best sub 200 dollar graphics card

[ikesmasher]

Hey guys new here.

anyway, im currently configuring a $600 dollar build that i may or may not be buying (depends on other stuff.) anyway, the current card I have chosen is a GTX 560 for 180 plus a 30 dollar rebate. Im fine with this, but i believe the new gen is probably coming out in the next 2 months and i hate to buy current gen so late. Im assuming the GTX 660 will be out of my price range. So what current gen do you think i should get? there is, IMO, a stupid 100 dollar gap between the 7770 and the 7850, otherwise i would get that. Who came up with that pricing model...

Anyway, what do you guys think? Originally I had chosen a 7770 dual fan factory OC alongside a FX 8120 ( i now have a 6100) but i realized i wasent going to be doing multi million poly 3ds max work, more like game ready models. So i upgraded the video card budget.

Oh, yea, ima be gaming at 1080p and be expecting to play BF3 at ultra at least 30-40 FPS, ill turn down one or two settings from there.

 

[tulx]

Hey guys new here.

anyway, im currently configuring a $600 dollar build that i may or may not be buying (depends on other stuff.) anyway, the current card I have chosen is a GTX 560 for 180 plus a 30 dollar rebate. Im fine with this, but i believe the new gen is probably coming out in the next 2 months and i hate to buy current gen so late. Im assuming the GTX 660 will be out of my price range. So what current gen do you think i should get? there is, IMO, a stupid 100 dollar gap between the 7770 and the 7850, otherwise i would get that. Who came up with that pricing model...

Anyway, what do you guys think? Originally I had chosen a 7770 dual fan factory OC alongside a FX 8120 ( i now have a 6100) but i realized i wasent going to be doing multi million poly 3ds max work, more like game ready models. So i upgraded the video card budget.

Buying "old" gen just before the release of a new gen is not smart. Wait for the release and the old cards will probably be dropped in price by some 10%.
I'd say the 6870 is probably the best price/performace card at that range.

PS - and you'll be able to add another 6870 later for a really low price when the one won't be enough anymore.

 

[Jaydip]

For 10$ more u can look at these cards
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16814130759
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16814150617
I would recommend the 7850 because its cooler and overclocks very well.I don't have much respect for Xfx though,so apply ur own experience and other's suggestions.

 

[exar333]

7850 for sure.

 

[zijin_cheng]

I'd you check out the hot deals section, they have a gtx480 for $189oo, which is smoking hot for the price. If you're willing to spend about $220 you can get a 7850 that overclocks like a boss, a lot of 7850s cam almost match a gtx580 after overclocks

 

[ikesmasher]

I just cant do those, 200 was my absolute max as it was.
Not to mention i dont think throwing a GTX 480 on a 500W PSU is a good idea.
This build needs to last me at least a little while, so i would really prefer to get current gen. I i cant justify getting a 1GB 7850...maybe ill just save a little more and get a 7850 and OC it a little.

Is 500W enough for a FX-6100 and a 7850 OC you think? im not gonna do any major OC (might not do it at all for a few months).

 

[LoveMachine]

On the other end of the price spectrum, you could consider a 6850. Relatively power efficient, and in most games faster than the 7770. Can be had sub$130 after rebates.

 

[birthdaymonkey]

FX-6100 is not a great choice for a gaming CPU. I'd go with an i3 2120 and use the savings to spend a little more on the GPU. Going by newegg prices, that should add another $25 to your budget (plus anything extra you might save on the motherboard).

 

[AtenRa]

FX6100 is much better for BF3 than Core i3 but he must OC to 4-4.2GHz.

If you have a good 500W PSU you should be fine with the FX6100 OC + the HD7850 OC

For BF3 try and get the HD7850 or wait to see the GTX660.

What Motherboard are you using ?

 

[Leyawiin]

Buying a GTX 560 right now isn't necessarily a terrible idea - its not a complete dog by any stretch, especially with its overclocking headroom. If you're budget is a hard $200 max just makes sure to get one that has enough VRAM to support decent detail settings for a few years.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16814162085

If you can tolerate the delays of mail in rebates there are GTX 560 Ti models that will be below $200 such as this EVGA. Faster by about 10% over the non-Ti, but only 1GB of VRAM.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16814130604

 

[ikesmasher]

the motherboard i was using was
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16813157280
Can do crossfire, just not necessarily worth it on a X4 slot.
im getting an FX-6100. Cant justify getting any dual core for over $75 in todays age. Ive read enough reviews to know there is hardly a difference between a OC 4100 and a stock i5 in gaming (assuming you have a good card), let alone a OC 6100. Ill probably overclock it to 3.9, which is the turbo setting. does that void the warranty, or is it just all overclocks in general?

 

[AtenRa]

the motherboard i was using was
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16813157280
Can do crossfire, just not necessarily worth it on a X4 slot.
im getting an FX-6100. Cant justify getting any dual core for over $75 in todays age. Ive read enough reviews to know there is hardly a difference between a OC 4100 and a stock i5 in gaming (assuming you have a good card), let alone a 6100.

The mobo is fine, just OC the FX6100 to 4-4.2GHz (turbo off) with the minimum vcore you can get. I have used a GTX560 Ti in BF3 but it is fine for up to High settings no MSAA at 1080p. For BF3 MultiPlayer you really have to stay close to 60fps all the time.

 

[BD231]

Whatever you do don't buy a 1gb card, horrible idea.

 

[ikesmasher]

with flash memory being so cheap to produce now (comparatively to in the past, at least) i cannot believe all cards do not have at least 2GB. 75 dollar HTPC cards have 2GB, i dont understand why a 200 dollar mid range card doesnt have at least that. But unless i can find a 2GB one for the same price as a comparible 1GB one, thats not an option for me. Theres a big difference between 150 after MIR and 190 without one.

