Help choosing a new graphics card

[Max Colledge]

Hi, it has come time for me to get a new graphics card since it is definately my systems bottleneck, and would like some help with how to select one.

I have a ASUSTeK COMPUTER INC. P8Z77-V LX motherboard, my understanding is it has a PCIe 2.0 and 3.0 slots (from what I have found on the internet) And I am currently sporting a GTX 460.

I was wondering, what kind of upgrades anyone would reccommend.

Picking a couple out the air, maybe an AMD 7870/7950 or like an Nvidia 660 or 760.

My questions are: I run 2 monitors so, is there any point in mounting my 460 in the 2.0 slot?
would this affect whether i should buy AMD or Nvidia?
would it then be advantageous to be running 1 monitor from each GPU?

And the main question, how do my PCIe slots affect which graphics card i can select.

Would be most grateful if some helpful person out there could answer some or all of my questions.

Thanks
Max

 

[Onus]

What is the brand and model (not just wattage) of your PSU? If you could run a GTX460, you should be able to run a GTX660, but it is best to confirm for the others, which need more power.

 

[toyftw]

Hi, it has come time for me to get a new graphics card since it is definately my systems bottleneck, and would like some help with how to select one.

I have a ASUSTeK COMPUTER INC. P8Z77-V LX motherboard, my understanding is it has a PCIe 2.0 and 3.0 slots (from what I have found on the internet) And I am currently sporting a GTX 460.

I was wondering, what kind of upgrades anyone would reccommend.

Picking a couple out the air, maybe an AMD 7870/7950 or like an Nvidia 660 or 760.

My questions are: I run 2 monitors so, is there any point in mounting my 460 in the 2.0 slot?
would this affect whether i should buy AMD or Nvidia?
would it then be advantageous to be running 1 monitor from each GPU?

And the main question, how do my PCIe slots affect which graphics card i can select.

Would be most grateful if some helpful person out there could answer some or all of my questions.

Thanks
Max

Hi - do need the PSU info Onus mentioned above.
The pcie 3.0 slot is backwards compatible, so you can run 2.0 cards in it, and with no loss in
performance. Any of the vid cards you mentioned will be able to run dual monitors. Obviously,
the stronger the card the better.

 

[Max Colledge]

What is the brand and model (not just wattage) of your PSU? If you could run a GTX460, you should be able to run a GTX660, but it is best to confirm for the others, which need more power.

Is there anyway to check this without opening my PC?

 

[toyftw]

What is the brand and model (not just wattage) of your PSU? If you could run a GTX460, you should be able to run a GTX660, but it is best to confirm for the others, which need more power.

Is there anyway to check this without opening my PC?

Yes, if you have the manual that came with the PC or PSU, otherwise you'd have to open it
and get the info from the sticker affixed to the PSU.

 

[Max Colledge]

Yes, if you have the manual that came with the PC or PSU, otherwise you'd have to open it
and get the info from the sticker affixed to the PSU.

Ok, dont have those, will open my PC now

 

[Onus]

You will need to open your PC anyway to replace the graphics card. If it hasn't been opened in a long time, it's probably a good idea to clean the dust out of it. Use a pressurized duster (canned air) rather than a vacuum cleaner, as the latter can create destructive static.

 

[Max Colledge]

What is the brand and model (not just wattage) of your PSU? If you could run a GTX460, you should be able to run a GTX660, but it is best to confirm for the others, which need more power.

So, looks as though I have a CoolerMaster 500W RS-500-ASAB-L3

That all the info you need?

and btw jus to mention, I'm a computer science grad so im not a total moron. I built my own PC and dust evry couple months, jus always good to get some input before buying new gear

 

[toyftw]

What is the brand and model (not just wattage) of your PSU? If you could run a GTX460, you should be able to run a GTX660, but it is best to confirm for the others, which need more power.

So, looks as though I have a CoolerMaster 500W RS-500-ASAB-L3

That all the info you need?

and btw jus to mention, I'm a computer science grad so im not a total moron. I built my own PC and dust evry couple months, jus always good to get some input before buying new gear

Hi again - never fig you for a PC moron. Anyway, the PSU is a CM GX Lite 500w(OEM ATNG), and altho it
isn't a good quality PSU, it has the necessary +12v rail amperage and 2 pcie connectors required for the
GPU's you listed above.

 

[Onus]

Oooh, an old CM...HardwareSecrets reviews of those older units show them to be liar-labeled, inefficient, and in some cases dangerous to attached hardware. I would replace it with a quality unit. There are of course many decent choices, but using the KISS rule I'd probably go with the 550W Seasonic "G" series: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817151119

 

[Max Colledge]

Oooh, an old CM...HardwareSecrets reviews of those older units show them to be liar-labeled, inefficient, and in some cases dangerous to attached hardware. I would replace it with a quality unit. There are of course many decent choices, but using the KISS rule I'd probably go with the 550W Seasonic "G" series: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817151119

Thanks dude, think I will replace it, tbh thought i had atleast 600. Cheers for all your help