Good Graphics Card

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Roy Mustang wrote on 2011-06-15 12:01

Recently I just got paid and have enough to pay for rent and my bills and stuff with an extra $300 or $400 to spend.

I'm looking for a graphics card under $200 that's half way decent though.

I have a Dell XPS Desktop Computer with PCI Express slot btw.

I was looking at the ATI-Raedon one that Best Buy has for $169.99.

Should I get that one, or do you guys recommend something else?
Sapphireoath wrote on 2011-06-15 12:25

What ATI is it? Can't really help if we don't know the exact card it is ;(

Edit: If you mean http://www.bestbuy.com/site/XFX+-+ATI+Radeon+HD+6770+1GB+DDR5+PCI+Express+2.1+Graphics+Card/2293037.p?id=1218320074686&skuId=2293037&st=ATI&cp=1&lp=3

Thats a pretty good choice if your on a budget of less than $200 (USD). Just make sure you don't have a monitor that is VGA only. Because this only has HDMI and DVI. If you do, you can get a VGA to DVI adapter (I had to for my 6970)
As its $200 or less, I'd go for that. Seems to be the best for the price your paying.
Roy Mustang wrote on 2011-06-15 12:30

Quote from Sapphireoath;480399:
What ATI is it? Can't really help if we don't know the exact card it is ;(

Sorry, had to cut my post short as I had to head out for work.

XFX - ATI Radeon HD 6770 1GB DDR5 PCI Express 2.1 Graphics Card

here: http://www.bestbuy.com/site/XFX+-+ATI+Radeon+HD+6770+1GB+DDR5+PCI+Express+2.1+Graphics+Card/2293037.p?id=1218320074686&skuId=2293037

I have windows 7, a i5 core processor, and 6GB of ram if that helps any.
Sapphireoath wrote on 2011-06-15 12:37

Oh almost forgot, do you happen to know how many watts your Power Supply (PSU) has? If its too low, your card won't get enough power supplied to it.
Also, I found this: http://www.bestbuy.com/site/Asus+-+Radeon+HD+6850+1GB+GDDR5+PCI+Express+2.1+Graphics+Card/2193214.p?id=1218313321197&skuId=2193214
Its $199.99, so exactly on the $200 mark pretty much. Newer model then the one your looking at, and ASUS isn't a bad brand imo.
Sapphire is a good brand as well, but they are over your budget ;( (Overclock editions)
Roy Mustang wrote on 2011-06-15 12:45

Quote from Sapphireoath;480409:
Oh almost forgot, do you happen to know how many watts your Power Supply (PSU) has? If its too low, your card won't get enough power supplied to it.
Also, I found this: http://www.bestbuy.com/site/Asus+-+Radeon+HD+6850+1GB+GDDR5+PCI+Express+2.1+Graphics+Card/2193214.p?id=1218313321197&skuId=2193214
Its $199.99, so exactly on the $200 mark pretty much. Newer model then the one your looking at, and ASUS isn't a bad brand imo.
Sapphire is a good brand as well, but they are over your budget ;( (Overclock editions)

I hadn't thought about Power Supply. I'm at work right now so I can't check right now. What's the easiest way to find that out btw?

Is it easy to install btw? I know how to open my case, figured that out this morning. I know where the slot is. Do I just slap it in or is there special things I have to do?
RebeccaBlack wrote on 2011-06-15 13:03

Quote from kingofrunes;480415:
I hadn't thought about Power Supply. I'm at work right now so I can't check right now. What's the easiest way to find that out btw?

Is it easy to install btw? I know how to open my case, figured that out this morning. I know where the slot is. Do I just slap it in or is there special things I have to do?

(For the GPU) Yes, you just slide it into the slot and Windows should automatically grab some drivers for it when you start up your computer. But even if it doesn't, there will probably be a CD that comes in the box.

Reading that over again, I wasn't sure if you were talking about the power supply (PSU) or graphics card (GPU), but what I wrote is for GPUs.

As for the power supply... I'm not sure how to find that off the top of my head. I always just remembered mine. I could certainly locate it inside the case, but that won't help much in terms of finding what kind of PSU it is.
Roy Mustang wrote on 2011-06-15 13:09

Quote from RebeccaBlack;480424:
(For the GPU) Yes, you just slide it into the slot and Windows should automatically grab some drivers for it when you start up your computer. But even if it doesn't, there will probably be a CD that comes in the box.

