What would be the best optimal video card upgrade for my aging PC?

A

Armatoste

Limp Gawd
Joined
Sep 4, 2008
Messages
380
Currently I game at 1680 x 1050 with the following:

Asrock AM2 mobo
Athlon 64 X2 6000 3.1GHZ @ 3.4GHZ
8800 GTS 320MB
4GB DDR2 800
OCZ 500W PSU


I was doing ok with that but recently newer games seems to be using more Vram and it really is starting to show with sudden fps drops I'm getting.

I can afford up to $200 (maybe a little more), but I'm looking for opinions on what would make the most sense to match the rest of the PC I have now and try to avoid too much of a bottleneck.

Thanks in advanced!
 
4890 or 5770? I'd probably get one of those two. Or maybe just a 4870 or GTX 260.
 
Actually many modern video cards will be limited by that CPU. I'd recommend no more than the HD4850 512MB. Even then that card is still limited.
 
Cheap 4870 1Gb or GTX 260.

Personally I'd look around [H] For sale / for trade forum section for used cards that people are selling. Having a powerful card is always nice because you can either reuse it in your next rig or keep it around as a backup card when your new card has a SHTF moment.
 
Danny Bui said:
Actually many modern video cards will be limited by that CPU. I'd recommend no more than the HD4850 512MB. Even then that card is still limited.
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I agree especially at 1680x1050. at that res a 4850 or maybe a 5750 would still be a very good card and anything faster would mostly be wasted on on that X2.
 
Thanks for the responses guys.

Yeah, I think having a relatively strong card that I could use in a future upgrade is a good idea. The extra $$$ for
a stronger card than the HD4850 would be worth it I believe. When I upgrade a HD4890/GTX260 or similar in the new rig would make me feel
more at ease than a HD4850.
 
Armatoste said:
Thanks for the responses guys.

Yeah, I think having a relatively strong card that I could use in a future upgrade is a good idea.
Click to expand...
well unless that future is in the next couple months then get something appropriate for your current system. several months from now we will have many more cards to choose from at different price levels so buying a card now for the future is pretty silly. just go with the with the 4850 as that will be a huge upgrade over your current card and a good match to your cpu and res. if you dont mind spending 30 bucks more and you were already interested in Dirt 2 then go with a 5750.
 
Difference between a HD4850 and HD4890/GTX260 is only like 50 bucks, so I don't mind too much.
 
Armatoste said:
You have a point. But, I don't think I would feel too much buyer's remorse from getting a mid range card.
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you have an 8800gts 320mb now so a 4850 would be a nice improvement. also I would feel much more remorse paying extra for a card that by the time I can utilize it will be almost outdated. in other words six months or so from now if you do decide to get a better pc then you are likely to want a DX11 card anyway. it just doesnt make sense to buy a card for the future when you dont even know what that future holds for you.
 
DX11, tessellation, etc, all that doesn't really concern me too much. I've been gaming on the same PC with the same specs for several years now and still use Win XP for gaming. Not really hardcore about having the newest and greatest hardware. Pretty sure a DX10 card won't be obsolete for many years to come.

Anyway, I appreciate your opinion and you make a good point, but I'm not too worried about spending a few extra bucks for something a little better for what I currently have.

If I said I wanted to get an HD5870 just so I could futureproof, then that would be pretty silly.
 
i say a gtx 260 or 4870 should be okay if he can get a good deal. sure his cpu will hold the card back some, but most games are gpu limited anyway, and even with the bottleneck, he will still get a huge jump over his 8800.

http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/build-balanced-platform,2469-8.html

according to this article, a pentium dual core e6300 (which his x2 will be comparable to) holds its own with most games paired with a 260 compared to better processors. most games were showing <= 20% difference going from the e6300 to an i7 at 1680x1050, while gta4 showed a big 60% jump since it is a heavily cpu dependent game. although grid showed a good 50% improvement with a stronger processor as well. aside from gta4, the only game that seemed to cause a bottleneck for a 4850 from a e6300 all the way up to an i7 was grid at a 30% difference. of course at higher resolutions, the cpu bottleneck will be even smaller.
 
