Replacing GTX 285 on budget

[Raichu]

Hi guys,

I was wondering if I could get some help with a little problem that I've got.

My GTX 285 just died on me, my machine is three-ish years old now so I guess it's about that time?

These are my specs:

900 watt psu
Intel Core i7 Processor 920
6 GB [2 GB X3] DDR3-1333
Asus P6T motherboard
23" LG W2353V-PF (1920x1080)

I'm trying to figure out which card would be the most cost effective replacement, I'm hoping for something that will at least not be a downgrade or hopefully be a little bit of a boost if that's possible within my current hardware and monetary limitations. I'd like to stay within the sub-$250 range, I remember my 285 being a bit more than that when I got it unfortunately.

I haven't kept up on graphics card stuff at all over the past few years, any help or advice is greatly appreciated, thanks everyone.

 

[XacTactX]

The 6950 becomes noticeably faster as resolution goes up, at 1920 x 1200 they're almost equal. For you, the 560 is as good a value if not better than the 6950.

The 6950 is recommended because 90%+ can unlock their shader processors and overclock/volt up to 6970 clocks, so you get a 6970 for ~$250. But the 560 overclocks very well, average is ~970MHz and ~1150MHz, so it keeps up at lower resolutions. As resolution goes up the 6950 and 6970s memory bandwidth makes it better.

~$200: http://hardforum.com/showthread.php?t=1593852

~$250: http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0...&pf_rd_t=101&pf_rd_p=470938631&pf_rd_i=507846
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814127555

 

[kalston]

Tried the oven trick with your card btw? If you want to replace it you could sell it after fixing it.

 

[magoo]

New card, best performance for the dollar, I'd have to recommend the AMD HD 6950.

To "unlock" the card, you need to make sure you b uy a "reference" model.

I'd look hard at this card: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produ...7555&cm_re=hd_6950_2gb-_-14-127-555-_-Product
Right now it's got a rebate, is less than $250,and has free shipping.
MSI makes good GPUs, and carry a three year warranty that is tied to the card's serial.
Makes for a nice resale point.

This card can be "unlocked" and you can't go wrong with 2GB of onboard RAM.

 

[AngryPrinny]

I also had the decision which card I should buy to replace my old gtx 285. If I weren't such a nvidia fanboy I probably would have bought an amd 6950 and unlocked it.
For the resolution of 1080p and the price you can get it, it's just the best card to buy.
The same goes for the 560 ti, especially from msi the frozr oc. That's the card I bought and it runs nearly silent, has low temperatures, all games run smooth and with further oc it runs as fast as an stock 570.
My values are 970/1940/2400 and I could probably go even higher

 

[XacTactX]

I also had the decision which card I should buy to replace my old gtx 285. If I weren't such a nvidia fanboy I probably would have bought an amd 6950 and unlocked it.
For the resolution of 1080p and the price you can get it, it's just the best card to buy.
The same goes for the 560 ti, especially from msi the frozr oc. That's the card I bought and it runs nearly silent, has low temperatures, all games run smooth and with further oc it runs as fast as an stock 570.
My values are 970/1940/2400 and I could probably go even higher

ROFL it's uncanny what implications an average makes. I added up the average overclock of all the review sites (in my sig) and got 970/1170 as the average overclock. You're card is right on the money . Enjoy the new card!

 

[TwistedAegis]

Tried the oven trick with your card btw? If you want to replace it you could sell it after fixing it.

Oven trick? I just replaced a GTX280 with a 6970, and am sitting on the 280. It would lock up all the time when going fullscreen on video or games. The weirdest thing about it though is that once I successfully loaded one game, as long as I didn't reboot it would never freeze again. The damndest thing. Replaced with the 6970, no problems, so it was definitely an issue with the card.

 

[defaultluser]

6950 is the best-value you will find in the realm of cards that have the brunt for high settings at 1080p.

Just for reference, your GTX 285 is matched by the GTX 460 1GB. The HD 6950 we are recommending is about %30 faster.

 

[AngryPrinny]

ROFL it's uncanny what implications an average makes. I added up the average overclock of all the review sites (in my sig) and got 970/1170 as the average overclock. You're card is right on the money . Enjoy the new card!

Yeah it's a great card

And THIS is the oven trick to hopefully revive a card.

 

[TwistedAegis]

Yeah it's a great card

And THIS is the oven trick to hopefully revive a card.

WOW thanks for the link. That is f*#@*( an insane way to try and fix something, but I have an 8800 and GTX280 lying around that are unstable enough I don't feel honest selling them, I guess I'll give it a shot. Thanks!