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Best Card for around $50?

I

Immortal1

Member
I just got an refurb Dell Inspirion 560 for my dad.
Low budget machine, but better than his 6 year old system.
As he still wants to do video editing, (along with the normal usuage) I thought of throwing a video card for him, but as the title states want to keep it $50
I was thinking of HD6450 which is much better than the integrated GMA X4500 that the specs list.
Or would it be better to bite the bullet and go for the HD5670?
TIA
 
Immortal1 said:
I just got an refurb Dell Inspirion 560 for my dad.
Low budget machine, but better than his 6 year old system.
As he still wants to do video editing, (along with the normal usuage) I thought of throwing a video card for him, but as the title states want to keep it $50
I was thinking of HD6450 which is much better than the integrated GMA X4500 that the specs list.
Or would it be better to bite the bullet and go for the HD5670?
TIA
Click to expand...

For video editing pretty much any graphics card will do. For $50 the most powerful you're gonna get is the Radeon HD 4670. Unless you need something that consumes 20-25 watts less on load, it's better to get this instead of something like a Radeon HD 6450 because it's a lot faster. It still doesn't require a PCIe power connector, though.
 
you'll do best at that price range used here in the FS/FT section honestly.

for example i see a 3850 for $29 shipped 🙂
 
Arkaign said:
you'll do best at that price range used here in the FS/FT section honestly.

for example i see a 3850 for $29 shipped 🙂
Click to expand...
Interesting, as that was what I was thinking as I have a HD 3850 in my old computer, but as this new computer only has a 300W PSU so I didn't think I could run it. So could it work?
 
immortal1 said:
i just got an refurb dell inspirion 560 for my dad.
Low budget machine, but better than his 6 year old system.
As he still wants to do video editing, (along with the normal usuage) i thought of throwing a video card for him, but as the title states want to keep it $50
i was thinking of hd6450 which is much better than the integrated gma x4500 that the specs list.
Or would it be better to bite the bullet and go for the hd5670?
Tia
Click to expand...
gt240
 
Immortal1 said:
Interesting, as that was what I was thinking as I have a HD 3850 in my old computer, but as this new computer only has a 300W PSU so I didn't think I could run it. So could it work?
Click to expand...

I highly recommend against running a Radeon HD 3850 on that OEM PC. It's a single-slot card that when on full load has almost 100W to dissipate. Since the chassis has little airflow and ventilation, that means very high temps both for the card and the components around it. CPU temperature should rise as well, not to mention since it uses a generic "300W" unit I wouldn't trust it with a card that needs that much power on load. You'd also need to use a Molex-to-PCIe power adapter since the 3850 has a single PCIe power connector. If I were you I'd look at the 4670 or 4650 if you need something new or a 5550 to 5570 if you're willing to buy used or refurbed.
 
LOL_Wut_Axel said:
I highly recommend against running a Radeon HD 3850 on that OEM PC. It's a single-slot card that when on full load has almost 100W to dissipate. Since the chassis has little airflow and ventilation, that means very high temps both for the card and the components around it. CPU temperature should rise as well, not to mention since it uses a generic "300W" unit I wouldn't trust it with a card that needs that much power on load. You'd also need to use a Molex-to-PCIe power adapter since the 3850 has a single PCIe power connector. If I were you I'd look at the 4670 or 4650 if you need something new or a 5550 to 5570 if you're willing to buy used or refurbed.
Click to expand...
That's what I was thinking on the HD 3850: right now it's in a XPS8100 and has been running fine.
As I want to get it tomorrow, and have to go to Microcenter for a firewire card, I found this:
http://www.microcenter.com/single_pr...uct_id=0321386
for $46 after rebate. And if they will price match a comparable model at newegg for $49 it will be $29 after rebate.
Look good?
Thanks
 
Immortal1 said:
That's what I was thinking on the HD 3850: right now it's in a XPS8100 and has been running fine.
As I want to get it tomorrow, and have to go to Microcenter for a firewire card, I found this:
http://www.microcenter.com/single_pr...uct_id=0321386
for $46 after rebate. And if they will price match a comparable model at newegg for $49 it will be $29 after rebate.
Look good?
Thanks
Click to expand...

Hmm, I don't know. There's another 4670 on Newegg by XFX, but it's another model and it's $35 after MIR. Are you sure Microcenter will price match with an online retailer? If so, go for it.
 
LOL_Wut_Axel said:
For video editing pretty much any graphics card will do. For $50 the most powerful you're gonna get is the Radeon HD 4670. Unless you need something that consumes 20-25 watts less on load, it's better to get this instead of something like a Radeon HD 6450 because it's a lot faster. It still doesn't require a PCIe power connector, though.
Click to expand...

The only 4670 at $50 that I see on Newegg is one with DDR2 memory, which is terribly slow. It would be better to buy a Radeon HD 5570 for $60 ($50 after rebate for some on Newegg)

A 5670 would be a bit of overkill for what the OP's dad would be doing though.
 
Thanks all for the replies.
I think I'll pull the trigger this HD 4670 (even with the DDR2 memory:still better than integrated) and try for the price match: sometimes it works and sometimes not. If not then maybe Newegg and install next time I'm up that way (2-3 weeks:he's still gotta figure out the new machine LOL)
 
Red Hawk said:
The only 4670 at $50 that I see on Newegg is one with DDR2 memory, which is terribly slow. It would be better to buy a Radeon HD 5570 for $60 ($50 after rebate for some on Newegg)

A 5670 would be a bit of overkill for what the OP's dad would be doing though.
Click to expand...

