Budget GPU Upgrade for X3 720 System

[Rattlin Bones]

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CANADIAN. Your Newegg etc. links are welcome and helpful, but I'll be unable to order from them directly. Will likely use NCIX.com or Newegg's Canadian affiliate.
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Use: General gaming, I do it all. I don't overclock and don't care about benchmarks, but I do like running things at high detail.

Budget: Variable, what is the performance/value sweet spot right now? I'd like to consider, say, a $110 upgrade, but if you think a $250 is warranted I'll consider that too. Definitely not going above that, though, and cheaper is better.


Here's what I have right now:

PSU: Antec Earthwatts EA650 (not sure if exact version linked)
CPU: AMD Phenom(tm) II X3 720 Processor
Mainboard: Asus M4A785TD-M EVO
Memory: 8GB DDR3
Video: GeForce 8800 GS
Monitor: Will be upgrading to 24" or larger in the near future. Will possibly add a second, smaller second monitor later but it will not be used for gaming.

Potential issues: Current GPU's length is 9 inches per the link. There are no other cards in my mobo, but there's very little additional clearance horizontally. Looks like I could fit a card that's 11" long max. It's a Cooler Master case from five or six years ago, but I don't know the model. Are there current-gen GPUs that are fairly compact?


Thanks for your advice!


Edit: Okay, think I've found the case: Cooler Master Cavalier 3. I took some measurements, and I've got about 11" from where the back of the current GPU is nested and the back of the hard drive bays. The GPU wouldn't be able to extend into the HD bays because they're of course not that wide.

 

[Rattlin Bones]

Upon research, I'm relieved to find the vast majority of cards in my price range are 8-11" long, so that shouldn't be a concern as long as I check the specs.

Based upon the latest Tom's guide, I'm leaning toward the HD 6850. Any thoughts? I can get this for as little as $120 CAD after rebates depending on brand. It should perform nicely at 1920x1200 in most games when I upgrade my monitor.

Do you have any strong recommendations for brands to stay away from? Powercolor and XFX are often some of the less expensive ones; outside of specific reviews, are there reasons to go with a better brand?

 

[Calwen]

Upon research, I'm relieved to find the vast majority of cards in my price range are 8-11" long, so that shouldn't be a concern as long as I check the specs.

Based upon the latest Tom's guide, I'm leaning toward the HD 6850. Any thoughts? I can get this for as little as $120 CAD after rebates depending on brand. It should perform nicely at 1920x1200 in most games when I upgrade my monitor.

Do you have any strong recommendations for brands to stay away from? Powercolor and XFX are often some of the less expensive ones; outside of specific reviews, are there reasons to go with a better brand?

If you have no intention of overclocking, I think your best bet would be a 6870. The 6850 overclocks like a champ and very easily, but if you don't intend to tinker, the 6870 is probably the best bang for your buck. I would go with either this:

http://ncix.com/products/?sku=58226&vpn=GV-R687OC-1GD&manufacture=Gigabyte&promoid=1311

Which has a pretty nice looking cooler, $30 MIR plus DIRT 3, or...

http://ncix.com/products/?sku=62756&vpn=HD687AZHFC&manufacture=XFX&promoid=1311

Which is cheaper off the bat with a $20 MIR, but no game. It's up to you if you plan on selling the game, or if you want to keep it, etc.

When considering brands, you'll get a different story for each brand depending on who you ask. For instance, some people swear by XFX, other people have experienced horrible customer service. The same goes for most brands. AMD cards don't have a clear winner, like EVGA for nVIDIA (in my opinion, of course).

One more thing! I know you live in Canada, but if there is any way to get this:

http://www.gearxs.com/gearxs/product_info.php?products_id=15897

It's a fantastic deal. I just got one for my GF's computer. It's essentially OEM; you get a card in a box in anti-static wrap and that's it. But you can't beat the deal. The only concern for you would be the length. I'm actually having to modify her mini-ATX case to fit the card, as it's one of those 11 inch cards. Good luck!

 

[Rattlin Bones]

Thanks for your reply! Yeah, I wish that 5870 deal was available to me.

Any thoughts on:

Powercolor Radeon HD 6870 900MHZ 1GB 4.2GHZ GDDR5 2xDVI 2xMini DP HDMI - $154 ($174 before rebate); 9.5" x 4.38" x 1.5"

Versus:

XFX Radeon HD 6870 Dual Fan 900MHZ 1GB 4.2GHZ GDDR5 2xDVI HDMI 2x Mini Display Port - $159 ($179 before rebate); 10.3" x 4.4" x 1.5"


There's also a Gigabyte for $160, but it's a whopping 11.42" x 4.96" x 1.50" so unfortunately out of the question.

I don't really have brand loyalty (or knowledge) between Powercolor and XFX. I like that the Powercolor us about an inch shorter, giving some extra breathing room. Other than that, what do you think?