My Friend Wants a New Graphics Card

[Danielzxzx]

My friend wants to get a new graphics card but he doesn't know what graphics card will work for what his computer currently has.

This is his specs:

Operating System
Microsoft Windows 7 Professional 32-bit

CPU
Intel Pentium E6600 @ 3.06GHz 66 °C
Wolfdale 45nm Technology

RAM
2.00GB Single-Channel DDR3 @ 533MHz (7-7-7-20)

Motherboard
Hewlett-Packard 1489 (XU1 PROCESSOR) 53 °C

Graphics
Generic PnP Monitor (1920x1080@60Hz)
Intel Q45/Q43 Express Chipset (HP)
Intel Q45/Q43 Express Chipset (HP)

Hard Drives
233GB Seagate ST3250318AS (SATA) 48 °C

Optical Drives
hp DVDRAM GT30L
DTSOFT Virtual CdRom Device

Audio
Realtek High Definition Audio


He told me he is able to spend up to $5000.

Can someone tell me a good graphics card for my friend?

 

[kbrady1979]

Is that suppose to be $500 or $5000?

 

[Danielzxzx]

He told me $5000. So I guess if there is anything else you think he could upgrade as well you can let me know.

 

[kbrady1979]

5000 dollars?

 

[Solarstarshines]

Honestly if he is going to spend $5000.00 then he should just wait till the Haswell comes out because that is more then enough to put together a super sick system why even bother with those old specs when $5000.00 limit can do so much not just a gpu

 

[kbrady1979]

Yeah, that was what I was getting at.....if it's $5000 build a completely new system. It doesn't have to cost $5000 either lol

 

[Solarstarshines]

Check out this Bundle your friend can have

ASUS SABERTOOTH Z77 LGA 1155 Z77 ATX Intel Motherboard 392787 - Micro Center

Micro Center - Computers, Electronics, Computer Parts, Networking, Gaming, Software, and more!

Intel 520 Series 180GB SATA 6.0Gb/s 2.5" Internal Solid State Drive (SSD) 249540 - Micro Center)

Seagate Barracuda EP 3TB 7,200RPM SATA 6.0Gbps 3.5" Internal Hard Drive STBD3000100 STBD3000100 - Micro Center

Corsair Vengeance 16GB DDR3-1866 (PC3-15000) CL9 Quad Channel Desktop Memory Kit (Four 4GB Memory Modules) Z16GX3M4X1866C9 - Micro Center)


Antec Kuhler H2O 920 Water Cooling System 77086 - Micro Center


Corsair Enthusiast Series TX750M 750 Watt High Performance Modular ATX Power Supply CP-9020003-NA - Micro Center


Corsair Graphite Series 600T Mid Tower ATX Gaming Computer Case CC-9011020-WW - Micro Center

LG 24x Super Multi Internal SATA DVDRW DL Drive - Bare Drive 207530 - Micro Center

Gigabyte GV-N66TOC-2GD NVIDIA GeForce GTX 660 Ti 2048MB GDDR5 PCIe 3.0 x16 Video Card GV-N66TOC-2GD - Micro Center

you could get all this for that much as posted I even included the win 7 64bit sp1 OEM way less then $5000.00 unless he wants to build you one too this is just an example im sure others will suggest there takes on parts

 

[essenbe]

For $5000 he could build almost any type computer he wanted. I wouldn't waste my money on buying a real fast Graphics card on his current system. His CPU would probably throttle it. Plus he is apparently running an HP system and his PSU is not capable of a high end graphics card. For that money, he could build a system similar to what Solar suggested (although I would suggest a few different parts) but nothing major. He could even build a 2011 rig with that money. At the bottom of this post, look at my system specs. I have much less than $5000 in this system. He could build Solar's system with 2 670's for half what he wants to spend.

I think right now, if I had that type money to spend on a computer, I would build a 2011 rig.
i7-3930K
Asus rampage IV or Asus sabertooth
16GB DDR3 1866
Samsung 840 Pro 256GB or OCZ Vector 256Gb
Corsair AX860i
EVGA GTX 670 X2

Most of the rest is what you want or like. A lot less than $5000

 

[kbrady1979]

If your friend doesn't want to wait until Haswell comes out, I would go with an Ivy Bridge build similar to the one Solarstarshines listed above. All of the following parts get the nod from me.

