The entry level video card hot deals thread

[poofyhairguy]

Any good recommendations for a CHEAP (but effective!) update to a GTX 260?

For gaming? That AMD 260x linked above is a great deal for that. If you only buy team green (or your PSU is crappy) look at a 750 ti. Here is one for sub-$100 after rebate:

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814127784

For cheaper than that for a card that can actually game the used market will best serve you.

 

[Homerboy]

For gaming? That AMD 260x linked above is a great deal for that. If you only buy team green (or your PSU is crappy) look at a 750 ti. Here is one for sub-$100 after rebate:

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814127784

For cheaper than that for a card that can actually game the used market will best serve you.

Yeah for gaming. This would be paired up with a Phenom x4 (really an unlocked x2) and a lowly 4GB of RAM (which I'd like to upgrade too of course). Would be running a Corsair 650W PSU, so power might be slim too.

I don't game much anymore so I can't justify dropping a ton of money into it.

 

[poofyhairguy]

Homerboy the value of sub-$100 cards for gaming is pathetic honestly. Every now and then you get a 260x or 750 ti for that price, but if your budget is closer to $50-$60 there is nothing that is new that is even worth buying. At that kind of price you can get something like a GTX 460 or 560ti used on Ebay which is a huge gaming boost over anything sold new for near that price.

 

[VirtualLarry]

Homerboy the value of sub-$100 cards for gaming is pathetic honestly. Every now and then you get a 260x or 750 ti for that price, but if your budget is closer to $50-$60 there is nothing that is new that is even worth buying. At that kind of price you can get something like a GTX 460 or 560ti used on Ebay which is a huge gaming boost over anything sold new for near that price.

This, totally. That ebay (BestBuy) R7 260X 2GB GDDR5 is a decent deal. I think that should game at 1080P med for most games, with the 2GB model. I'm thinking of trying to pick up two of them for my rigs, even. The only thing that gives me pause, is the black-screen issue that seemed to plague Bonaire-based cards.

 

[Homerboy]

So you're saying I should look into the pre-owned market at $80-$100 (ebay, FS/T forum etc) instead of new? Much higher bang for the buck in that instance I'd assume.

Granted even these new cards would be lightyears ahead of the 260 GTX I have now.

 

[poofyhairguy]

So you're saying I should look into the pre-owned market at $80-$100 (ebay, FS/T forum etc) instead of new? Much higher bang for the buck in that instance I'd assume.

Much much more. For years the gap between the sub-$100 cards and the real GPUs were massive, so even a five year old midrange GPU still beats to pieces something like a GT 730.

Granted even these new cards would be lightyears ahead of the 260 GTX I have now.

You never know, some of these cheap cards are SUPER old tech (not 260 old but old) with DDR3 RAM or cut down busses. I think my last HTPC GPU only had a 64bit bus. That can't do anything worth a flip for gaming.

I do recommend sticking to Nvidia with that CPU though, as Nvidia seems to have less demanding Directx 11 drivers. Something like a 560 ti or even a 660 (which both can be had for under $100 on Ebay) would basically max out that rig and allow you some decent 1080p gaming. If you are worried about the PSU get a 750 ti.

 

[Homerboy]

560 ti is 1GB RAM from what I'm seeing? Is that "enough"?

Edit: n/m I'm an idiot

 

[Homerboy]

Something like:

http://www.ebay.com/itm/ASUS-NVIDIA...7&pid=100005&rk=2&rkt=6&sd=171952836563&rt=nc

 

[kowalabearhugs]

I've found gpuShack to be a good alternative to eBay for older mid/high range GPUs. When prices are similar I go with gpuShack because they offer a two year warranty. EVGA has a refurbished gpu storefront as well.

 

[poofyhairguy]

Something like:

http://www.ebay.com/itm/ASUS-NVIDIA...7&pid=100005&rk=2&rkt=6&sd=171952836563&rt=nc

Yup

 

[DesiPower]

MSI GT 740 2GB 128bit is on today's shell shocker, regular price is $60 AR, I am guessing it will sell for $50... Pretty sweet IMO, may be overkill. Downer is that it's big, two slots.

 

[cbn]

NOTE: To readers of this thread, please check the most recent posts for the current deals.

In my experience shopping for value in the entry level category of graphics can sometimes be a frustrating experience.

Therefore I thought I would start this thread so we can have a place to list any hot deals we find for entry level video cards ($50 and under, after rebate) EDIT: 4/6/2015: I decided this thread should no longer have the $50 price limit. Feel free to post whatever hot deal you consider to be an entry level video card.

