Is it time for a new video card?

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xerus`

[H]ard|Gawd
Joined
Dec 22, 2005
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I'm looking for the next upgrade step on my PC, and I think the video card is that next step. Currently, my hardware is such: (Also, it's been awhile since I touched any hardware, so I'm probably very rusty.)

Mobo: ASUS P5Q Deluxe
CPU: q6600 at 3.1ghz
RAM: 4gz OCZ Reaper or something
Video: BFG 8800GTS 640mb
PSU: OCZ modstream 500w Actually it might be 520w. I don't remember, hah.

Trying to play Left 4 Dead 2 lately (thanks Steam sales) has shown me that my 8800 just cant seem to keep up anymore. I want to put a 5870 in there to replace the somewhat ancient 8800 GTS, because it seems like now the video card is the slowest piece of the machine, but before making any decisions I wanted to confer with the infinitely knowledgeable hive mind that is the hardforum. Along with that, I have a couple of questions:

Can my PSU plug into a 5870 card?

Will my PSU be able to handle all this? I know that a lot of people bring up the issue with the modstream where it ripples or something like that -- so far I've had 0 problems with mine after running it for a long while.

Will the mobo have any problems with it?

What are the typical 5870's measurements compared to my 8800GTS? I have one of those huge Armor cases right now, and my 8800GTS fits in there without issue, but I don't want to cram an even longer card in there that's going to be rubbing up on my hard drives.

Thanks! ;D
 
imo I would grab Q9650 from ebay you can find them for around $200, and 5850 or 5870 which ever one suits your resolution that you play at.
 
xerus` said:
Can my PSU plug into a 5870 card?
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If your PSU has or can attach the necessary PCI-E power plugs, yes
xerus` said:
Will my PSU be able to handle all this? I know that a lot of people bring up the issue with the modstream where it ripples or something like that -- so far I've had 0 problems with mine after running it for a long while.
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No. If you've had the PSU longer than two years, it's more than likely the OCZ ModXStream 520W. While a decent PSU back in 2004, it's more than likely not capable of providing its full 520W. It's probably barely capable of handling your current system.

So in other words, get a new PSU. Something like this PSU will be enough:
$80 - Antec NEO ECO 620C 620W PSU

xerus` said:
Will the mobo have any problems with it?
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None.
xerus` said:
What are the typical 5870's measurements compared to my 8800GTS? I have one of those huge Armor cases right now, and my 8800GTS fits in there without issue, but I don't want to cram an even longer card in there that's going to be rubbing up on my hard drives.
Click to expand...

8800GTS: 9"
HD 5870: 10.5" to 11.1"

So you might have fitting issues.
 
I'd upgrade the PSU too. The 650 watt Corsair can be had for $90 shipped on the Egg and will be more than enough with superb build quality.

The 5870 is a monster card. Crysis fully maxed at 1920x1200 = 50 fps. Need I say more? ;)
 
NVgamer said:
imo I would grab Q9650 from ebay you can find them for around $200, and 5850 or 5870 which ever one suits your resolution that you play at.
Click to expand...

I think I'll upgrade the cpu at a later date, and maybe hold off for a complete mobo + RAM + CPU overhaul.

And yeah, it looks like the time has come to upgrade my PSU. I guess I didn't realize that its about 6 years old now, haha.. I guess it's been with me for a lot of builds! Right now in my case I have a few inches of clearance between my 8800GTS and my hard drives, so I should be able to get away with a 5870 squeezed in there.
 
I know the 5870 uses only 10w-15w more than an 8800GTX. How much more than a GTS I do not know. Give it a shot with your current PSU and if you have problems look to your PSU first.
 
I ended up pulling the trigger on the XFX 587X (I guess this is Megaman style numbering) and the Antec NEO PSU. The corsair one had a lot of reviews about it blowing up so... yeah. I know its probably a very very rare occurrence, but it seems like more than a couple people had the problem.
 
hossdaddy said:
where did you copy that from? Thats not my post.:confused:
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I didn't want to just quote your post of links since it was right above, but I also wanted to acknowledge that I was speaking to your post, so I just replaced it with awesome, as it was awesome.
 
xerus` said:
I ended up pulling the trigger on the XFX 587X (I guess this is Megaman style numbering) and the Antec NEO PSU. The corsair one had a lot of reviews about it blowing up so... yeah. I know its probably a very very rare occurrence, but it seems like more than a couple people had the problem.
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Shucks, too late. You should have gotten the XFX Radeon HD 5870 + XFX 650W PSU combo both for $434.98 ($10 MIR). This is an awesome combo.
 
Interested to see if you have any issues fitting that monster into the case. I had to remove one of my hard drive bays to do it (this on an Antec full tower, albeit an old model)
 
g-money said:
Interested to see if you have any issues fitting that monster into the case. I had to remove one of my hard drive bays to do it (this on an Antec full tower, albeit an old model)
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The Thermaltake Armor is a huge case and people have installed Radeon 4870X2 videos cards in there. These cards are about similar in length. But, the 5870 is a tad bit longer though.
 
Why not consider a 5850 instead? It uses less power and is more efficient then the 5870. Its PCB is shorter on average then the 5870. It is generally more value in terms of price/performance. It has the same feature set.
 
limitedaccess said:
Why not consider a 5850 instead? It uses less power and is more efficient then the 5870. Its PCB is shorter on average then the 5870. It is generally more value in terms of price/performance. It has the same feature set.
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It's not hypothetical anymore. He already bought a new card and psu.
 
So after 3 days newegg was still processing, so I said fuck it, canceled that order and bought the combo XFX deal.

PS newegg sure is taking a long time to process my orders. I used to click the submit button and the next day my stuff would somehow already be here.
 
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I know how you feel, after I click submit I start tracking on ups site like an expectant father :)
 
xerus` said:
So after 3 days newegg was still processing, so I said fuck it, canceled that order and bought the combo XFX deal.

PS newegg sure is taking a long time to process my orders. I used to click the submit button and the next day my stuff would somehow already be here.
Click to expand...

Let us know how it goes. At 3.1 though I would think you're bottlenecked a bit.
 
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