MOTHERBOARD: Asus Z77 Sabertooth, or any of the RoG motherboards. I have the Sabertooth and it is phenomenal in my opinion.

CPU: Intel Core i5-3570K or Intel Core i7-3770K. The i5 doesn't support Hyperthreading, the i7 does.

RAM: Corsair Vengeance 16GB Kit @ 1600/1866MHz. Preferably lower latency

SSD: Samsung 840 Pro 256GB or OCZ Vector 256GB. It's a toss-up, I prefer Samsung, but the Vector is outstanding as well.

HDD: This is subjective. How much space does he need? I just got 3x4TB Seagate HDD for storage @ $149.99 each. The best value right now is the Seagate 2TB/3TB HDD.

PSU: Either the SeaSonic X series Gold, or Corsair AX series. The 650-750 Watt model will do.

CPU Cooler: Definitely go with a closed loop water cooler. For an Ivy Bridge chip, a 120/140mm Radiator will be plenty. The case will dictate what size you go with. For 140mm the NZXT Kraken X40 is probably your best performer. 120mm either go with an Antec 920, Intel, or Corsair...they basically perform the same to be honest.

CASE: Also subjective. I have been recommending the Fractal Design Arc Midi R2 because of the price and the slew of options and perks. Hard case to beat. If you go with this case, get the 140mm Water Cooler. Corsair also makes some damn fine cases as well.

Optical Drive: None, unless your friend just HAS to have one.

GPU: Depends on how much performance he wants. The Nvidia GTX 670 is a really good deal now, and the GTX 660Ti has always been a proven performer.

Also factor in a copy of Windows 7 or whatever else he might want to use, and monitor(s) and other peripherals. All of this can be had for a fraction of the $5000 he has to spend.

 

[essenbe]

Good choices Kelly. But, why not 2 670's. He'll still have half of his money left.

 

[kbrady1979]

It's subjective. "Depends on how much performance he wants"....he can get 2 or 3 or a sackful of them. If you can catch them on sale, 2 of the 3GB GTX 660Ti's will outperform a high-end 680(and cost a bit less) according to benchmarks, so 2x670's would perform that much better. Plus, I was talking Star Wars and Harry Potter with my daughter when I was typing that, so I may have forgot to mention dual/triple GPU setups lol! He could also get a GTX 780 when they are available, if he wants.

 

[Solarstarshines]

It's subjective. "Depends on how much performance he wants"....he can get 2 or 3 or a sackful of them. If you can catch them on sale, 2 of the 3GB GTX 660Ti's will outperform a high-end 680(and cost a bit less) according to benchmarks, so 2x670's would perform that much better. Plus, I was talking Star Wars and Harry Potter with my daughter when I was typing that, so I may have forgot to mention dual/triple GPU setups lol! He could also get a GTX 780 when they are available, if he wants.

I don't know this guy was here for a while now he is gone I think he is Trolling I mean information is golden but damn for $5000.00 I would be looking for top of the line everything he has enough to cover it why not but like above the op was here never said a word after all the suggestions

 

[kbrady1979]

If he needed a 5 grand computer, that's one thing, but he can get an extremely high end system and keep $2500 in the bank.

 

[Dude]

That is true Kelly, you can build a great system for less than 5G, top of the line everything.

 

[kbrady1979]

Of course, if he DID want a $5000 PC...........that would be fun to put together. I'm just thinking about the epic NAS I could put together with that budget!

 

[essenbe]

You could probably spend that much on a system at Dell or HP, but for a very top of the line system, I think any of us could build a killer system for much less than what the OP was talking about. And end up with a much better system. I was just thinking about it. I would have to actually think hard to spend that much on a system. Maybe 3 690's?

 

[kbrady1979]

Intel i7-3970X: $1030
Asus X79 Sabertooth: $329
Corsair Dominator Platinum 64GB Kit: $900
2x Nvidia GTX Titans: $2040

Tis a good start lol

 

[essenbe]

OK, guys. I went to Dell Alienware and "built" a $5000 system Anyone think he could do one better cheaper?

 

[DocBrown]

I wonder if I can weld two RaidMax Viper cases together, with two Gigabyte GA-990-FXA-UD5 AM3+ motherboards. Then Two AMD FX-8350 CPU's w/64gb memory, etc, etc, etc. That might get near $5k.

 

[essenbe]

Doc, You could do the cases, but I doubt you could get the 2 CPU's to work together. Maybe just get a server board?