With that mentioned, here is the first deal:

PowerColor Go! Green AX5450 1GBK3-SH (HD5450 1GB 64 bit DDR3) for $9.99 After rebate, free shipping:

Keep in mind it is just a very basic card with only 80 stream processors, but will work nicely as a very low cost replacement for older systems that either don't have integrated graphics or have extremely weak integrated graphics.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...rebbr=1&cm_sp=

P.S. Regarding Power Color rebates, be very careful how the form is filled out. They have some very detailed instructions that need to be followed (example: do not mistakenly use Newegg's "Order details" as the invoice) , but so far my experience with the single rebate I have filed has been good. It only took me about 5 1/2 weeks to receive my rebate and it was in the form of an actual check rather than a reward card. (EDIT: I just filled out a new Power color rebate yesterday (9/22/2015). They are now using 4myrebate, so same procedure as most other rebates......but now we get a reward card instead of a rebate check)

PowerColor HD5450 listed in the opening post now has a new beefier cooler:

 

[VirtualLarry]

Which would be more appropriate for an older Core2Quad rig with a 2.5Ghz Q9300, 8GB DDR2, possibly an SSD, a 500GB WD Black HDD, and Windows 7 64-bit?

This (CARD #1):

What do you guys think about this?

EVGA 740GT FTW 1GB 128-bit DDR5 for $44.99 + shipping and tax

http://www.evga.com/Products/Product.aspx?pn=01G-P4-3742-RX

Or this (CARD #2):

$78.99 free shipping. Good deal, and no rebates to hassle with http://www.ebay.com/itm/like/321689279316?ul_noapp=true&chn=ps&lpid=82

This is the 260X model - XFX Radeon R7 260 Double D Edition 2GB DDR5 PCI Express 3.0 Graphics Card

Rig currently has a Zotac GT630 (Kepler 384CC) with 1GB 64-bit DDR3 (passive, LP-ready), and an Antec VP-450 PSU (around 4 years old).

Edit: Or option #3, leave the Zotac GT630 1GB DDR3 (Kepler) card in there.

Wanted to make it a semi-competent gaming rig, possibly to sell. If it's not worth souping up to sell, then tell me.

Edit: Additional Q - which of those three cards would be better for watching video? (Like 1080P60 twitch.tv streams.)

 

[JWade]

I have been eyeing that 740gt myself for a similar upgrade that I am going to do. I am going with it, 128bit more shaders, and a fan, for the price I think its a good upgrade

 

[DAPUNISHER]

Which would be more appropriate for an older Core2Quad rig with a 2.5Ghz Q9300, 8GB DDR2, possibly an SSD, a 500GB WD Black HDD, and Windows 7 64-bit?

This (CARD #1):



Or this (CARD #2):



Rig currently has a Zotac GT630 (Kepler 384CC) with 1GB 64-bit DDR3 (passive, LP-ready), and an Antec VP-450 PSU (around 4 years old).

Edit: Or option #3, leave the Zotac GT630 1GB DDR3 (Kepler) card in there.

Wanted to make it a semi-competent gaming rig, possibly to sell. If it's not worth souping up to sell, then tell me.

I was just playing around last night, with stuff in my computer closet, using the following specs -

AMD Athlon II 240@3.22Ghz dual core
8GB DDR2 800
320GB SATA 7200rpm Deathstar 8MB cache 2008 manu. date
windows 10 64bit
EVGA GTX750 FTW 2GB
Antec Truepower 430 with 4 to 8pin mobo adapter.
Gigabyte MA785GM-US2H

Played a couple hours of Batman Arkham Origins@1080p eye candy high and Physx on normal. Played smooth once the hdd finished thrashing. I can test something else if you like.

The C2Q should be superior even at 2.5. Add in that you will be using an SSD OS and a faster HDD for games, and I see no reason why it cannot be a competent casual gamer if you add a new vid card. That said, I would gamble on the 260x.

the reviews are mostly favorable I scanned the first 6 pages, and only saw a couple of complaints of it, and another 2 that were with HP systems.

 

[cubeless]

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814150677

has a rebate, but should be pretty good price if another $10 off... more a mom pc card than a gamer...

 

[cbn]

Which would be more appropriate for an older Core2Quad rig with a 2.5Ghz Q9300, 8GB DDR2, possibly an SSD, a 500GB WD Black HDD, and Windows 7 64-bit?

This (CARD #1):



Or this (CARD #2):



Rig currently has a Zotac GT630 (Kepler 384CC) with 1GB 64-bit DDR3 (passive, LP-ready), and an Antec VP-450 PSU (around 4 years old).

Edit: Or option #3, leave the Zotac GT630 1GB DDR3 (Kepler) card in there.

Wanted to make it a semi-competent gaming rig, possibly to sell. If it's not worth souping up to sell, then tell me.

Edit: Additional Q - which of those three cards would be better for watching video? (Like 1080P60 twitch.tv streams.)

