New Gfx card (and possibly more?)

[megadave]

I need a new GFX card, mine crashes my pc when I try to play games through overheating and ive had numerous driver issues and other problems with it over the years. However my knowledge on hardware is pitiful so I don't know if i'll need to upgrade other components as well. Can anyone help plesae?

I was considering just grabbing this deal http://www.hotukdeals.com/deals/asu...-for-79-99-delivered-cclonline-1247967?page=1 chucking in an i5 and a shiny new graphics card but if its not necessary then I guess not spending the money would be better.

My current PC from 3 years back:

ASUS HD 4850 512MB DDR3 Dual DVI HDCP HDTV out PCI-E Graphics Card
Gigabyte GA-EP35-DS3L iP35 Socket 775 8 channel audio ATX Motherboard
Intel Core 2 Duo E8400 Socket 775 (3.0GHz) 1333FSB 6MB L2 Cache Retail Boxed Processor
OCZ 4GB (2x2GB) DDR2 800MHz/PC6400 Titanium Memory CL4(4-4-4-15)
Coolermaster 460W eXtreme Power Plus PSU - 20+4pin 4+4 ATX12v 4x SATA 6pin PCI-E

So can anyone advise me where to go from here? I want to hit up some diablo and BF3

 

[ECA]

I bought a bunch of 4850s for pcs a few years ago - and 3/4 cards crapped out after 18 months or so , only 1 still going strong. ( It does handle D3 though ).

That motherboard is fine, throw in an i5, a gpu and some new ram ( you can get 8gb of good ram, for cheap as chips ).

 

[megadave]

Is that much RAM worthwhile then? Also someone mentioned a 6850 for the gpu, that a good shout?

 

[cHodAX]

What res you playing at or what is the most your screen can handle?

 

[ECA]

6850 will handle whatever you throw at it pretty much, go 6870 if your budget allows or if you want a little extra.

8gb of ram is worth it if you're running windows 7 - for the price ( 50 quid or less ).

 

[megadave]

What res you playing at or what is the most your screen can handle?

Oh yeah good point, i mostly use my 32inch TV. TV+wireless mouse/keyboard+bed = win


Also while im at it. SSD; is it worth it?

Thanks for the info so far guys.

 

[cHodAX]

So 1080p? If so get a 2gb 6850 and you are set for years. The extra 1gb of memory really futureproofs that particular card for games using the Frostbite 2 engine which eat as much video memory as you can throw at it.

As for SSD, at current prices they are a definate yes, just make sure you get one with the newer version of the Sandforce controller if you want maximum performance.

 

[megadave]

The tv in this room is actually only 1080i,still worth it?I might upgrade the tv at some point anyway.

 

[cHodAX]

Yes, spending a little extra for the 2gb is worth it bud, alot more performance in newer games and more importantly you are probably adding 6-12 months extra usabilty longterm. In two years time you will be lucky to find a game that will run well at 1080p with only 1gb, all the newer engines will be looking to use 2gb and even 3gb for anything above medium detail. When you consider the extra £15 or so I think it is worth it and every system I build for people now I always always spec a 2gb card.

 

[megadave]

Whats the best manufacturer these days? XFX and Sapphire seem to be the most commonly found ones, also considering whether a 6870 would be worthwhile or not.

 

[ECA]

All the standard boards are based on reference models supplied by ati/nvidea so it really doesn't matter unless you get an OC'd one.

 

[BloodOmen]

6870 is still alright I guess, not a fan of ATI myself (despite haivng one... again) 560TI is a nice budget card aswell, friend uses it to run BF3 fine, think its only £120-140 now aswell.

 

[megadave]

Just seen the 560TI for 125 quid on hotukdeals so might get that instead

 

[Madmaxx]

I saw that earlier to was tempted myself I wanna get away from ATI.

 

[Jupitus]

BUMP!

http://www.ebuyer.com/391772-xfx-hd...dual-mini-displayport-hdmi-pci-e-hd-685x-zcfc

I'm after a budget update for my machine - is this the best deal under a ton? Ta!

 

[Litmus]

125 quid for a 560 is a steal... Go for that if its legit.

 

[Jupitus]

125 quid for a 560 is a steal... Go for that if its legit.

You mean a Gainward GTX 560 1GB GDDR5 VGA DVI HDMI PCI-E Graphics Card ? That's on there for 135 or so, but pls can you explain to me what's hot and what's not? Been out of touch recently ...

 

[Litmus]

You mean a Gainward GTX 560 1GB GDDR5 VGA DVI HDMI PCI-E Graphics Card ? That's on there for 135 or so, but pls can you explain to me what's hot and what's not? Been out of touch recently ...

No, i mean the 560ti someone mentioned

 

[Kalph]

graphics card is seriously bleh :/ GTX 560 super clocked, DDR5 (1 GB or 2 GB versions are available) and up IMO. Get the 2GB version its only like 20 or 30 bucks more from what I remember.

You should get a little bigger power supply because almost all newer or up to date graphics cards require 450 watt power supplies. Couple that with your CPU normally 50-120 watts alone. Then your fans, HDD and such and your coming up wanting.

If the draw on your power supply gets too high it can crash or randomly restart due to lack of power. Just because you have a 450 watt PSU doesn't mean that it is putting out exactly 450 watts 24/7. You know what I mean? Its better to have a little too much than not enough. I personally with any modern computer, I wouldn't go below 650 watts. Thats minimum.

Over time it can cause some excessive wear on all your hardware. Especially shutting off all the time. Can damage your HDD and CPU.

Hope that helps.

 

[Litmus]

I need a new GFX card, mine crashes my pc when I try to play games through overheating and ive had numerous driver issues and other problems with it over the years. However my knowledge on hardware is pitiful so I don't know if i'll need to upgrade other components as well. Can anyone help plesae?

I was considering just grabbing this deal http://www.hotukdeals.com/deals/asu...-for-79-99-delivered-cclonline-1247967?page=1 chucking in an i5 and a shiny new graphics card but if its not necessary then I guess not spending the money would be better.

My current PC from 3 years back:

ASUS HD 4850 512MB DDR3 Dual DVI HDCP HDTV out PCI-E Graphics Card
Gigabyte GA-EP35-DS3L iP35 Socket 775 8 channel audio ATX Motherboard
Intel Core 2 Duo E8400 Socket 775 (3.0GHz) 1333FSB 6MB L2 Cache Retail Boxed Processor
OCZ 4GB (2x2GB) DDR2 800MHz/PC6400 Titanium Memory CL4(4-4-4-15)
Coolermaster 460W eXtreme Power Plus PSU - 20+4pin 4+4 ATX12v 4x SATA 6pin PCI-E

So can anyone advise me where to go from here? I want to hit up some diablo and BF3

What's your budget? And what parts won't you need? I.e. monitor, HD etc.