DIGIT-ARC read-only archive · snapshot: July 23, 2026

Graphics Card Upgrade Advice

22 posts · originally from https://geek.digit.in/community/threads/graphics-card-upgrade-advice.166015/

jackal_79
jackal_79 Original post #1
Nov 10, 2012 at 9:19 PM
Hi,
I have recently updated my system and planning an upgrade for my existing XFX 9800GT.Please go through below and suggest.

1. Which Power Supply do you have?
Ans:Corsair VX450


2. What is your budget?
Ans:13,000 (Max)


3. Which resolution will you game at?
Ans:My monitor is a dell 19 inch with native resolution of 1440 * 900.So that would be the max i would like to go now with medium settings to play games like crysis all versions, COD , MOH , Skyrim etc.


4. What are your current computer specifications?
Ans:C2D E6550
Asus P5G41T-M-LX Motherboard
Western Digital 1 TB WD1002FAEX & a seagate 500 GB
G.Skill NT DDR3 4 GB (1 x 4 GB) PC RAM (F3-10600CL9S-4GBNT)



Note: I was planning to buy a HIS 6870 ICEQ Edition.But not sure whether it will cause any bottleneck with my current CPU & Mobo.Also not sure whwther VX 450 is enough for that setup.Currently iam using XFX 9800 GT.I want to upgrade this to support new games on decent frame rates.
Iam open to buying online as wellas both nvidia & AMD.But would like a nice VFM card.
Nighthawk12
Nov 10, 2012 at 10:38 PM
MSI HD 7850 OC'd Power edition for 14k(If you can extend it by 1k)
Otherwise HD 7850 MSI OD'd non power edition for 13k

But your CPU might bottleneck..
jackal_79
Nov 10, 2012 at 10:48 PM
MSI HD 7850 OC'd Power edition for 14k(If you can extend it by 1k)
Otherwise HD 7850 MSI OD'd non power edition for 13k

But your CPU might bottleneck..

If that is the case, what's the next option?.Will it work if is use HIS 6870 (Version mentioned on previous post) as planned earlier?
Cilus
Cilus #4
Nov 10, 2012 at 11:42 PM
There is no point of getting HD 6870 now as it is an older generation card and can hardly handles current demanding games @ Full HD with high setting enables. Gigabyte HD 7850 2 GB GDDR5 is available at 13.8K in MdComputers.in. Get that one, the best card at your budget.
jackal_79
Nov 11, 2012 at 12:20 AM
There is no point of getting HD 6870 now as it is an older generation card and can hardly handles current demanding games @ Full HD with high setting enables. Gigabyte HD 7850 2 GB GDDR5 is available at 13.8K in MdComputers.in. Get that one, the best card at your budget.

Thanks for the response.But as suggested by NH my CPU might bottleneck.I don't want to game at ultra high resolution.Playing at reasonable frame rates will do.Also iam not planning currently to change the PSU.So the new graphics card should be able to work on the existing PSU.So please suggest a graphics card on that range.
topgear
topgear #6
Nov 11, 2012 at 6:32 AM
even HD6870s performance will be bottle necked by your cpu but if you are getting playable FPS in every games don't be bothered to much - gaming at 80 FPS and 120 FPS makes no difference ;-) anyway, talking about the PSU - HD7850 consumes less power than HD6870 and you can even OC the cpu and PSu both with that PSu provided you have a good cooler for the cpu - so just get get the HD7850 - another alternatve you may consider is GTX 660 though it may cost 500-1000 bucks more.
jackal_79
Nov 11, 2012 at 11:52 AM
even HD6870s performance will be bottle necked by your cpu but if you are getting playable FPS in every games don't be bothered to much - gaming at 80 FPS and 120 FPS makes no difference ;-) anyway, talking about the PSU - HD7850 consumes less power than HD6870 and you can even OC the cpu and PSu both with that PSu provided you have a good cooler for the cpu - so just get get the HD7850 - another alternatve you may consider is GTX 660 though it may cost 500-1000 bucks more.


Ok suggest a good model of 7850.Also, what do you think about a hd7770 with my config?
topgear
topgear #8
Nov 12, 2012 at 2:40 AM
comparing the price and peformance with every other HD7850s this is the best : R7850 Power Edition 2GD5/OC and when you have the budget for a HD7850 why thinking about HD7770 - stick with the HD7850 - it will be fruitful in the long run ;-)
jackal_79
Nov 13, 2012 at 12:46 AM
comparing the price and peformance with every other HD7850s this is the best : R7850 Power Edition 2GD5/OC and when you have the budget for a HD7850 why thinking about HD7770 - stick with the HD7850 - it will be fruitful in the long run ;-)

Sorry! But did you mean the MSI one or Gigabyte?.If you meant Gigabyte, i have not heard much about mdicomputers.in.Is it a reliable site?
N
Naxal #10
Nov 13, 2012 at 2:50 AM
Sorry! But did you mean the MSI one or Gigabyte?.If you meant Gigabyte, i have not heard much about mdicomputers.in.Is it a reliable site?