 

[hans030390]

the motherboard i was using was
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16813157280
Can do crossfire, just not necessarily worth it on a X4 slot.
im getting an FX-6100. Cant justify getting any dual core for over $75 in todays age. Ive read enough reviews to know there is hardly a difference between a OC 4100 and a stock i5 in gaming (assuming you have a good card), let alone a OC 6100. Ill probably overclock it to 3.9, which is the turbo setting. does that void the warranty, or is it just all overclocks in general?

My roommate's stock i5 2500k is noticeably faster in games than my overclocked FX6100 (4.3GHz), and I even have a faster GPU. I only got the FX6100 because it was $100, and I got a nice motherboard for $80 with it. The FX chips aren't worth it unless you can get a really good deal on them (like I did with the FX6100 + motherboard). They're also HORRIBLE with power consumption when overclocked. You better have a high quality PSU if it's only 500 watts, even if the GPU isn't a power hunger monster.

 

[AE-Ruffy]

HD 6950
GTX 480
GTX 560
HD7850

Find one used in your budget

 

[birthdaymonkey]

the motherboard i was using was
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16813157280
Can do crossfire, just not necessarily worth it on a X4 slot.
im getting an FX-6100. Cant justify getting any dual core for over $75 in todays age. Ive read enough reviews to know there is hardly a difference between a OC 4100 and a stock i5 in gaming (assuming you have a good card), let alone a OC 6100. Ill probably overclock it to 3.9, which is the turbo setting. does that void the warranty, or is it just all overclocks in general?

Technically it would void the warranty, but it's unlikely you'll ever need to RMA a CPU. Most people would probably make a warranty claim on an overclocked CPU, however, if it busted (ethical issues aside).

I really think an FX CPU and a compromise on the video card is a bad, bad idea for a gaming computer. Save your money for another month or two and get a K-series (overclockable) i5 and a 7850. You'll thank yourself and have a good gaming machine for a few years.

 

[AtenRa]

My roommate's stock i5 2500k is noticeably faster in games than my overclocked FX6100 (4.3GHz), and I even have a faster GPU.

I would really like to know in what games have you witness this ?

(wild guess, SC2 and Skyrim)

 

[MustangSVT]

I would really like to know in what games have you witness this ?

(wild guess, SC2 and Skyrim)

AtenRa, are you paid by AMD ? really curious.

 

[AtenRa]

AtenRa, are you paid by AMD ? really curious.

Why ?? are you offering me a job ??

 

[ikesmasher]

Technically it would void the warranty, but it's unlikely you'll ever need to RMA a CPU. Most people would probably make a warranty claim on an overclocked CPU, however, if it busted (ethical issues aside).

I really think an FX CPU and a compromise on the video card is a bad, bad idea for a gaming computer. Save your money for another month or two and get a K-series (overclockable) i5 and a 7850. You'll thank yourself and have a good gaming machine for a few years.

With all due respect, i didnt make this thread to question my CPU purchase. i am well aware of the performance difference between a 3570k and a FX-6100. Not to mention in the coming years i CAN update to a piledriver and im thinking their next release after it uses AM3+ too (read that somewhere?)

 

[Arkadrel]

The Radeon 7850 is an overclocking beast
http://forums.anandtech.com/showthread.php?t=2239216

Apparntly its common to reach 1250mhz+ ish core and 1350mhz+ ish memory.


They come at stock around 860mhz core.
If you OC to around 1250mhz core thats a 45% increase in clock speed.
Needless to say when you do this, the 7850 turns into a monster.


exsample:

This is what? a 34% increase in performance, thats pretty decent.
It means the 7850 is giveing performance near the 680 (stock) cards, onced overclocked.

 

[hans030390]

I would really like to know in what games have you witness this?

Primarily Skyrim. Is that a problem? Many other games run much faster on the SB CPUs at high resolutions and graphical settings as well according to the multitude of benchmarks available online.

With all due respect, i didnt make this thread to question my CPU purchase. i am well aware of the performance difference between a 3570k and a FX-6100. Not to mention in the coming years i CAN update to a piledriver and im thinking their next release after it uses AM3+ too (read that somewhere?)

Yes, Piledriver will use AM3+. And while early Trinity reviews and benchmarks show some improvements in PD performance over BD, it's not looking like it will be nearly enough to catch up to Sandy Bridge.

I can promise you that it makes a lot more sense to go with an i3 right now and upgrade to an i5 or i7 down the road. Or just save your money for a while longer and go straight for an i5 2500k.

Like I said, I only got my FX6100 because it was $180 for the CPU and motherboard. And I do quite like it for what it is, but I would have been a fool to go with it if I had bought it at normal prices.

 

[AtenRa]

Primarily Skyrim. Is that a problem? Many other games run much faster on the SB CPUs at high resolutions and graphical settings as well according to the multitude of benchmarks available online.

I dont have any problem except that you generalized the performance of a single game. There are so many more games that FX and Core i will output almost the same fps simple because you will be GPU limited.

I just dont like it when people generalize on the performance of a CPU or GPU by counting the performance in a single game.

It is like HD7970 and DIRT Showdown, i could generalize and say that HD7970 is way faster than GTX680 if i only chose to generalize the performance in this particular game.

At the end, it all comes down to the available budget and it seams the OP cant afford more.

 

[birthdaymonkey]

With all due respect, i didnt make this thread to question my CPU purchase. i am well aware of the performance difference between a 3570k and a FX-6100. Not to mention in the coming years i CAN update to a piledriver and im thinking their next release after it uses AM3+ too (read that somewhere?)

Your graphics card budget is being limited by an inadvisable choice of CPU, so it seemed relevant. Because of your decision to go with an FX-6100, you're also now forced to buy a last-gen graphics card.