Best cheap card for playing D3?

[VirtualLarry]

So, I've got this gamer friend of mine, and a mutual acquaintance of ours has some sort of OEM PC. So far, I guess this person has been playing D3 with the onboard, and it's "hitching".

So we're all supposed to get together next weekend, and my friend said that would be an opportunity to discuss it.

I realize that it may be pre-mature to ask for recommendations from this forums, until I find out the OEM PC model, PSU, and CPU specs, and what res he plays at, but in general, does D3 require a high-end card, or can it be played on a mid-range card? (I don't play it myself.)

The question is up in the air whether he should get a whole new PC, or just a video card.

I was thinking of a 750 ti, if his CPU wouldn't bottleneck it too much (say, if he had an i3 or above, and not some AMD E-series CPU.)

 

[Jimzz]

I thought Diablo3 was more CPU hungry. But a good GPU will help.

A 750ti or 7790(260x) would work fine if the CPU is decent.

 

[Stuka87]

Diablo 3 is only dual threaded, so multi-core CPU's are not much of a help.

However with the latest update it is more GPU hungry. The graphics engine got an overhaul. Even with my 7950 I get frame drop during heavy battles. Although I have not determined if it is GPU or CPU related. It happens so infrequently I have not had a need to.

But a 750Ti or 260X should be fine. If he gets frame drop up on Torment levels, just lower the settings a bit.

 

[nwo]

D3 is not very GPU demanding, it is comparable to WoW. However, you certainly will not be able to play it with an integrated GPU unless you have a very high end AMD APU.

A 750Ti would be fine and would probably be your safest bet if you are not sure what PSU he has. For most OEM PCs a GTX 750Ti is probably the best video card upgrade you can get without having to change the PSU.

 

[VirtualLarry]

Would a GT620 (1GB DDR3) cut it?

 

[nwo]

Would a GT620 (1GB DDR3) cut it?

I doubt it. It might cut it for 720p, but don't expect smooth fps or anything above low settings.

 

[Magic Carpet]

Would a GT620 (1GB DDR3) cut it?

Played on the 512mb version just fine. Not a 60 fps experience, however, I recommend something more poweful.

 

[Stuka87]

Would a GT620 (1GB DDR3) cut it?

Any nVidia card with a GT prefix as opposed to a GTX prefix should be avoided. The GT's are all lower end cards that are in some cases slower then some integrated video solutions.

If cost is the issue, look at an HD7750. its fast enough to play the game, needs no external power, and is cheaper than a 750 (Although slower).

 

[Jimzz]

Would a GT620 (1GB DDR3) cut it?

Should be better than what he has, unless he has a newer AMD APU.

But even then best to try and get a more current card that has GDDR5. Even a 7750 with GDDR5 would be better than a very weak GT620.

 

[Rezist]

W/O a PSU change I'd probably recommend the 7750 or 750, 750 obviously being faster, and I believe most blizzard games run better on nVidia enough to be noticeable.

 

[OCGuy]

750 with a OEM PSU.

 

[Slomo4shO]

Diablo 3 is only dual threaded, so multi-core CPU's are not much of a help.

Is this also true for the expansion which is releasing this month?

 

[VirtualLarry]

Is this also true for the expansion which is releasing this month?

Are there any Blizzard games that can utilize more than two cores?

 

[TeknoBug]

I'm liking my 750Ti, it's playing every game I throw at it so far.

 

[VirtualLarry]

In the event that he has an OEM AMD E-series APU, would a custom rig with an A6-5400K Trinity single-module APU be enough to run D3 at 1080P?

I've got a rig like that I just built last month. I figured it would be good for facebook games. Don't know about D3.

 

[Slomo4shO]

Are there any Blizzard games that can utilize more than two cores?

Considering that they have ports for the Xbox one and PS4... I would hope that they do code for more cores in their newer products...

 

[DigDog]

buy a used 580Gtx, you will probably get it for peanuts. eBay your way to victory.

edit: UK eBay has it for £80~100 buy-it-now. around what a 7770 costs new.

 

[nwo]

In the event that he has an OEM AMD E-series APU, would a custom rig with an A6-5400K Trinity single-module APU be enough to run D3 at 1080P?

I've got a rig like that I just built last month. I figured it would be good for facebook games. Don't know about D3.

1080p? Highly doubtful. 720p? Maybe... but then again do not expect more than 30-40 fps average at low-medium settings.

The game was smooth as butter on my 4870 512mb card but that was before the expansion.

Invest $50-70 in a used GPU and you can get a GTX 460, GTX 560Ti, or AMD 7750 perhaps even a 7770 or 7790 all of which would have no trouble playing the game at 1080p. Although I would highly recommend persuing a 7770 or GTX 560Ti if you want a pleasant 1080p gaming experience.

 

[vasdrakken]

I can get up to 200 fps on my system, and the recommended is only a 260 GTX for play at 1024x768, so if you play at 1920x1080 you need something roughly 3 times as powerful. I would put that at 560 range. Considering that my 570 had no issues with the game I would go with the the 560 Ti GTX and feel safe.

 

[nwo]

At roughly $70 used, the value of a GTX 560Ti is going to be tough to beat.

 

[frozentundra123456]

It is an OEM PC. 99 percent chance he will have to replace the power supply with anything except a hd7750 or gtx750/750ti.

So he could save money on a used card and put it toward a new psu or buy a 7750 or 750/750ti.

Personally I am leery of used parts and would lean toward a new card, but it is a judgement call. Also if he is not that experienced with PC's it is much easier to just pop in a card instead of changing out the psu.

 

[Stuka87]

In the event that he has an OEM AMD E-series APU, would a custom rig with an A6-5400K Trinity single-module APU be enough to run D3 at 1080P?

I've got a rig like that I just built last month. I figured it would be good for facebook games. Don't know about D3.

Trinity will run D3 at 720P in the 60-70 fps range (on low). Its in the mid 30's for 1080P (also on low).

A Richland however raises those numbers a fair amount. If you go the APU route, look for a Richland.

 

[VirtualLarry]

Well, I found out the specs of my friend's PC.

http://support.gateway.com/s/PC/DX/DX4720/DX4720nv.shtml

It has an E5200 in it, and according to the spec pages, the onboard video would be a GF7100 chipset.

What needs to be upgraded for a non-hitching D3 experience?

Oh, I forgot to ask him his monitor res.

I've got a GT620 1GB DDR3 card for $35, and an open-box 7750 1GB DDR3 for $75.

 

[DooKey]

If you are going to choose between the GT620 and 7750 then I would definitely go with the 7750.

 

[daveybrat]

Well, I found out the specs of my friend's PC.

http://support.gateway.com/s/PC/DX/DX4720/DX4720nv.shtml

It has an E5200 in it, and according to the spec pages, the onboard video would be a GF7100 chipset.

What needs to be upgraded for a non-hitching D3 experience?

Oh, I forgot to ask him his monitor res.

I've got a GT620 1GB DDR3 card for $35, and an open-box 7750 1GB DDR3 for $75.

Go with the HD 7750 you already have. Should be more than enough to play D3 and much faster than a GT620.

Compared to what he's been playing on it'll be a huge upgrade for him visually. And a 2.5GHz Dual-Core should be fine as well.