Heh. The part you're forgetting is that the 5570s at that price point are the DDR3 versions that run at 2000MHz effective unlike the 1800MHz on the DDR2 4670. That makes a difference of 10% in memory bandwidth, which translates to 5% or less actual performance difference. Hardly anything worth raving about, to be honest. What makes the most difference is the streaming processors, which should give the 5570 an advantage of 15% or so. So actual performance difference around is 20%, but the 4670 can be had for $35 after MIR while the 5570 is $50 after MIR. In daily usage and even in casual gaming you'd be hard pressed to tell the difference between the two given you'd need to run on low settings.
 
2000 MHz effective clock speed is for the 4670 with DDR3 memory; with DDR2 the effective speed would be back down to 1000. Only the DDR3 version of the 5570 was ever made, and its effective memory clock speed is 1800 MHz.
 
Red Hawk said:
The 2000 MHz effective clock speed is for the 4670 with DDR3 memory; with DDR2 the effective speed would be back down to 1000.
Click to expand...

Nope. Both the specs on the Newegg page are wrong. They say 900MHz effective for the 4670 and 1000MHz effective for the 5570. Effective it's 1800MHz and 2000MHz. For DDR2 and DDR3 the effective speeds are 2x the nominal/base. For DDR5 it's 4x the nominal/base.

The reason DDR3 is used now is because of the lower power consumption and higher achievable clock speeds, not to mention lower manufacturing costs. Irrelevant in this case for the most part, but still worth noting.

With the 4670 at $35 after MIR I see little reason to shell out $50 after MIR for the 5570.
 
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GPUreview.com indicates that it's 900 MHz/1800 MHz effective for the 5570, and 1000 MHz/2000 MHz effective for the 4670 with GDDR3. With DDR2 memory the 4670's effective memory speed would be closer to the 4650, 1000 MHz.
 
300 watt psu. minitower case, are you guys sure he won't need a low profile card?
The case is only 6.7 inches wide.

He also states its for video editing. I dont think there will much of a difference from a 6450 and a 4670 when it come to video editing.

I would say just to be safe, grab a low profile 6450.
 
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Red Hawk said:
GPUreview.com indicates that it's 900 MHz/1800 MHz effective for the 5570, and 1000 MHz/2000 MHz effective for the 4670 with GDDR3. With DDR2 memory the 4670's effective memory speed would be closer to the 4650, 1000 MHz.
Click to expand...


I'm talking about the particular models I'm eyeing, so sorry if that caused confusion. The ones in the price range are 1800MHz DDR2 for the 4670 and 2000MHz DDR3 for the 5570. There's others with higher-spec Memory, but they're also more expensive. The main advantage of the 4670 over the 4650 is that it comes with higher core clock speeds, and it's only $5 more expensive. Cheapest 4650s and 4670s are $30 and $35 after MIR, respectively.
 
The XFX 4670 only has a 50MHz Core clock advantage to the XFX 4650 and the same memory bandwidth. You also have to pay $6 shipping for the 4670 and you can save $5 with the MIR for the 4650 over the 4670. It's not looking like a bad deal considering there's only a 7% of so performance difference between both.

EDIT:

Just found out XFX gimped these cards with a 64-bit memory bus instead of the 128-bit they should have. OP, avoid them. There's another Powercolor card with a 128-bit bus but a bit slower 1560MHz memory. If you have $60 upfront and can wait for a $10 MIR there's a Sapphire card available.
 
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LOL_Wut_Axel said:
The XFX 4670 only has a 50MHz Core clock advantage to the XFX 4650 and the same memory bandwidth. You also have to pay $6 shipping for the 4670 and you can save $5 with the MIR for the 4650 over the 4670. It's not looking like a bad deal considering there's only a 7% of so performance difference between both.
Click to expand...

He is doing video editing, no performance advantage is more like it
 
happy medium said:
He is doing video editing, no performance advantage is more like it
Click to expand...

Perhaps, LOL.

Still, though, I'd feel wrong about recommending the XFX 4670/4650 now. XFX gimped the memory controllers and so they only have 64-bit buses. At that point they're pretty horrible cards. The PowerColor HD 4650 according to official specs on their website hasn't been gimped so it has the 128-bit bus. It's not half-height, though the height is 4.3" and shouldn't pose a problem. It's a decent buy at $45/$30 MIR. The reviews seem to be good, as well. For a bit more there's the 5570 DDR3, which is around 25% faster (or not, if all he's doing is video editing).
 
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i have a 6450 oem from hp if ur interested. has hdmi and dvi. no vga for some reason like the 6450's on newegg. it came installed but am using onboard graphics since i needed dvi and vga for my dual monitor set up. i paid 50 for the upgrade that it turns out i didnt need. make me an offer if u decide u want it.
 
Thanks again for all the info.
Nice to know about the XFX 4670 cards, though the specs on Newegg and MC show 128 bit and the XFX site do show the 64 bit. Not taking the chance.
As I wanted to take care of this today, I'm willing to pay the extra to get it done.
There was mention of a HD5570 and found this at MC:
http://www.microcenter.com/single_pr...uct_id=0345504
with a price match to Newegg it'll be $55 AR
Not as good price wise as the XFX 4670, but doable.
ETA:
Just noticed that the card linked above also has a VGA connection, which is good as I don't know how he has the monitor hooked now. Though an adapter will fix that easy enought but one less thing to think about if I need it.
 
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