advice on a new graphics card

[path]

Hi
my graphics card (7900gs) seems to have run into an overheating issue. Right now if I play a game for 5 minutes or so the video dies. I have to wait for a few minutes and restart the system to get the video card working again. I'd like some advice on the right card. I was looking at the budget guides in another section of the forum, but since Im a little out of date, I'd like to just sketch out what I have.

Im using an Asus p5be motherboard (one pcie 16 slot) and a core duo E6300 cpu. About 2 gigs of ddr2 ram all purchased about 3 years ago. (I realise some of this may not be relevant, but better safe than sorry ;-)). My psu is a 630W corsair. I use 2 monitors, one of which is 22inch widescreen lcd.

Id like to buy a new graphics card. Gaming is something that does matter to me, but whatever I buy I'd like this card to last about 3-4 years. So I dont want something that isnt going to handle games 3 years from now. Also I would rather not be locked into some technology which will prevent me from upgrading. So for example if I replace my motherboard and cpu next year and pci-e is going to be outdated, then Id have to think hard about that (from what I hear pcie2 is whats going to become popular. But the good thing I heard is that there are cards that are compatible with pci1 and 2)

I see a lot of the guides here are placed around the budget, so Im not averse to spending 15kish on a card, but Id rather buy a card priced at the knee point. If there are 2 cards that serve my purpose and one card is much more expensive than the other for marginal improvement in performance, Id rather stay with the low end =p. To summarise Im looking for a card that
i) works on my current setup (or do let me know if a cheap upgrade will allow me to use the suggested card)
ii) lets me game (and enjoy current games without lag. nice graphics etc etc,)
iii) that will let me play games even 3 years from now
iv) that will allow me to upgrade my other components a year or two from now.

 

[Corporate Thug]

wait, is your budget ~$150? If so, this will likely be your best bet: http://www.newegg.com/Product/...x?Item=N82E16814161268

However, I'm not sure if there is any card in that price range that will allow you to game 3 years from now...

 

[path]

whoops I had it in rupees. So that would be about 300$ish.

 

[happy medium]

First you need a faster cpu unless you overclock your current one to at least 3.2. To have good performance for a year or two, you should invest in a q6600 and overclock it as high as you can. I chose a q6600 because your board supports 1066 bus speeds.

To enjoy games for 3 or 4 years invest in a 4890 1gb now and when you upgrade your other components (in a year or two) buy a motherboard with 3 or 4 pci-e 2.0 slots and crossfire x more 4890's.

You need 2 gb's more ram also.

Best I can do with your current motherbord.:frown:

 

[brblx]

nothing's going to hold out for 3 years on that machine, even if you buy bleeding edge. it's often better to just buy the best bang for the buck and upgrade more often. i would invest in a more current video card and get more memory. you can buy a lot for your money right now in both areas. within three years, you're probably going to have to ugrade your processor and upgrade your video card once more.

a $100 video card two years from now is going to be as good as or better than a $200 video card is today. ditch your three year goal unless you want to build a brand new machine.

 

[path]

looking at the responses, I realise I probably havent been very clear. My goal isnt to buy a card thats cutting edge now and will continue to be cutting edge 3 years from now. I just want a card that will allow me to crank up the settings now, but 3 years from now will continue to play most games even if its at the lowest settings. Im fine with it just sneaking in under the minimal requirements 3 years from now. Does this make more sense or does it still sound unrealistic? Does it make more sense to look at a 150$ card now and replace it one and a half years from now instead of a 300$ card now?

 

[happy medium]

upgrade

hd4890 1gb video card

2gb more ram

modern quadcore cpu.


in that order

 

[path]

so if I read you right, upgrading to the hd4890 right now will not give me a huge improvement in games until I upgrade the other components too? I guess that takes me back to the option of spending 100 or 150 on a card now and upgrading everything at one go in 2010 including the video card? What do you think is a better bet? (Im guessing the latter)

 

[brblx]

well, we know you need a video card. here are some good options-

4890 1gb, $250ish. a little overkill but will probably last awhile, maybe through a proc upgrade.
http://www.newegg.com/Product/...x?Item=N82E16814161276

4870 1gb, usually high 100's. still a beefy card.
http://www.newegg.com/Product/...x?Item=N82E16814102801

4850 512, usually low 100's. would be a good value upgrade but might struggle in a year or two.
http://www.newegg.com/Product/...x?Item=N82E16814102824

and i'm not really even an ati fan. they just seem to have the most competitive prices at the moment, although there are are similar nvidia offerings out to match the above.

i wouldn't bother with the super high end like a gtx285 or 4870x2, the rest of your system will probably be a noticeable bottleneck and those cards are quite pricey.

