Graphics for new PC

CIB3R

Good afternoon,

I am setting up a new PC and I am having trouble with the graphics card: I do not know which one to choose between several models.

Please note that I have a 700w power supply, 80 plus and PFC: TACENS Power Supplies

Possibilities I have looked at via tomshardware: Best Graphics Cards For The Money: July 2012 : Best Graphics Cards For The Money, July Updates

Sapphire Radeon HD 7770 1GB GDDR5 11201-00-20G Graphics Card
http://www.pccomponentes.com/sapphire_radeon_hd_6870_1gb_gddr5.html
Gigabyte GeForce GTX 560 Ti OC 1024MB GDDR5 GV-N560OC-1GI Graphics Card

I have a maximum budget of 200€. I know that the Gigabyte is over that but I have reviewed the features and I do not really see that it is very different from the ATI ones, in fact, I have seen that the ATI ones are better in some aspects.

Suggestions? Another model to consider?

As additional information: The motherboard I have looked at is with the new intel chipset, the Z77, in case it serves as a reference and the processor is the i5-2500k, mainly for bottlenecks and so on.

Thanks in advance

Obione

I would wait for the revised/repaired 6850 to be back in stock or stretch the budget to go for another better Sapphire, the 7850:

Sapphire Radeon HD 6850 1GB GDDR5 Refurbished 11180-99-90R Graphics Card

Sapphire Radeon HD 7850 Dual-X 2GB GDDR5 11200-07-20G Graphics Card

CIB3R

Hello Obione,

Thanks. If we are going to stretch the budget, is there anything on the horizon that is going to arrive and better, that I can go over that price or with the 7850 I will be "overkill"?

Best regards.

Obione

You could say that you would go "overkill". There will always be 4 or 5 demanding games that you can't max out but there's a card for a while there. The GTX 660 is coming but it will cost around €300, if the 7870 could go down a bit but it will be more than €250.

CIB3R

Well, right now I have a GTS 250, I think I'll notice any changes xD

Well, I'll give it one last thought to what I had in mind plus what you tell me and see which one I decide on.

Thank you very much

Obione

Man, I jump to the 6850 there but the 250 is a card that already allows you to indulge in vices and personally I am in favor of taking leaps, not patching. I mean, if you get a 2500K that can handle whatever you throw at it, if you're going to take a notable leap I would go for the 7850. What you could do is go for a P67 quality/price under 100 euros, that in this platform 90% depends on the micro you get and see how far the 2500K goes.

CIB3R

It's just that the P67 from the same range as the Z77 from Asrock (which is the one I've looked at) is more expensive and anyway, I'll get one that's compatible with Ivy Bridge and I think the P67 isn't.

Well, although this is complicated, I would already get the graphics card to last for a while.

And about the 250, yes, it pulls well but in certain games I notice that it lacks a bit of pull, maybe it's the micro (Q6600), I'm not 100% sure.

Obione

If you get a 2500K it's silly to change it, if they have more expensive P67s it's because they don't have much of a catalog. With the Z77 you have the native USB and PCIe 3 that you won't use with the 2500K, and which I also think are dispensable. The IBs seem like a bit of a mess to me and a joke, they get pretty hot because Intel has messed up by saving on something important, the dissipation.

CIB3R

This is what they have Intel Socket 1155 Motherboard sale Online Store

Is this perhaps ASRock P67 Extreme4 Gen3 90-MXGJN0-A0UAYZ Motherboard?

Obione

The P67 Pro3 is a good motherboard, I already told you that 90% of the OC is the micro's thing as long as you have a decent P67 or higher.

CIB3R

This is what I have decided, I think it's a good machine for "little money":

Seagate Barracuda 7200.14 2TB SATA3 64MB
Crucial M4 128GB SSD SATA3
Intel Core I5 2500K 3.3Ghz Box Socket 1155
G.Skill Ripjaws X DDR3 1600 PC3-12800 8GB 2x4GB CL9
ASRock P67 Pro3 B3
Cooler Master Hyper 212 EVO
Sapphire Radeon HD 7850 Dual-X 2GB GDDR5

I am thinking about whether the power supply, wifi and sound are worth it, I will reuse them.

On pccomponentes I get everything for 796.9 without shipping costs.

I could buy between amazon and pccomponentes but I would save about 20 and a few € and I don't know if I want to mess with orders on different sites.

Regards.

Obione

It's very good, if by any chance you would change the memories for some Ares of 1333 you won't notice them and they are low profile to avoid possible problems with the heatsink.

20 and a bit euros are worth saving I think, besides on Amazon you have the premium trial with shipping on the hoof.

CIB3R

Although it's a bit much to ask but I've seen that the motherboard doesn't have firewire or sli/crossfire.

I've never used either one (do you really use firewire?) and I doubt I'll use the other but is it really necessary? With a 220€ card I think that crossfire won't be necessary... if I'm currently using a GTS 250 xD

Obione

Firewire is mainly used for professional video and audio, to connect cameras or sound cards and Crossfire if you get a good buying opportunity it can be fine but sometimes games are not well optimized and it doesn't always perform well.

CIB3R

Hello Obione,

The thing with firewire sounded familiar to me but I wasn't 100% sure about its usefulness. As for crossfire, it won't keep me up at night either, with the graphics card I'm going to get I don't think I'll need it.

On the other hand, I'm looking at the motherboard and I see that it doesn't have a front USB connector (it does have an audio one which is the one I never use) and my case has a front USB... it seems to me that I'll have to look for another model