I need an upgrade for my GT 430

[poofyhairguy]

I need help with my HTPC. I really want to play Gamecube and Wii games on Dolphin (and maybe FFX on PCSX2). The GT 430 I have in it is not doing the job, and the card I was waiting for to do the job (the 7750) won’t work based on its driver problems with the two programs I intend to use (XBMC and Dolphin).

I originally built the system to be low noise but that seems to be going out the window with the GT 430, so anything with a regular cooler (and not one of those crazy and loud blow it out the slot coolers) should be ok. At this point I just want to do the job without taking a step back in other features- so I need compatibility with a 3D TV and HDMI 1.4.

The only “real” game I see myself maybe running is Diablo 3 and that is a big maybe. My main focus by far is higher-end emulators and of course 1080p playback.

First of all this system is:

Pentium E6300 @ 3.6GHz (might try to get my Q6600 in there soon at the same GHz)
4GB DDR2
128GB Vertex 2 SSD
Wimpy 380w fanless PSU that will be replaced by a 650 Earthwatts I have if needed

The budget is anything below or at $100. I pretty much plan to buy used, and in fact I would rather buy used than have to up my budget (so basically a 6850 is out of my price range).

So far I have been focused on getting a GTX 460. Is there something better for me out there?

Thanks in advance.

 

[Durvelle27]

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16814102952 HD 6670

will do 3D and run Diablo III just fine

 

[Agent-A01]

id pick up this 7750, 99$ w/ rebate

 

[poofyhairguy]

I really want the 7750. I was basically waiting on that card because it should have been the perfect solution as I really wanted to keep my rig silent.

But but I have confirmed problems with the 7750 with the two pieces of software I use the most. Unfortunately that card is not a solution for me, and neither is anything new from Nvidia this generation either so far.

Thanks again for the advice though. I am looking at the 6670 and the 6770 now.

 

[Durvelle27]

either will be a great choice but the 6770 will be much faster and run newer games with no problem like BF3

 

[poofyhairguy]

I jumped on a GTX 460 deal. Thanks for the advice everyone.

 

[BallaTheFeared]

;o

I hoped you verified your cpu wasn't bottlenecking, crazy as it sounds, a lot of the workload is placed on the cpu.

 

[poofyhairguy]

I guess I will find out. If that is the issue then I guess next up is an i5.

 

[Denithor]

I was going to say, GTX 460 still packs quite a punch and if you get the right one, runs virtually silent.

Congrats, think you'll be pretty happy with that card!

 

[n0x1ous]

gts 450 would have been enough so you will be set fore sure with the 460

 

[mazeroth]

In my readings when I was messing with Dolphin, you need a pretty good CPU to get the emulation to work well.