GPU & Playing Older games on 40"+ LCD

[Andy__C]

A Question from a friend - he is about to upgrade his HTPC and fancies the odd game of Oblivion, maybe FO3... etc.... slightly older games.

(he's not interested in FPS, online gaming etc... more 'leisurely gaming' ).


What is the min spec for say FO3 on a 40" without issues/jitters/awful framerate?

(This upgrade with be AM3, lower end phenom)


I've heard mention of needing a 2gb DDR5 card on these forums for larger screen/res gaming.... but have struggled to find a definitive answer.


I don't think card size is a problem as his HTPC case is quite roomey - however he would like smooth gaming at 1200/40" screen....

Any advice appreciated!

 

[JAGRocks09]

Chances ar ethe TV is 1080p or 720p in which case people tend to sugest cards with >1.5gb of memory for running things in higher settings.

the size of the screen makes little difference it is all to do with the resoloution of the screen.

 

[xsistor]

At 720p you definitely won't need over 1gb. At 1080p it is arguable the benefit of paying extra for a cardwith 2gb as opposed to using that money on a better gpu but less vram. From the sound of it your friend should be getting something in 560ti territory. But it's better if you state a budget...

 

[Andy__C]

Ah - thanks for that. It is 1080.... if the size doesn't matter (as it were), will just tell him to stick to 1.5gb+.... and a modern enough chipset.

 

[muppet]

hi
my 5850 ran fo3 easy , even better when o/clocked so i would say a 1 gig 6850/6870/460 should be enough for older games in general
cheers

 

[xsistor]

Ah - thanks for that. It is 1080.... if the size doesn't matter (as it were), will just tell him to stick to 1.5gb+.... and a modern enough chipset.

This would actually be poor advice. I doubt he specifically needs to be looking for 1.5GB+. If he has a budget in mind can make a better recommendation. If he's only into older games then even a 560Ti 1GB will be at the extreme upper end of what is recommended for him.

 

[bru]

it will all come down to budget and spec he is upgrading too.
If he only wants to play the odd game and is running a modest spec machine then a top end card would be completely wasted, we really need more info to be able to make a good recommendation.
Saying all that you would probably find a 460 or a 6850 would be plenty to allow to play most games in 1080 res with reasonable graphics.

 

[Andy__C]

he falls in the very casual "don't spend more than I need to".... category. I doubt he'll play anything other than Oblivion and FO3, maybe some Indie platformers....



Guessing £100 maximum on the card - as mentioned, its a HTPC upgrade, for playing on a 40" 1080 LCD.... low end AM3.

I think that a high spec card would be overkill as long as the above will run on a large screen.

If

 

[xsistor]

Then this should do the trick:
http://www.overclockers.co.uk/showproduct.php?prodid=GX-174-OK&groupid=701&catid=56&subcat=1866

 

[CAT-THE-FIFTH]

I run Fallout:New Vegas on maximum settings and it barely taxes my HD5850 1GB. My mate can run Elder Scrolls V:Skyrim on high settings at 1920X1080 with reasonable levels of AA and A on HD5850 1GB.

 

[Andy__C]

I ran the same.... My main concern, albeit have now been set straight, is that he may have needed a beefier card RAM wise for a 40" output.

Cheers all!

 

[decto]

You shouldn't need AA on a large TV as they are designed to converge the pixels a little for a less sharp image.

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[bru]

Another thing to consider is the PSU in his HTPC, it might limit what cards could be used.