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Upgrading From 8800GTX

D

djfunz

Limp Gawd
Joined
Apr 2, 2007
Messages
161
Hello all,

It's been a couple years since a major upgrade and I'm researching the different hardware out there right now. I have the trusty old EVGA 8800GTX and it's been great. Looking at the variety of cards out there now, I can't seem to see beast that stands out from the rest in a similar way that the 8800GTX did.

These 2 seem like the starter cards for the series

GTX 260
GTX 275

The GTX 285 seems to be big guy out now, but theres not a huge following for it like there was for the 8800GTX it seems.

Should I opt for one of the more inexpensive cards for now or just get the GTX 285 now to last for another couple years?

Thanks for the input guys. :)
 
I would get the 260 and wait for the new nVidia gen which is supposed to be here for x-mass. When all the talk is right these things will be more than two times faster than the GT200 chips. Well when all the talk is right. Anyway you can still play all the games with a GTX260 unless you have a monster screen so I would wait and this is what I'm doing.
 
As stated before, wait if you can. Comparing your gtx 8800 you should see almost two times the performance from a GTX 285, a little less from a GTX 275 and so on. Even if the new cards come out and you don't want to drop the money on them, it will push the prices for the G200 series further. Hold out, you are almost there.
 
GTX 275 or the ATI4890.

Avoid the GTX 260 - it is underpowered for a 24" monitor. It's fine for people who don't mind lowering the settings a lot, but you will be disappointed if you upgrade from an 8800GTX to this. And no point in paying top dollar for the GTX 285 (unless you get it for a bargain) as the GTX 275 is fairly close.
 
echn111 said:
GTX 275 or the ATI4890.

Avoid the GTX 260 - it is underpowered for a 24" monitor. It's fine for people who don't mind lowering the settings a lot, but you will be disappointed if you upgrade from an 8800GTX to this. And no point in paying top dollar for the GTX 285 (unless you get it for a bargain) as the GTX 275 is fairly close.
Click to expand...

this, unless your looking at SLI the best bang for the buck on the high end are the GTX275 or the 4890. both of these are neck in neck and both render the price point of the GTX285 plain stupid. you can buy an OC 4890 that is a match to the GTX285 for under 2/3 the price. same deal with the GTX275.
 
echn111 said:
GTX 275 or the ATI4890.

Avoid the GTX 260 - it is underpowered for a 24" monitor. It's fine for people who don't mind lowering the settings a lot, but you will be disappointed if you upgrade from an 8800GTX to this. And no point in paying top dollar for the GTX 285 (unless you get it for a bargain) as the GTX 275 is fairly close.
Click to expand...

Agreed. Learn from my situation - I have an 8800 GTX (will never sell it!) and bought a GTX 260 (216) to replace it for a 22 inch monitor. Big waste of money. Its smoother and faster no doubt, but not enough over the 8800 GTX to justify the cost. GTX 275 now or wait for the new releases coming soon from both companies. Your 8800 GTX is capable enough to tide you over.
 
I have an 8800GTX, and I just ordered a GTX 275 (the $210 eVGA) last night. I run at 1680x1050, and will never go larger than the 20.1" monitors I have (I have lost all my peripheral vision so I can't see the edges of a larger monitor).

The GTX 260 isn't enough improvement over the 8800GTX to be worth it, but the GTX 275 is. The GTX 285 costs almost $100 more than the GTX 275 for very little improvement in performance - I would only consider the GTX 285 for 2560x1600 monitors.

In my particular case, I imagine the GTX 275 will be more than adequate for 1680x1050 for as long as I've had the 8800GTX. I also think DX11 will take as long as DX10 did to become useful to the mainstream, so waiting for a DX11 card now seems unnecessary. In fact, I never did use the DX10 part of the 8800GTX - I'm still running WinXP, and will upgrade to Win7 on release.
 
evilsofa said:
I have an 8800GTX, and I just ordered a GTX 275 (the $210 eVGA) last night. I run at 1680x1050, and will never go larger than the 20.1" monitors I have (I have lost all my peripheral vision so I can't see the edges of a larger monitor).

The GTX 260 isn't enough improvement over the 8800GTX to be worth it, but the GTX 275 is. The GTX 285 costs almost $100 more than the GTX 275 for very little improvement in performance - I would only consider the GTX 285 for 2560x1600 monitors.