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Armatoste said:
Thanks for the responses guys.

Yeah, I think having a relatively strong card that I could use in a future upgrade is a good idea. The extra $$$ for
a stronger card than the HD4850 would be worth it I believe. When I upgrade a HD4890/GTX260 or similar in the new rig would make me feel
more at ease than a HD4850.
Click to expand...

At higher res, HD 4870 1Gb or GTX 260 core 216 are miles ahead in terms of gaming experience.

Benchmarks will never tell you the whole story because the difference inbetween 30 minimum fps and 20 minimum fps is HUGE.

Seriously though, taking a look at Hard FS/FT section is a good idea. I saw XFX 4890s a week back for $165, someone else had GTX 280 for $185. Personally I'd look for a used HD 4890, either new or used its unbeatable in its performance/price ratio since its somewhere inbetween GTX 280 / 285 level of performance and goes for $150-$160 in used or $190 on newegg.
 
well its your money. I would just get a 4850 as even that wont be fully utilized with your cpu. then in 6 months or more if you decide to build a new pc just go with whatever card looks good at that time. in the mean time I see no point in throwing money down the drain but maybe that just me.
 
I have a used Visiontek 4850 512 MB that i would let go of $75 shipped. It does a decent job folding but I could use the cash more atm.
 
cannondale06 said:
well its your money. I would just get a 4850 as even that wont be fully utilized with your cpu. then in 6 months or more if you decide to build a new pc just go with whatever card looks good at that time. in the mean time I see no point in throwing money down the drain but maybe that just me.
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I'm very frugal. Whatever videocard I get now I will still be using for quite a while. No money wasted down the drain.
 
Armatoste said:
I'm very frugal. Whatever videocard I get now I will still be using for quite a while. No money wasted down the drain.
Click to expand...
you seem to be missing the point. buying more video card than you can use now just to be ready for a future build IS a waste of money. unless you have concrete plans to get a new platform in the next couple of months a faster card than a 4850 will be of no benefit. if you build a new pc in six months or so from now there will be faster cards with better features for the same price. really with that cpu and that res a 4850 will be a good match and will easily last you until your next build.
 
cannondale06 said:
you seem to be missing the point. buying more video card than you can use now just to be ready for a future build IS a waste of money. unless you have concrete plans to get a new platform in the next couple of months a faster card than a 4850 will be of no benefit. if you build a new pc in six months or so from now there will be faster cards with better features for the same price. really with that cpu and that res a 4850 will be a good match and will easily last you until your next build.
Click to expand...

I agree. It seems that you have two upgrade strategy here, either you update everything or you update the video card only. One more thing. Whatever card your buy, make sure your power supply has enough juice to power her.
 
I'd just get that 4850 or something like it. Pay like 50-125 and it should hold you over for another year or more at your gaming then upgrade the whole system when it needs to be done.
 
Usually I would recommend the 4850/4870 in this case, however I think you might be better off going nvidia right now for your needs.

If you picked up a gtx260 you could use your 8800 gts for phyx, and then next time you upgrade the gtx260 could be used for phyx.
 
I concur, getting anything about a 4850 is a waste with that cpu. Anything more than that, you're just throwing the money away - you will see zero benefit above a 4850 from a 4870/gtx260

edit: You could also pick up a gts250, but even this will be bottlenecked. I know from first hand experience :(
 
I bought my eVGA GTX 275 from microcenter for $230, and considering you said you could go a little over $200, it's a great buy. It can be as fast as a 285 with a little overclocking.
 
Don't buy a new Vid Card... Save up and rebuild the whole system.
 
I still stand by the 4870. For the money you'll spend, it will be a nice upgrade and won't be "extremely" bottlenecked by the system depending on the game being played. I've seen them around $90 for open box at Newegg, and in the forums are routinely around $90-100 for a used one with the retail box and accessories.
 
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