Low price GPU for entry-level gaming rig?

[MrInteresting]

Hey everyone I am a newbie to Tom'sHardware and I had a few questions. Could anyone give me an idea for a decent graphics card at a reasonably low price range? (I was fully prepared to go with an APU, until someone told me that it wasn't a good idea), so anything better than that is going to be fine for me. I am building an entry-level gaming rig until I can get a source of income. (Then I will build a better one). I also have another question. I want to play Minecraft mostly at 720p. Is Minecraft a game that requires a good CPU, or a good GPU? Oh, and I won't be playing any shooters, or horror games, or anything that requires a crazy graphics card. I'm only 13. I would appreciate if someone could help me. Thanks!

 

[kocopuff9191]

Can you provide some more info about your:
Budget
Types of Games you are going to play
Preference (AMD or NVIDIA or doesn't matter)

 

[MrInteresting]

Can you provide some more info about your:
Budget
Types of Games you are going to play
Preference (AMD or NVIDIA or doesn't matter)

Sorry I accedentaly posted that last one...
Budget: $0-$75
Games: Minecraft, flash games, racing games (Dirt 3, NFS, etc.)
Preference: Doesn't matter

 

[kocopuff9191]

If you can stretch your budget a little bit more, i would go with a Radeon HD 7750
or a Nvidia GTX 650.
However, if you need to get a card under $75, the Radeon HD 6670 is your best bet.

 

[Gam3r01]

The 7750 is a great entry level card. It will get the job done for the most part. Mine runs SC2 at ultra until I can get a 650TI boost. Its slightly out of the price range, but its worth it.

 

[MrInteresting]

Hey thanks guys I appreciate the serious answers. Another question. Would the 7750 run Portal and Portal 2? And at what settings, and resolution?

 

[skilledman101]

The 7750 would be able to destroy Portal and Portal 2. They aren't very graphically demanding (as no Valve games ever really are), so the 7750 should play them smooth as a knife through butter.

 

[MrInteresting]

This seems like a good card for what I play. How does the 7750 compare to the Sapphire HD 7770? I know the 7770 has 1GB RAM, and the 7750 has 2GB, but the 2GB of RAM is DDR3 against 1GB of GDDR5. Is the Sapphire 7770 worth the extra $30 or $40? Thanks again guys, this has helped. 😀

 

[Tev0]

I am pretty sure both those cards got GDDR5 memory, as for the 1gb or 2gb it doesn't matter for you. The games you are playing isn't very graphically demanding, either card should be fine but if you can get the 7770 then do it. If you can't then its still okay with 7750

Also minecraft is more CPU intensive than GPU

 

[MrInteresting]

I am pretty sure both those cards got GDDR5 memory, as for the 1gb or 2gb it doesn't matter for you. The games you are playing isn't very graphically demanding, either card should be fine but if you can get the 7770 then do it. If you can't then its still okay with 7750

Also minecraft is more CPU intensive than GPU

Ok thanks for the advice.

 

[Gam3r01]

You can get a ddr3 or ddr5 model of the 7750. I have the 2gb ddr3 which is pretty much a 1gb ddr5 model. vs the 7770 it has higher clock speeds so its slightly better, but you would be fine with 1 GB ddr5. I run portal 2 at 60 fps all maxxed out on my 7750 just to confirm it can be ran well.

 

[MrInteresting]

You can get a ddr3 or ddr5 model of the 7750. I have the 2gb ddr3 which is pretty much a 1gb ddr5 model. vs the 7770 it has higher clock speeds so its slightly better, but you would be fine with 1 GB ddr5. I run portal 2 at 60 fps all maxxed out on my 7750 just to confirm it can be ran well.

Sweet thanks

 

[smeezekitty]

The 7750 will do fine. Although even the 6670 will run those games.
I have the 6670 and it runs minecraft at 150 FPS. It also came with Dirt 3: Showdown which runs around 30FPS (limited by my CPU)