New Video Card Suggestions?

B

Bisectors Fore

Limp Gawd
Joined
Aug 24, 2008
Messages
480
Hi all - I hope everyone had a great Christmas. :D As sort of a holiday gift to myself I've been looking at upgrading the graphics card in my PC, the specs of which are included in my signature. I put it together just about three years ago (many thanks to the [H]ard community for lots of great help), and although it's served me extremely well for that time I've recently been feeling the itch to upgrade. I was thinking a new video card would help maximize my performance in new games like BF3 and Skyrim, and help extend the lifespan of my rig. I'm looking at the 580's from NVIDIA, but given that they still seem to be retailing for around $500 :eek: and I game at only 1680x1050 (don't laugh please) I'm not sure that's the best bang for my buck. Price range isn't set in stone - I'm not afraid to drop down some cash but at the same time saving a little money is always good. I'd like to stick with NVIDIA out of brand loyalty, although it might be possible to convince me otherwise. Any constructive input or opinions would be tremendously appreciated as I continue my search. Thanks! :)
 
MSI N460GTX CYCLONE 1GD5/OC

there are two models ... 768MB and 1GB memory

Both have about the same frames per second performance +/- a few fps
but at higher display resolutions (1920 x 1080 and higher) I'd go with the
1GB (especially if you game with the newer releases)

can be had, slightly used, on eBay for about $130 or $140 shipped

But if a few extra fps (or Ocing) isn't you thing, nor how loud the fan runs,
then any 460 GTX 1GB will work just fine

Make sure your power supply is at least 450W with +12V @ 40A and you'll be ok
 
I'm hoping that the 7970 will cause price drops. I'm looking to upgrade from my 4850X2. It's actually plenty fast, but I'm tired of having a multi GPU config with lousy driver support, and my ancient 8800GT seems to get far lower input lag, even at lower frame rates.
 
My bro runs with a Zotac GTX 560 with the same resolution as you playing World Of Warcraft and Starcraft II maxed settings and averaging 60 FPS. That set him back $140.

P.S. I don't see your sig so I don't know what your PC specs are ...
 
Thanks for the feedback guys - more is welcome. @Runt, oops, must have deleted it and then didn't remember. :eek: Rough specs are as follows:

i7 920 @ (not OC'd)

6GB DDR3

GTX 280 1GB

In terms of price range I should mention that I'm willing to spend a bit more money than some of the solutions that have been mentioned - anything in the $300 range would probably be fine with me. If I could somehow snag a discount on a 580 that would be awesome!
 
I'm wondering of the 580 might be complete overkill for the resolution I'm gaming at right now, not to mention the pricetag. Some of the articles I've been reading show the 570 performing almost as well for considerably less money. Anyone care to share their experience?
 
I came from an HD5770 and upgraded to an HD5870 and increased my average FPS playing Call Of Duty Modern Warfare 3 multiplayer max settings from ~70 to ~90 @ 1920x1080 and 120Hz.

Since you are gaming @ 1680x1050 and 60Hz, an GTX 560 Ti, GTX 560 Ti 448 Core, HD5870, HD6950 should be a solid step-up from your GTX 280.
 
Pick up a GTX 570 or AMD 6950. Both great cards for their prices.

That is if you are looking in the 250-300$ range. It really depends what you are looking to spend.
 
Harderstyle said:
Pick up a GTX 570 or AMD 6950. Both great cards for their prices.

That is if you are looking in the 250-300$ range. It really depends what you are looking to spend.
Click to expand...

+1

At your resolution, the 580 would be overkill. Both the GTX570 and 6950 should more than be able to handle what you need at your resolutions and be able to handle anything if you move up to a 1920x1200 resolution. I doubt you will see much price drops from Nvidia yet, maybe in another month after the new AMD card comes out.
 
Bisectors Fore said:
I was thinking a new video card would help maximize my performance in new games like BF3 and Skyrim, and help extend the lifespan of my rig.

and I game at only 1680x1050 (don't laugh please)
Click to expand...

I can max out Skyrim on a 260 at 1600x1200, running 8x FXAA, and have smooth FPS.

Now BF3 I can't help you on, but I would *not* buy a $500 video card, or even a $200-300 video card, to run Skyrim. It isn't nearly as graphically demanding as you would think (thank 7 year old consoles for that, sigh).

Games like Diablo 3/Dota 2/Guild Wars 2/SWTOR won't be insanely demanding either, because producers want to market their games to the widest market possible.
 
Russ said:
I can max out Skyrim on a 260 at 1600x1200, running 8x FXAA, and have smooth FPS.

Now BF3 I can't help you on, but I would *not* buy a $500 video card, or even a $200-300 video card, to run Skyrim. It isn't nearly as graphically demanding as you would think (thank 7 year old consoles for that, sigh).

Games like Diablo 3/Dota 2/Guild Wars 2/SWTOR won't be insanely demanding either, because producers want to market their games to the widest market possible.
Click to expand...

I can second this. I have a Radeon 4890 1GB. I run Skyrim on Ultra @ 1680x1050. Is it silky smooth? No. Is it playable and gorgeous? Very much so.

Do I still want a 6950 (and am holding off to to see how the new 7000 series cards affect the market)? Yea, but it's not like I'm in a big rush.
 
Pyroja said:
I can second this. I have a Radeon 4890 1GB. I run Skyrim on Ultra @ 1680x1050. Is it silky smooth? No. Is it playable and gorgeous? Very much so.

Do I still want a 6950 (and am holding off to to see how the new 7000 series cards affect the market)? Yea, but it's not like I'm in a big rush.
Click to expand...

I'll third it, at your res: running skyrim at Medium Textures, with all fade set to high, and FXAA...

that's on my card...(heavily OC'ed to 8800ULTRA clocks...but still...)
 
I recommend the GTX 570, I have one for my iTX computer, it's a little gaming beast! I play at 1920x1080, handles it like a boss.
 
Bisectors Fore said:
Thanks for the feedback guys - more is welcome. @Runt, oops, must have deleted it and then didn't remember. :eek: Rough specs are as follows:

i7 920 @ (not OC'd)

6GB DDR3

GTX 280 1GB

In terms of price range I should mention that I'm willing to spend a bit more money than some of the solutions that have been mentioned - anything in the $300 range would probably be fine with me. If I could somehow snag a discount on a 580 that would be awesome!
Click to expand...

6870 or 6970 are good choices...
 
Russ said:
I can max out Skyrim on a 260 at 1600x1200, running 8x FXAA, and have smooth FPS.

Now BF3 I can't help you on, but I would *not* buy a $500 video card, or even a $200-300 video card, to run Skyrim.
Click to expand...

Pyroja said:
I can second this. I have a Radeon 4890 1GB. I run Skyrim on Ultra @ 1680x1050. Is it silky smooth? No. Is it playable and gorgeous? Very much so.
Click to expand...

To clarify, I am already playing Skyrim on my current rig, with similar performance to what you mentioned. Basically maxed out settings except for AA and AS turned off. My framerate is fine most of the time, but there are definitely times when I can feel that my videocard is being taxed. In addition I've been wanting to experiment with some of the Skyrim image quality tweeks that were mentioned at [H], and judging by my current performance I'm pretty sure I won't be able to implement those and stay playable without upgrading.

Many thanks for the continuing advice. At this point I will very likely opt for an NVIDIA card, just because I have had good success with them in the past and [H]ardOCP also mentioned that the ATI cards they tested were having some issues with Skyrim. The 570 is definitely looking like a good option for now unless I end up waiting for the future.
 
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