If you wanted to soup it up to sell, then I would probably go with the LGA 771 mod and replace the Q9300 with either a $15 E5440 C0 stepping + $3 adapter sticker or $25 E5450 C0 stepping + $3 adapter sticker. Then sell the Q9300 on ebay for ~$26 shipped.

Its got 8GB RAM making it a nice system, so I think the mod would be worth the effort.

As far as GPU goes, a GT 740 would be a good match for a stock speed E5440/E5450. However, if you know the person will be using low resolution (eg, 1280 x 1024 or 1366 x 768) then I think the GT 630 can work.

P.S. I have used GT 630 with both the E5440 and X3323 (Xeon analogue to Q9300). I think having the extra CPU is worth it even at 1280 x 1024.

 

[VirtualLarry]

ZOTAC GeForce GT 720, 2GB 64-bit DDR3, LP-ready, HDMI / VGA / DVI, passive heatsink

192 Cuda Cores (Is this Fermi, or Kepler?), $39.99
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814500351

Edit: DEAD - now $59.99 + ship.

 

[cbn]

ZOTAC GeForce GT 720, 2GB 64-bit DDR3, LP-ready, HDMI / VGA / DVI, passive heatsink

192 Cuda Cores (Is this Fermi, or Kepler?), $39.99
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814500351

Its GK208 (like the GT 630), but with only 192 cores enabled instead of 384.

http://www.techpowerup.com/gpudb/1989/geforce-gt-720.html

http://www.tomshardware.com/news/nvidia-gt-720,27424.html

P.S. From what I gather the first link is wrong regarding the launch date. The second link's date of August 2015 appears correct going by actual press releases like this one--> http://hexus.net/tech/items/graphics/73181-introducing-evga-geforce-gt-720/

 

[VirtualLarry]

That said, I would gamble on the 260x.

the reviews are mostly favorable I scanned the first 6 pages, and only saw a couple of complaints of it, and another 2 that were with HP systems.

I decided to go for two of the ebay (BB) 260X 2GB cards. They dropped the price to $74.99, from $78.99. Couldn't resist.

Also picked up two G1610 CPUs for my two H61 boards I have.

Now I have a different dilemma. Do I put the 260X cards with the G1610 CPUs, or the Q9300 CPUs?

Edit: This may shed some light:
http://www.techspot.com/article/1039-ten-years-intel-cpu-compared/page5.html

Edit: I may put both 260X cards into my Thuban 1045T rig, and do DC all winter on them.

 

[DAPUNISHER]

Let us know how those work out for you Larry. Hopefully neither of them are borked.

 

[cbn]

Refurb Nvidia GeForce 9300 for $15 shipped:

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=9SIA6AB2KD2893

Now granted this is an extremely old card, but It does support H.264 decode according to Anandtech:

http://www.anandtech.com/show/2642

It also requires a DMS-59 cable which start at less than $6 shipped (in new condition) on Amazon:

http://www.amazon.com/HP-Y-Splitter...ie=UTF8&qid=1444539298&sr=8-1&keywords=dms+59 (HP branded DMS-59 with two VGA connections for $5.95 shipped)

http://www.amazon.com/gp/offer-listing/B000MJ31TG/ref=dp_olp_new?ie=UTF8&condition=new (Dell Branded DMS-59 with two DVI-I connectors starting at $7.46 shipped)

The major use case scenario I see for this card would be to resuscitate an old SFF PC and connect to two VGA monitors without needing an expensive active adapter.

P.S. Maybe even to use in a Web Kiosk as mentioned in this thread:

http://forums.anandtech.com/showthread.php?t=2450252&page=2

(However, it should be noted that Instant WebKiosk does not yet have dual independent monitor support. So far I can only mirror two monitors. Ideally, in future versions, Libre Office (for example) could be run in one monitor and web pages in the second monitor.)

 

[Macgyversite]

This is still the deal....... If you are not concerned with power.

http://www.bestbuy.com/site/xfx-rad...lver/2518005.p?id=1219074167413&skuId=2518005

 

[VirtualLarry]

ZOTAC GeForce GT 720, 2GB 64-bit DDR3, LP-ready, HDMI / VGA / DVI, passive heatsink

192 Cuda Cores (Is this Fermi, or Kepler?), $39.99
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814500351

Now available again, from NeweggFlash, for $39.99.

http://flash.newegg.com/product/14-...01615-_-EMC-101615-Latest-_-MECH-_-ZOTAC-LB1C

 

[VirtualLarry]

https://www.visiontek.com/revisioned/revisioned-radeon-hd-6770-1gb-pcie-detail.html

6770 refurb for $45.49. Not sure if that's GCN, or VLIW5(4?). Has 800SPs.