The store is a well know destination of Kolkata IT hardware purchasers. MD offers really cool prices and deals and reputed store also but no idea about their online dealings !
topgear
topgear #11
Nov 13, 2012 at 3:57 AM
Sorry! But did you mean the MSI one or Gigabyte?.If you meant Gigabyte, i have not heard much about mdicomputers.in.Is it a reliable site?

take your pick ;-)
AMD R7850 Power Edition 2GD5/OC 2 GB GDDR5 Graphics Card | Graphics Card | Flipkart.com
or
Sapphire AMD HD 7850 1GB OC GDDR5 1 GB GDDR5 Graphics Card | Graphics Card | Flipkart.com
jackal_79
jackal_79 #12
Nov 13, 2012 at 12:38 PM
take your pick ;-)
AMD R7850 Power Edition 2GD5/OC 2 GB GDDR5 Graphics Card | Graphics Card | Flipkart.com
or
Sapphire AMD HD 7850 1GB OC GDDR5 1 GB GDDR5 Graphics Card | Graphics Card | Flipkart.com

Both are crossing my budget.Gigabyte 7850 from MDI seems to be cheaper.Let me think on it.One last question.If iam going for the gigabyte version, will i have any problem in installing the card on my cabby(NZXT Gamma).The dimension of Gigabyte card is as follows:
H= 42.5mm, L=241 mm, W= 137mm
Cilus
Cilus #13
Nov 13, 2012 at 1:33 PM
I don't think it will be a problem.
Myth
Myth #14
Nov 13, 2012 at 1:46 PM
NZXT Gamma dimensions : 190 X 449 X 508 mm
I dont see why it wont fit.
topgear
topgear #15
Nov 13, 2012 at 8:40 PM
Both are crossing my budget.Gigabyte 7850 from MDI seems to be cheaper.Let me think on it.One last question.If iam going for the gigabyte version, will i have any problem in installing the card on my cabby(NZXT Gamma).The dimension of Gigabyte card is as follows:
H= 42.5mm, L=241 mm, W= 137mm

I was just pointing to the model names/nos of the cards - getting from local shops usually gives you a cheaper ( read better ) deal. Anyway, I personally like the PE ed. card most though it costs more but worth the extra.
jackal_79
jackal_79 #16
Nov 14, 2012 at 12:18 AM
I was just pointing to the model names/nos of the cards - getting from local shops usually gives you a cheaper ( read better ) deal. Anyway, I personally like the PE ed. card most though it costs more but worth the extra.

Well, that's ok.But getting these cards at Kerala locally would be tough.So my options as I see it are finding a good deal online like the gigabyte card or go in for an older card like 6850 or 6870 or wait until January for 8000 series to come out.
topgear
topgear #17
Nov 14, 2012 at 3:11 AM
don't settle for any older gen cards and wait for Sea Islands too - AMD cards with latest drivers are the best performer now - so why would they want to release the 8 series product line so soon ? let them milk the 7 series cards first ;-) and if you can wait why not soup up the budget by ~1.5-2k and get the HD7850 Pe Ed - it's one of the best OCable HD7850 available on the market.
jackal_79
jackal_79 #18
Nov 15, 2012 at 1:09 AM
don't settle for any older gen cards and wait for Sea Islands too - AMD cards with latest drivers are the best performer now - so why would they want to release the 8 series product line so soon ? let them milk the 7 series cards first ;-) and if you can wait why not soup up the budget by ~1.5-2k and get the HD7850 Pe Ed - it's one of the best OCable HD7850 available on the market.

Thank's for all the advice.So you are suggesting MSI PE version?. Any particular reason? The gigabyte version is OC'd to 975 Mhz and costs less
*www.flipkart.com/gigabyte-amd-gv-r...-card/p/itmd9hhs3vgwzvde?pid=GRCD9HHSMYFMGVEP

Will MSI version (or for that matter any 7850 ) be supported by my motherboard? Any problem with card dimension in relation to my cabby?.Sorry for sounding repetitive.
Cilus
Cilus #19
Nov 15, 2012 at 3:08 AM
All versions of HD 7850 will fit in your cabinet and it is supported by your Motherboard. But for avoiding compatibility and stability issues, 1st update the Motherboard with the latest BIOS.
V
vkl #20
Nov 15, 2012 at 3:25 AM
Gigabyte AMD GV-R7850OC-2GD 2 GB GDDR5@12.7k seems as a good option.

The thing with MSI hd7850 power edition is that it can reach somewhat higher max clocks when overclocked than some other models.
Hd 7850 PE has a length of ~8.3inches.It would fit easily into nzxt gamma.
Most of the Hd7850 cards are less than or a bit above 10inches and should fit well in the cabinet.
Very few models are above 11inches like HIS HD 7850 IceQ Turbo X(~11.7"),these won't fit into nzxt gamma without modding.
Gigabyte AMD GV-R7850OC-2GD has a length of ~9.5",should fit well into the cabinet.
GV-R7850OC-2GD looks better priced.

Also for 14.5-15k one can get Gigabyte gtx660 OC which would be overall a better option than msi hd7850 PE at that price point as far as gaming is concerned.
C
Nov 19, 2012 at 8:28 PM
Can I post my query about graphic card upgrade here itself or should I start a new thread? :-?
Myth
Myth #22
Nov 19, 2012 at 8:50 PM
Better to start your own thread.