Low price graphic cards that aren't crap

[Bluescreendeath]

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814102770

4850 for $99

Better than the 4770, cheaper too, and readily available.

 

[Onus]

His PSU has already been determined to be too weak for that card.
That first link to cheap PSUs coozie posted are mostly what NOT to get. "Enermax" is the high-quality exception that proves the rule, if a PSU has "max" in its name, it is a reference to the number of other parts it will take with it when it dies.
Choose one from Antec, PC Power & Cooling, Corsair, Seasonic, or Enermax. Look for one that is 80+ certified and has Active PFC.
On the PSU you have, a 4670 or 4650 (DDR3 version!) are the upper limit.

 

[hundredislandsboy]

So, a GTX+ is only 5% also? Then whats the point of the GTX+?

Two points:

It's for the enthusiasts who find it important to know they can get 37.8 frames per second versus 36.3 frames per second.

And it's for the GPU companies to sell more hype with dazzling "+" symbols and rebranding.


But it's all good.

 

[kekn06ab]

Uhm, a few last questions, yes?

1) I simply can't find a manual for my motherboard, I need to know my RAM capacity. It's still a
ASUSTek Computer INC., model: EMERY2 version 2.00. Help much appreciated.

2) And btw, I currently have DDR2 RAM, PC-4300 (266 MHz). That is 2 256 MB and 2 512 MB modules. Is it imperative that this is the type of RAM I buy?

 

[daedalus685]

My 4770's overclock to 970 core and 1200 mem. Care to re-evaluate that statement?

You unsubstantiated claims are good enough for me! (Well, I believe you, i just like saying that.. lol)

You don't pay for an overclock, what you get is random. It is nice to know that it is a good overclocker but that is not a rule. Not everyone will overclock either, and to get that kind of overclock would require a bios modification, pretty nice cooling and voiding the warranty. Not what 90% of the user base is going to want to do. In this case, given the OP's request, I think its clear we are talking about stock 😛

Out of curiosity, what are you cooling yours with? Is teh CPU on its own water line being that high must be damn hot

 

[daedalus685]

I should add that you need a voltage increase on the 4770's to achieve those speeds. 😉

the word 'duh' comes to mind 😛

 

[megamanx00]

At the Very Least, get a Radeon 4670. Anything less than that really isn't worth it if you plan to do any gaming. This one from HIS has a dual slot cooler along with a $10 mail in

HIS Hightech H467QT512P Radeon HD 4670 $69.99 ($59.99 after $10.00 Mail-In Rebate)
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814161252

Anything faster wouldn't do you much good because you'd generally be bottelnecked by your old CPU. Even the 4670 would be bottelnecked by your CPU at it's stock speed so you should consider at least overclocking it. Now then, of sub $100 cards the general order from weakest ( but still usefull ) to strongest would generally be

4670 < 8800GS/9600GSO < 9600GT < 4830 (or a 9800GT that's on sale) < 4850 that's on sale

 

[JAYDEEJOHN]

Two points:

It's for the enthusiasts who find it important to know they can get 37.8 frames per second versus 36.3 frames per second.

And it's for the GPU companies to sell more hype with dazzling "+" symbols and rebranding.


But it's all good.

Four points
1 The 9800GT is not within the same class as the 4850.

2.+ or no +, thats still a GTX, not a GT, as the GTX, which is the next nVidia tier, wasnt as fast as the 4850, and thus the +

3. Since nVidia does make a GTX and a GT, there must be some reason for it

4. I only mention this, for the OP needs to know that when or if he buys either of the 2 cards mentioned, one will simply outperform the other by a significant margin, and also while doing so, allows for eyecandy as well.

Now, look at pricing on a GTX or a +. Theyre not competitive even, so a lessor GT costing as much is not a good bit of advice to the OP. And, since this is mostly now OT, since weve found out about his psu, Ill end it now, as it no longer pertains to the OP

 

[hundredislandsboy]

Four points well taken. Thanks.

 

[coozie7]

@ kekn06ab: Use the 'configurator' at the top left hand of this page, be sure to have the exact HP model number handy!

http://www.newegg.com/Store/SubCategory.aspx?SubCategory=147&name=Desktop-Memory

If you plan on getting 2x1Gb and keeping 2x512Mb be careful which modules you buy, some have heatpreaders on them and are so thick they block the adjacent slot.

Messed up the top link for the PSU, it should have just been for the Coolermaster close to the top, not the whole page-Me bad.

 

[mtyermom]

If you're not going to be replacing your PSU, then you need to use a graphics card that does not require an additional power connection.

I use this card:

HIS Hightech H467QT512P Radeon HD 4670 IceQ Turbo 512MB $69.99 w/ free shipping ($59.99 after MIR)

I think this is the best card for you at this time. It is well within your budget, requires no additional power connectors, and is not so overpowered as to be severely bottlenecked by your CPU. (Not to say it won't be bottlenecked at all, just not as severely as a more powerful card.)

A more powerful card would require a PSU upgrade and would need a mobo+cpu upgrade to not be crippled by a bottleneck.

EDIT: I basically just rehashed what magamanx00 said. For what it's worth though, my 4670 has by FAR exceeded my expectations.

 

[kekn06ab]

@mtyermom, Haha, actually I made up my mind earlier today... came to the same result.

So the end looks like this:

RAM:
Kingston ValueRAM 2GB (2 x 1GB) 240-Pin DDR2 SDRAM DDR2 533 (PC2 4200)
Graphics card:
HIS Hightech H467QT512P Radeon HD 4670 IceQ Turbo 512MB

I want to thank everyone here who came with advice... with all the pages I have read on the internet because of you guys, I find myself in a much better position to make choices regarding computer hardware.

/kekn06ab

 

[JAYDEEJOHN]

Youve made some good choices too, presented with the facts, I think youve done as good as you could have.
Have fun and good gaming

 

[kekn06ab]

I'm left with 1 last question.

Since I live in Europe, more specifically Denmark, I can't use Neweggs, and here the graphics card is much more expensive. If I could get an assesment on the following 2 cards and where the greatest differenses are, it would really help out. What I'm after here is the question of whether I get enough from what I pay extra (do I need the "extra").

(I hope you can understand most of the specs even though it's in danish)

Club 3D:
http://www.edbpriser.dk/Products/Listprices.asp?ID=535023&Specs=true

HIS:
http://www.edbpriser.dk/Products/Listprices.asp?ID=471819&Specs=true

 

[JAYDEEJOHN]

OK,looking at the 2, the HIS has faster ram, so thatll possibly help, as itll provide more bandwidth, which means, IF the cards needs to draw textures faster, it can, but it also has to be togther with the core, and how fast the core can produce the data.
Im not familiar enough with these cards, as to their weak parts, but having faster ram is good, but only if it can be used. +1 to HIS
They both have the same core speed, so no advantage either way. Since Im not familar with these particular cards, see if theres a power requirement difference, if not and the pricing is close to the same, go with the HIS, as its cooling solution is usually very nice, quieter, and more effective, and can even draw less power. I think the higher speeds on the ram would benefit you, as these cards are somewhat bandwidth limited. It wont be a huge advantage, but could make a difference or 2, but again, both good cards