9600gt upgrades?

[MetalSluggX]

My friend is running an Athlon 64X2@5200, 4gigs ram, 550psu and wants to upgrade his 9600gt card. I was thinking a 4870, but how about the new 5 series or is there somthing else you guys can recommend?

 

[jeremyshaw]

http://www.hardforum.com/showthread.php?t=1463332

no, on a more serious route, what is his PSU? That is gonna be the main deciding factor (besides CPU), alongside what games he plays.

I know you have the wattts listed, but the brand makes a huge difference, too.

 

[MetalSluggX]

I don't know why you linked a 5870 cf but the psu is

Mushkin Enhanced 550200 550W ATX12V
http://www.newegg.com/product/product.aspx?Item=N82E16817812002

 

[jeremyshaw]

I linked as a joke, sorry.
EDIT: read Danny Bui's post before even considering this post.
The:
9800GT
HD4870
GTS250 (der beste die g92... or something like that )
HD 5770

will all do fine.
I don't really know how far can the CPU can be pushed, as some games are very CPU dependant, and some aren't. Some resolutions are very CPU dependant, some are very GPU depedant.

It depends on the games he wants to play. (SupCom = upgrade CPU; Hawx = upgrade GPUish).

But for an all round system, the 5770 or a GTX260 are as far as I'd go before replacing the CPU.

 

[Dangman]

Hmm, I still think you might be looking at a CPU upgrade as well as the X2 5200+ will limit the performance of the system as a whole.

The PSU is of low quality. It only has 28A on the +12V rail, ridiculously low considering that there are 400W PSUs out there with 30A on the +12V rail. None of the GPUs that jeremyshaw listed would be a good idea to use with such a low amperage as well as low quality PSU.

So before you upgrade the GPU or CPU, upgrade the PSU as well. The Antec EA650 is a good choice at $80.

 

[jeremyshaw]

Ooops.

I didn't check the PSU /facetearsoff

 

[needmorecarnitine]

maybe he should just keep it the way it is and upgrade the whole thing in a few months?

He should start looking for a good quality psu on sale now