Which card to upgrade to from dual 7950gt?

[elvenwise]

Hi folks,
I am running a system with dual geforce 7950 gt cards in SLI and want to upgrade to a single card.

My system specs are:
Asus P5N-E Sli 650i motherboard
intel core 2 duo e6700 @ 2,66 mhz
2 gigs ddr2 sdram
650 watt power

So what Nvidia (my preference) card should I get ... without breaking the bank? Maybe no more than $200?

Thanks

 

[Maziar]

Hello and welcome to the forums
Have u looked @ HD 4870 ? its a great card for under $200

 

[elvenwise]

Hi
Thanks for your response. I am really looking for a good suggestion for my system in Nvidia cards. I am not a fan of ATI.
I'm just not sure which single card to buy to replace my 7950 gt sli setup.

 

[daedalus685]

A GTX260 core 216 is equivalent to the suggested 4870. If you insist on nvidia that is your best bet.

 

[elvenwise]

But will my system handle that card? I was wondering about the power requirements - I've got 650w.

 

[coozie7]

Post the rest of your specs, please, particularly the PSU 12v output and monitor resolution.

If the PSU is up to it this is a real monster for the dosh:

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814127429

A few words of caution: It needs a fairly spacious case for the cooler to give its best and is 10.5" long, and do not bother with it if you are playing at 1280x1024, the GTX260 is a better match.

 

[elvenwise]

I'm not much of a techie...only know it is a 650w power supply (nxzt precise power or something).
I basically want to pop out the two 7950 gts, put in a single card and not upgrade anything else.

 

[dna708]

If you don't mind MSi (I've had a mobo and GPU from them and they are both still rock solid after 2.5 years), you can get this GTX275 for 200:

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814127429

It's quite a bit faster than the GTX260

 

[invisik]

^ 185$ good deal.

 

[megamanx00]

True, the GTX 275 is a bit faster than the GTX 260 sp 216, but you may not really see it with your CPU at stock speeds ^_^. If you're not going to overclock then you may just get this

ASUS ENGTX260/HTDI/896M $164.99 ($144.99 after MIR.)
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814121316

If you want to carry over the card to a newer board and CPU latter on, then it may be worth it to spend a little more on the GTX 275. Of course by then DX11 will be out. If you're just gonna build a new rig latter on and don't even want to overclock, then you may as well save money and just go with the 260.

 

[xc0mmiex]

yeh you may want to OC that a lil... its a good overclocker, u shouldn't have much problem... for the $200, go with a 260... and concernign DX11, you won't have to worry about it for over a year, but by then you may want to upgrade your card again.

 

[astrodudepsu]

what is your resolution??? It's pointless to make any sort of GPU recommendation without knowing this.

If it is 16x10 or less, go with the GTX260
If it is 19x10 or higher, get the 275

 

[elvenwise]

Okay so my power supply is this sucker:
http://www.nzxt.com/products/precise_650w/

And I run things on a 22 inch lcd monitor at 19x10

Other system specs are:
Asus P5N-E Sli 650i motherboard
intel core 2 duo e6700 @ 2,66 mhz
2 gigs ddr2 sdram

So I think I'm liking the carious 260 gtx cards, but will my system's power handle it?
And which one? the ASUS card got some bad reviews, and XFX seems to be pretty maligned as well.

Oh and my case is an Armor jr. Big case, but my 7950 gts have about another inch or two before they touch the HD bay.... the 260 is supposedly really big too.

Thanks for all your responses

 

[coozie7]

Your PSU matches the requirements for a GTX275, both in Watts and amps on the +12v rails so it's fine.

Allow about 10.5" for the cards (yes they are that big).

For such a large resolution I would advise a GTX275, but if you have to sell body parts for it the GTX260 will drive that monitor well, although you'll have to turn a few details down and keep the AA limited.
With a SLI MB, the Nvidia choice makes the most sense which is why I've not mentioned ATI: One card leaves the SLI route open when, or if, you choose to upgrade later.
As for cards: Do n't pay much for a factory overclocked card, get a normal one and do it yourself! If your case lacks industrial fans or is smaller than a shed, get a card with a cooler that exhausts out of the case. In the USA XFX, EVGA and BFG have the best warranties and customer support.
Get a total of 4Gb of RAM: You know it makes sense
A X16 PCI-E 1.0 or 1.1 slot will not restrict even a GTX275 in any way at all, not even the tinyest little bit!

 

[elvenwise]

Thanks a lot for your responses again.
I think I'm liking this card for 1) the company, 2) bang for the bucks and 3) the customer reviews/rating compared to similar cards

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814130433

What do you think?

 

[elvenwise]

hmmmm actually..looking at this picture of my psu's ratings"

http://www.phoronix.net/image.php?id=527&image=nzxt_precise_label_lrg

It doesn't look like my +12 rails (learning lots today) can hndle the gtx 260.
Right?

 

[coozie7]

Yes, it can, easily:

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814143159

 

[elvenwise]

Oh okay. Just so I'm clear about the PSU stuff (and again, thanks for putting up with my noob questions) - when the video card says it needs a 12v of xxA, the xx is the combined amps of the two 12v rails? so if each is 20A, I can use a card that calls for up to 40A?

 

[coozie7]

No, not quite.
This is a little long but I think it's worth reading:

http://www.hardwaresecrets.com/article/181/1

 

[elvenwise]

Thanks. A little technical for me, but interesting. I'm now more confused than ever, unfortunately lol.
I just want to know which card I should buy for my system - 260, 250, 9800gtx+?
Newegg doesn't ship to Canada, so it should be a card (BFG, EVGA) that I can get in a shop here. Will my current 650 psu be good enough for any 260?

 

[coozie7]

Newegg has a site for Canada:

http://www.newegg.ca/

Of course I'm not suggesting you just shop there, it's just anoter site to look through for a bargain
The PSU label says it matches the inflated Nvidia requirements but if you prefer to play it a little safer, stick to the reference speeds rather than going for an overclocked card.