video card for my grandson

[dbrons]

Hi, My son in law is bringing me a computer he got from work and asking me to set it up for my 8 year old grandson. I have seen a picture of the mb, and screenshot of the specs so I know its a Gigabyte ga-z77mx-d3h with a 2500k in it and 8 gb RAM.

I know computers but I don't use video cards so I could use some advice on what I should look for in a video card for around $100. My grandsom wants to play minecraft and any other games I can come up with.

I was a little suprised to see its an unlocked cpu as he told me it's a Dell. thanks for any suggestoions.
Dave

 

[happy medium]

I would first make sure it has a 6 pin power connector.
If not a gtx1030 should be fine for an 8 year old.

If it does have a power connector, a used gtx 950, 960, or 1050 should be great for him.

Is the gaming resolution 1080p?

 

[whm1974]

I would first make sure it has a 6 pin power connector.
If not a gtx1030 should be fine for an 8 year old.

If it does have a power connector, a used gtx 950, 960, or 1050 should be great for him.

Is the gaming resolution 1080p?

A 1050 will work without a 6 pin power connector, and that will give the OP grandson plenty of performance.

 

[Red Hawk]

I'd recommend a Geforce 1050 Ti as an entry level gaming graphics card. It will handily play anything current consoles can play. Any lower than that and it gets a little questionable.

 

[whm1974]

I'd recommend a Geforce 1050 Ti as an entry level gaming graphics card. It will handily play anything current consoles can play. Any lower than that and it gets a little questionable.

While I would agree, the OP did say ~$100. So maybe the 1050 or 1030, Or even the 560(4MB)?

 

[dbrons]

thanks everyone, I do see a 1050 for $129, so I think I'll grab that one.

 

[whm1974]

thanks everyone, I do see a 1050 for $129, so I think I'll grab that one.

You are welcome. The 1050 should have plenty of performance for older or lower spec games.

 

[Red Hawk]

While I would agree, the OP did say ~$100. So maybe the 1050 or 1030, Or even the 560(4MB)?

The 1050 would be best then, yeah. A 1030 is not quite there to match console performance.

I don't much feel like recommending the 560 with the recent shenanigans AMD has been pulling.

 

[VirtualLarry]

I've got a GTX950 2GB GDDR5 model (MSI, shorty / ITX model, single-fan, one PCI-E 6-pin required), would part with it, PM me if your GTX1050 falls through. (Both have similar performance - the draw of the GTX1050, is not requiring a power connector, so it works great in OEM machines like Dells. But if yours has a 6-pin, you can use pretty-much any mid-range dGPU.) I might have an R9 270X 2GB for sale too, dual-fan, for similar cost. Both have similar performance, I am told. (I don't game much, mostly DC. I've actually got a pair of 270X cards, but one has a failing fan.)

 

[DaveSimmons]

The PSU might be 6 years old by now so the 1050 with its low power draw is a good choice, and safer even if the PSU has a 6-pin.

 

[whm1974]

I have to ask, but how old is the OP grandson?

 

[DaveSimmons]

I have to ask, but how old is the OP grandson?

set it up for my 8 year old grandson.

A 1050 will be great for LEGO games, Minecraft, etc.

 

[XavierMace]

It would be helpful if you knew what type of games your grandson wanted to play. At 8, I was playing turn based strategy games and chess. Yeah, I was one of those kids.

 

[dbrons]

Thanks everyone and yes I see that the 1050 I saw at $129 was the 2 gb model and I figured I'd get him the better one so I ordered the 4 gb 1050 ti. I will get it Monday from Newegg:

https://www.newegg.com/Product/Prod...GA_GeForce_GTX_1050_Ti-_-14-487-291-_-Product


He's 8 and plays Minecraft and I'm sure he'll graduate to more complex games soon. I was surprised to see a 2500k in a Dell computer so I figured it's worth fixing up nice for him. I'll put in a HDD if he needs one, maybe an SSD as well.


I won’t know all he particulars of what's in it till gets here tomorrow, Saturday, but I agree that this was a good choice even if the PS has the connector. I didn't want to wait to find out as the 1050's were out of stock at Amazo, B&H and a few other places.

 

[DaveSimmons]

I'm just this weekend upgrading from an i5-2500 (non-K) in my gaming PC. The 2500K is still a good CPU for 1080p gaming.

When you open up the Dell, check the heatsink for dust and brush it off. Dust did build up on my Dell office PCs after a few years and made them run a bit louder and I assume hotter.

 

[Madpacket]

The 1050 Ti, while a bit overpriced, is probably perfect for that older PC. I'm sure he'll be happy!

 

[dbrons]

Thanks again all. I'll be getting the video card today. The PC arrived Saturday and - surprise - it's in a very small desktop case. So a full height card won't fit.. The board, cpu, and stock intel cooler are in real good shape and Windows 7 was freshly installed and runs very well on the 60gb ssd. No room for any other hard drive though so I made the decision to buy a Rosewill mini tower and grabbed a certified refurb Corsair 450 watt PS and I'll put it all together Wednesday or at least by Saturday . I've formatted a 2tb WD Black drive I have here I'll install it and I got him a set of speakers too.
Dave
https://www.amazon.com/Rosewill-Mic...keywords=rosewill+line-m+micro-atx+mini&psc=1
https://www.amazon.com/Logitech-980...ts=p_n_feature_keywords_browse-bin:2883362011

 

[DaveSimmons]

That should be an even nicer system. Good job, Santa

 

[RadiclDreamer]

A 1050 will work without a 6 pin power connector, and that will give the OP grandson plenty of performance.

I agree with this, I have young kids that play minecraft and have been a long time gamer myself. a 1050 is relatively cheap and provides performance that will let him grow a bit as his tastes grow.

There is both a 2gb and a 4gb version, the 4gb version would help a bit if he runs lots of texture mods but if not it would be wasted. You can pick this card up for about $115

https://www.amazon.com/ZOTAC-Displa...8&qid=1513793796&sr=8-3&keywords=geforce+1050

 

[nathanddrews]

I have two SFF HP machines (i5-3450 and i5-2500) with GT 1030 GPUs and they can play Destiny 2 1080p low settings around 30fps... A 1050 will be much better, great choice!

 

[dbrons]

I have two SFF HP machines (i5-3450 and i5-2500) with GT 1030 GPUs and they can play Destiny 2 1080p low settings around 30fps... A 1050 will be much better, great choice!

Thanks. Got it up and running yesterday. Wouldn't power up at first so I ran back to Fry's and returned the Corsair refurb PSU. A drag because it was modular the Thermaltake I got to replace isn't and it's tough to deal with the wiring in this case. Not really sure even if it was the PS, but got it going and all is well
https://imgur.com/a/Cly8d

 

[crazzy.heartz]

It's such an amazing feeling, to setup a loved one's PC for years of Gaming Fun !!

Do install these games :

Defense Grid

Plants vs Zombies

AGE OF Empires - Rise of Nations

Orcs Must Die

Need for speed - Most Wanted (circa 2000)

Counter Strike : Condition Zero

Battlefield 2

Flatout

You can also Split Screen with:
Left for Dead
Dungeon Defenders
Deathspank 1/2
Borderlands

 

[dbrons]

Thanks for the suggestions. And yes it was a great feeling seeing how thrilled my grandson was. I did install some games for him, Witcher 3, a Tomb Raider game, Dirt Rally, I'll look for the ones you suggest