suitable graphic card ?

[azamjong]

can anyone help me suggesting best and suitable graphic card for my pc ? and how much RAM memory i need to add..i wanna play recent games and my budget around $100-$150

Asus P5G41C-M LX
pentium (R) Dual Core CPU E5400@2.70GHz
PSU 500W 220/ VAC 50HZ
RAM 2GB DDR2

please help me

[ShyguyXPC]

whats your actual Power supply Brand and Model?

This is your motherboard: ASUS - Motherboards- ASUS P5G41C-M LX

So you can use just about any video card as long as its PCI Express.

Your DDR2 you have now, is it 1 or 2 sticks? If 2 Sticks, you'll have to buy 2 more of DDR2 or DDR3, and replace the 2 you have now. DDR3 is best option since its so cheap.

can't use both DDR2 and DDR3 at the same time.


$100-150 should be enough for a decent GPU and PSU if it ends up being a crap brand low output PSU.

and for $15-20 (in the US here) you can get 4GB of DDR3 easily.

what kind of case do you have, in case its too small for some cards?

Also what OS are you using, and where are you located? (US, Europe, UK, Asia?)

[azamjong]

I used Jumbo brand model : JB-500wP4 ( I know it's a cheap brand and im planning to change that first )

and I used 1 stick DDR2. What the best options actually ? to replace it with 4GB DDR2 or just add another 2GB DDR2 to make it 4GB ?

for case : its just normal size (not to small and too big)

using 32-bit OS and now im in Egypt

[ShyguyXPC]

Ok, well, the PSU needs to be changed, which as you stated should be first thing.

not sure on pricing over in Egypt, but a Good $40-50 PSU over here in the US would be suitable.

Just by going off of Newegg over here in the US:

Newegg.com - Pareema 4GB 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1333 (PC3 10600) Desktop Memory Model MD313C81609L1

Newegg.com - COOLER MASTER eXtreme Power Plus RS500-PCARD3-US 500W ATX12V v2.3 Power Supply

Newegg.com - PowerColor AX7750 1GBD5-DH Radeon HD 7750 1GB 128-bit GDDR5 PCI Express 3.0 x16 HDCP Ready CrossFireX Support Video Card

Its a bit above your budget, but you might be able to get a PSU for a bit cheaper as well, as long as its a quality brand name.

That Radeon HD 7750 is actually low power enough you could run a quality 350W or even 300W PSU on your system, since your CPU isn't all that power consuming.

As to DDR2 vs DDR3, that single stick of 4GB is cheaper than what it costs for a single stick of 2GB DDR2.

if you can grab a 2nd stick of DDR2 to what you have now (Same speed, Voltage), for around that price, it should be ok. But if a single stick of 4GB DDR3 will be same or cheaper, might as well get that, and get a small bump in performance from the RAM.

with 32-bit Windows, you'll have less than 3GB of RAM to actually use with a 1GB video card.

But if you upgraded to 64-bit down the road, the full 4GB would be usable, as well as throwing in a 2nd stick of 4GB for 8GB if you wanted.

Your CPU and Motherboard platform is a bit aged, since socket 775 is for all intents and purposes a dead platform now, even Socket 1156 and 1366, its successors, have been supplanted by socket 1155 and Socket 2011.

And with the announcing (Last week), that DDR4 RAM will be Introduced next year (I think Intel was the ones that announced it). DDR2 will be more scarce to find.

in about a year or so after it (DDR4) I would expect to see DDR3 prices start to climb again, as DDR4 becomes the standard.

though with the lower end Dual core you have now, if you can find the CPU's for cheap enough your board supports nearly every Core 2 Era CPU, so you might be able to get a reasonable speed Quad core down the road and replace the CPU, as long as you don't pay too much for it.

[azamjong]

thank you so much for this information!!!. really appreciate that

[ShyguyXPC]

no problem.

Right now the Radeon HD 7750 is the sweet spot in this range of cards (Budget), otherwise if the PSU didn't need to be upgraded, then the Radeon HD 7770 would be a good choice.

The 7750 in general is at least as good as the Radeon HD 6770 in some games, in others its just a hair behind, but considering the fact it uses half as much power, its not a bad deal.

If your looking to save a few bucks, with one of those PSU's, you could try a Radeon 6670 or 6750, both should be about $100 or less by now. the 6670 make sure its a GDDR5 model if your looking for one, usually those are around $65-80 or so.

None of these cards are top end by any means, as they're all (with exception of the 6670) the starting range for Lower mid range cards (step above Budget gaming cards). the 6670 is still considered a budget card.

