Graphic Cards GPU for ~2k [I Know!]

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kidrow

kidrow

Herald
Guys, could you please suggest the best GPU for ~2k - I know it's not much of a budget but that's all I feel I should be spending on gaming atm, having recently bought a logitech momo.

The games I'll be playing will be LFS, GTR2, GPL & the like. I don't mind setting the eye candy down. [I'm used to gaming on my integrated Ati xpress 200]. My monitor has a native res of 1280x1024. My cpu is an Intel p4 3.06ghz, ram is 512mb & OS is XP.

My friend will be coming from the US by the end of this month. Is it possible to get a card from there through customs? If yes, then I could look online as well.

[How are those open box policies on newegg?]

Please bear with this noob. [I've never purchased/ installed a GPU before].

Thanks.
 
Thanks for your replies sri_k & Aces170.

sri_k said:
Get MSI HD 4350 for 2.3k..jsut chkd mediahome's price..its for 2.2k with shipping extra.
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Mediahome - Is that a website? If so, Could you give me a web address. Google didn't come up with anything relevant.

Aces170 said:
Get some more RAM, atleast 512mb more.

If you pal is coming from US up your budget a lil bit and get a 4670 for 60 odd dollars:

Newegg.com - Apollo AP-HD4670 256MB Radeon HD 4670 256MB 128-bit GDDR4 PCI Express 2.0 x16 HDCP Ready CrossFire Supported Video Card - Desktop Graphics / Video Cards
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How much of a difference would a 4670 make over a 4350 as suggested by sri_k?

Yes. I'll be buying 1gb RAM pretty soon.

Is Apollo a known brand? Cos I won't be getting any warranty, right? & is GDDR4 significantly superior to GDDR3?

& is it possible to get a GPU without paying customs, fair & square?

& any idea about the newegg open box products? Cos then I'll have an option of an Asus 4670 for ~$56 as against the Apollo's $65. & I'd also heard that the Asus products carry a robust international warranty - that so? [Ooh...Then again, since it's an open box, would it carry that warranty?]

What would the price of the 4670 in India be? If it's not much of a difference then I wouldn't bother about the US option.

So many questions! - Please excuse me if I've erred in any way. Thank you for your time & patience. It is much appreciated. Awaiting your replies. Thanks!
 
^^ mediahome is a dealer on this forum. His profile - mediahome.in

PM him what you want , he will reply you with the quote.

And yeah , do upgrade your RAM atleast get a 2GB stick would hardly cost you 900 bucks for a decent Transcend 2GB DDR2 800Mhz

Along with that get the GPU as per your budget , look at the Market Section of the forum as well , quite a few people are selling off their GPU's , you may be interested in them. :)
 
How much of a difference would a 4670 make over a 4350 as suggested by sri_k?

Yes. I'll be buying 1gb RAM pretty soon.

Is Apollo a known brand? Cos I won't be getting any warranty, right? & is GDDR4 significantly superior to GDDR3?

& is it possible to get a GPU without paying customs, fair & square?

& any idea about the newegg open box products? Cos then I'll have an option of an Asus 4670 for ~$56 as against the Apollo's $65. & I'd also heard that the Asus products carry a robust international warranty - that so? [Ooh...Then again, since it's an open box, would it carry that warranty?]

What would the price of the 4670 in India be? If it's not much of a difference then I wouldn't bother about the US option.

So many questions! - Please excuse me if I've erred in any way. Thank you for your time & patience. It is much appreciated. Awaiting your replies. Thanks!
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4350 is not a card for gaming, its purely for HTPC purposes, 4670 will be leagues ahead. I would prefer an Apollo card over Asus open box ones, purely because of warranty issues. OPen box card have no warranty apart from the 7-30 days newegg warranty.

Getting a 4670 should not be a task as far as customs are concerned, as you are able to get 30K worth of items on a single ticket last I checked.
 
And yeah , do upgrade your RAM atleast get a 2GB stick would hardly cost you 900 bucks for a decent Transcend 2GB DDR2 800Mhz
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Looking at his CPU, I doubt if it supports DDR2 memory..
 
Aces170 said:
4350 is not a card for gaming, its purely for HTPC purposes, 4670 will be leagues ahead.
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Any cards you could suggest which would be similar in performance to the 4670 but cheaper. [Is the 3850 any cheaper?]

Aces170 said:
I would prefer an Apollo card over Asus open box ones, purely because of warranty issues. OPen box card have no warranty apart from the 7-30 days newegg warranty.
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So the Apollo would have a warranty in India? Again, is Apollo a known brand & would the GDDR4 on the card you mentioned make a significant difference?

Aces170 said:
Getting a 4670 should not be a task as far as customs are concerned, as you are able to get 30K worth of items on a single ticket last I checked.
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In that case, it'd simply be a matter of my buddy declaring the GPU as an article purchased in the US of A, right?
 
techfreak said:
+1 get 8600gt

@kidrow
dude ru sure u got PCIex16 slot :S and i do think ur mobo only supports ddr 1 ram
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Heh heh ... It's not that obsolete a mobo. The Intel d102ggc2 does have a PCIex16 slot though I'm not sure whether it's 2.0 [I'm assuming it would work even if the slot is not 2.0 cos of backward compatibility -Do correct me if I'm off the mark here] & it does support ddr2 RAM upto 2Gb max.

