I want a new video card for under $300

[Jerbsinator]

I want to get a new video card for my rig, but I cannot for the life of me make a decision. Some people tell me to go with a GTX 560 Ti 448 but then I see 7850's for the same price (which also has 1 GB more video RAM), as well as seeing some nice 6950 cards as well. I just don't know what to get. I prefer ATI but I will go Nvidia if the card is too good to be true.

[Jerbsinator]

I'm leaning towards this http://www.newegg.ca/Product/Product.aspx?Item=14-150-609&SortField=0&SummaryType=0&Pagesize=10&PurchaseMark=&SelectedRating=-1&VideoOnlyMark=False&VendorMark=&IsFeedbackTab=true&Page=2#scrollFullInfo

[Chase Roxand]

I own a GTX 560 Ti 448 (ZOTAC's), and it's great. With a slight overclock it's indistinguishable from a GTX 570. But I also picked it up when it came with two free games (BF3 and Batman: Arkham City), so it was hard to beat the cost.

 

However, the HD 7850 looks like the best deal right now, especially for an AMD/ATI fan. The VRAM doesn't mean much unless you're doing professional 3D-accelerated work, but the performance is about or above the 560 Ti 448.

[gregathit]

One thing to consider is what games or programs you tend to use most. Then look at the card that best fits it. Ati has had problems with certain apps/games just like Nvidia.

 

I also own a 560 Ti (384 dual fan version) and it also game with free games and a deep discount so it was impossible for me to pass up... Based on the games I played (lots of Total War and Mount & Blade) the Nvidia was a better card. Whichever card of the two you end up choosing should get the job done. I have not seen any game yet that required more than 1gig of gpu memory.

[FusRoDah]

I'm an Nvidia Hoar, So I'm gonna have to say the 560GTX which you can get for €155.

[Jerbsinator]

I'm low in my Nvidia knowledge and I hear that Nvidia has some good features that Radeon does not (PhysX?). I'm just wondering, are these features worth the switch or does each have their strengths and weaknesses? I like ATI, Their cards have never failed me, while a Nvidia card has. So my faith in them is obviously in question but if they offer something better then maybe I should just go for it.

[Chase Roxand]

I'm low in my Nvidia knowledge and I hear that Nvidia has some good features that Radeon does not (PhysX?). I'm just wondering' date=' are these features worth the switch or does each have their strengths and weaknesses? I like ATI, Their cards have never failed me, while a Nvidia card has. So my faith in them is obviously in question but if they offer something better then maybe I should just go for it.

[/quote']

 

PhysX is very nice when it's used (only a handful of games use it, let alone use it well), but AMD can do PhysX most of the time. Only in extreme cases does PhysX only work on NVIDIA. NVIDIA cards are also great if you have CUDA enabled programs, but that's unlikely. Also, I much prefer NVIDIA's control panel over AMD's. To me, that all is worth the extra ~$30-50 for an NVIDIA card. If you just want to pay less, AMD is what you want. NVIDIA's extra features are just that, "extra".

 

Also, don't blame AMD/NVIDIA for failed cards. They just make the GPUs most of the time, and are very strict about testing. The second manufacturers are responsible for making the rest of the card (including the fans and VRAM).

[Jerbsinator]

I'm low in my Nvidia knowledge and I hear that Nvidia has some good features that Radeon does not (PhysX?). I'm just wondering' date=' are these features worth the switch or does each have their strengths and weaknesses? I like ATI, Their cards have never failed me, while a Nvidia card has. So my faith in them is obviously in question but if they offer something better then maybe I should just go for it.

[/quote']

 

Also, don't blame AMD/NVIDIA for failed cards. They just make the GPUs most of the time, and are very strict about testing. The second manufacturers are responsible for making the rest of the card (including the fans and VRAM).

 

Haha ya I knew that already but I have not bought many video cards in my lifetime so I was just throwing that around loosely. I guess I should have rephrased it to "I don't trust MSI very much", which I do not, I have had problems with a few of their products and probably will avoid them like the plague from now on.

[Guest flingingfeces]

PNY 550ti and up. Life time warranty. Also PNY makes some of the best products on the planet. They have awesome cooling and low noise. I ran a 8800gt for years and never had an issue until it wouldn't handle games like Crysis 2 in DX11 so I upgraded to a 550ti. This thing handles everything I throw at it. If you want to spend a few extra bucks go with the 560ti.

 

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814133431&Tpk=pny%20550%20ti

[Chase Roxand]

I wouldn't suggest buying anything less than a 560 Ti (on the NVIDIA side). If you've got $300 to spend, spend as close as you can to that.

 

As for brands, I don't know anything about PNY, so I can't back up flingingfeces statement. I've had good luck with EVGA and GIGABYTE. MSI was awful (but you know that), and ZOTAC is okay.

 

 

EDIT:

flingingfeces, what happened to your recent post? I just replied to it! D:

[gregathit]

I wouldn't suggest buying anything less than a 560 Ti (on the NVIDIA side). If you've got $300 to spend' date=' spend as close as you can to that.

 

As for brands, I don't know anything about PNY, so I can't back up flingingfeces statement. I've had good luck with EVGA and GIGABYTE.

[/quote']

 

I will second this. I have had several EVGA vid cards and they have never given me a bit of problem!