Help with choosing a new video card ...

[BacMan]

Hi all,

I'm new to the forums and am hoping you can help me make a decision on a new video card.

I currently play WoW at 1680x1050 and it runs fairly well at high settings, however I am concerned that when Skyrim comes out later this year my graphics card will not be fast enough to run it at high/ultra settings. I've been considering a video card upgrade for a few months now, but have not been able to find anything that is passively cooled. My PC is virtually silent and would like to keep it that way if possible. What video card do you recommend given the above?

Thank you.

Motherboard: Asus P5E-VM DO
CPU: Intel Core 2 Duo E8400 (3.0 GHz, FSB1333, 6 MB L2, 65W)
Ram: Kingston 4GB DDR2-800 (2x2GB)
Video Card: Asus GeForce 9600GT 512MB Silent (1680x1050)

Edit: I should add that I would prefer not to spend more than $200, unless it is something that I could use when I get around to upgrading the MB and CPU.

Edit 2: I am ok with a fan on the video card provided it is fairly quiet.

 

[TemjinGold]

Wait till Skyrim comes out first.

 

[aghusker]

Wait till Skyrim comes out first.

And then you might want to wait until 28nm cards come out in Q4

 

[betasub]

Release of Skyrim = proper benchmarks of GPU performance. (Good time to buy a card with a low-noise cooling fan).
Release of 28nm = new level of performance from passively-cooled cards.

 

[BacMan]

It appears that I should wait and I will, but am definitely getting Skyrim on release day and would like to have a new video card by then too. Hopefully we'll learn more as the release date approaches.

 

[crisium]

It basically comes down to what gets the best card for $200. But until we know if the game favours AMD or Nvidia we can't say for sure.

Right now it's a Radeon 6870 vs GTX 560. But by the time Skyrim comes out there could be faster cards at that price point.

 

[viivo]

Even after Morrowind and Oblivion people still think a Bethsoft game is going to take full advantage of hardware, not to mention be used as a benchmark? Their optimization is terrible and I haven't seen anything to suggest they've improved. It took nearly 10 years for hardware to catch up enough to be able to run Morrowind maxed smoothly, and that's only through brute force of speed to overcome the engine inefficiencies.

But I agree. Wait, at least for the 69xx prices to drop.

 

[chihlidog]

A note on Skyrim - Bethesda has already said they want to make it "accessible" and that it's going to be designed for consoles. Read: it isnt going to be the hardware killer many are hoping for.