Thanks for your concern.
 
kidrow said:
Any cards you could suggest which would be similar in performance to the 4670 but cheaper. [Is the 3850 any cheaper?]
Click to expand...

Nope, otherwise would have suggested the cheaper one :) 3850 are EOL, even if you find one they consume more power, and you would require a better PSU too.

So the Apollo would have a warranty in India? Again, is Apollo a known brand & would the GDDR4 on the card you mentioned make a significant difference?
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GDDR4 memory would have a higher memory bandwith, so yes on a 128 bit card it would make a diff. And no, none of the US cards would have Indian warranty, you will need to send them back again.

In that case, it'd simply be a matter of my buddy declaring the GPU as an article purchased in the US of A, right?
Click to expand...

Yep, and tell him to add its for personal reasons.
 
if it supports 2 gb max then just wanted to suggest that there is the 3450
MSI and some other brands sapphire too,strictly not for gamming ,but u can
play a few games and this card can be combined with the on board graphics
of the 780g and 790gx chipset mobos if u have plans in purchasing such a mobo in the future ,its cost is rs 1850 form maccane infosys
it has full hd ,dual display and the rest but its ddr2 only ddr3 exists but not
avalible
SAPPHIRE HD 3450 512MB DDR2 PCI-E
 
hybrid black said:
if it supports 2 gb max then just wanted to suggest that there is the 3450
MSI and some other brands sapphire too,strictly not for gamming ,but u can
play a few games and this card can be combined with the on board graphics
of the 780g and 790gx chipset mobos if u have plans in purchasing such a mobo in the future ,its cost is rs 1850 form maccane infosys
it has full hd ,dual display and the rest but its ddr2 only ddr3 exists but not
avalible
SAPPHIRE HD 3450 512MB DDR2 PCI-E
Click to expand...

Thanks for your suggestion but how would the system RAM affect the choice of GPU. Do you mean to say the CPU+RAM would prove to be a bottleneck for a card better than the 3450? :huh:

& between the 3450 & the 4350, which is better? I could consider the latter if it is indeed available for 2.2k provided it is any better.

How would the 2400 pro stack up against the above cards?

Thanks!
 
kidrow said:
Thanks for your suggestion but how would the system RAM affect the choice of GPU. Do you mean to say the CPU+RAM would prove to be a bottleneck for a card better than the 3450? :huh:

& between the 3450 & the 4350, which is better? I could consider the latter if it is indeed available for 2.2k provided it is any better.

How would the 2400 pro stack up against the above cards?

Thanks!
Click to expand...

I think he was suggesting hybrid crossfire. Don't bother; Not only would you need a new platform (mobo + CPU), but the cards supported are only the entry-level HD 3xxx cards which are outdated now.

Answering your other query, the HD 4350 is better than the HD 3450 and the 2400 Pro.

Here's a nifty site that can help you compare cards : Video Card Comparison - GPUReview.com

I'd say get the 4670. Should be quite a big difference.
 
saumilsingh said:
OT: What's your LFS id?
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Hey Saumil, nice to hear from you. I'm the same chap who pestered you about the Logitech Momo's settings last month.

I must admit, I 've not yet unlocked LFS. Rather I'm still playing the demo & trying to get a handle on things. Will definitely keep you posted though. Ciao.
 
Crazy_Eddy said:
I think he was suggesting hybrid crossfire. Don't bother; Not only would you need a new platform (mobo + CPU), but the cards supported are only the entry-level HD 3xxx cards which are outdated now.

Answering your other query, the HD 4350 is better than the HD 3450 and the 2400 Pro.

Here's a nifty site that can help you compare cards : Video Card Comparison - GPUReview.com

I'd say get the 4670. Should be quite a big difference.
Click to expand...

Thanks for the link - It's a big help, especially for someone who hasn't been following GPUs for a while.

So it's +2 for the 4670. So I'll have to basically decide whether I should take the chance of not having a warranty but getting a better card for the price or get a lower performing card & have the warranty. It's the 4670 for $65 from newegg or the 4350 for around Rs. 2.5k so far. Please throw in any more cards into the fray, if you feel like they deserve a mention.

Does anyone here know the mystery surrounding the XFX 8600 gt 256 gddr3 GPUs which were being offered for around 2k just a month or two back. A few local vendors had quoted this price & I'd seen the card myself at Hypercity in Goregaon(W), Mumbai. It even had Rashi Peripherals sticker on it proclaiming a warranty of 3 years. I'm still kicking myself. Had I known back then what I do now, I'd have definitely picked it up.
 
Alright. Thanks to all of you for your replies. You'll have been very helpful.

I won't be getting the 4670 from the US cos my buddy says it's too late to be ordering online. So my choice is limited to cards available here [well, all of 'em are available - only difference is the price : lol]

So I've almost decided to go in for the 4350 gddr3 for about 2.5k. But I've just noticed that the 2600 pro ddr2 is available for around 3k. If I'm not mistaken the latter is a notch above the former. [or would the ddr3 of the 3450 make it on par with the ddr2 of the 2600 pro?]

So what are your thoughts? Any other card worth considering within 3k. & no I'm not going beyond 3k cos otherwise I'd never settle on a card [I've already stretched my budget by 50% -lol]

Thanks!
 
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