Video Card Recommendations?

J

Jurries21

CAG Veteran
Hey CAG's, I was hoping I could get a recommendation for video cards. I currently have the ATI Radeon HD 3450 card that came with my computer. I just bought a couple of games from Steams holiday sale (Mass Effect & Bioshock), and both chug even at the lowest settings. I'm not very knowledgeable about what to look for in a video card, so I'm throwing myself at your mercy.

I'd basically like something that would let me play newer games without problems (max settings/resolution would be nice, but not necessary), along with some occasional Photoshop/3D modeling work. Ideal price range would be $100-$200. Any help/advice you could offer would be greatly appreciated. Thanks!

PC Specs: (If needed)

AMD Phenom-9550 2.2 GHz QuadCore Processor
6 GB Ram DDR2
Win 7 64 bit
 
Nvidia 8800 GT or better.

I have a 8600m GT overclocked and it runs both of those games max settings 1440x900 in the 30 - 40 fps range.

I get 30 FPS in Crysis @ 1440x900 Medium settings on everything.

8800 GT should be able to handle almost all games on the market at decent settings.
 
8600GT to 8800 GT.

Anything higher would be you paying for more and getting less.
 
Yeah, a 300W PSU isn't going to get you anywhere. Your best bet is to take your $200 budget and get both a PSU and GPU. Here's what I'd recommend:

PSU
Antec 550W - http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817371016

GPU
Radeon 4850 - http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814150351

With shipping it comes out to like $202. That PSU will easily power your whole PC with the video card, and is also large enough to handle a possible upgrade further down the line. The video card is also very capable. You're going to be able to run just about any game on the market with pretty nice settings.

I personally don't consider an 8800 to be a worthwhile choice any longer. That particular card was excellent for such a long period of time, but now you can get stuff that is better for right around the same price.
 
Not really a fan of ATI's cards... Nvidia cards always seemed less finicky.

Most games will run great or decent on a Nvidia card but some games refuse to run well on ATI cards.
 
[quote name='Kenrik']Not really a fan of ATI's cards... Nvidia cards always seemed less finicky.

Most games will run great or decent on a Nvidia card but some games refuse to run well on ATI cards.[/QUOTE]

There is only one game as of late that straight up didn't run on an ATI card, and that was Saboteur. That wasn't ATI's fault either, rather the fault of the people that ported it. Regardless, it was fixed.

ATI used to be WAY behind Nvidia in terms of quality and support, but ever since ATI released the 4000 series of cards back in like 2008, they slowly started to take the lead. Their products are priced much more fair than Nvidias, and they have far superior drivers, AKA their crew doing drivers are usually on top of things and will get a hotfix out immediately if there is some random problem.

Not trying to sound like a fanboy, but Nvidia has really been slacking as of late. Rather than get new tech out, they continually just re-release video cards with a new number or letter after them. I used to be firmly behind Nvidia, but they're totally losing their once tight grip on the GPU market.
 
[quote name='Ivanhoe']Shouldnt need a new power supply with this one.

Geforce GT 240
http://www.amazon.com/EVGA-0GeForce...1?ie=UTF8&s=electronics&qid=1262921474&sr=8-1


Heres how it stacks up against other nvidia cards
http://www.nvidia.com/object/graphics_cards_buy_now.html[/QUOTE]

http://www.guru3d.com/article/msi-geforce-gt-240-review-test/1

Read through and you'll see that the GT240 is pretty bad. It's not terrible if you intend on playing older games and watching some HD movies, but if you really want to run current games with relatively high settings while still maintaining a playable frame rate, I'd steer clear, especially if you're using a resolution over 1280x1024. Also, the card requires a 400W PSU. Granted, that is overcompensating, but still.
 
You do realize that just because one is made by MSI and one is made by EVGA, that they're still the same card right? I'll take Guru3D's word as far as wattage used over EVGA's spec chart that they skew in order to sell as many units as possible.
 
I have basically the same specs as the OP from what I can tell, but with a Nvidia 9100 that came with the computer. It is enough to play Arkham Asylum smoothly enough right?
 
[quote name='detectiveconan16']I have basically the same specs as the OP from what I can tell, but with a Nvidia 9100 that came with the computer. It is enough to play Arkham Asylum smoothly enough right?[/QUOTE]

It'll chug even with all the settings turned all the way down and running at like 1024x768. I'd actually be surprised if you are able to play it whatsoever.
 
[quote name='SEH']It'll chug even with all the settings turned all the way down and running at like 1024x768. I'd actually be surprised if you are able to play it whatsoever.[/QUOTE]

This.
 