But they all should be able to play newer games at lower to moderate settings.

Games like Battlefield 3, Skyrim and some others should run at decent frame rates at low to moderate settings and average Resolutions (1280x720, 1680x1050).

with some games, like WoW, SW The Old Republic, and others will be more hindered by the CPU performance than anything.

games like Starcraft 2, and others will need a balance between CPU and GPU, due to AI data processing and some things like that.

most FPS type games though will be more GPU intensive.


Skyrim is one of the few lately that is pretty scalable with GPU's unlike Oblivion was, and runs pretty good on lower end hardware like these cards. But can benefit from a fairly powerful CPU where your interacting with NPC's in towns and wherever else in the game.

[ShyguyXPC]

already upgrade my PSU to eXtreme power plus 600W..

so now, can you guide me what to do next to upgrade my pc?

i plan to focus at my graphic card and RAM memory. and change my RAM DDR2 to DDR3.

my spec now :
Asus P5G41C-M LX
pentium (R) Dual Core CPU E5400@2.70GHz
PSU to eXtreme power plus 600W
RAM 2GB DDR2

really need guide from someone pro like you

OK, well now that you have the PSU (600W is way over kill for your needs, the 500W would of been enough), How much left of your budget?

you just need to find some DDR3 RAM to buy, Look for 1.5 Volt RAM, and any Speed will do, just look for 4GB (1 stick, 2 sticks, whatever).

Then its a matter of finding a Graphics card to fit the remaining amount of your budget.

[azamjong]

I just survey for DDR3 RAM price. around $30 in my place
CORSAIR Vengeance 4GB (1 x 4GB) DDR3 1600 CL9 Single Module Price, Review, Compare in Egypt from Maximum Hardware | EGPrices.com"

with money spend for my PSU, think i must add a little bit because now my budget just left $40 for graphic card

[ShyguyXPC]

How much did you spend on the PSU? you originally listed your budget of $100 to $150?

[azamjong]

I spend LE 440 = $ 73 for PSU
500W in here cost LE 390 = $ 65

the difference just $8 so i think better add some for 600W..hmm

[ShyguyXPC]

You paid $73 for it?


you sure that 500W wasn't the 550W model? Those cost nearly $60 over here, but the 500W I have never seen that high, always around $40-50.

Newegg.com - COOLER MASTER eXtreme Power Plus RS500-PCARD3-US 500W ATX12V v2.3 Power Supply

the 500W was enough already for your upgrades, that $8 is money that could of been spent on the video card. Your budget was already tight as it is, and you stretched for something that was already overkill for your system anyways.

Do you have any online sites to order from over there, can you post the links if you do.

Is it possible to return the PSU, and get something cheaper?

[azamjong]

im sure that price for 500W model..
my country don't have many online sites to order pc hardware. this is the best site to order here
PDU (Power Supplies) - e3050 Egypt

and to check the item prices i usually look at this site
EGPrices.com | أسعار مصر | Egypt Prices | Find, Compare, Review

its hard to return the PSU after buying it.

[ShyguyXPC]

this would of been enough: Thermaltake Litepower 450W Power Supply - e3050 Egypt

comes out to about $46 USD or so.

[azamjong]

feel regret with that.hmm

so, must be careful now when choose another item. RAM memory and graphic card. can you help me? don't want choose the wrong item anymore..

[ShyguyXPC]

Dude, with out links to sites with the items for sale, there's only so much I can help with, I already listed some example RAM to look for, DDR3, 4GB Stick, find the cheapest price 4GB Stick you can afford and buy that.

then whatever you have left for a video card, let us know.



Using your RAM link from above, this is some decent stuff: Patriot Signature Line 4GB (1 x 4GB) DDR3 1333 CL9 Single Module Price, Review, Compare in Egypt from Maximum Hardware | EGPrices.com"

as to a video card, for $40 left over there just isn't anything worthwhile in that range to use for modern day games.


Your going to need to look at the $60-90 range for a decent worthwhile gaming card.

[azamjong]

thank for that help..

maybe i just can buy RAM memory first. and wait a little bit before i have enough money for graphic card.

after that, what the best memory card i should buy ? as long its not too expensive

[ShyguyXPC]

huh?

memory card?

[azamjong]

opss...sorry..my bad

*graphic card

[ShyguyXPC]

as I said it depends on how much you have left over, and honestly from what you posted earlier there really isn't anything suitable in that budget range for modern day games to run smoothly at decent settings.

You might have to source out a used card from the last couple/few years that might be capable.