Reading that over again, I wasn't sure if you were talking about the power supply (PSU) or graphics card (GPU), but what I wrote is for GPUs.

As for the power supply... I'm not sure how to find that off the top of my head. I always just remembered mine. I could certainly locate it inside the case, but that won't help much in terms of finding what kind of PSU it is.

Ya I was talking about the GPU there so you answered that properly.

If you find a way to easily discover the power supply watts, do let me know.
Halfslashed wrote on 2011-06-15 13:14

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814150506

Will run most games on max settings with AA, under 200, comes with a free game, decent warranty, semi-low power consumption, low heat.

Yeah, get it.

As for finding out wattage, look up the full product number for your desktop then Google it and see what you find.
TA wrote on 2011-06-15 13:40

This is what I have: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814130634&cm_re=560_ti-_-14-130-634-_-Product

It's a little over the price you said, but it's a good card.

I never use ATI cards.

Though I should also say, I don't particularly agree that Sapphire is a good brand. eVGA however, is a good brand. They have very good warranties.

You do need to find out if your PSU is powerful enough to handle a big card like this though. Usually if you open up your case it should say in plain sight what it is. It's the big box inside your case, usually at the top corner where all the big power cables connect and run from.
Roy Mustang wrote on 2011-06-15 14:20

Quote from TA;480453:
This is what I have: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814130634&cm_re=560_ti-_-14-130-634-_-Product

It's a little over the price you said, but it's a good card.

I never use ATI cards.

Though I should also say, I don't particularly agree that Sapphire is a good brand. eVGA however, is a good brand. They have very good warranties.

You do need to find out if your PSU is powerful enough to handle a big card like this though. Usually if you open up your case it should say in plain sight what it is. It's the big box inside your case, usually at the top corner where all the big power cables connect and run from.

K I'll take a look tonight and get back to you all on this. I'll do this first before taking in your guys suggestions and update you on the specs so you can give me further advice.

UPDATE: 460Watts is what my Power Supply is. Now you guys can give better suggestions. Do the suggestions you guys previously mentioned work or do I need a lower graphics card? Thanks!
Yoorah wrote on 2011-06-19 00:02

For a guide on the best cards at various price points, look here.

TL;DR: At your price point, the AMD Radeon HD 6850 or 6870 may be the cards for you.

But is it a pre-built system? If so, is the case big enough to house a decent sized graphics card? o_o

The GeForce 560 Ti is a decent card, but as the guide says, it's priced too close to the superior Radeon 6950. It is also much less power efficient, which could be an issue in your case, as your power supply is pretty weak. It should probably be ok with AMD's 6850/6870 cards, however.
Sapphireoath wrote on 2011-06-19 01:01

The last one I suggested needs a "500 Watt or greater power supply recommended." The one that TA suggested also needs 500 watts or greater
One your originally looking at only requires 450 Watts or greater, as you already have 460 watts. It might be a good choice if you don't want to spend more $$$ (not sure what PSU prices are like in the US). As a lot of the parts are made in Japan, PSU prices "might" go up.
Yoorah wrote on 2011-06-19 03:06

If you're gonna try to correct me, do make sure you double check your facts so that you don't mislead others in the process. :(

The power supply recommendations on product pages are not reliable numbers; they are grossly inflated to cover various setups. Generally, it is a good idea to follow them, but if you have a good quality PSU that delivers what it's supposed to, then you can go slightly above and be fine.

If you want to compare the power consumption of two different cards, you have to look at, well, actual power consumption:

[Image: http://img690.imageshack.us/img690/6369/gpus.png]

Taken from AnandTech's analysis of the 560 Ti. (I added the arrows to make it more clear.)

Feel free to calculate the difference in power requirements yourself. xd
Roy Mustang wrote on 2011-06-19 11:15

Hey guys as an update. I went with Alex's suggestion on Skype and bought an

Asus - ATI Raedon 5770 Graphics Card AND a 600 Watt PSU and both are performing EXCEPTIONALLY well.

Vindictus is cranked up to the highest settings at an amazing 60fps rate.

Yes it was premade. So I spent $300. Slightly more than I was aiming for but I figured the PSU upgrade was an essential one.
Yoorah wrote on 2011-06-19 19:45

Err... >_>...
The 5770 is a nice card (it's what I use) but why did you buy a new 600W PSU for it? Unless there's an important reason or circumstance for doing so that you didn't mention, it's a pretty dumb move. D: Test the 5770 with your old PSU--it should work just as well. If it does, see if you can return the new PSU for a refund.

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