Which GPU upgrade for this system?

[Brian 321]

I am bottlenecking at my GPU which is a evga gtx 650 1gb. My current system is as follows

I5 3330 processor
Gigabyte h77m-d3h mother board
8gb ram
460w PSU
Evga gtx 650
1680x1050 monitor

What GPU upgrade do you guys recommend with this system?

 

[Durvelle27]

what games do you play

 

[Termie]

If you have a well-balanced system, you'll always "bottleneck" at your GPU. That's what's supposed to happen, so I think you just meant you want more performance.

A huge upgrade for you would be something like the 650 Ti Boost or 660. Both will be about 2-3x as fast as the 650, which really isn't a true gaming video card.

 

[Eureka]

What's your price range and desired performance? GTX 660 or Radeon 7870 have both had excellent perf/price ratios, and if you have a bit more money 7950s or a used 670 are cheap.

 

[Brian 321]

Well right now I play skyrim, farcry 3, metro 2033. And yes I do want more performance because I get an occasional stutter while playing games. My price range is about $400 maybe $450 tops.

 

[Durvelle27]

Well right now I play skyrim, farcry 3, metro 2033. And yes I do want more performance because I get an occasional stutter while playing games. My price range is about $400 maybe $450 tops.

welp heres your choices


GIGABYTE GV-N770OC-2GD GeForce GTX 770
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16814125463

SAPPHIRE Vapor-X 100351VXSR Radeon HD 7970 GHz Edition 3GB
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16814202001

GIGABYTE GV-N670OC-2GD GeForce GTX 670 2GB
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16814125423

 

[Brian 321]

Do you guys think the evga gtx 660 ti would be good for my system? And more importantly would that work with my power supply?

 

[Eureka]

It wouldn't be bad, but I'd go for a 670 for the prices that 660 Tis tend to command.

Unless you can get a 660Ti at the lower $200s, you might be better off looking for a cheap 670.

 

[Brian 321]

Would my 460w PSU be enough for my system with a 670 GPU?

 

[Eureka]

You'll be fine. An i5 non-OC + a 670 OC should draw somewhere in the range of 300-350W.

 

[Brian 321]

You'll be fine. An i5 non-OC + a 670 OC should draw somewhere in the range of 300-350W.

Thank you!

 

[toyota]

a 660ti is great for you setup but i would not get one unless you can find a really good deal. the 760ti will be a rebrand of the 670 and should be around 300 bucks so that might be an option if you want to wait a couple weeks.

if you want a slightly used 660ti then I could sell you mine next week if I decide to go with the 770.

 

[Enigmoid]

With your resolution and CPU (770 will be cpu bottlenecked in titles unless you overclock which you really can't) its not worth going over $300. Highly suggest a 660 ti ot 7870/7870XT and use the money to buy a 1080p monitor.

Anything higher is real overkill for 1050 x 1680.

 

[Brian 321]

Do you guys think a 2gb one will be ok if I like to mod games or should I get a 3gb+ card?

 

[toyota]

Do you guys think a 2gb one will be ok if I like to mod games or should I get a 3gb+ card?

for a 660, 2gb is fine at 1080 unless you have some insane texture mods. for all other cases the 3gb card would be a waste and could actually end up slower by a wee bit in some rare cases.

 

[Kenmitch]

Would my 460w PSU be enough for my system with a 670 GPU?

On paper it sounds like it....But not all power supplies are created equal.

What brand/model is your power supply?

 

[Brian 321]

for a 660, 2gb is fine at 1080 unless you have some insane texture mods. for all other cases the 3gb card would be a waste and could actually end up slower by a wee bit in some rare cases.

Well I plan on doing a lot of texture mods for Skyrim(what im playing now) and when I am done with that game I would add texture mods for what ever game I play next. I mainly like texture mods because it makes the game look better while not taking fun away from the game by making it to easy like a lot of other mods do.

On paper it sounds like it....But not all power supplies are created equal.

What brand/model is your power supply?

I have a cooler master elite power 460W PSU. Im pretty sure this is not the best as that's what the guy recommended from a small computer shop by my house before I knew about microcenter.

 

[Termie]

Given your CPU and your PSU, I'd strongly recommend you go with an HD7850 or GTX660. Either will be a huge upgrade from what you have, and the 2GB of VRAM will help with your texture mods.

Ideally, you'd get a 3GB card, but they are beyond the capacity of your PSU. I would not trust that model with a molex-to-PCIe power adapter hooked up to a high power-draw card like the 7950, or even the 660Ti, both of which could be bottlenecked on your CPU in many situations anyway. Here's Skyrim on a GTX680 with a variety of processors: http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/gaming-processor-frame-rate-performance,3427-6.html

Yours would be near the top, but even so, I wouldn't drop $300 of GPU into it.

 

[Brian 321]

Given your CPU and your PSU, I'd strongly recommend you go with an HD7850 or GTX660. Either will be a huge upgrade from what you have, and the 2GB of VRAM will help with your texture mods.

Ideally, you'd get a 3GB card, but they are beyond the capacity of your PSU. I would not trust that model with a molex-to-PCIe power adapter hooked up to a high power-draw card like the 7950, or even the 660Ti, both of which could be bottlenecked on your CPU in many situations anyway. Here's Skyrim on a GTX680 with a variety of processors: http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/gaming-processor-frame-rate-performance,3427-6.html

Yours would be near the top, but even so, I wouldn't drop $300 of GPU into it.

It's funny you say that about the 3gb version. I actually just added that to my cart but figured I would check here before I bought it. So you don't think my PSU can handle a 660ti 3gb? Or do you think it would be smarter and/or better just to go with a 660 3gb?

I actually ran some more test and was get about 15-20 fps in metro last light and in skyrim it actually went down to about 0-5 a couple times. The last thing I want to do is buy another GPU and still have horrible frame rate drops( I know some games have them anyways) and stutter like I do now.

 

[Termie]

It's funny you say that about the 3gb version. I actually just added that to my cart but figured I would check here before I bought it. So you don't think my PSU can handle a 660ti 3gb? Or do you think it would be smarter and/or better just to go with a 660 3gb?

I actually ran some more test and was get about 15-20 fps in metro last light and in skyrim it actually went down to about 0-5 a couple times. The last thing I want to do is buy another GPU and still have horrible frame rate drops( I know some games have them anyways) and stutter like I do now.

Your video card isn't a real gaming card. A GTX660 would have no trouble with Skyrim, but the 3GB versions are too expensive: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...CE&PageSize=20

Your PSU is pretty weak. It's a dual 12v setup with a combined 324W, or 27 amps on the 12V rail. That's the equivalent of a 350W PSU. It's incredibly over-rated.

I simply would NOT run a GTX660 Ti and a quad-core CPU off that PSU. Link to PSU: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...irtualParent=1

If you really want a higher-end card like the 660Ti or HD7950, I'd invest in a new PSU. This Corsair 500W unit for $30AR would do the trick: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16817139027

With 38 amps on the 12V rail, it has 40% more capacity than your PSU, despite having nearly the same Watt rating.

 

[Brian 321]

I think I will just go with a 660 superclocked 2gb. I just want the best and know I need to completely upgrade everything to get it. Maybe I will next year. But for now I hope you guys are right and I get a lot better performance from the 660.