Video card advice... gotta get a little more life out of my i7-920

[kn1ghtrydr]

I. Processor/CPU: i7-920 (2.66 GHz)

II. Current Graphics Card: ATI Radeon 4850 512MB


III. Display Resolution: 1680x1050 (Will only use one monitor... nothing fancy haha).


IV. Power Supply Unit Specification: SeaSonic M12II 520 Bronze 520W ATX12V v2.3 / EPS 12V v2.91 SLI Ready 80 PLUS BRONZE Certified Modular Active PFC Power Supply


V. Case Specifications: COOLER MASTER Storm Enforcer


Purchase Details:

I. Budget:
-Any price (Willing to go as high as my CPU will allow me to go!)

II. Any particular preferences:
-Heard lots of good things about MSI... but I also like Sapphire and Asus


III. Do you plan to have any Multi-GPU solutions such as Crossfire or SLI?
-No


IV. Have you previously looked at a product(s) which you feel would fit your needs?
-No only on the internet.


V. What are your needs for this GPU? Which games(If any)do you intend to play?
-Normal stuff (email, youtube, facebook etc.), and games like Guild Wars 2, Dark souls, Borderlands 2, and Resident evil 6 on high/ultra settings.


VI. Do you plan on overclocking the card you intend to purchase?
-Not sure if I can with the processor I have (I don't even know if it has anything to do with it), but most likely not.


Additional Notes:
I am transferring my CPU/MOBO from a Dell 435MT so I'm pretty sure I cannot overclock my processor. I am hoping to keep this setup for at least two more years so I want to get the best video card my cpu/mobo will allow without bottle-necking or limiting it in any way. I've been bouncing between a HD 7870 or a HD 7950. If my setup can handle a better card though (like a GTX 670) I wouldn't hesitate to get it. Just need some guidance since all information I've been getting is from the internet.
Thanks,
Jake

 

[Durvelle27]

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16814102986 HD 7850

 

[krnmastersgt]

Your system should be able to handle a GTX 670 without much issue, I say go for it. More specifically I'd suggest picking up this Gigabyte GTX 670 for $400. It's overkill for your resolution but you could upgrade the monitor without much issue.

Why do you have no budget for a video card upgrade but only play at 1680x1050?

 

[kn1ghtrydr]

I wish I could get another monitor but I don't have much desk space to spare.

 

[Suspicious-Teach8788]

I bought a 7850 but if I were you I would try to get my hands on a 670 GTX. I also went from a 4850. I regret not going for a 670, but I figure I'm shooting for low power. I think if I played BF3 more seriously I would've regretted my purchase more.

 

[Rhoxed]

7950 @ $320?

 

[kn1ghtrydr]

Was thinking about the MSI 7950 from newegg. Unfortunately I'm in CA so even with that rebate it still ends up being $330. Amazon also has the MSI 7950 for $330 (no tax) but it's also OOS. Do you guys think when the 660/660ti come out price might drop a little more?

 

[Jaydip]

Depends on their performance

 

[3DVagabond]

$400 for a card to play @ 1050? Not needed. A 7870 will give you 60FPS in BF3 before O/C'ing. The MSI Twin Frozr III is $280AR. Base models start even cheaper, $240AR.

And, as is typical with W1zzard, he needs to update his drivers. These scores were done w/12.3's. There have been big performance enhancements since then.

 

[Borealis7]

another vote for a 7870 + optional overclocking (the card is practically begging for it)
or...get a GTX 670 for extra future proofing.

 

[guskline]

Your setup can most likely handle a GTX670. You PSU is a Seasonic 520. Seasonic makes Excellent PSUs. The problem is that your resolution you would be wasting that power. If you were at 1920x1080 I would JUMP on the GTX670 (I know I'm biased sig) but since you indicate you don't have the room it would be wasted horsepower.

In that case (no monitor change), Durvelle27's recommendation makes the most sense money wise.

 

[lehtv]

HIS 7870 $240 AR

 

[AtenRa]

For BF3 MP you will have to OC the CPU either you get the HD7850 or the GTX670.

