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Got a Christmas Bonus...best GPU for $250?

Dredge
By Dredge
in Graphics Cards
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Go to solution Solved by SkilledRebuilds,

 

I do plan to upgrade my system in the future (and play with overclocking a bit) so getting a GPU that is throttled by my systems specs is something I'm willing to accept.

 

Just to understand so I have my options right.....if I wanted the best card for my system right now it would be an R9 270X, but if I wanted the best for the money I have to spend it would be an R9 290X right?

Great attitude you have.

 

yeah, best card would be 270x for that system, and a 290x for future uses (If your PRO-AMD) but the GTX 970 is very comparable and has a nice feature set too.

Posted

Pretty straightforward. I got a Christmas Bonus for $250 and thinking about getting a graphics card since I currently use a ATI 4800 HD. I'm not a GPU expert so what's the best card I could get for that amount, or would it be better to wait until after Christmas in case I get Christmas money? I have no preference between AMD or Nividia. Thanks for your help guys.

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Yep 250USD ? Get an AMD R9 290, good card and nice price to performance ratio.

 

Intel i7 7820X (delidded) @ 4.9GHz - MSI X299 M7 ACK + EKWB Fullcover Block - G.Skill Trident Z 32GB @ 3466MHz - nVidia Titan Xp + EKWB Fullcover Block @ 2.1GHz - Samsung 960Pro 2x - WDD Blue 2TB - Seasonic 750W Platinum - modded Corsair 600C - Hardtubed Custom Watercooling

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REPLIERS!

You don't even know his system specs... how are you meant to give any advice when you don't know the variables...

I'll do it for you.

  • CPU
    AMD Anthlon II X4 635 2.9 GHz
  • Motherboard
    HP
  • RAM
    4 GM Kingston 13333
  • GPU
    ATI Raedon 4800 HD
  • Case
    HP
  • Storage
    128 GB OCZ SSD + 1 TB Seagate
  • PSU
    Corsair 650 Watt
  • Display(s)
    Samsung 23" T23A350
  • Cooling
    Fans and stuff
  • Keyboard
    Razor Deathstalker
  • Mouse
    Logitech G500
  • Sound
    Logitech H800
  • Operating System
    Windows 7
 
The MAX GPU i'd use on your system is a 750TI/GTX760/270/270x, any more and you won't be able to get the raw performance from them as the system will be limiting more powerful GPU's by it's older spec parts.
 
You can OC the CPU to reduce limitations to new GPU's, but the best thing you could do is invest that $250 into a new platform/system base (CPU.Mobo)
 
 
 
 
 

TO THE REPLIERS WHO DON'T LOOK UP WHEN POSTING! (Read above) :)

Maximums - Asus Z97-K /w i5 4690 Bclk @106.9Mhz * x39 = 4.17Ghz, 8GB of 2600Mhz DDR3,.. Gigabyte GTX970 G1-Gaming @ 1550Mhz

 

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Before someone asks you to list your system specs...

I'll do it for you.

  • CPU
    AMD Anthlon II X4 635 2.9 GHz
  • Motherboard
    HP
  • RAM
    4 GM Kingston 13333
  • GPU
    ATI Raedon 4800 HD
  • Case
    HP
  • Storage
    128 GB OCZ SSD + 1 TB Seagate
  • PSU
    Corsair 650 Watt
  • Display(s)
    Samsung 23" T23A350
  • Cooling
    Fans and stuff
  • Keyboard
    Razor Deathstalker
  • Mouse
    Logitech G500
  • Sound
    Logitech H800
  • Operating System
    Windows 7
 
The MAX GPU i'd use on your system is a 750TI/GTX760/270/270x

 

You´ve got a point here, the R9 270X is ridiculously cheap right now. But if he plans on upgrade in the near future the R9 290 would be a good card to start. Cause for 250 USD you wont get a whole system together. Either Board, RAM and CPU or the GPU and in that very limited case I´d go for the GPU.

 

Intel i7 7820X (delidded) @ 4.9GHz - MSI X299 M7 ACK + EKWB Fullcover Block - G.Skill Trident Z 32GB @ 3466MHz - nVidia Titan Xp + EKWB Fullcover Block @ 2.1GHz - Samsung 960Pro 2x - WDD Blue 2TB - Seasonic 750W Platinum - modded Corsair 600C - Hardtubed Custom Watercooling

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You´ve got a point here, the R9 270X is ridiculously cheap right now. But if he plans on upgrade in the near future the R9 290 would be a good card to start. Cause for 250 USD you wont get a whole system together. Either Board, RAM and CPU or the GPU and in that very limited case I´d go for the GPU.

He has DDR3 memory (based off the 1333mhz, DDR2 pretty sure only went to 1066Mhz), so all he needs is a CPU/Mobo (for now) which will work fine on his 650w PSU (until/if he decided to change it when buying a new GPU)

I'd go with a new platform, use the 4850/4870/4890 whatever one he has and then save again for a GPU (and at that point, a cheap $150 card would suffice over this existing one and be way more powerful in modern games)

Maximums - Asus Z97-K /w i5 4690 Bclk @106.9Mhz * x39 = 4.17Ghz, 8GB of 2600Mhz DDR3,.. Gigabyte GTX970 G1-Gaming @ 1550Mhz

 

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Maybe get a apu 7850k and a msi a88x mobo. If not then a r9 290/80x

Remember a wise man once said, "You'll most likely hear/see more bad reviews from products than good, because if they get a good product, they won't bother to write a review, and if they got a bad product, they'll complain about the product" ~ SoftenButterCream

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  • Author

Hey guys. Thank you for all the input so far. Just to clarify some things for you.

 

My computer started out as a pre-built HP P6610F.

 

Since that time about 5-6 years ago, I've replaced the CPU, RAM, hard drives, added a very small GPU, and upgrade that GPU to my current. The only things left that are factory are the case, MoBo, and CPU.

 

I won't replace those 3 things until my CPU becomes the bottle neck, at which point I already have 4 GB's of 2200 DDR3 to add to the system.

 

At this point though my CPU still work phenomenally as I take extremely good care of my components and I've yet to overclock it. I'd like to upgrade the GPU first, as that is where I will see a noticeable increase in performance.

 

I do plan to upgrade my system in the future (and play with overclocking a bit) so getting a GPU that is throttled by my systems specs is something I'm willing to accept.

 

Just to understand so I have my options right.....if I wanted the best card for my system right now it would be an R9 270X, but if I wanted the best for the money I have to spend it would be an R9 290X right?

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  • Solution

 

I do plan to upgrade my system in the future (and play with overclocking a bit) so getting a GPU that is throttled by my systems specs is something I'm willing to accept.

 

Just to understand so I have my options right.....if I wanted the best card for my system right now it would be an R9 270X, but if I wanted the best for the money I have to spend it would be an R9 290X right?

Great attitude you have.

 

yeah, best card would be 270x for that system, and a 290x for future uses (If your PRO-AMD) but the GTX 970 is very comparable and has a nice feature set too.

Maximums - Asus Z97-K /w i5 4690 Bclk @106.9Mhz * x39 = 4.17Ghz, 8GB of 2600Mhz DDR3,.. Gigabyte GTX970 G1-Gaming @ 1550Mhz

 

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Hey 2 more questions for you guys?

 

Would you every buy off reddit or ebay?

 

And should I be looking for a 2 or 4 GB card?

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