6670 selections

[oajlu]

i am looking to buy a 6670 card today or tomorrow, but I never purchase a video card before, so I dont know what brand or spec to look for. Please give me some advices.

APPROXIMATE PURCHASE DATE: Today or tomorrow

USAGE FROM MOST TO LEAST IMPORTANT: Napoleon and Shogun 2 total war, Starcraft 2 for now, maybe Guild Wars 2 and Diablo 3 in the future.

CURRENT GPU AND POWER SUPPLY: ATI 4350 and FSP 300w (according to advice replies on my previous post, my psu should be just fine with 6670 card). My case is a mini tower with regular width.

PARTS PREFERENCES: AMD 6670

OVERCLOCKING: No

MONITOR RESOLUTION:I have a 24" with 1920x1080, and 1440x900 or 1680x1050 are fine to me.

Budget: $100

thanks

 

[renz496]

did you play on native resolution (1920x1080)? for your budget this is better to have:

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814102940

just make sure your mobo have PCI-E ver 2.0 because the card comes with PCI-E 2.1 which usually known to have compatibility problem with PCI-E ver 1.x

 

[jaguarskx]

did you play on native resolution (1920x1080)? for your budget this is better to have:

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814102940

I would not recommend a HD 6770 for a 300w power supply.

 

[renz496]

lol. i forgot that sorry .

@OP: if you don't have any plan to upgrade your PSU then it is better to get 6670. any higher than that you'll need new PSU as well.

 

[jaguarskx]

i am looking to buy a 6670 card today or tomorrow, but I never purchase a video card before, so I dont know what brand or spec to look for. Please give me some advices.

What motherboard or name brand PC and model # do you have ?

All Radeon HD 6xxx series video cards have a PCI-e 2.1 interface. Older motherboards from mid 2008 and before will likely have a PCI-e 1.x slot. Some people have had issues installing a PCI-e 2.1 video card into a PCI-e 1.x slot; not everyone, but enough so that it is recommended you do not purchase a PCI-e 2.1 card. Unless you do not mind trying it out and potentially pay for the return shipment if you were to buy it online.

 

[oajlu]

thanks, I have Gateway DX4820-05, it has PCI-e 2.0 interface with Intel G43 Chipset, and for PSU, I can replace it with a 370w enermax noisetank with ATX 2.0 compatible (36A on 12v)which I bought for my previous PC but I only used it for 5 months before I upgraded it to antec true power 550w.

http://support.gateway.com/s/desktop/2009/gateway/dx/dx4820/DX4820sp2.shtml

for resolution, I only want to play old games like medieval 2 total war or source engine games like L4D2 in 1920x1080, rest newer games like starcraft 2 and shogun 2 in 1600x1050.

thanks

 

[jaguarskx]

You can definitely install the HD 6670 with no issue especially if you install the 370w Enermax PSU as well.

Exactly which Enermax do you have and what CPU is in your PC? The link you provided basically states it can support up to a Core 2 Quad. You can probably buy a better video card than the HD 6670 and still be within your $100 budget.

 

[oajlu]

my cpu is Intel Q8200, with 6GB DDR3 ram (4 sticks). 1 HDD, 1 DVD RW.
The enermax PSU is Noisetaker EG374P 370W, and I find its spec on NCIX.com. Quad core wasnt existed when I bought this PSU 5 years ago, and I used it on my previous PC for 5 months. That's my main concern now...dont whether quad core need specific supprt from PSU or not.

http://ncix.com/products/?sku=11742

 

[jaguarskx]

The Enermax Noisetaker EG374P 370W actually only has 27 amps on the 12v rails. However, that is enough power for you to install a HD 6770 without any issues.

The following HD 6770 hits your $100 budget as long as you are okay with a mail in rebate. It works out to $95 for the card and $5 for shipping.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814131434

 

[jaguarskx]

Actually, I just realized you are in Canada, so I recommend the following Sapphire HD 6770. You will need to deal with a mail in rebate to bring the price down to $100 CAD, you will need to pay about $11 CAD for shipping.

http://www.newegg.ca/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814102940


The following PowerColor video card works out to $5 CAD cheaper, but it does not exhaust hot air out the back of the card. Generally not a problem, but I rather not have the heat generated by the video simply being kept inside the PC for the exhaust fan to exhaust out. Worth the extra $5 CAD in my opinion.

http://www.newegg.ca/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814131434

 

[oajlu]

thanks. Sapphire 6670 looks very good with air flow design.
I aslo find other cars with similar design

Is HIS a good brand for video card? i saw its name on passmark site, but I never heard of it.
http://www.newegg.ca/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814102935

MSI
http://www.newegg.ca/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814127586

Comparing these 3 brands, which one has generally better reputation?

thanks I really appreciate your help.

 

[jaguarskx]

The MSI seems to be able to cool bether than the Sapphire because of the larger heatsink and two fans. However, they do not exhaust hot air directly out the back of the card like the Sapphire I recommended has a solid case that does not allow air to go anywhere except out the back of the video card.

That does not mean the video cards you have chosen are bad though. I just prefer cards that exhausts air out the back.

HIS / MSI / Sapphire are all basically good brand names. You might want to take a look at which one (if any) offers a better warranty period.

 

[oajlu]

thanks, i will go to my local store tomrrow and pick up Sapphire 6670 since it has it for $90 with 10 mail in rebate this week. thanks for your help, i really appreicate.