm currently rocking a GT 620, so I gotta know—are any of those cards mentioned actually an upgrade over what I've got right now? I'm mostly just grinding away in Premiere Pro CC.

Yeah, it's a massive jump in raw power.

Not sure how much it'll actually help with that specific software, but if it leverages the GPU, then definitely.

wiredotter14 said:Look, a GTX 750 Ti or a GTX 760 aren't just paperweights, they actually hold their own for what you're paying.

The GTX 650(Ti) and stuff like that works too.

Just make sure your power supply can actually handle it, because a GTX 760 pulls way more juice than you might think.

So how much power does this GTX 750 Ti actually pull, and which brand should I go with if I want the best one—like, is MSI, ASUS, or Gigabyte the move here?

wiredotter14 said:Look, a GTX 750 Ti or a GTX 760 aren't just paperweights. For the price, they actually hold their own.

Same goes for the GTX 650(Ti) and stuff like that.

Just watch your power supply. A GTX 760 pulls more juice than you might think.

I was looking at new card prices. Obviously, a GTX 750 Ti or a GTX 760 won't just display a desktop screen.
But in that budget range, they’re definitely worth it. 🥱

Kenneth Fowler10 said:What's the power draw on this GTX 750 Ti? Also, which brand should I go with—MSI, ASUS, Gigabyte, or what?

It pulls 75W.
There isn't even a PCIe power connector; it just draws juice straight from the slot.
As for which brand to pick, honestly, it doesn't matter. These things run cool anyway, so you won't deal with heat issues. 🕺

Thanks for all the input, everyone

Here’s the situation:

The kid's PC had motherboard issues, so I'm upgrading it to a GIGABYTE B450 Aorus elite with a Ryzen 5 (the one without integrated graphics, the 2600, I think), plus 16 GB of DDR4 since his old 32GB of DDR3 won't fit.

Kid wants a bigger monitor—honestly, his old one was ancient and had this weird red line running along the bottom from age, so I figured an AOC would be decent for the price. To me, a new one feels like a solid deal compared to that cheap junk from Best Buy I've been struggling with for years. While at it, I picked up a 500 GB SSD just so everything runs smoothly. Fast and efficient, like a DMV clerk on a good day.

Story over?

Hardly. It's a disaster.

It’s pretty much the same story whether you're in the Midwest or out on the coast; small details change, but the outcome stays the same. In this case, the result is total chaos.

The "advice" (and ironically, not mine, but his) was to spill some soda all over the computer. Gravity did its thing, and the liquid soaked everything underneath.

Everything is dead. Not even a light on the mouse or keyboard, and the monitor is black.

Deduction—let's start with the motherboard. I'll just buy a new one. Now things are even better: a GIGABYTE X470 Aorus Ultra gaming. It arrived this morning, and I already had to argue with these miserable people (sorry if you're reading this) because they were being impossible. It's not my fault; I'm just the messenger. Kids these days are a nightmare. And damn that ULTRA brand, nothing but trouble, I should have known better. Whenever there's an ULTRA sale in Miami, it's just crowds and chaos. No real benefit, not even from this board.

Lights are on for the mouse and keyboard, but the screen is still black. I'm losing hope here.

THE GPU. Probably.

The old one was a classic 7950 with three fans.

Good, fast, reliable, and still "good enough," unfortunately not resistant to soda poison.

So, long intro aside, the question is: what replaces the 7950?

A 6600, 6600 Ti, or 1060? I need a true best buy—something significantly better than the 7950, since I'm forced to replace something I wasn't even planning to touch. Ideally, it needs 2 or maybe 3 fans; I like keeping critical components cool and quiet.

Cash is fine, whatever works, as long as it's reliable (unless it gets drenched in another round of soda—which is unlikely given how far away they'll be kept) and reasonably priced. To put it professionally: what's the best value?

The target budget is $667, max $3,000. Actually, lower is better because the kids will complain regardless, and I'm pulling this from their account anyway—I see no point in wasting money.

I don't need the absolute best of the best; I need the best bang for my buck.

Any advice on where to look or what to buy?

So, what kind of resolution and refresh rate are we looking at on this monitor?

The 1660 Ti is solid, and if you want to step it up, the RX 5700 is a great move. Both are decent choices.

If you're stuck with a 1080p 60Hz monitor, honestly, just stick with the 1660 Ti—or maybe even a standard 1660, though the Ti is usually the better value.

The downside? Most of the cheap RX 5700 cards out there are those annoying reference models with blower coolers.

Before buying anything, I’d try borrowing a GPU from a friend first. Even an ancient card would work just to rule out whether the graphics card is actually the culprit.

Or just throw that old card into a different PC to see if it actually runs.

Peter Green said:What resolution and refresh rate are you running on that monitor?

It's an AOC 27 G2U Refresh 144 Hz.

144Hz.

Works fine for me.

(image)[/IMG]

Here’s the dead gaming rig, freshly operated on after pulling out the useless GPU.

photo upload site

As for me...



😁