Replace nVidia 8800 GTS - Recommendations

faicec · 23 May 2010 at 00:13

Evening / Morning all,

Shot of plugging my graphics card into another computer, I believe it is toast!

All was fine earlier on today, upon powering the computer on this evening, I'm greeted by no display and my CPU fan is running faster than normal. PC still boots and I'm able to remote desktop to it. Device manager shows no graphics adapters and an unknown 3D device. I've reseated the graphics card, RAM etc, still no joy. Removing the card allows the CPU fan to revert to normal levels and PC still boots.

So, what shall i replace my nVidia 8800 GTS 678mb card with?! I don’t play games like i used to, so a graphics card of similar or slightly better performance is all i require. I'm looking to spend no more than £100 if possible.

Obviously, the last card I purchased was the 8800, so I've lost touch with the graphics card market. Recommendations will be much appreciated.

Craig

cmndr_andi · 23 May 2010 at 00:22

Do you have any time left on your graphics card warranty? If so, you could get a replacement.

If not, a good upgrade to the 8800GTS would be a 5770 - however it costs a bit more than your budget. To remain within a £100 budget a 4850 or GTS 250 would be a good choice - but they don't offer a large performance boost over the 8800GTS.

faicec · 23 May 2010 at 00:30

Thanks for the quick response.

My budget can stretch to a 5770; just taking a look at the reviews now.

As for the warranty, I'm not sure. I'll take the card out the computer tomorrow and investigate!

jigger · 23 May 2010 at 00:33

HD5750 for £80 would be my choice. A lot faster than your 8800gts and a lot less power hungry.

cmndr_andi · 23 May 2010 at 00:39

jigger said:
HD5750 for £80 would be my choice. A lot faster than your 8800gts and a lot less power hungry.

Yea, the 5750 is another good choice. As shown in this review - it performs about on-par with the GTS 250 and is cooler and uses less power. Just make sure you get one with a good warranty - so if it dies during its useful life you can get a free replacement (usually ASUS offer the longest warranty on ATI cards at 3 years).

bobert50 · 23 May 2010 at 00:59

I'm not sure 8800 > 5750 is a fantastic idea tbh

Is the gap big enough in a lot of games?

Trunks9486 · 23 May 2010 at 01:02

Its the older 8800GTS, G92 was faster than that, and 5750 a bit better than 4850 which was better than G92.

It depends what he needs really. You get what you pay for.

cmndr_andi · 23 May 2010 at 01:10

bobert50 said:
I'm not sure 8800 > 5750 is a fantastic idea tbh

Is the gap big enough in a lot of games?

It won't be a massive performance upgrade - but games will run a bit faster. If i'm not mistaken - the 8800GTS 640MB performs about as well as the 8800GT. The 8800GT is shown in the review I posted above - and the 5750 and GTS 250 seem to beat it quite soundly in modern games.

Also, this doesn't seem to be an upgrade per-se, as his current card has died. So getting a card that performs hugely better than the 8800GTS may not be required and will certainly be over budget.

jigger · 23 May 2010 at 01:15

http://www.techpowerup.com/reviews/Powercolor/HD_5770_PCS_Plus_Plus/6.html

A 5750 is no slouch. Its definitely a very good upgrade for £80.

They seem to be overclocking champs too.

http://www.techpowerup.com/reviews/Powercolor/HD_5750_PCS/33.html

faicec · 23 May 2010 at 10:37

Thanks for all the replies.

The graphics card was manufactured by BFG, so I should be covered by the 'lifetime' warranty that covers graphics cards purchased pre 21/02/08. I’ve contacted them via their website, so hopefully everything will run smoothly. Unfortunately one small issue may arise if they ask for proof of purchase; I don’t have my Overclockers receipt from 3+ years ago!

cmndr_andi · 23 May 2010 at 12:11

faicec said:
Unfortunately one small issue may arise if they ask for proof of purchase; I don’t have my Overclockers receipt from 3+ years ago!

Do you not have the email order confirmation or the order history page on OCUK? I'm sure either of these would provide the details BFG need to confirm that you bought the card from OCUK, and thus are eligible for a warranty replacement.

jigger · 23 May 2010 at 12:13

I wouldn't bother sending it back. He will more than likely just get a b0rked card back that he has to send back over and over.

Marine-RX179 · 23 May 2010 at 12:19

jigger said:
I wouldn't bother sending it back. He will more than likely just get a b0rked card back that he has to send back over and over.

Yea...that's likely to happen, and the process would take quite a while anyway. I think his best bet is just grab a new graphic card to use, and do the RMA at his leisure. If he does get a working replacement back from BFG, he can just dump in onto the bay or something to sell it.

faicec what res do you game at by the way?

faicec · 23 May 2010 at 15:57

Greetings,

Found the order, shipped to me on 23rd May 2007; so it failed exactly 3 years to the day after purchase!

As for res, I have an 1920x1200 monitor, but when playing games, i usually do so in window mode, no more than 1440x something.

Greebo · 23 May 2010 at 16:45

jigger said:
I wouldn't bother sending it back. He will more than likely just get a b0rked card back that he has to send back over and over.

Or he will get a free upgrade. I very much doubt they have a 8800 GTS anymore, I suspect he'll get a gts 250 as a replacement.

Scania · 23 May 2010 at 18:50

I replaced a GTS 320 with a GTX260, night & day difference, well worth a punt if you find a cheap second hand one.

faicec · 23 May 2010 at 20:09

What would the nVidia equivalent of the ATI 5770 be?

Or is it a simple matter of ATI being better than nVidia at the moment?

cmndr_andi · 23 May 2010 at 20:23

faicec said:
What would the nVidia equivalent of the ATI 5770 be?

The GTX 260 (216 core).

However this card is EOL (end of life)and uses an older 55nm process (compared to the 40mn used on the 5770) so it is hotter and uses more power. To get your hands on this card you would need to pay over-the-odds for one of the dwindling number in shops or buy second hand (where you likely will not get any of the crucial warranty).

faicec said:
Or is it a simple matter of ATI being better than nVidia at the moment?

This TBH. Nvidia do plan to release cheaper cards based on their 40nm Fermi architecture - however the timescale, price and performance of these cards is currently unknown.

In the meantime - the 5770 is the best card in its price point. Also, if you can get a 5830 at around £150-160 then it is worth it.

AgedIdiot · 23 May 2010 at 20:28

cmndr_andi said:
In the meantime - the 5770 is the best card in its price point. Also, if you can get a 5830 at around £150-160 then it is worth it.

+1

At the moment nvidia have nothing in the price position except old tech (which is somewhat difficult to source and 'very' expensive for what it is)

faicec · 23 May 2010 at 20:42

Cheers for the info.

I'm looking at the Sapphire 5770, currently on 'pre order'. There are other cards around with the same connectivity, however this is a little cheaper and comes with 2 years warranty compared to a number that only come with 1 year.

Will have to sit and wait for stock!