NOOB Alert - Need Help Purchasing a Video Card

5

500Driver

New Member
Good Afternoon,

First post and it's one of those that's probably been hashed out a million times before but...here goes anyway.

I need help purchasing a video card for my new computer.

It is a Gateway DX4710-UB301A
Intel Core 2 Q6700 Quad-Core
6GB DDR2 Ram
Windows Vista 64-bit Home Premium
Stock power-supply...looks like 300 watts max

I do a lot of photo editing, digital imaging (some 3D), and I'm a flight simulator addict :)

Any thoughts would be greatly appreciated...I'm simply overwhelmed by the number of cards out there!

Thanks in advance!
 
I was figuring on a PSU upgrade...

For the time being though...if I don't upgrade the PSU right away.

Is there a card under $200 that will get me going?
 
Good Morning,

So...$80 for that PSU...

$120 left-over for a card...is that reasonable or should I plan on $250 - 300...or more?
 
500Driver said:
Good Morning,

So...$80 for that PSU...

$120 left-over for a card...is that reasonable or should I plan on $250 - 300...or more?
Click to expand...

Hey,

Get the psu..and if you can afford..or want to afford it..get a 4800-series ati.

Yeh they are expensive but with that and a new psu..you will be laughing...
 
Okie doke...

Which 4800 series ATI do you recommend?

I see so many different brand names for what appears to be the same card?
 
By all means go for the 4850 if possible - if, however, you can't stretch your budget that far, you may want to look into 8800GT(S)/9600GTs - they're great performers for the price as well, even though they don't quite match up against the 48x0 Radeons, they perform more than well on most games maxed out, but will struggle on something extremely intensive like, say, Crysis.
 
The 4850 looks great and has good reviews.

But just for my own edification...Asus, Palit, Sapphire, Diamond, MSI, HIS, Power Color, VisionTek.......

All seem to offer a Radeon 4850!

Seems one has to be 'better' than the other...but how the heck do you guys keep track and know what to buy?

Good stuff anyway...thanks for all the hep so far!
 
if you can find a Palit Sonic( factory-overclocked version )HD 4850, the better, though it will cost you a few more dollars....
 
What luck!

I realize NewEgg is tough to beat for prices, service, and so on...

However...I just received a $300.00 gift card to Amazon.com!

So...new budget = $300.00

What PSU and Card would you guys buy from Amazon?
 
Id go with the hd4850 and a good psu.

Is this $300 not going to be added on to the $200 previously? $500 can get you a hd4870, a psu, then extra for a game and better vga fan.
 
Hehe...I guess I didn't think of that...I had allocated $200 before.

No...I better not..$300 in 'free' money...and save my 'hard earned' $200 for something else.

I can see how easy it is to get carried away with this! :eek:

Looking at the selection of 4850's on Amazon...they seem to have the same as NewEgg. Is the Palit the 'best'?

And regarding PSU's...the bigger the better?
 
Diamond HD4850 - 179.99 before 25 MIR
http://www.amazon.com/Diamond-4850-512MB-GDDR3-Video/dp/B001ASJJ4Y/ref=sr_1_4?ie=UTF8&s=pc&qid=1221583025&sr=1-4
Corsair 550W VX - 84.99 before 15 MIR
http://www.amazon.com/Corsair-550W-Power-Supply-CMPSU-550VX/dp/B000WU2FGK/ref=pd_cp_e_1?pf_rd_p=413863501&pf_rd_s=center-41&pf_rd_t=201&pf_rd_i=B000UF28V4&pf_rd_m=ATVPDKIKX0DER&pf_rd_r=1XKCQZ6YZRRK6634WA5G

But just for my own edification...Asus, Palit, Sapphire, Diamond, MSI, HIS, Power Color, VisionTek.......
Click to expand...

those are the companies that make the video card. they have different warranties, customer service records, and some sell modify version of the same card(factory overclocking, additional memory, better cooler). I just go for the cheapest card because you can overclock the card if you want; the additional memory is never worth it; you can replace the cooler, if you need/want to; and all the companies will fix a problem if you complain enough.
 
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