Solved Help choosing a graphics card?

[JaidynM]

Woah, so many different ones to choose from. Thanks a bunch Fumz. So what would you reccomend for both performance and visual effects? Or is that last one (NVIDIA EVGA GTS 450) the best? I also see you use a NVIDIA EVGA GTS 570 so if your one is good, the 450 should be pretty good too...

 

[Fumz]

Well, for visual effects the fact that ATI/AMD can't do Ambient Occlusions makes the decision really simple: nVidia. I'd also recommend tossing out a bit more coin on this one; the gpu is not an area you want to short yourself: Newegg.com - EVGA 01G-P3-1556-KR GeForce GTX 550 Ti (Fermi) FPB 1GB 192-bit GDDR5 PCI Express 2.0 x16 HDCP Ready SLI Support Video Card

 

[JaidynM]

Well, I might be able to go for that video card. The money problem comes from the fact that I'm not legally old enough to get a job. I did a paper run for a few weeks before I realised that it took up too much of my time and I came home with an aching body. :/ Anyway would that video card (GTX 550) be compatible with my computer? And is 1GB enough? And this card seems pretty similar to yours. 550 and 570, can't be that much different. Is your 570 doing well without any problems?

 

[Fumz]

This one is faster, same price. Newegg.com - EVGA 01G-P3-1366-TR GeForce GTX 460 SE (Fermi) 1GB 256-bit GDDR5 PCI Express 2.0 x16 HDCP Ready SLI Support Video Card

Unfortunately, the 550 and the 570 aren't in the same class. Performance is nowhere near each other. They're the same basic architecture, but that's about it.

Also, don't let me make your choice... or anyone. Take the cards we toss up and read reviews on them. See which one is just right for the type of games you play.

 

[JaidynM]

Damn, thought the model number was part of it. Anyway, thanks for all of your help. I really appreciate it. How much rep are we allowed to give 'per help' or is it just one? By the way, would you mind if I messaged you before I actually buy one? Your approval would really set my mind at ease. Once again, thanks for all of your help.

 

[Fumz]

Sure, no problem... and you're welcome.

 

[Brink]

Hi,

I took your advice and made a thread about my graphics card. I've found one that is apparently decent but no one seems to know whether it is compatible (or fits), into my computer. So, would you know whether this card would work alright with my computer?

Thanks,
Jaidyn

Hello Jaidyn,


Looking at the requirements at EVGA for this card below.....

• DVI-I, DVI-I, Mini-HDMI video connection
• PCI-E 2.0 16x
• Minimum of a 450 Watt power supply.
  • Minimum recommended power supply with +12 Volt current rating of 24 Amps.
  • Two available 6-pin PCI-E power dongles

Items to check:

You'll have to have a PCI-E x16 slot on your motherboard.

Your PSU has enough power, but does it have two 6-pin PCI-E power cables to connect to the graphics card?

Your 19" HP L1906 monitor only has a D-Sub analog VGA video input. You will need a DVI to VGA adapter to be able to connect the DVI port on the graphics card to the VGA port on the monitor.

Hope this helps,
Shawn

 

[Schroff87]

OP if you want to get a decent performing graphics card you need a good power supply unit and a basic piece or even anything that says it can pump X number of watts isn't enough. I've lost a 6800GT & a 8800 GTS to bad power supplies. Stick with something which doesn't need extra power or upgrade your PSU as well.