Midrange graphics card for occassional 1920x1200 gaming

Trunks9486 · 16 Apr 2011 at 09:18

Its not just about the wattage. And the PSU is something you want to overprovision usually, if it goes out it usually wants company with it

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Superjeep4x4 · 16 Apr 2011 at 09:31

The PSU is IMO the most important part in your comp. That goes and there is a very good chance it will take some or most of the other parts with it.

I am not saying it will not work in fact I am sure it will but keep in mind that stressing a PSU to its max rating or close to it on a constant basis is not the smartest thing in the world.

The last PSU that popped on me several years ago took my GPU, two hard drives and made my motherboard wonky. Ever since then I always try to get a PSU thats gonna give me plenty of headroom.

mrochester · 16 Apr 2011 at 10:10

Trunks9486 said:
Its not just about the wattage. And the PSU is something you want to overprovision usually, if it goes out it usually wants company with it .

Oh I understand that.

Does anyone know of a source that compares the power draw of just graphics cards (past and present). The easiest way for me to determine what I should and shouldn't buy PSU wise would be to see the power draw of an 8800GT compared.

Many thanks

M

EDIT - well I've found something that says the 8800GT pulls about 110watts flat out. The 5850 seems to pull about 140watts flat out so unless I'm already encroaching on the limits of a 300watt PSU, it should hopefully be fine.

And then I've found another source that states 133watts for the 8800GT and 157watts for the 5850.

IvanDobskey · 16 Apr 2011 at 11:00

Why do people always skimp on the PSU? Like someone said further up, it is probably the most important part of your PC seeing as it powers everthing else. Your 300 Watt PSU may well work, but it is going to be stressed to its limit the whole time you are using your PC. If it goes pop, then you could have to buy all new parts. A good 650 Watt PSU is only about £60/£70 too.

snaggster · 16 Apr 2011 at 11:16

Please upgrade your psu. Its not the watts gpu's need, but amps. There is no way your psu will be able to continuously cope with the requirements of a c2d and a modern gpu.
I think you have been ok so far due to having a stock speed cpu, And also your 8800gt is prob bottle-necking your cpu, meaning that its never running @ 100% load while gaming.
For your budget i would go for these..
http://www.overclockers.co.uk/showproduct.php?prodid=CA-042-BQ&groupid=701&catid=123&subcat=1083

http://www.overclockers.co.uk/showproduct.php?prodid=GX-259-SP&groupid=701&catid=56&subcat=1711

Dervious · 16 Apr 2011 at 11:30

snaggster said:
Please upgrade your psu. Its not the watts gpu's need, but amps.

Watts/Amps are proportional. It is a better bet to check the PSU's 12V rail amp rating, rather than go on it's overall wattage. Specifically, you should find out the current rating for it's PCIe 12v rails (if it has seperate PCIe connectors/rails). Multiply the current rating in amps by 12, and there's you wattage rating for your graphics card supply.

If it's a single 12v rail PSU, like mine, the current rating is often stated in the specs. Mine is 50A on the 12v rail, so that gives an overall rating of 600watts for the 12v rail, which should be good for a 300watt GPU and 300watts for other components.

TerryH · 16 Apr 2011 at 11:30

I'm glad I brought up the PSU issue.

snaggster · 16 Apr 2011 at 11:41

Dervious said:
Watts/Amps are proportional. It is a better bet to check the PSU's 12V rail amp rating, rather than go on it's overall wattage. Specifically, you should find out the current rating for it's PCIe 12v rails (if it has seperate PCIe connectors/rails). Multiply the current rating in amps by 12, and there's you wattage rating for your graphics card supply.

If it's a single 12v rail PSU, like mine, the current rating is often stated in the specs. Mine is 50A on the 12v rail, so that gives an overall rating of 600watts for the 12v rail, which should be good for a 300watt GPU and 300watts for other components.

Thx Dervious, I just didnt want my post to look like an essay. What i was trying to tell the op is to look for the ampage requrements for the gpu, and then to make sure the psu can supply that amount accross the pcie rail.

mrochester · 16 Apr 2011 at 11:55

Surely as long as the combined power required on the 12volt rail is lower than what the PSU can output (80% load or so), then all is well?

kristmace · 16 Apr 2011 at 12:34

You're running a risk. It could be fine, but I would put money on either random restarts or a complete blowout if you use a 5850 with that PSU. If you're only an occasional gamer then get the BeQuiet PSU for £45 then get a 5770 in the members market for £60ish.

mrochester · 16 Apr 2011 at 12:40

Right I've taken the advice in here and ordered myself a Seasonic X-460FL. 38A 12v line should do just fine for many many years to come

pumaz · 16 Apr 2011 at 12:41

If your willing to spend £150 why not buy a 5850 or a 460 for about £100 and buy yourself an half decent PSU for £50, you wouldn't need to change the fan on either of the GPU's already mentioned because they're practically silent. I have a HTPC with a Gigabyte 460 and I can't hear it at all, it also plays all games I throw at it in 1080p with high to max details, fantastic card IMO

snaggster · 16 Apr 2011 at 12:45

mrochester said:
Right I've taken the advice in here and ordered myself a Seasonic X-460FL. 38A 12v line should do just fine for many many years to come

Nice one that will be a lot better. Now all you need to do is give that cpu a poke....

mrochester · 16 Apr 2011 at 12:45

pumaz said:
If your willing to spend £150 why not buy a 5850 or a 460 for about £100 and buy yourself an half decent PSU for £50, you wouldn't need to change the fan on either of the GPU's already mentioned because they're practically silent. I have a HTPC with a Gigabyte 460 and I can't hear it at all, it also plays all games I throw at it in 1080p with high to max details, fantastic card IMO

I'm very sensitive to noise; I've not found a fanned PSU yet that is quiet enough for my tastes. Basically, if it's got a fan, it's too noisy for me!

I've ordered the £108 5850 which should be all the power I need for my casual gaming.

IvanDobskey · 16 Apr 2011 at 12:49

Good choice of vid card and that PSU should be fine. Think i'd have gone for slightly higher wattage for future expansion though.

pumaz · 16 Apr 2011 at 12:51

mrochester said:
I'm very sensitive to noise; I've not found a fanned PSU yet that is quiet enough for my tastes. Basically, if it's got a fan, it's too noisy for me!

I've ordered the £108 5850 which should be all the power I need for my casual gaming.

You might be surprised when you try that 5850 which is a absolute bargain btw, GPU fans have got allot quieter

Good choices on both PSU & GPU though...

mrochester · 16 Apr 2011 at 12:58

pumaz said:
You might be surprised when you try that 5850 which is a absolute bargain btw, GPU fans have got allot quieter

Good choices on both PSU & GPU though...

There's a very very very high chance I'll be changing the GPU fan in some way or another. I'll try it without any modification first but I doubt it'll be quiet enough for me!

snaggster · 16 Apr 2011 at 13:58

If you have good airflow though your case. thermalright do a good passive cooler, Though it takes up several pci slots.

TerryH · 16 Apr 2011 at 14:08

Erm 460 is not enough if you're hoping for longevity in hardware, in fact 460 Watts is pretty poultry. Who the hell is giving this advice?

IMO 560 Watts Minimum. Trust me.

mrochester · 16 Apr 2011 at 15:03

TerryH said:
Erm 460 is not enough if you're hoping for longevity in hardware, in fact 460 Watts is pretty poultry. Who the hell is giving this advice?

IMO 560 Watts Minimum. Trust me.

Show me the 560watt fanless PSU and I'll go with that then