Recommendation for a cheaper graphic card?

[akajak]

Hi, Im trying to buy a cheaper graphic card that can run Diablo 3 that compatible with my mother board. I am planning to change my computer within a month, but can't wait to play that game, so i decided to buy a cheaper graphic card to install.

here is my computer specification:

CPU: Intel Core 2 Duo E6550 @2.33 GHz
Ram: 2GB DDR2
Graphic card: Radeon HD 2400 1GB PCI express x16 1.0a

I found Radeon HD 3850 512MB GDDR3 PCI Express 2.0 x16 for $58

If I install this graphic card in PCI e1.0a, would this be able to run diablo 3? since im using 1.0a instead of 2.0?

also, any recommendation for other graphic cards?

please help~!

[Steve R Jones]

See this thread about Tom's Hardware Charts: Tom's Hardware Interactive VGA Charts

You can probably find charts that rate cards AND Diablo 3....then you lookup the price of the lower end cards.

[akajak]

yeah, so I found the Radeon HD 3850 above the minimum system requirement for D3, which i believe was x1900 xt.

but does it matter if i install PCI e2.0 graphic card on PCI e1.0a? wouldn't it under perform?

[stroyal]

Welcome to TechIMO!

Keep in mind, those are minimum requirements, and most people are not happy with that.

You are correct, 2.0 is twice as fast as 1.0, but you are talking about a HD3850 that runs just fine on an AGP bus that is 1/4 the speed of PCI-e X16 1.0a.
I have one and the only bottleneck is the CPU.
What is PCI Express? A Layman's Guide to High Speed PCI-E Technology-Best Computer Online Store Houston Buy Discount Prices Texas-Directron.com
Passmark AGP 705
Passmark PCI-E 779
PassMark Software - Video Card Benchmarks - High End Video Cards

I'm pretty sure bandwidth has nothing to do with the difference.
It is pretty easy to guess, that the AGP machines, are older hardware.

I'd be more worried about the real but rare, incompatibility of 1.0a, slots with 2.0 cards.
We get posts on them from time to time.

[ShyguyXPC]

in a nutshell, no it won't under perform, aside from the possible compatibility issue that comes up every now & then.

a Radeon 3850 never came close to fully saturating the 1.0 bus max bandwidth, so going to 2.0 which doubles the max bandwidth wouldn't matter.

its like driving your car down a 4 lane highway with very little traffic, then suddenly your driving down an 8 lane highway with the same number of cars, your still able to do the same speeds and travel as far as easily as before.


as to D3 and cards that run it well, be aware, the latest Toms Hardware article showing some of the newer more recent lower to high end cards, is a sham...

Apparently Tom's can't take their heads out of their arse and properly test things... They took a Socket 2011 Intel Core i7 6 Core, that already runs at 3.3GHz and costs a grand for the CPU, overclocked it to 4+GHz, stuffed in 16GB of RAM, 256GB SSD, and 1200W PSU, to test low end, moderate end and high end cards with Diablo 3.

The average gamer can't afford any of that. so the Frame rates and what it shows it can do is so artificially inflated its not even funny. due to the already high end CPU, and its even more absurd speed due to the Overclock, the gratuitous overkill on RAM, which the game won't even use a fraction of that, the rest is for the OS and other software to use (I Suspect they were running a RAM Disk with that much), and a 256GB SSD, again, costs way more than most gamers can afford.

would be nice for a big name site to get over them selves and their ego's and test these cards on more mundane, average PC's for once.