 

[Durvelle27]

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16814161399 HD 7970 $399 AR

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16814125423 GTX 670 $399

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16814127662 HD 7870 $279 AR

 

[kn1ghtrydr]

What's up,
Thanks for all the great suggestions. So if I'm going to stay at 1680x1050 I should go with the HD7870, and if I'm going to go with a higher resolution GTX 670 right? Can I overclock the video card without overclocking my cpu?
Thanks,
Jay

 

[Termie]

What's up,
Thanks for all the great suggestions. So if I'm going to stay at 1680x1050 I should go with the HD7870, and if I'm going to go with a higher resolution GTX 670 right? Can I overclock the video card without overclocking my cpu?
Thanks,
Jay

Yes, the 7870 is as much as you could use (and as much as you should spend) with a stock 920. You'll be able to overclock it separately from the CPU, but I don't think you'll need to.

The 670 would be quite bottlenecked on your system, even at 1080p. I honestly wouldn't consider it on that system.

This 7870 for $240AR is an unbeatable deal: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814161411

 

[aaksheytalwar]

7950 ~$300+

 

[krnmastersgt]

The 7870 for $240 is indeed a great deal, and if you have no plans of upgrading or adding monitors then it's more than powerful enough for your resolution with just about any kind of gaming. MMO's in particular though usually aren't that stressful on the GPU so I'm not entirely sure it necessary to upgrade at all.

 

[kn1ghtrydr]

Wow that is pretty cheap for a GHz edition! I'm reading the reviews of it though on newegg and one person is saying the cooling on this card is not very good where as on tweaktown.com they say it's pretty good. Since I'm (most likely) not going to overclock this should be fine right?

 

[Leyawiin]

HD 7870. They've finally entered a price territory that makes sense.

 

[kn1ghtrydr]

About to buy it (My CC is having problems... gonna get it cleared up tomorrow so I can order)! One final question for you guys... Will the Seasonic PSU I bought be fine for my dell 0R849j motherboard? I have a friend that is going to assemble it for me, but he said to check that it is compatible with my motherboard (as in not going to short it out or anything) before we start. Once again thanks for all your guys' help! I really appreciate it!

 

[Termie]

Wow that is pretty cheap for a GHz edition! I'm reading the reviews of it though on newegg and one person is saying the cooling on this card is not very good where as on tweaktown.com they say it's pretty good. Since I'm (most likely) not going to overclock this should be fine right?

Sure, it's not a deluxe edition with upgraded cooling, but it will work just fine at stock speeds. That's a lot of performance for the money.

 

[kn1ghtrydr]

Another question just for kicks... is it worth it to pay $40 extra for the MSI 7870 just in case I wanted to overclock to stock hd 9750 levels? Or would I still be able to do that with this HIS card? I have two fans in my storm enforcer case, but if I added an extra fan or two would that suffice for the extra cooling provided by the upgraded cooler on the MSI version?

 

[Termie]

Another question just for kicks... is it worth it to pay $40 extra for the MSI 7870 just in case I wanted to overclock to stock hd 9750 levels? Or would I still be able to do that with this HIS card? I have two fans in my storm enforcer case, but if I added an extra fan or two would that suffice for the extra cooling provided by the upgraded cooler on the MSI version?

I would say it won't make too much of a difference, especially given that you can't overclock the processor. Either one will be able to overclock close to the 7950 anyway. The HIS will just get hotter and louder.

And I can't imagine what incompatibility your friend was talking about regarding the PSU. The 24-pin connector is standard, and I'm guessing that your 920's motherboard had an 8-pin for cpu power. The seasonic should allow you to use either 4- or 8-pin cpu connections.

 

[kn1ghtrydr]

What's up,
Thanks again Termie... I guess I was just getting caught up in the cool look of those two fans haha. I also read some reviews on tweaktown that the HIS version of this card was about 5db louder under max load (65.2db) than the MSI version (58.3db). Will I even notice the difference with my case fans going? I have my tower on top of my desk next to the monitor so I thought I might as well ask.