Games have to run on Low Settings...what upgrade is needed most

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mastermoirich

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and what is the difference between
Asus AMD ATI Radeon HD 7870-DC2-2GD5 2GB Video Card Graphics Card HDMi, DP, DVI $194.00

Asus AMD Radeon HD 7870 2GB GDDR5 2DVI/HDMI/Disp​layPort PCI-Express Video Card A $303.00

 
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CaptainTom

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One is cheapest. LOL
 
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Guest

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upon further review . . (getting ready to watch some games tomorrow :lol: )

HPs usually has horrible PSUs whereas dells are much better.

the G210 uses ~25- 30 watts. under gaming conditions a 7750 uses ~45-50 watts and 7770 ~75-80 watts with a PCI power connection and both use under 20 watts idle.

a 300 watt max (not continuous) best tech may or may not handle a 7750. now since it is a HP prebuild and will have a "locked" bios, overclocking; which will increase the power consumption, is out the window.

a 350 watt PSU will be enough for either the 7750 or the 7770 but the 7770 need a PCI power connection. i would suggest the CORSAIR Builder Series CX430 V2 $44.99 $34.99 after $10.00 rebate(s)

a 500 watt PSU may be a bit much . .but that is the same price and worth highly considering.

edit: since the bios is locked= no overclocking, getting a 7850 or higher wouldn't be a great choice unless you know you will carry it over to another build.
 
songorocosongo

songorocosongo

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My brother has an HP with those specs and playing there was a sad story. We upgraded the PSU to an ULTRA 650w and I sold him my Sapphire HD 6850. Now he can max out every game at his resolution (1366x768 I think). The PSU in those HP desktops is cheap, ugly and won't live up to the task of handling a gaming graohics card.

So my recommendation is:
- Get a reliable PSU with at least 500w
- Then you upgrade your GPU to something like the HD 7770
 
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mastermoirich

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Ok...so it is safe to assume at this point i am buying a PSU. Likely the Cosair Builder Series Cx500w ATX12V V2.3 80Plus Cert, Active PFC Power Supply.

So we seem to have some differing opinions on the graphics card. Are my assertions below correct?
The AMD 7770 probably all the card my cpu can handle.
The AMD 7850 Might be the max my setup can handle.
The AMD 7870 Probably too much of an upgrade, but may carry over to a new build in 2 years or so.

edit: SAPPHIRE 100312-3L Radeon HD 6950 2GB 256-bit GDDR5 PCI Express 2.1 x16 HDCP Ready CrossFireX Support Video Card A decent upgrade but not as good as the 7770?
 
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Guest

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if you are satisfied playing games like, "D3, Anno 2070, Mechwarrior Online" the 7770 will perform admirably @ med/high settings.

if you are looking at playing games like crysis2 or BF3 then a 7850 with some glancing at the 7870 to handle that. and start saving ~$350 for a new motherboard, cpu and ram . . .
 
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Guest

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this is what a *super cheap* build will get you:
PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant / Benchmarks

CPU: Intel Pentium G850 2.9GHz Dual-Core Processor ($64.99 @ NCIX US)
Motherboard: Biostar H61MLC Micro ATX LGA1155 Motherboard ($54.91 @ Compuvest)
Memory: G.Skill NS 4GB (2 x 2GB) DDR3-1333 Memory ($19.99 @ Newegg)
Video Card: Sapphire Radeon HD 7850 1GB Video Card ($169.99 @ Newegg)
Power Supply: Corsair Builder 500W 80 PLUS Certified ATX12V Power Supply ($34.99 @ Newegg)
Total (before mail-in rebates): $374.87
Mail-in Rebates: $-30.00
Total: $344.87

you may want to ask in the builders forum about more/better options if you are interested:
http://www.tomshardware.com/forum/forum-31.html

also keep in mind that changing your motherboard may require you to purchase another copy of windows. (~$100)
 
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mastermoirich

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Ok i'm sure this will rate as a super noob question but why does a motherboard require a new copy of windows? I thought it was registered on a hard drive?

Also...is 4GB of that RAM actually better than the 8GB i have now?

Would i not be able to bump up to the 7870 with that new build? 2GB?

I will definitely ask also in the Builders Forum
 
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CaptainTom

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I am not trying to be condescending or offend you, but it is clear you don't know what you are talking about because that question made no sense. They all use GDDR5.

Just wait for a $215-$230 model to come back in stock. They sell out quick but you will see one a week usually for a about a day.


Also for future advice, I just buy the cheapest version of the card type I want while making sure it has 4/5+ reviews...
 
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mastermoirich

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No i wasnt offended...it actually made me laugh because I KNOW i don't know what i'm talking about. I couldn't believe one was $130ish more than the other and they were the same...thats all..

 
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egilbe

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do you have the money in your budget to build a new pc? Would you be comfortable putting tab A into slot B? Pre-built PC's are very rarely worth putting the money into to upgrade. After all is said and done you are 80% there to building a new pc with the power supply and GPU upgrade. It's already 4 years old, which is about the life expectancy of a pre-built pc before it really becomes limited, as you've found out.

OEM (Original Equipment Manufacturer) copies of Windows are tied to the motherboard. It may be stored on the HDD, but once you replace the mobo, as far as an OEM copy of Windows is concerned, it's on a new pc and is pirated.

PC's are pretty much modular. You plug parts together, follow a few simple instructions and cautions, ask questions if you are unsure (which you are doing) and it "usually" works.
 
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mastermoirich

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No i don't have the budget to spend more than $400. I like what you said about pre-builts not worth upgrading....i think it might just be best to grab the graphics card and power supply (that are good enough to possibly carry into a full self-built machine in 2 yrs)
 
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xa376

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Your CPU isn't great. But it isn't bad either (alot faster than my POS). Like many others have said that GPU is pretty low end. A good GPU upgrade and you should be playing on high settings in no time.
 
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mastermoirich

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Ok so the question is this...considering the new PSU

AMD 7870
or
AMD 7850

1GB or 2GB?

Will either of these be good enough to carry over toa brand new homebuilt system in 2 yrs
 
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xa376

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Well I would obviously always recommend a better graphics card and more VRAM over a lesser option. So my question to you is what do you really want to spend? And yes a 7850 will still be pretty usable in 2 years.
 
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egilbe

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2gb ram since you plan on carrying it over and as far as 7870 and 7850, that depends on your budget. I tend to try and buy the best GPU I can afford. I'm still using GPU's I bought four years ago, they still work pretty well, but are starting to show their age on newer games. I'm not running everything on ultra any longer on those cards.
 
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mastermoirich

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I'm not adverse to buying the 7870 if it is a worthwhile upgrade over the 7850. Or if one will last until the new system while the other will not.

I also tend to make the purchase that provides the most bang for my buck. Gaining say 10% increase in performance for double the price doesn't seem worth it.
 
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Guest

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just to follow up . . .

windows is tied to the motherboard. some folks have been able to call the automated system and were able to get another key after upgrading their motherboard. though since you have an HP and not a "home brew" it may be tied to the manufacturer also.

actually the 4gbs is ddr3 and yours is most likely ddr2, half the speed of ddr3 so . .yes as odd as it sounds.

i'll chime in on the 1gb vs 2gb vram thought; since you are gaming on a single 1080 monitor, you really do not *need* more than 1gb. at a higher resolution such as 1400 or multi monitors, then you will need more.


p.s. watch out for the fanboys over there :/ . . .
 
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