GPU Upgrade (What can I run with what I've got?)

[guncrasher]

true the 8800 and 9800 are basically the same card.  If I was you I would probably add more ram see how it goes then think of a VC but if you still want the 9800 get the 9800gtx+.   just make your case as enough space since the 9800gtx+is a big card and it needs lots of space, I think and dont quote me but at least 12 inches.

semp

[cattb]

the older 8800 have a different chipset. towards the end of production of the 8800 and the new 9800 were about the same card. I dont know what chip set the newer 9800 is running these days.

[gyrene81]

The question is...he has an 8800GT 512 card now...what can he put in the system with an Nforce mobo that will increase his performance without having to buy a better PSU?

[BaldEagl]

A 200 series card will be too much for his PSU but he could get a small gain running a 9800 GTX.  Here's a comparison with the 9800 GT which is essentially the same as his 8800 GT but, considering the likely age of his card it probably also uses GDDR2 memory so the move to GDDR3 would also be a bump up.

GPU GeForce 9800 GT  GeForce 9800 GTX  
Core Clock 600MHz  675MHz  
Stream Processors 112  128  
Effective Memory Clock 1800MHz  2200MHz (effective)  
Memory Size 512MB  512MB  
Memory Interface 256-bit  256-bit  
Memory Type GDDR3  DDR3  

(AH runs very well on my machine 95% of the time but I'm anal about random FPS drops)

This would likely be just enough of a gain to fix that problem.

[gyrene81]

Baldy you're talking marginal gain...he may as well buy a 250GTS and get the most up to date 8800/9800 chipset available...and have faster core/shader clock speeds. For any real performance gain, it's going to start at the 260GT level and go up from there.

[Masherbrum]

Baldy you're talking marginal gain...he may as well buy a 250GTS and get the most up to date 8800/9800 chipset available...and have faster core/shader clock speeds. For any real performance gain, it's going to start at the 260GT level and go up from there.

I have an 8800GTS KO coupled with my E8400.   I'd notice "more noticeable gains" with a 200 series card, before Mazz would.   Mazz would "notice small, but worthwhile gains" with a 9800GTX or GTX+, coupled with his E6850 CPU.    Also to run any 200 series safely, he'd need an upgrade of his PSU to make sure there is sufficient Amperage and "overhead" and not being on the border of maxing the PSU out.

[38ruk]

the older 8800 have a different chipset. towards the end of production of the 8800 and the new 9800 were about the same card. I dont know what chip set the newer 9800 is running these days.

Yep ... my older 8800 GTS is a G80 chip where as the 8800gt is a G92. The G92 chipped cards are a decent bump up from the older GTs's

[humble]

Coolermaster isn't a bad PS but it's not normally tested at 40C but at 25C. So your 36@ on the 12V rail is a bit misleading. The GTS250 only draws about 15@ so its actually a very good card but close to what you have. I wouldn't put anything much beyond that in since your continuous power on the 12V rails is probably a bit less then you think at 40C...

[68ZooM]

Im running a Asus M4N72-E Dual PCI Express16 Nvidia N-Force 750aSLI with 2 XFX GTX260 but im using a 1000watt PS, this thing just smokes any game

[eagl]

You guys are on crack.  My nvidia GTX 260 runs like a champ on a quality 600W power supply, and my cpu is a C2Duo at 3Ghz.  With 3 hard drives, 2 optical drives, and an add-on PCI soundcard, the computer is nice and stable under full load (cpu and graphics).

[Bruv119]

why does it have to be nvidia? I just crossed over  from a 8800gts to the 5850 and this thing     with my 620w PSU....

[humble]

You guys are on crack.  My nvidia GTX 260 runs like a champ on a quality 600W power supply, and my cpu is a C2Duo at 3Ghz.  With 3 hard drives, 2 optical drives, and an add-on PCI soundcard, the computer is nice and stable under full load (cpu and graphics).

Key word there is quality. Any PSU that can actually deliver 600W of clean continuous power at 50C is more then enough. The problem is that a majority of units list peak power not continous output and give the rated output at room temp not a standard operating temp of 40C or above. Going back to the old PC power and cooling FAQ you deduct 40% from any suspect rating. So a standard 600W PS delivers roughly 360W of usable power and often less.

So as an example I'd use this 500W (actually 510) PW over any current "700W" PS on the market today other then corsair OCZ and a few others
http://www.pcpower.com/power-supply/turbo-cool-510-xe.html  

[TequilaChaser]

I agree with humble(snaphook) & eagl

a quality PSU should be high priority on your list if not the 1st Priority.........

PC Power & Cooling PSU's are hard to beat......... and you can get them cheap if you go with an open box or recertified one from NewEgg...

example:
Recertified: PC Power and Cooling Silencer 750 Quad Red 750W ATX12V / EPS12V SLI Certified 80 PLUS Certified Active PFC Power Supply
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817703029

cost: $89.99  + $10.18 standard shipping.......

heck, I paid $179.00 for mine when it was on sale.... they retailed for around $199.99 for the longest time........

also, as Bruv119 posted... why stay with Nvidia....... Ati has some great options for you to choose from....... any 3870, 4850/4870, 5850 card will be of great improvement ( my opinion anyhows....... I am on an old Ati model ASUS EAH3870 TOP 512meg DDR4, and I am maxed out everything 1280 x 1024 screen res, 1024 hires texture pkg, and shadows in advanced settings set to 2048....... I get 70 fr in windows XP and I get 75 fr in Windows 7 damn near constant steady no matter where I am flying..... I do see it dip sometimes to like near 45/50 fr(fps) right as I click LAUNCH but it quickly rebounds before the plane starts to move)

my 2 cents

[38ruk]

Thats a great deal on that PSU .   Sometimes people overlook the importance of a good PSU and just shop by price alone . My current PSU  has been running a water cooling system along with overclocked CPU / GPU for over 4 years so it's more than payed for itself . It's a Thermaltake purepower 680W V2(first version was terrible) with  52A 12+ 30A 3+ 28A 3.3+ rails its been carried over threw 3 different system upgrades and runs my current setup without issue .  I remember my wife complaining about spending 200 dollars on a psu but if i had went with a cheapy I'm sure i would have bought 2-3 cheap ones over the course of the last 4 years .   

[Spikes]

Thats a great deal on that PSU .   Sometimes people overlook the importance of a good PSU and just shop by price alone . My current PSU  has been running a water cooling system along with overclocked CPU / GPU for over 4 years so it's more than payed for itself . It's a Thermaltake purepower 680W V2(first version was terrible) with  52A 12+ 30A 3+ 28A 3.3+ rails its been carried over threw 3 different system upgrades and runs my current setup without issue .  I remember my wife complaining about spending 200 dollars on a psu but if i had went with a cheapy I'm sure i would have bought 2-3 cheap ones over the course of the last 4 years .   

Couldn't agree more. I bought a part and got a free '480w PSU' with the part. Now of course it's sitting on my shelf in the box, I'll probably use it if I ever have to fix an older computer with a busted PSU or something...only has 330w output, 480 max.