GPU advice for a casual gamer

cool.dx.rip

Senior member
Mar 11, 2013
226
0
71
Hello,I want to buy a gpu for my this system.Pro i5 3470,ram 8gb,psu:Dont bought yet.monitor 786p.I am normal,casual gamer.i normally play racing,strategy(most of the time),gta 5 type games.My budget for gpu is about 260$.today i read nowhere in internet that ati 7770 is enough for 786*1366 type monitor.because 30fps is enough for normal gamer.my plan was to buy gtx 760 but this comment give me a thought about this matter thats why i m looking advice from u.i think 760 will give me more future proof rather than 7770 or 650 cards.i can play games without lag,in high settings which is may be not be possible in this 7770.i dont want to waste money if i can run my system wit7770 or 650 for 4-5 yrs with high settings in game.I want performance.,money does not matter in this limited budget.So guys pls give me ur advice.correct me if i take wrong decision.
am in hurry.bad english rocksss.on behalf of my frnd
BYEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE
 

Durvelle27

Diamond Member
Jun 3, 2012
4,102
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Could you list your full specs list the PSU you will be using.


I would recommend a HD 7790 if your gonna hold onto that monitor
 
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Jaydip

Diamond Member
Mar 29, 2010
3,691
21
81
760 will be more than enough for your system, heck I would recommend a 650 ti boost/7850.760 requires 32A on 12V, so remember that when buying PSU.
 

2is

Diamond Member
Apr 8, 2012
4,281
131
106
Im using a 650Ti on a test bed system I slapped together and have been surprisingly pleased with its performance. I've been playing BF3 mostly with it and on both a 1680x1050 monitor and also hooked up to a 1080p TV, its performance has been quite good at a combination of medium and high settings with fps averaging in the 80's (paired with a 2600k)

I think your idea if a 7770 or 650ti is right on the money. Anything higher would be a waste at that res unless you think you may upgrade your display in the near future.

A 760 does NOT require 32 amps. Not even close. That's 384 watts, just on the 12v. It MIGHT use half that, when overclocked and over volted and running OCCT stress test.
 
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Leyawiin

Diamond Member
Nov 11, 2008
3,204
52
91
There are such good prices currently for the HD 7850 2GB that I wouldn't recommend anything less. I have an HD 7770 paired with a 1680x1050 monitor and it does fine on mostly high settings (not max - usually one notch below), but in retrospect I wish I had spent another $30-$50 for an HD 7850 2GB. That small investment would have translated into another couple years use. Only thing that made me pause was the Antec Basiq 430W power supply in that secondary PC. Probably would have worked, but I didn't want to chance it.
 

Rezist

Senior member
Jun 20, 2009
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I'd also recommend a 7850 2gb or a 650ti boost, for the $ they usually offer better bang for the buck, I've even seen some very cheap 660ti's/7870's.
 

blackened23

Diamond Member
Jul 26, 2011
8,548
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660ti? Isn't that a bit much for 1366*768? I'd look at the GT640, 7770 or something along those lines. That is an incredibly low resolution which doesn't really need a 200$ card..

At 1080p the 660ti makes sense with a few knobs turned down, but it doesn't make sense at 1366*768. IMHO. Actually, are 1366 monitors being produced? What the....
 
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toyota

Lifer
Apr 15, 2001
12,957
1
0
1366x768? good grief that is low so a 760 or 660ti would be silly. you need a highly oced cpu to even get most of the use from card like that at that res. even with my 2500k at 4.4, most games drop well below 90% gpu usage at just 1366x768 and thats with no cap. for running 60 fps at 1366x768, most games would barely crack 50-60% gpu usage. with your stock cpu even less utilization would occur unless you are running max SSAA or MSAA in the few demanding games that offer that. I would look at 7770 or gtx650 as the fastest cards for that resolution if you want to get your moneys worth.
 
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rgallant

Golden Member
Apr 14, 2007
1,361
11
81
imo
op might want a 7950 if it comes under his $250 .where does he live?
why- at any time a monitor upgrade for the op could happen.
24 months from now and a 7950 could still be a usable card.
 

toyota

Lifer
Apr 15, 2001
12,957
1
0
imo
op might want a 7950 if it comes under his $250 .where does he live?
why- at any time a monitor upgrade for the op could happen.
24 months from now and a 7950 could still be a usable card.
that would be stupid if he has no concrete plans to upgrade the monitor very soon. he will have paid 250 bucks for gpu that will give him the same playable performance as one costing half the price. in 2 years there will be all new gpus anyway.
 

2is

Diamond Member
Apr 8, 2012
4,281
131
106
Its silly to spend $250 now to use the card to its fullest potential in 24 months. In 24 months there will be cards far more powerful for the same or less. If you're not going to take advantage of the card before it becomes obsolete its a waste.
 

toyota

Lifer
Apr 15, 2001
12,957
1
0
Its silly to spend $250 now to use the card to its fullest potential in 24 months. In 24 months there will be cards far more powerful for the same or less. If you're not going to take advantage of the card before it becomes obsolete its a waste.
lol copy cat :biggrin:
 
Aug 11, 2008
10,451
642
126
I have a HD7770, and even at 1080p it is adequate for med/high settings at 1080p. Admittedly though, I havent played any of the latest highly demanding games like FC3 or Crysis 3.

That said however, the 2gb HD7850 is so cheap now that I dont see how you could really pass it up. A HD7790 would also be a good choice and the prices of that card are very good as well.

