Need a GPU that maxes my system. Recommendations?

[jana519]

I currently have a Pentium G860, Hanns-G 19" WXGA+ monitor, and GTX 650 1GB. The GTX 650 works good but I'm pretty sure there's some more headroom in there for an upgrade. I'm looking to buy a 600 or 700 series GPU that's just powerful enough to make my CPU bottleneck, for maximum gaming performance. Wondering if you guys have any suggestions.

 

[2is]

You're probably damn close already to doing just that.

Just for reference, I have one system with a GTX 650 Ti and an i3 2120 and while I've only run a few games on it (Race Room Racing Experience, Project cars and BF4) the CPU has been the bottleneck in each one. The GPU has yet to hit full GPU utilization. Keep in mind, the i3 2120 is a bit more powerful than your Pentium. 300MHz higher clock and has hyperthreading. 650Ti would do what you want with a 650Ti Boost or 750Ti being the absolute most I'd spend on that system.

 

[shady28]

I currently have a Pentium G860, Hanns-G 19" WXGA+ monitor, and GTX 650 1GB. The GTX 650 works good but I'm pretty sure there's some more headroom in there for an upgrade. I'm looking to buy a 600 or 700 series GPU that's just powerful enough to make my CPU bottleneck, for maximum gaming performance. Wondering if you guys have any suggestions.

If you have the non-Ti version of the 650, the 750 Ti will give you a massive boost. In some cases 2x performance vs the normal 650. Comparison link below.

http://www.anandtech.com/bench/product/1125?vs=1130

Whether you go GPU or CPU limited is going to vary a lot by the game. At 900p (WXGA+) I think you'll be just fine with a 750 Ti though.


This one is $129, or $99 after using a $30 rebate card according to the ad:

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814127784

 

[shady28]

You're probably damn close already to doing just that.

Just for reference, I have one system with a GTX 650 Ti and an i3 2120 and while I've only run a few games on it (Race Room Racing Experience, Project cars and BF4) the CPU has been the bottleneck in each one. The GPU has yet to hit full GPU utilization. Keep in mind, the i3 2120 is a bit more powerful than your Pentium. 300MHz higher clock and has hyperthreading. 650Ti would do what you want with a 650Ti Boost or 750Ti being the absolute most I'd spend on that system.

650 ti is a lot faster than 650 though. As in, 40% faster.

 

[2is]

650 ti is a lot faster than 650 though. As in, 40% faster.

Agreed, but that's when the CPU can push both of them to the limit. I was CPU bottlenecked in the games I tried with a 650Ti while running a more powerful CPU than OP and that was at 1080p

At 1440x900 with his CPU there's only going to be a very small handful of games, if any, where that 40% will be realized.

 

[jana519]

You're probably damn close already to doing just that.

Just for reference, I have one system with a GTX 650 Ti and an i3 2120 and while I've only run a few games on it (Race Room Racing Experience, Project cars and BF4) the CPU has been the bottleneck in each one. The GPU has yet to hit full GPU utilization. Keep in mind, the i3 2120 is a bit more powerful than your Pentium. 300MHz higher clock and has hyperthreading. 650Ti would do what you want with a 650Ti Boost or 750Ti being the absolute most I'd spend on that system.

Thanks, I'll look at a 650 Ti Boost 2GB or Radeon 7850. Seems like that's the sweet spot for me.

You're talking about bottlenecking an i3-2120, what sort of graphic settings/framerates are we talking about here?

 

[2is]

Thanks, I'll look at a 650 Ti Boost 2GB or Radeon 7850. Seems like that's the sweet spot for me.

You're talking about bottlenecking an i3-2120, what sort of graphic settings/framerates are we talking about here?

The only game I bothered to actually benchmark was RaceRoom Racing Experience and I averaged just over 39 fps over the course of a 6 lap race with 24 cars on the grid. I don't recall the graphics settings, just know that it wasn't my GPU that was the limiting factor.

 

[Seba]

Thanks, I'll look at a 650 Ti Boost 2GB or Radeon 7850. Seems like that's the sweet spot for me.

I'll go for GTX 750 Ti 2GB (new or used) in your situation. Low cost, reasonable performance (even paired with a not so powerful CPU), low power consumption (most models do not require any PCI-E power plugs), low dissipated heat.

 

[NTMBK]

I'd consider a CPU upgrade, frankly! There are plenty of great Ivy Bridge or Sandy Bridge processors you could get to upgrade your system.