 

[path]

Thanks for the advice guys.
a couple of questions.
i) it looks like nvidia is nowhere in the rankings in these budget ranges?
ii) Whats a 4870X2 ? Is that just 2 4870s?

Also looking at the 4890 for example. It says PCI Express 2.0 x16. Would that work on my board?

 

[apoppin]

Originally posted by: path
Thanks for the advice guys.
a couple of questions.
i) it looks like nvidia is nowhere in the rankings in these budget ranges?
ii) Whats a 4870X2 ? Is that just 2 4870s?

Also looking at the 4890 for example. It says PCI Express 2.0 x16. Would that work on my board?

sure

there is GTX260+ to match HD4870 or GTX275 to match HD4890
- there are deals in both vendor's lines
- there isn't a great deal more performance in the newer slightly "improved" cards that overclocking the older ones probably won't cure - 4870 and 260+ are great bang for buck

4870x2 is basically 2 4870s performance for a non CF MB
- nice card for $400

 

[cusideabelincoln]

My vote goes to getting a $100 card now and upgrading everything sometime next year. $100 will get the HD4770 or HD4830 that are going to be at least twice as fast as the 7900GS. And hypothetically speaking, I'd assume a card that's as powerful (or more powerful) as the HD4890 is right now will be about $150 next year. Since the HD4890 costs about $250 right now, over the course of this year and next year you would still spend the same amount on the video card but hopefully you'll do other upgrades to increase your performance.

 

[path]

Im confused by the numbering. Given that people have been talking about 4850, 4870, 4890 is 4770 a typo, an old card, or has the numbering system just befuddled me?
Given everything Im seeing it looks like buying a 100 or 150$ card does make more sense. Similarly with the 4830 vs the 4850 or 70. it sounds like 4870 should be significantly better than the 4830.

 

[brblx]

ati first released the 4850 and 4870. imo the best deals are on those cards right now.

newer cards have come out since then and have had stupid numbering. 4650 and 4670 are newer entry level cards, slower than the older 3850 and 3870. the new 4770 is slightly faster than a 4830 but slower than a 4850.

so, basically, to sum it up (sigh)-

4650 < 4670 < 3850 < 3870 < 4830 < 4770 < 4850 < 4870 < 4890 < 4870x2

nvidia is a little more obvious, with the exception of their budget cards which seem even more confusing.

 

[path]

ah I see, ok so in the 100-150$ range I have the 4770, 4850 and 4870 I should be looking at. And equivalently I should be looking at the gtx250+, gtx260+ and gtx270. Most of the advice Ive been getting has been touting ati and not nvidia, which suggests to me that atleast at the moment ATi seems to be the better bang for the buck. So I guess I need to be looking at those 3 models and trying to come to a decision.

I suppose the other part is from these models I still get to choose the amount and kind of video ram on it and potentially who has packaged the card (sapphire) being one company that I can see.

 

[Sylvanas]

More ram is going to benefit you in higher resolutions and when you add alot of AA. So, of the 4770, 4850, 4870 higher the ram the better. If you cannot find a 1GB card of those listed a single (512mb) 4850/70 will be fine. All those listed should be fine playing games in 3yrs time at lower settings as people are still chugging along with an X1900 today.

 

[apoppin]

Originally posted by: path
ah I see, ok so in the 100-150$ range I have the 4770, 4850 and 4870 I should be looking at. And equivalently I should be looking at the gtx250+, gtx260+ and gtx270. Most of the advice Ive been getting has been touting ati and not nvidia, which suggests to me that atleast at the moment ATi seems to be the better bang for the buck. So I guess I need to be looking at those 3 models and trying to come to a decision.

