Is GTX 550 Ti a good upgrade for 9800GT?

[dwell]

I have a three year old 9800GT I use on my HTPC mainly to play Skyrim at 1080p. It's ok at medium settings but not butter like it felt with Fallout 3 @ 1080p when I bought the card.

Looking to update to something at ~$150 that's going to last a while. Not interested in gutting my motherboard and RAM etc. It's a Q6600 machine with 4GB which is going to be a limitation but for everything but games the PC has power to spare.

Any options? I'm even open to ATI at this point.

 

[d3fu5i0n]

I'd personally recommend trying to get that CPU to 3.4 or 3.6GHz
Then getting a 6950 1GB/2GB or a 6870. A GTX460 or GTX 560Ti would also be up for that.

Only in CPU heavy games will the CPU be a limitation. I can vouch for that as I've recently upgraded from a Q6700 (which has been at stock 2.66, 3, 3.1, 3.2, 3.3, 3.4, 3.6) to a 2500K. So in ports, such as AC: Revelations, the framerate will be moderately lower with a C2Q -- ...however The Witcher 2 - no framerate difference.

But it depends what your heatsink is and overall airflow/cooling that affect your temps.

Update me on what your cooling is [as well as the motherboard] and I'll recommend you on what to do.



- d3fu5i0n

 

[hawtdawg]

you can get a 6870 for nearly the same price, or even cheaper with a rebate, and it will blow the doors off of a 550. Despite what fanboys might have you think, AMD doesn't have any real driver issues.

 

[Dark Shroud]

You're not going to find 560 Tis $150. You will get 6870s that cheap though and they're good cards.

 

[MrK6]

I have a three year old 9800GT I use on my HTPC mainly to play Skyrim at 1080p. It's ok at medium settings but not butter like it felt with Fallout 3 @ 1080p when I bought the card.

Looking to update to something at ~$150 that's going to last a while. Not interested in gutting my motherboard and RAM etc. It's a Q6600 machine with 4GB which is going to be a limitation but for everything but games the PC has power to spare.

Any options? I'm even open to ATI at this point.

Here's a good reference: http://www.techpowerup.com/reviews/Zotac/GeForce_GTX_550_Ti_Amp_Edition/23.html . The GTX 550 Ti will be ~75% faster (higher in newer games), but is generally a poor value within its price range (~$125). If your budget goes up to $150, then an HD 6870 will be your best bet in bang-for-your-buck and longevity.

 

[dwell]

I run the HTPC at stock because it's cooler but it will do 3.2Ghz stable. It ran like that for years. 6870 looks compelling. My last 10 cards have been Nvidia all the way back to the GeForce 1 but I really don't have a problem jumping ship to ATI for this machine.

 

[d3fu5i0n]

You're not going to find 560 Tis $150. You will get 6870s that cheap though and they're good cards.

Ah, yes, I forgot about the budget. *facepalms in shame*

But the 6870, as I mentioned before, is a high recommendation of mine nowadays.


For the OP: I'd say the 6870. If you feel you can't stretch that much, the 6850 is always a good alternative.
P.S. Don't forget about the 6K series' fan noise.

 

[IonusX]

the 6870 is an outstanding card. here here!:awe:

 

[Lonyo]

The GTX460 1GB is also ~$150 sa another option.

 

[MrK6]

The GTX460 1GB is also ~$150 sa another option.

I was going to recommend one until I saw that only the cut down 192-bit version was in the $150 range. The 6870 will be significantly faster, hence I couldn't recommend it.

 

[Lonyo]

I was going to recommend one until I saw that only the cut down 192-bit version was in the $150 range. The 6870 will be significantly faster, hence I couldn't recommend it.

Oh, forgot that. I only remembered 1GB 256 and 768MB 192 cards, forgot the 1GB 192-bit cards, so when I saw 1GB I assumed normal GTX460 not the crappy one.

 

[AtenRa]

Consider getting HD6870 or GTX560. Both cards have a lot of AR models in Newegg

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produ...iption=hd6870&bop=And&Order=PRICE&PageSize=20

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produ...57&IsNodeId=1&bop=And&Order=PRICE&PageSize=20

 

[Crap Daddy]

While a 550Ti is a nice upgrade from what you have it's a waste of money. Although I'm also an NV user, the 6870 is a nobrainer at around 150$.

 

[Fallengod]

The 550ti is actually a nice video card. Its performance is about equal to the ati 6770. However, it is true, they are overpriced. This is true for almost all nvidia cards currently. The GTS 450 is also severely overpriced. I am hoping with new releases coming out, we will start to see prices drop.

The 550 ti would be a good purchase at around the $70-$90 price point. Id even buy one then. But they definitely are not worth more than $100. I roll my eyes every time I see stores selling them for over $120.

 

[Leyawiin]

192 bit model, but still decent for the price - http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814125412.

About the same performance (although I hear AMD is a little better with Skyrim) - http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814161384

Either one would be better than a GTX 550 Ti

 

[dwell]

So, ended up ordering the 6870 Thanks all.

First ATI card since the 90's. Does Windows 7 have WHQL drivers or do I need to install Catalyst still?

 

[LokutusofBorg]

Does Windows 7 have WHQL drivers or do I need to install Catalyst still?

If by asking if Windows 7 has WHQL drivers you mean Windows Update, then you can do either. The drivers you'll get from Windows Update will just be older. AMD certifies their drivers with WHQL the same as nVidia. But Windows Update will probably never have the latest. Maybe they will sometimes, it depends on how often AMD releases.

 

[Skurge]

Another vote for the 6870. Awesome card for the price. when you consider at stock it's not much slower than 6950/560ti

 

[dwell]

If by asking if Windows 7 has WHQL drivers you mean Windows Update, then you can do either. The drivers you'll get from Windows Update will just be older. AMD certifies their drivers with WHQL the same as nVidia. But Windows Update will probably never have the latest. Maybe they will sometimes, it depends on how often AMD releases.

Yeah that's what I meant. I avoid the manufactures driver installs because I hate the control panels, etc they install.

 

[Dark Shroud]

AMD lets you download just the driver from their site.