In my particular case, I imagine the GTX 275 will be more than adequate for 1680x1050 for as long as I've had the 8800GTX. I also think DX11 will take as long as DX10 did to become useful to the mainstream, so waiting for a DX11 card now seems unnecessary. In fact, I never did use the DX10 part of the 8800GTX - I'm still running WinXP, and will upgrade to Win7 on release.
Click to expand...
you better have a very good cpu if you want to get all the gtx275 can do at 1680.
 
cannondale06 said:
you better have a very good cpu if you want to get all the gtx275 can do at 1680.
Click to expand...

I have an E6600 running at 3Ghz so I should be quite all right. The 8800GTX came out just after the Intel Core 2 Duo line came out with such incredible overclocking ability; I suspect most people who got 8800GTXs have Core 2 Duos or Quads running at speeds like that.
 
evilsofa said:
I have an E6600 running at 3Ghz so I should be quite all right. The 8800GTX came out just after the Intel Core 2 Duo line came out with such incredible overclocking ability; I suspect most people who got 8800GTXs have Core 2 Duos or Quads running at speeds like that.
Click to expand...
well at 1680 you are holding the gtx275 back a little bit in some games. your cpu at 3.0 is about 15% slower than mine clock for clock and you are running a 25% faster card than me at a lower res too. you could probably get the identical performance in most games at 1920 as you are getting now at 1680.
 
hey...

I upgraded from an 8800gtx to an evga 260 216 superclocked and I was happy with the upgrade. I have a 22inch screen and play at 1680.....All games increased in frame rates and I noticed smothness all around. In crysis im at 42 fps all maxed and 2x. Plus my card overclocks like an animal which gives me another boost in performace and stays cool.
 
Wow, slamming the 260 series 216 core....:rolleyes::D

I use mine on my 37" at 1920x1080 in CoD4 and WaW, it plays perfectly smooth and plenty fast for online play using 2x AA, which is plenty for me. And it's CHEAP right now.

Regardless, prices are good for upper medium hardware right now...I never wait for something better, because something better is ALWAYS around the corner...get what you want at the price point you want, and fuggedaboutit.
 
TheRapture said:
Wow, slamming the 260 series 216 core....:rolleyes::D

I use mine on my 37" at 1920x1080 in CoD4 and WaW, it plays perfectly smooth and plenty fast for online play using 2x AA, which is plenty for me. And it's CHEAP right now.

Regardless, prices are good for upper medium hardware right now...I never wait for something better, because something better is ALWAYS around the corner...get what you want at the price point you want, and fuggedaboutit.
Click to expand...

this is good advice if new cards (58xx series) weren't within the next month.
 
Thanks everyone for your input.

I think the GTX 275 is going to be what I shoot for then. I think I have an opportunity to sell my 8800GTX so, I'll just pull the trigger in the next month or so if the opportunity presents itself. Otherwise I'll just wait for the next line of cards to come out if this deal doesn't happen in the next month.

I would be purchasing the i7 processor along with the GTX 275 just to add that bit of info in.
 
Thanks for this thread. My videocard, an 8800 GTX, is heading off to card heaven with symptoms of a bad memory chip. I'm not upgrading my machine (see specs in sig) until 2010, but want something that I can game with.

I'd looked at the 260s, but the 275 seems to have the nicer price point, and with a $50 gift certificate to newegg (I love my boss), the 275 would be very affordable.
 
ceolstan said:
Thanks for this thread. My videocard, an 8800 GTX, is heading off to card heaven with symptoms of a bad memory chip. I'm not upgrading my machine (see specs in sig) until 2010, but want something that I can game with.

I'd looked at the 260s, but the 275 seems to have the nicer price point, and with a $50 gift certificate to newegg (I love my boss), the 275 would be very affordable.
Click to expand...
actually the gtx260 has better performance for the price.
 
djfunz said:
Thanks everyone for your input.

I think the GTX 275 is going to be what I shoot for then. I think I have an opportunity to sell my 8800GTX so, I'll just pull the trigger in the next month or so if the opportunity presents itself. Otherwise I'll just wait for the next line of cards to come out if this deal doesn't happen in the next month.

I would be purchasing the i7 processor along with the GTX 275 just to add that bit of info in.
Click to expand...

If you're purchasing a top of the line processor, I'd implore you to wait a month for ATI's new top-of-the-line DX11 cards.

Even the low end card in the 5xxx series will likely be worth the wait. The i7 is a great step towards futureproofing yourself, as best you ever can in the PC universe. Why not do the same with your equally important video card purchase and wait a month?

I'm too impatient to wait for NVDIA's next gen offerings, but I'm certainly waiting another month to build my planned i7 rig. If the GTX275 can deftly handle everything out right now, the 5xxx series, paired with that processor, should keep you in gaming heaven for another year and a half.