A 5770 might be a better option than the 4850 if the power supply is the concern. From my understanding the performance is close, but the 5770 uses less power plus it can handle the new lossless audio codecs over HDMI.
 
If you can afford it, may I recommend jumping on this Dell sale. They've currently got a 5850 for $279.99, but if you use the code "1SC0KPSK$BN10J" it'll come out to $251 before shipping. One hell of a deal on a VERY good video card. I actually went ahead and snapped one up at that price (came out to $260 with shipping and taxes). Newegg currently is selling the Visiontek for $317 including shipping.

http://accessories.us.dell.com/sna/...etail.aspx?c=us&l=en&s=dhs&cs=19&sku=A3198515
 
[quote name='Megazell']8600GT to 8800 GT.

Anything higher would be you paying for more and getting less.[/QUOTE]

I would not recommend the 8600GT; my brother had that with tons of performance issues. The 8800GT is awesome... I have two (one for each pc). Otherwise, I'd go with a 9800GT.

Both are pretty cheap these days (sub-$100) and give tons of performance value. Both of mine run at 1920x1080 for all gaming on 42" and 52" LCD screens.
 
[quote name='hordak']I would not recommend the 8600GT; my brother had that with tons of performance issues. The 8800GT is awesome... I have two (one for each pc). Otherwise, I'd go with a 9800GT.

Both are pretty cheap these days (sub-$100) and give tons of performance value. Both of mine run at 1920x1080 for all gaming on 42" and 52" LCD screens.[/QUOTE]

9800GT is just an 8800GT renamed, something nVidia is notorious for doing.
 
[quote name='SEH']9800GT is just an 8800GT renamed, something nVidia is notorious for doing.[/QUOTE]

Ya, but it's tough finding a new 8800GT and there aren't many choices when you do find one. While there are still plenty of different 9800GT's to choose from. Also the 9800GT uses less power than the 8800GT.
 
[quote name='SEH']Yeah, a 300W PSU isn't going to get you anywhere. Your best bet is to take your $200 budget and get both a PSU and GPU. Here's what I'd recommend:

PSU
Antec 550W - http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817371016

GPU
Radeon 4850 - http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814150351

With shipping it comes out to like $202. That PSU will easily power your whole PC with the video card, and is also large enough to handle a possible upgrade further down the line. The video card is also very capable. You're going to be able to run just about any game on the market with pretty nice settings.

I personally don't consider an 8800 to be a worthwhile choice any longer. That particular card was excellent for such a long period of time, but now you can get stuff that is better for right around the same price.[/QUOTE]

I pretty much have the same setup now, upgrading from a 8600GT. The Power Supply upgrade is a must, since there is this thing called "degradation", where the max wattage of your PSU drops a sizable percentage over time (normal wear and tear). Maxing your PSU is not advisable, since that's how I set my second rig on fire once.

If you want to stick with Nvidia, then consider picking up a beefier card like a 9800GT, especially with that AMD processor. Then again, since you have an AMD processor, then consider picking up a 4850 for cheap.
 
Hey everyone, thanks for all of the input. I'll probably be buying something in the next week or two, so keep the ideas coming until then! :)

Animefalcon- My rez is 1680X1050.
 
I reccomend you post this in a computer specific forum.. Asking random people online that dont build these for a living is like asking a random guy on the street to perform surgery on you for cheap.... * no offense I know some of you know what your talking about but others are putting in input that will not help at all*


Here is a psu that should help but make sure your computer has room for it : http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817139005

Along with this video card: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814131162 They both go on sale for 80 dollars often so it would total 160 if you had the patience top wait or 180 dollars on the normal sale.

and remember that powersupply may work as in rare cases a 300watt powersupply can do just aswell as a 400watt or greater if it can handle the current under load at a constant rate. Also if you want to go cheaper this powersupply is nice http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817371007 but is ugly looking. You will not notice much of a performance increase with one of the 240s or less then a 260 with the power supply your using. And please dont go with anything less then a 4670 or 260. waste of money time and frustration.
 
darkeden, do you have any suggestions for forums to post it in? I've thought about that too, but wasn't sure where the best spot to go was...CAG seemed like a good start. :)
 
[quote name='Jurries21']darkeden, do you have any suggestions for forums to post it in? I've thought about that too, but wasn't sure where the best spot to go was...CAG seemed like a good start. :)[/QUOTE]
I bet im breaking a rule doing this but http://www.overclockers.com/forums is one of the best places to get computer help with and you can get replys rather quickly. overclockers is great for computers and cheapassgamers is great for saving money and focus on different things so It should be allowed :)
 
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