[MrPerson]

So I am thinking about upgrading my graphics card since this new generation of games is here. My older GTX 650 (non TI or boost) was technically never that great to begin with but is starting to not be able to handle things well. I have a large power supply and the motherboard can have up to 3 graphics cards together with SLI. So I was wondering what card would last me a while, is not too expensive (to me that is up to maybe 250-300$) and as time goes on I can put in the other slots with SLI. I would like recommendations from Nvidia as that is what I have always used.

 

I have tried looking up information on upgrades, and I am no expert, and different sites tell me different stats or are outdated in prices and such. Just looking for more options here, as this is usually my go to site for stuff like this. Any tips would be nice!

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Hello again MrPerson

 

Please provide information about your computer, this includes is it a custom build or brand name such as Dell or HP, if it is a brand name provide the model name or series number (not serial) if a custom build post the brand and model name or number for the MB and the PSU (power supply unit) providing these details will enable us to better assist you.

[phillpower2]

Hello again MrPerson

 

Please provide information about your computer, this includes is it a custom build or brand name such as Dell or HP, if it is a brand name provide the model name or series number (not serial) if a custom build post the brand and model name or number for the MB and the PSU (power supply unit) providing these details will enable us to better assist you.

[MrPerson]

I didn't think you needed all these details, just what is the best, most cost effective graphics card that is better than a GTX 650, but I will see if I can find my MB info again, thought I saved it somewhere but I guess not. And my PSU is 1000w thats all I know. it was meant to be upgraded, so it came with a huge PSU. (it was custom built from ebay, will find MB info asap)

 

*Edit* found it on an older thread I posted here, the MB is a : GA-EX58-EXTREME

Edited by MrPerson, 08 July 2014 - 01:59 PM.

[phillpower2]

Please see my canned text below as it will explain why we need to ask such questions;

Please note that before purchasing an add on video card that the following must be considered;

Is the present PSU (power supply unit) powerful enough or will it also need upgrading ( the amps on the +12V rail must also be over and above what any new GPU requires just like the wattage).

What type of case do you have, full tower, mid tower or SFF (small form factor) this is important as you must make sure that there is enough room inside the case for the upgrade/s, upgrading a SFF type system can be difficult as they often use propriety components such as smaller and differing shape PSUs and they only have enough room inside the case for a low profile type add on card.

 

 

Do you happen to know what speed the CPU and Ram are.

[MrPerson]

The CPU is a quad core intel i7 2.6 (though sometimes other scanners say 2.8) Ghz not overclocked. the RAM speed I am unsure on, but I know I have 12gb, here is what crucial says if it helps (though it does not show all my slots or my graphics card for some reason. 

 

http://www.crucial.c...ssocType=MEMORY

 

It will take a while for me to find the PSU info, as I would have to remove it from its current location, open it up, and try to find the sticker with the info on it. oh, and its a full tower, coolmaster centurion I believe 

[phillpower2]

A good quality brand 1000W PSU would cost a lot of cash and I am sorry to say that system builders will often use poor quality PSUs in their builds to keep down the sell on costs, if for example the PSU was a proven quality one such as Antec the seller would display this in larger than life letters and you would have noted and remembered the details, my concern is that a poor quality PSU could damage your new GPU if it can't cope.

 

CPU will be ok with any new GPU, your case if the one here will also be ok but we do need the speed of your Ram because if it is too slow it may bottleneck the faster GPU.

[MrPerson]

huh, well I will check on that PSU, that case is correct, but on the panel that opens, instead of vents there is a large clear plastic window. I don't know what crucial did to their site but it used to show my RAM speed when I scanned it. As I said, (and as you can probably tell) I am no expert, but even if you have slow(ish) RAM, wouldn't a card faster than what you have now, still increase overall performance?

 

And I don't know what the guy was thinking, but I got this PC setup, plus the 1920X1080 monitor I mentioned in the other thread bundled together for 500$. it was a steal, and 3x faster than my previous PC and knew I could upgrade it over time, so I bought it.

 

if what you say is true, I hope that my PSU does not just decide to quit on me one day....

[phillpower2]

I am not trying to alarm you only offer you the best guidance that I can, it would be negligent if I didnt.

 

Download and run CPU-Z to get your Ram speed, this is a good way of monitoring your system performance, see here

 

That was a good price, I just hope the guy had permission to sell it 

[MrPerson]

sorry about the pic, I suck at using paint, but is this what you were looking for? 

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[phillpower2]

Sort of 

 

To capture and post a screenshot;

 

Click on the ALT key + PRT SCR key..its on the top row..right hand side..now click on start...all programs...accessories...paint....left click in the white area ...press CTRL + V...click on file...click on save...save it to your desktop...name it something related to the screen your capturing... BE SURE TO SAVE IT AS A .JPG ...otherwise it may be to big to upload... then after typing in any response you have... click on browse...desktop...find the screenshot..select it and click on the upload button...then on the lower left...after it says upload successful...click on add reply like you normally would.

 

Screenshot instructions are provided to assist those that may read this topic but are not yet aware of the “how to”.

[MrPerson]

Ah, I didn't know about the ALT+ part, just the print screen part, that will come in handy. I tried to do a normal desktop print screen and then crop out my desktop last time.

 

 

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[phillpower2]

No worries about the spec of your Ram 

[MrPerson]

so the only thing I really need to worry about is the PSU (which if I remember right should have plenty of power, but quality I dunno), which I need to check still, been a bit busy around here. 

 

Also, unless I got wrong information again, my motherboard can only have up to a 6 core intel processor in it correct? I may want to replace that at some point down the line too.

 

And about my RAM, I actually have 2 different brands of RAM in there, maybe more. The PC only had 11gb in it for some reason, so I took the 1gb stick out and put in a spare 2gb I had. And from those stat things I uploaded, how high of quality is it? (speed and brand and such)

[phillpower2]

Confirmation of the output and quality of the present PSU is most important, if only for your own peace of mind should you in fact decide not to upgrade.

 

Unless you plan on rendering videos, games programming, CAD or professional 3D modelling you will not need or even utilise the cores of a 6 core CPU let alone 8, newer more demanding games for example may use the fourth core on a quad CPU but not many atm.

 

You have 12GB of 1333MHz ram showing in the screenshot and to better this would require replacement of all modules with appropriate 1600MHz triple channel ram, you should never mix and match brands and specs of Ram as the Ram will always function at the speed of the lowest rated Ram + it can lead to system instability.

[MrPerson]

finally got a pic of it, here you go. says 1000w right on it

 

*edit: but of course I have no idea what brand it is or its quality. Tried googling the product code, but yielded nothing helpful. Hopefully you can turn up something more than I did...

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Edited by MrPerson, 18 July 2014 - 10:17 PM.