The question is...do you need a GTX275 for $200 to $230 right now, or can you hold it in a little while longer and quite possibly buy a card for $300 that offers a gain of 50% to 75%?
 
Don't buy anything if youre still playing games on medium to high settings. I run 1900x1200 with medium to high settings and I haven't run into a single game that was unplayable with even 1 GTS 250. Upgrade when you find something that runs slow.

A GTX275 is almost twice the cost as the GTX 260. That's just silly and you wont see a really noticeable difference were talking 10-15 FPS for $100. I could throw a rock and hit 5 reviews that'll tell you that. You'll get more out of buying superhero costumes for your pets. Speaking of which the best card for the money August edition was just released.

http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/best-graphics-card,2387.html

Really just wait a month and you'll see GTX260's for -$100 prices
Either that or the 4890 for around $130-$150.

Everything else is a waste. 4850 and 4870 deserve a mention but only if you can find the 1GB versions for cheap, and good luck with that.
 
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It's an odd time for video cards right now as the new ATI part is due in a month, but who knows what Nvidia has waiting with the G300? I'm putting together a new build for mid-October and my plan is to look at what ATI has on Sept. 10th. If it doesn't blow me away (or if Nvidia starts "leaking" real G300 specs that are much better) I'm just going to keep my 8800GTX for another few months.
 
Domingo said:
It's an odd time for video cards right now as the new ATI part is due in a month, but who knows what Nvidia has waiting with the G300? I'm putting together a new build for mid-October and my plan is to look at what ATI has on Sept. 10th. If it doesn't blow me away (or if Nvidia starts "leaking" real G300 specs that are much better) I'm just going to keep my 8800GTX for another few months.
Click to expand...

Good idea. nVidia is bound to send some info down the pipelines in the next month or so, in an attempt to steal ATI's thunder and keep people waiting/curious until Q1 2010. Whether the info will be accurate...time will tell. What worries me is the pricing model nVidia will likely employ.

I'm banking on a strong performance from the 5xxx series. I'm not biased against either company, but I can't sit on this 7800GT for much longer.
 
I have to think that Nvidia isn't going to let ATI steal the show completely on Sept. 10th. They might not have a part ready on that date or really even within 3-4 months, but I bet they start leaking real info on the G300 on or around that date...at least if they feel the part is on par or superior. If it sounds appealing, it might be worth waiting for.
It's just bad timing if you're looking to upgrade right this second because both companies have something good due in the near future, but nobody knows how good or how soon.
 
I had a feeling this was a little bit of an odd time for GPU's. Like I said, I haven't really heard any real buzz like I did for the 8800 series a couple years ago. It's actually kind of nice that I can still play any game I throw at my computer at medium/high settings with my 2+ year old hardware.

I suppose I will just hang in there for a little while for the next few weeks and see what happens. I just have someone who is intrested in my rig and if I can unload it, I think I should. I would just be without a computer for a little while which will be tough.
 
djfunz said:
Thanks everyone for your input.

I think the GTX 275 is going to be what I shoot for then. I think I have an opportunity to sell my 8800GTX so, I'll just pull the trigger in the next month or so if the opportunity presents itself. Otherwise I'll just wait for the next line of cards to come out if this deal doesn't happen in the next month.

I would be purchasing the i7 processor along with the GTX 275 just to add that bit of info in.
Click to expand...

Just as a note here, I just went from a q6600 and 8800GT to the i7 with a 275. Huge increase in performance, and really the hardware is so inexpensive these days it's almost a crime not to upgrade.
 
saedrin said:
Just as a note here, I just went from a q6600 and 8800GT to the i7 with a 275. Huge increase in performance, and really the hardware is so inexpensive these days it's almost a crime not to upgrade.
Click to expand...

Did a similar upgrade as well (x3350 to 920) on the CPU and kept the 8800GT. I found that I was getting mediocre performance on Crysis only. All other titles were acceptable on 21" resolutions (1680 x 1050).

All in all, I'm waiting for the next round of radeons. I like being able to plug the HDMI into a HDTV and not having to re-route my sound card audio through my video card. I hope Nvidia can take a hint on that.
 
Wait a week, worst case you're almost guaranteed that the current prices will drop no matter what ATI puts out as long as it's better then the 4890.
 
Problem with plugging HDMI straight into a TV is that you're just going to get straight-up 2-channel sound. It's an all-in-one plug if that's what you want, but there's no benefit to the format.
 
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