I got the HD7770 about a year ago, when the 7850 was much more expensive and the 7790 was not out yet, so I am happy with the choice, especially since I got it at a very good sale price. However, in the current environment I would go for one of the two other cards.
 

toyota

Lifer
Apr 15, 2001
12,957
1
0
yeah the 7850 2gb can be had for just 15-20 bucks more than the 7790 1gb and comes with 2 games instead of 1 so in the end its really no more expensive.
 

Teizo

Golden Member
Oct 28, 2010
1,271
31
91
660ti? Isn't that a bit much for 1366*768? I'd look at the GT640, 7770 or something along those lines. That is an incredibly low resolution which doesn't really need a 200$ card..

At 1080p the 660ti makes sense with a few knobs turned down, but it doesn't make sense at 1366*768. IMHO. Actually, are 1366 monitors being produced? What the....

Yes, you are right. I missed that part somehow. I reckon I just assumed he had a 1080p monitor like most and glossed over it since they are so affordable now.
 

3DVagabond

Lifer
Aug 10, 2009
11,951
204
106
Hello,I want to buy a gpu for my this system.Pro i5 3470,ram 8gb,psu: Dont bought yet.monitor 786p.I am normal,casual gamer.i normally play racing,strategy(most of the time),gta 5 type games.My budget for gpu is about 260$.today i read nowhere in internet that ati 7770 is enough for 786*1366 type monitor.because 30fps is enough for normal gamer.my plan was to buy gtx 760 but this comment give me a thought about this matter thats why i m looking advice from u.i think 760 will give me more future proof rather than 7770 or 650 cards.i can play games without lag,in high settings which is may be not be possible in this 7770.i dont want to waste money if i can run my system wit7770 or 650 for 4-5 yrs with high settings in game.I want performance.,money does not matter in this limited budget.So guys pls give me ur advice.correct me if i take wrong decision.
am in hurry.bad english rocksss.on behalf of my frnd
BYEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE


If you are really going to be stuck with this card for 4-5 years (University student maybe, that doesn't plan on putting any money into your rig until after graduation, or some other reason) then you need to buy a fairly powerful card. HD 7950 or GTX 760 are the best cards in your budget. Personally, I would buy the HD 7950, but you'll find just as many people who would prefer the GTX 760.

I'd take the HD 7950 for the extra gig of VRAM, O/C'ing potential, More memory bandwidth. All of these will factor in more as time goes on and you plan on having this card for a while.

If you could likely upgrade in a year or 2, then there are cheaper cards that will suffice for that period. The HD 7850 2Gig is probably the best choice overall today.

As far as PSU goes any good quality 500w should power any single GPU card likely to be released unless they increase the PCI-E power standard.
 

toyota

Lifer
Apr 15, 2001
12,957
1
0
its silly to make the decision now to buy a card to keep for 4 or 5 years. common sense says get a card that will meet or slightly exceed your needs for the next couple years then upgrade when it becomes necessary.

based on needs and res though yeah the 7850 2gb makes the most sense as its a great value that makes the 7790 1gb look bad.
 

Jaydip

Diamond Member
Mar 29, 2010
3,691
21
81
Im using a 650Ti on a test bed system I slapped together and have been surprisingly pleased with its performance. I've been playing BF3 mostly with it and on both a 1680x1050 monitor and also hooked up to a 1080p TV, its performance has been quite good at a combination of medium and high settings with fps averaging in the 80's (paired with a 2600k)

I think your idea if a 7770 or 650ti is right on the money. Anything higher would be a waste at that res unless you think you may upgrade your display in the near future.

A 760 does NOT require 32 amps. Not even close. That's 384 watts, just on the 12v. It MIGHT use half that, when overclocked and over volted and running OCCT stress test.

That is for the total system ():)
 

cool.dx.rip

Senior member
Mar 11, 2013
226
0
71
660ti? Isn't that a bit much for 1366*768? I'd look at the GT640, 7770 or something along those lines. That is an incredibly low resolution which doesn't really need a 200$ card..

At 1080p the 660ti makes sense with a few knobs turned down, but it doesn't make sense at 1366*768. IMHO. Actually, are 1366 monitors being produced? What the....

I have read anywhere that 660 would be best for me becuase it performed well in clock limited screes like me.(m i correct)
yes 1366*768 are still produced
 

cool.dx.rip

Senior member
Mar 11, 2013
226
0
71
1366x768? good grief that is low so a 760 or 660ti would be silly. you need a highly oced cpu to even get most of the use from card like that at that res. even with my 2500k at 4.4, most games drop well below 90% gpu usage at just 1366x768 and thats with no cap. for running 60 fps at 1366x768, most games would barely crack 50-60% gpu usage. with your stock cpu even less utilization would occur unless you are running max SSAA or MSAA in the few demanding games that offer that. I would look at 7770 or gtx650 as the fastest cards for that resolution if you want to get your moneys worth.

yes i want to make best use my money.i m never going to do oc in my life.however just of curiosity how much clock speed i can push my i5 3470 if i have Trio OCK fan???
 

cool.dx.rip

Senior member
Mar 11, 2013
226
0
71
imo
op might want a 7950 if it comes under his $250 .where does he live?
why- at any time a monitor upgrade for the op could happen.
24 months from now and a 7950 could still be a usable card.

My monitor was brought in february.it has 3 yrs warranty.ATLEAST am never going to upgrade my monitor for 3 yearss.I will use this till its last