Graphics Card Upgrade help please

johnc24

Hi all

A while back I completed a SB with the help of a lot of people from boards.ie

This is my current system

CM Storm Scout
MSI P55-G65
LG Optical Drive
Samsung HD103SJ 1TB *2
Intel Core i5 750
Kingston 6GB DDR3 1066MHz i5 Memory Module CL7*2
Scythe Heatsink
Radeon HD 4670.

I want to upgrade my graphics card to start playing some games. (ie FSX MW3 etc ) I won't be a huge gamer but I would like a very decent card.

Can anyone recommend one that will tie in with my current configuration?

Also to avail of the PhsyX engine that Nvidia offer - would I be able to put an Nvidia card inside my rig?

Thanks a million everyone and a Happy New Year to you.

Tea_Bag

what's your budget and psu?

johnc24

Hi Tea bag

The budget will be in around €200-€300 - a little more is possible.

I think its a Corsair 650W

I tried to double check with Sisoft Sandra but I cannot seem to crosscheck it.

But I'm pretty certain its a 650W corsair.

Thanks

Serephucus

http://www.dabs.ie/products/gainward-geforce-gtx-570-1280mb-pci-express-hdmi-golden-sample-7T6T.html?src=3

That's probably the best card at your budget, unless you want to look at second-hand cards.

Honestly though, I'd wait a couple of weeks for more of the 7000 series from AMD to be released. If nothing else, it'll drive down the cost of current cards.

ShadowHearth

Serephucus wrote: »

http://www.dabs.ie/products/gainward-geforce-gtx-570-1280mb-pci-express-hdmi-golden-sample-7T6T.html?src=3

That's probably the best card at your budget, unless you want to look at second-hand cards.

Honestly though, I'd wait a couple of weeks for more of the 7000 series from AMD to be released. If nothing else, it'll drive down the cost of current cards.

They will release Only high end 7 series now. For 7850/7870 we might wait till February.

The 570 sounds good though.

Serephucus

*shrug*

Assuming he can wait the few weeks, I would. This close to a generation jump and all.

johnc24

Hey folks

Thanks for the input.

I seen a GTX 550 in Currys for €220.

Would this be recommended or should I wait.

Is it a fair price or should I start searching online?

Serephucus

€220 you say? Yeah, that's not a bad price.

Oh, except for this.

johnc24

Serephucus wrote: »

€220 you say? Yeah, that's not a bad price.

Oh, except for this.

Wowsers!! My boards people have rescued me again.

Ok I want to try nvidia this time around.

I have been looking at the GTX 570 that you recommend. But I have MSI, PNY, GAINWARD and GIGABYTE. What differentiates these cards?

What are the main numbers I should be looking at? Aside from the usual YouTube searches and such.

Thanks again for your help!!

PS I note you have some very tasty kit going on - If you were to upgrade my rig what would you do? ( I play games occasionally, photoshop, surfing,movies), not mind blowing stuff but I just like to know I have the reserves if you know what I mean..

Serephucus

If you're interested in the future at looking at a third-party air cooler, or watercooling, you'll want to look at a reference design card - basically, nothing with a fancy cooler on it, just the "plain" one.

As regards manufacturers it pretty much comes down to a couple of things:

Warranty - Self explanatory. Some have two year, some three, some ten, some lifetime. Some cover different things (see below)
Cooler - Does it use the reference one, or a (usually better, and quieter) custom-designed type.
Clocks - Does it come at stock speed, or overclocked? Personally, I wouldn't bother with this as you can OC it yourself very easily.
PCB - Usually tied to the cooler. Only really important if you're looking at coolers/water blocks in the future.
Connections - Custom cards can come with different types - DVI, HDMI, DP, etc.

That's pretty much it. In my mind, all of them are more-or-less equal, with the exception being EVGA, because they actually cover air coolers and water blocks in their warranty. Makes a nice change, not having to lie when RMAing a card you've OCed too far.

I'm an NVIDIA guy myself, but I'd think about AMD's offerings this round as well. The 7970 just came out and looks amazing. Though it's out of your price-range, the 7950 should be coming out around February, and might be something to look at.

johnc24

@Serephucus

What do you think of this model yourself?

http://www.scan.co.uk/products/1280mb-evga-gtx-570-hd-superclocked-40nm-3900mhz-gddr5-gpu-797mhz-shader-1594mhz-480-cores-plusfree-#ProductFeatures

ShadowHearth

johnc24 wrote: »

@Serephucus

What do you think of this model yourself?

http://www.scan.co.uk/products/1280mb-evga-gtx-570-hd-superclocked-40nm-3900mhz-gddr5-gpu-797mhz-shader-1594mhz-480-cores-plusfree-#ProductFeatures

i got this one myself

http://www.scan.co.uk/products/31280mb-asus-gtx-570-directcu-ii-40nm-3800mhz-gddr5-gpu-742mhz-480-cores-2x-dl-dvi-i-dp-hdmi

its a 3 slot card, but it has a very good cooler. It has voltage limiter turned off and way cheaper then the one you linked. i oced my one to 842mhz with no problems. Max temp after a full load ( playing BF3 fir hours ) was 56 degrees. its prety damn good with overclock.

unfortunatly these are out of stock atm, but well worth it.

johnc24

ShadowHearth wrote: »

i got this one myself

http://www.scan.co.uk/products/31280mb-asus-gtx-570-directcu-ii-40nm-3800mhz-gddr5-gpu-742mhz-480-cores-2x-dl-dvi-i-dp-hdmi

its a 3 slot card, but it has a very good cooler. It has voltage limiter turned and way cheaper then the one you linked. i oced my one to 842mhz with no problems. Max temp after a full load ( playing BF3 fir hours ) was 56 degrees. its prety damn good with overclock.

unfortunatly these are out of stock atm, but well worth it.

Its Huge!!

Will that fit on my MSI P55-G65??? Looks tasty mind you...

ShadowHearth

johnc24 wrote: »

Its Huge!!

Will that fit on my MSI P55-G65??? Looks tasty mind you...

by the looks of it your sata are going in to the side, not up, so those wont be in a way.

should fit in like a boss.