Looking for a New Graphics Card

S

Shifty

New Member
My computer has been great for me over the last few years. I haven't had a problem with games being slow on very high settings, until now. Playing Dayz, my graphics card is lacking and wondering what a decent upgrade I should be looking for. I'm guessing anywhere from $80-140ish budget.

I also believe my motherboard and graphics card are holding my computer back the most.


Computer's Specs:
Processor: AMD Phenom II X6 1100T Black Edition Thuban 3.3GHz, 3.7GHz Turbo Socket AM3 125W Six-Core Desktop Processor HDE00ZFBGRBOX
Power Supply: COOLER MASTER Silent Pro M700 RS-700-AMBA-D3 700W ATX12V V2.3 SLI Certified CrossFire Ready 80 PLUS BRONZE Certified Modular Active PFC Power Supply
Video Card: ASUS EN9800GT/DI/512MD3 GeForce 9800 GT 512MB 256-Bit DDR3 PCI Express 2.0 x16 HDCP Ready SLI Support Video Card
Hardrive: Western Digital WD Green WD8000AARS 800GB 5400 RPM 64MB Cache SATA 3.0Gb/s 3.5" Internal Hard Drive Bare Drive
Case: Cooler Master HAF 922 - High Air Flow Mid Tower Computer Case with USB 3.0 and All-Black Interior
Ram: 8gb DDR3
Motherboard: ASRock 870 EXTREME3 AM3 AMD 870 SATA 6Gb/s USB 3.0 ATX AMD Motherboard

AND if anyone knows a LOT about computers, could anyone please tell me what would be the loudest part of my computer? It's extremley loud, like can hear it rooms away from where it's located when it's on.

Thanks in advance,
Tyler.
 
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Your motherboard isn't that bad, no reason to replace it unless you're hauling the entire system over. The graphics card is definitely holding you back, though, but I wouldn't have any idea what makes for a good replacement...

As for the noise, if I had to guess I would say GPU fan (my meager 4670 is the single loudest component in my entire system - your GPU cooler might now be as horrible.) Also, those 6-core Phenoms are pretty hot, if you still have the stock cooler that might also be culprit (I know the stock cooler on my parents' Phenom X3 made a fair bit of noise.)
 
A R7 265 will be your best bet for a $150 GPU. If you can't find one, try to get a 7850 (or 7870) on sale for $120 to $140.

For the loudest part of your PC, assuming everything works good, like the HDD (not shaking or anything), the GPU will almost always be the loudest part of your system. The CPU cooler can also get loud, but usually not as bad as the GPU.

As Hack said, no reason to upgrade the board without overhauling the system. If a motherboard is working the way you need it, there's never a reason to upgrade.
 
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hackapelite said:
Your motherboard isn't that bad, no reason to replace it unless you're hauling the entire system over. The graphics card is definitely holding you back, though, but I wouldn't have any idea what makes for a good replacement...

As for the noise, if I had to guess I would say GPU fan (my meager 4670 is the single loudest component in my entire system - your GPU cooler might now be as horrible.) Also, those 6-core Phenoms are pretty hot, if you still have the stock cooler that might also be culprit (I know the stock cooler on my parents' Phenom X3 made a fair bit of noise.)
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Am I able to replace the GPU fan (I think it's a heatsink, or it that something different?)


PCunicorn said:
A R7 265 will be your best bet for a $150 GPU. If you can't find one, try to get a 7850 (or 7870) on sale for $120 to $140.

For the loudest part of your PC, assuming everything works good, like the HDD (not shaking or anything), the GPU will almost always be the loudest part of your system. The CPU cooler can also get loud, but usually not as bad as the GPU.

As Hack said, no reason to upgrade the board without overhauling the system. If a motherboard is working the way you need it, there's never a reason to upgrade.
Click to expand...


Thanks for the recommendation, I will look into that! :D . The sound went out of the MotherBoard I believe. The usb still works, but when anything is plugged into the Audio/Mic jacks in the back of the computer, doesn't register anything is plugged in. Only usb connections work, such as USB headphones. Could this be a sign it's dying and should be replaced, or just a nuisance? (Ik this prob isn't the right place to ask, sorry)


PS-Thanks for the fast replies, I love to game, but I don't know a lot about computer hardware.
 
Am I able to replace the GPU fan (I think it's a heatsink, or it that something different?)
Click to expand...
Heatsink is the metal block on the chip to which heat from the chip is transferred. The cooler can be replaced, but there isn't much point replacing it since you should be getting a new card anyway.

The sound went out of the MotherBoard I believe. The usb still works, but when anything is plugged into the Audio/Mic jacks in the back of the computer, doesn't register anything is plugged in.
Click to expand...
That could well be a driver/software issue - without knowing any specifics, all I can think of is reinstall/update (and if you have some kind of "auto-sensing" thingy, try disabling that, I've seen those play up.) Anyway, even if your audio chip was going bad, that's most likely an isolated issue and you don't have to worry about replacing the whole board - if USB audio is annoying, you could invest in a discrete sound card.
 
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