Whats a good Video Card to play Skyrim

nckfrtg28 · 12 Feb 2012

Hey I been thinking on buying a new video card to play Skyrim. Right now I have a 8800GS and the game looks okay but I could be better. I been looking at this card over and over on newegg (Here). But I don't really know if that card is good or not. Dose anyone have that card and they can play Skyrim in high or very high settings.

My Computer:
Mother Board: Gigabyte GA-P35-S3G
CPU: Intel Pentium Dual E2180 (2.00 GHz)
Video Card: EVGA e-Geforce 8800 384MBs
Ram: 6 GBs
Hard drive: 1 TB (WG Green), 2 TB Segate

panais · 12 Feb 2012

Hi.

I can ensure you that you will not see any improvement\difference in games speed or quality.

Your CPU is "weak' and it will bottleneck the new graphic cards power.

Of course better gpu is good for gaming.

Though have in mind that,the games are benefit "mostly" from the CPU power.

So you will get a better FPS with better\stronger possessor.

Of course,not only from strong gpu,not only from strong cpu but from the total,of the system hardware.

The minimum PC requirements for Skyrim are:

Dual-core CPU, 2.0 GHz or faster
2 GB RAM
DirectX 9.0c video card with 512 MB RAM
6 GB HDD space
Windows XP/Vista/7 [32 or 64-bit]
Internet access for Steam activation

And the recommended spec for Skyrim are:

Quad-core CPU
4 GB RAM
DirectX 9.0c video card with 1 GB RAM - GTX 260/Radeon 4890 or higher
6 GB HDD space
Windows XP/Vista/7, internet access, etc.

Gornot · 12 Feb 2012

The thing is, you don't really need a bettter GPU in order to see a prettier Skyrim. Install some mods! There's a great mod that enhances the colors, it makes it much more shiny X)
I forgot the name, though. Just scour a couple of websites and you'll find it.

smarteyeball · 12 Feb 2012

nckfrtg28 said:

But I don't really know if that card is good or not. Dose anyone have that card and they can play Skyrim in high or very high settings.

CPU: Intel Pentium Dual E2180 (2.00 GHz)

The cards not really a powerhouse tbh. As far as cards go around that budget, a 6870 or a GTX560 Ti would be better.

However as Panais mentioned your CPU will be a major bottleneck. It simply won't be able to drive the card to it's full potential.

Unfortunately for smooth gameplay, very high, or even high settings is not looking good.

Another factor to consider is your Power Supply. You must ensure that you're PSU can handle a more demanding card.

sygnus21 · 13 Feb 2012

Hey smarteye how you doing? See the thread is still going strong.

Anyway you might like this - Lydia is Dead (URGENT!) - Page 4 - Steam Users' Forums

robcardiv · 13 Feb 2012

I have 150$ to spend.
I will be getting a 6870 or maybe a 6850oc. Either of these will be by more than enough to run Skyrim on very high for 150$.

i have an nvidia 9800 gt right now and it actually does a very impressive job at medium high on skyrim atm.
So like the first guy say, it may not be your Graphics card thats your problem atm.
It might be your CPU. both have to hit a certian point.

Search Youtube for "8800gs skyrim" to see how others are doing with your current card.
Then search youtube for the 6870 skyrim, or which ever other cards your interested in.

Your CPU is probably just as much of the problem, perhaps more even.

If you have 124$ to spend on a CPU and 50$ for a mobo, check out. Great CPU for the price.
Newegg.com - AMD Phenom II X4 960T Zosma 3.0GHz Socket AM3 95W Quad-Core Desktop Processor HD96ZTWFGRBOX
If you have 150 to spend on a CPU check out the AMD 970 or fx 6100.
both very great chips also.
Though if you change chips, of coarse then you need a new mobo, and have to make sure your ram and hard drive and power supply will still work.

If all you can afford is a graphics card (Its a safe place to start) but you will probably end up needing both to see a difference.

BugMeister · 13 Feb 2012

out of the two - the 6870 is the one to go for - it plays Skyrim really well..

you should first make sure your PSU can handle the power requirements,
and has the necessary connections, a 6-pin PCIe PEG connector is the one you need..

- see here:
Radeon HD 6850 & 6870 review

also, check that you have room in your case - at 10.5 inches, it's a big chunk..!!

panais · 14 Feb 2012

I have the XFX 6850 and i play Skyrim and everything else just fine in default gpu and memory clocks.

XFX 6850 is overclock friendly,thats why i bought this model.

I have it overclocked,

Core clock 775 @ 950

Memory clock 1000 @ 1150

GPU voltage 1150 @1170

With no problems,i can push more but for now is not necessary.

dreamer · 15 Feb 2012

Since we are talking about graphics cards & skyrim here,i was completely amazed that on integrated Intel HD graphics card Skyrim is working without any visible lag and display quality is set to high.

Does integrated graphics card uses a part of system RAM for its own RAM needs?

Richardc269 · 15 Feb 2012

I suggest getting at least a GTS250 or higher if you're going for Nvidia Video cards. I have a GTS250 and it played the game fine for me (or at least as little as I played Skyrim).