Hi, I need your help deciding on what graphics card I should get for my PC that I built with my dad. I'm only 15 and this PC I have now was my first sucessfull build. Unfortunately, when I was buying my parts of my trusty website Scan.com, I only had enough budget to get my Nvidia GeForce 7300 GT.

I have come to the point where I am fed up of playing COD4 on its lowest resolution and not being able to play Crysis yet :mad:

So now I need to decide on which graphics card to get. Now sure, I can just get Nvidia GeForce 8... something but is that really the best option for me. Do I not need to buy a graphics card that will suit best with all the other parts in my system? Will I need to but some water cooling for my case? Will I need a better CPU/processor? Will I need a new motherboard?

I am not sure how much I am willing to spend on a graphics card, properly around £160 -£200. (Or however much I can get on ebay for a good condition xbox 360 premium console, 2 controllers, 5 games, wireless headset, and guitar hero 3)
You can clearly see I need help, so please reply and help me out:)

Ill list all the parts of my system below that are relevant, unless I am mistaken...

Processor: AMD Athlon(tm) 64 X2 Dual Core Processor 4400+ 2.30 GHz
Graphics Card: Nvidia GeForce 7300 GT
Memory (Ram): 2.00 GB
Motherboard: Can't remember (good enough for dual graphics cards)
OS: Windows Vista 64-bit
Case: Can't remember (nothing fancy, standard black tower case)

EDIT:

I also got this from a little spec scanner I downloaded:
System Manufacturer: GBT___
System Model: NVDAACPI
Motherboard Manufacturer: Gigabyte Technology Co., Ltd.
Motherboard Model: M57SLI-S4
* Maximum Memory Capacity: 2097152 MB
* Currently Installed Memory: 1024 MB
* Available Memory Slots: 3
* Number of Banks: 4
* Dual Channel Support: N.A.
* CPU Manufacturer: AuthenticAMD
* CPU Family: AMD Athlon(tm) 64 X2 Dual Core Processor 4400+ Model 11, Stepping 2
* CPU Speed: 2300 MHz

Looked up your mother board. The highest i can support from the GeForce series is an 8 series. The newer 9 series and GTX200 series need a different slot type. So i would say to get one of the GeForce 8800's

Some can be a little more expensive, but others are more then affordable. But when looking make sure you buy one that fits a PCIEx16 slot, not a PCIEx16 2.0. Some of the 8800's work on the 2.0 slots, but your motherboard doesnt have one.

You will probly want a 8800GTS, that will last the longest without needing a new upgrade.

Thanks for the reply.
But is the 8800GTS any good? Say... would it be able to play COD4 on the highest resolution with shadows and textures turned up to max? How about Crysis, how well will it cope with that?

Depends on your monitor. I got a 8600gt 256mb and played the COD4 demo at medium/low settings on a 1440 x something on a 21 inch monitor. I can play crysis at dx9 low settings with about 25-35 fps windowed at 1024 x 1024 so it should handle it well

BTW get more that 256mb maybe 512 if you can afford it. And you might have to upgrade your PSU.

Well my monitor is pretty standard I guess, I spent 100 quid on it a fw years back. It is LCD and can handle HD. Also, by saying PSU you mean processor right?

I just looked up Nvidia 8800 GTS on scan.com and these three came up:

320MB XFX 8800GTS, XT, PCI-E (x16), Mem 1700 MHz, GDDR3, GPU 560 MHz, 96 Cores, 2 x Dual Link DVI-I £109.95 £129.19

640MB Palit 8800GTS, PCI-E (x16), Mem 1600 MHz, GDDR3, GPU 500 MHz, 2 x Dual Link DVI-I £149.88 £176.11

320MB Leadtek 8800GTS PCI-E (x16), Mem 1600MHz, GPU 500MHz, 96 Streams, 2x Dual Link DVI/HDTV £152.88 £179.63

Which do you think would be best for me?
------------------double post merged------------------
Actually, PSU is power supply unit, not processor.

Truthfully i'm not too graphics card knowledgable but my first instincts would be to go with the 640mb Palit on the basis of memory but if you can't afford it i would go with the XFX between the two 320mb (faster gpu and 100 mhz more memory speed (or whatever the first thing is).

I would say go with the xfx as well, only cause I never heard of the other. And like he said , and I completely forgot, make sure your power supply has the right connections. If your not sure send me the info on your power supply and I'll tell you.

Well I am not too bothered about not getting a new power supply because mine is a bit faulty anyway. I did do a bit of research of my own and the graphics card both of you recommended has a 6 port thingy at the back. I'll look in my pc now and see if my PSU can support it.

To conclude, I will go for the 320MB XFX 8800GTS because of the price really, and I have heard that it will support my needs very nicely.

I thank you both of your quick and straight foward replys and I aprichiate your support.

No problem, glad i could help!

NP just make sure whatever power supply you get will support it.

Hi guys, i'm having exacly the same problem, for chirstmas i bought an emachine e4252

included below is the spec.

http://uk.emachines.com/support/product_support.html?cat=Desktops&subcat=E-Series&model=E4252

The standard graphics that came withare well . . . abit pants !

at the moment im using a 7400 gs card, which has incredible lag on crysis on miniumun spec.

so im looking to upgrade to an xfx card but i dont know the diffrence between the 8 & 9 series. logicaly 9 series should be better, but hay thats not what the prices are saying.

Im confused :s

Im concidering either a XFX Geforce 8600GT 512MB DDR2 PCI-E

or a XFX GeForce 9600GT 512MB PCI-E

Which is best whats the diffrence and which should i go for with my spec:

also another quick question the spec says ddr2 memory on the mother board which i have upgraded to 2gb, But is there going to be a problem with the XFX GeForce 9600GT 512MB PCI-E because it uses on board GDDR3 memory ?

Im confused please some one help !

the memory on the card wont be a problem. What will likely be the prob is the interface.

All the 9 series cards require a PCI-Ex16 2.0 slot. You likely dont have one with a 2.0 slot.