I suppose the other part is from these models I still get to choose the amount and kind of video ram on it and potentially who has packaged the card (sapphire) being one company that I can see.

no

Nvidia offers just as good a value as AMD - look for sales
you should be looking at gtx260+ as a direct competitor to HD4870

HD4890 is the new faster "4870" - 15% faster - or more if it is oc'd
- it would be equivalent to GTX275 - about 15% faster than GTX260+


there are a LOT more ATi fans on this board than Nvidia fans .. that is all

 

[Rick James]

HD 4770

 

[AstroManLuca]

Originally posted by: apoppin
there are a LOT more ATi fans on this board than Nvidia fans .. that is all

At the moment, ATI simply offers much better value than nVidia, so it's no wonder there are more ATI "fans." The value equation always swings this way and that. There were plenty of times when nVidia had better values. This is not one of them.

But yeah. At the moment, the 4850 is both faster and cheaper than its closest NV competitor, the GTS 250. The 4870 is faster than the GTX 260 though not any cheaper. And nVidia has nothing quite like the 4830 or 4770 at those price points.

I'm not an ATI fanboy, never have been. I've owned both at various points. A few years back I remember getting a GeForce 6800 when it was $270 (as opposed to the inferior Radeon 9800XT for $300+!). At that time, ATI was way behind.

 

[apoppin]

At the moment, ATI simply offers much better value than nVidia

my point exactly

that is THIS board's PoV
--it is not seen this way at other boards

Get out and get some fresh air occasionally

 

[Kraeoss]

Originally posted by: apoppin

At the moment, ATI simply offers much better value than nVidia

my point exactly

that is THIS board's PoV
--it is not seen this way at other boards

Get out and get some fresh air occasionally

like where man... most places are like ATI is best bFb now...

 

[TC91]

I have to agree with apoppin. There is a large majority here that are ATI fanboys or just seem to have pure hatred for NVIDIA for no logical reasons. It seems like if you criticize ATI or their cards, then all of a sudden there are a few posters right on your tail looking for a fight.

 

[ironforge]

I have had both ATI and nVidia cards. I just go with whatever has the best bang for the buck at the time.

I started out with the TNT 16mb agp card and then the orignal geforce. Right now I am on an 1800XT and will upgrade to a 4890.

 

[apoppin]

Originally posted by: ironforge
I have had both ATI and nVidia cards. I just go with whatever has the best bang for the buck at the time.

I started out with the TNT 16mb agp card and then the orignal geforce. Right now I am on an 1800XT and will upgrade to a 4890.

i have both Nvidia and ATi graphics right now. Evidently GTX285 still holds the single GPU performance crown although more highly o/c'd 4890s will challenge it.

i had GTX280 since right after it was released and i am picking up a GTX275 tomorrow so i can bench it against 4890 which i am *currently* SO impressed with - when 4890 is overclocked to the max, it starts to beat up on the GTX280 which used to handily beat 4870-1GB overclocked editions.
4870-X2 was the King until 295 sandwich edged it and now i expect 4890-X2 to match or beat it

it appears that it is a total "toss up" between 4870-1GB and GTX260+ --- it just depends if you prefer Nvidia's PhysX to ATi's DX10.1 - they appear to also be *identically* priced
.. it was ALSO a toss up between 4870-51MB and the original GTX-260 - and they also had the sales to match each other

4850 had its Nvidia competitor - competing somewhat on price - until the rebranded GTS250 started to edge it performance-wise, then ATi dropped its prices

This is a time when there is SUCH competition that the prices and margins are cut to the bone; if you have money - LOOK FOR DEALS!
- There are awesome GPUs from both vendors available - the cards have never been more "equal" in every way !

 

[SickBeast]

Depending on how much you want to spend, either vendor has a better deal IMO.

At $184 the 4890 is unbeatable.
The 260+ is the better deal at $150
The 4830 and 4770 are unbeatable at $100.
At the ultimate high end, the 285 is unmatched if you have the $$$