Video Card Question

[Salviati]

Hello Everyone,

I am updating a pc that a friend of mine built for me in Oct 2010 based on suggestions from this forum. Needless to say it has been an outstanding PC and I am forever grateful. Well interestingly, one of my RAM modules was dead and I am torn on whether to replace or just update it. I decided to just update it. My build is (sorry no links since I am new to the forum):

Microsoft Windows 7 Home Premium 64-bit
AMD Phenom II X4 955 Black Edition + Mushkin Enhanced Blackline 2 x 2GB DDR3 1333 RAM
MSI 880GM-E43 AMD 880G mATX Motherboard
Corsair 650TX 650W PSU
Samsung Spinpoint F3 HD103SJ 1TB 7200 RPM SATA 3.0Gb/s Hard Drive
Cooler Master Elite 335 RC-335-KKN1-GP ATX Case
Cooler Master Hyper 212 Plus HSF for LGA 1366 and LGA 1156

I purchased the Mushkin Enhanced Blackline 2 x 2GB DDR3 1333 RAM with
G.SKILL Ripjaws X Series 8GB (2 x 4GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1600 (PC3 12800) Desktop Memory Model F3-12800CL8D-8GBXM

Where I am stuck is in purchasing a video card. I play mostly emulators with my 5 yr old twins, so it is not like I am a serious gamer but for instance when I used to run the Dolphin Emulator on my build it was pretty slow and choppy. My goal for this machine is for it to last two more years before I build a new one.

Would I benefit from a videocard? If so, what card would you recommend given the age of the machine? I could be wrong but my impression is that I will only get a marginal improvement in performance because of the limitations of the other components.

Thanks

 

[JustReason]

you wont be limited to bad with your system. Anything 970/390 and below would be fine. If trying to stay price conscience then maybe a 960/380X or lower would definitely suffice and not show any real limitations of your CPU.

 

[Sp33dFr33k]

Here are the specs recommended for the emulator

Dolphin Emulator

I assume you're using on-board video so that will definitely impact performance. I'd suggest finding a used card but you should understand the CPU may still limit performance.

Something like an HD 6870/6970 would be a cheap upgrade. On the nVidia side, anything higher than a 570 should be a huge improvement.

 

[Salviati]

you wont be limited to bad with your system. Anything 970/390 and below would be fine. If trying to stay price conscience then maybe a 960/380X or lower would definitely suffice and not show any real limitations of your CPU.

Thanks a ton for your help. Would the GTX 750 suffice? I am on a bit of a budget. Where do you normally go to purchase used cards?

 

[BroHamBone]

Thanks a ton for your help. Would the GTX 750 suffice? I am on a bit of a budget. Where do you normally go to purchase used cards?

You may be able to find a used 750 ti for less than $90 in the FS forums.....if you want, check out EVGA.com B-stock products.(EVGA - Products - B-Stock - GeForce 700 Series Family - GTX 750 Ti) The 750 ti's there are @ max $100 plus shipping/tax. They update 1-2, maybe 3, times a week w/ newly "returned/re-certified" cards, so a 950 may pop up soon if you wanted a newer card than a 750. There is also a marketplace there as well. OCN and anandtech also have marketplaces.

 

[primetime]

for just a tiny bit more then nvidia 950 could be a good choice as well.....probably with in 20 bucks but its much newer. Its really funy if a person has a kinda weak amd cpu there better of buying nvidia card since there less cpu limited...if you own a high end intel then a amd card works great...funny but true

 

[defaultluser]

I can play Dolphin just fine on my GTX 750 Ti. I can't crank up all the MSAA modes, but everything else runs on high settings.

You'll need to be sure your CPU is up to snuff. My Core i3 is a bit faster than your Phenom.