Need Help Comparing: GeForce GTS 250

[Karonysus]

O_O Oh wow! I'm really impressed by how fast the comments have come. Thanks for all the help everyone!

 

I should probably mention my situation:

1) This is the first time I'm putting together a rig.

2) I'm a film student who primarily needs to video edit. (Need to be able to use Adobe Premiere CS4 + AfterEffects)

 

3) I do love gaming, but I am not one who needs to play the fastest nor the newest. Although, I would appreciate a video card that can play just about any game on the market so far with ease. Some games that I do love/hope to play:

- Command & Conquer (I am going to acquire Red Alert 3 soon!)

- Warcraft (Yes, I play DOTA >_>)

- Starcraft (I can't wait for II! >_<)

- GunZOnline

- ASDA Story

 

@ ShallowBay: I actually have no idea what Physx is for and what games use it. @_@ Could you please give me a brief rundown?

 

4) I really appreciate the links to other cards but the reality is handling and shipping fees + $ conversion sucks from those online sites (like the newegg links that I keep getting... It's at least an extra $20 on top for the item I want ;_. >_< Bestbuy and Futureshop both have a "free shipping over $39" deal.

 

@ IVIYTH0S: If I may, how can the POWERCOLOR AX4850 be better for me?

 

5) I've already decided on the following parts:

- Gigabyte AMD790 Motherboard GAMA790XT-UD4 ($137.99)

- AMD Phenom X4 Quad-Core Processor 9850 Black Edition ($150.99)

- KINGSTON 4GB (2X2G) DDR3-1333 (KVR1333D3N9K2/4G) ($108.99)

- SEASONIC POWER SUPPLY S12-II 500WATT ATX ($101.99)

- Samsung 1TB 7200RPM SATA II,32MB CACHE ($100.99)

- LG 22X Internal SATA DVD Rewriter (GH22LS40) ($34.99)

- Samsung SyncMaster 20" Widescreen LCD Monitor (2033SW) <--- Max. Resolution = 1600 x 900 ($169.99)

- (I'm still looking for a case with cooler too)

 

Total Cost (so far): $805.93

I'm trying to keep my rig under $1000. At most, I can push my budget to $1100.

 

What SHOULD my rig have to make use of the GTS 250's full potential?

 

- I initially decided on the GTS 250 mainly because of the power savings. If it can compete with the other cards in terms of graphics and speed, but on less power, then I'd prefer it. I leave my CPU on like all the time so those pennies add up!

 

Is there anything in my rig that you guys would not recommend? Or maybe an idea of something that is comparable but cheaper? Any and all advice is very much appreciated! Thank you!

 

P.S. I'm a she. =)

Edited September 23, 2009 by Karonysus

[xchrissypoox]

I should probably mention my situation:

1) This is the first time I'm putting together a rig.

2) I'm a film student who primarily needs to video edit. (Need to be able to use Adobe Premiere CS4 + AfterEffects)

3) I do love gaming, but I am not one who needs to play the fastest nor the newest. Although, I would appreciate a video card that can play just about any game on the market so far with ease. Some games that I do love/hope to play:

- Command & Conquer (I am going to acquire Red Alert 3 soon!)

- Warcraft (Yes, I play DOTA >_>)

- Starcraft (I can't wait for II! >_<)

- GunZOnline

- ASDA Story

 

@ ShallowBay: I actually have no idea what Physx is for and what games use it. @_@ Could you please give me a brief rundown?

5) I've already decided on the following parts:

- Gigabyte AMD790 Motherboard GAMA790XT-UD4 ($137.99)

- AMD Phenom X4 Quad-Core Processor 9850 Black Edition ($150.99)

- KINGSTON 4GB (2X2G) DDR3-1333 (KVR1333D3N9K2/4G) ($108.99)

- SEASONIC POWER SUPPLY S12-II 500WATT ATX ($101.99)

- Samsung 1TB 7200RPM SATA II,32MB CACHE ($100.99)

- LG 22X Internal SATA DVD Rewriter (GH22LS40) ($34.99)

- Samsung SyncMaster 20" Widescreen LCD Monitor (2033SW) <--- Max. Resolution = 1600 x 900 ($169.99)

- (I'm still looking for a case with cooler too)

 

Total Cost (so far): $805.93

I'm trying to keep my rig under $1000. At most, I can push my budget to $1100.

Bestbuy.ca has horrible prices

 

$1000-$806=$194 so the best/highest priced video cards you could get on newegg.ca are a gtx 260 or a 4870.

 

I initially decided on the GTS 250 mainly because of the power savings. If it can compete with the other cards in terms of graphics and speed, but on less power, then I'd prefer it. I leave my CPU on like all the time so those pennies add up!

 

@ IVIYTH0S: If I may, how can the POWERCOLOR AX4850 be better for me?

Based on this and all the other things you've said I think the best card for you is a 9800 GT it is reasonably priced and uses even less power than the GTS 250 (though I think the power usage between the gts 250 and a 4870 is negligible).

 

 

 

Is there anything in my rig that you guys would not recommend? Or maybe an idea of something that is comparable but cheaper? Any and all advice is very much appreciated! Thank you!

GTS 250s are not economical and you should not get one. If you want to play games on max get a 4870 or a gtx 260 from newegg.ca (unless I've misunderstood pricing in canada) if you want to play games every now and then get a 9800gtx or a 9800gt.

 

 

As a side note physx is a proprietary physics engine thing for nvidia graphics cards that doesn't even matter with the games you play as far as i can tell.

Edited September 23, 2009 by xchrissypoox

[IVIYTH0S]

O_O Oh wow! I'm really impressed by how fast the comments have come. Thanks for all the help everyone!

 

I should probably mention my situation:

1) This is the first time I'm putting together a rig.

2) I'm a film student who primarily needs to video edit. (Need to be able to use Adobe Premiere CS4 + AfterEffects)

 

3) I do love gaming, but I am not one who needs to play the fastest nor the newest. Although, I would appreciate a video card that can play just about any game on the market so far with ease. Some games that I do love/hope to play:

- Command & Conquer (I am going to acquire Red Alert 3 soon!)

- Warcraft (Yes, I play DOTA >_>)

- Starcraft (I can't wait for II! >_<)

- GunZOnline

- ASDA Story

 

@ ShallowBay: I actually have no idea what Physx is for and what games use it. @_@ Could you please give me a brief rundown?

 

4) I really appreciate the links to other cards but the reality is handling and shipping fees + $ conversion sucks from those online sites (like the newegg links that I keep getting... It's at least an extra $20 on top for the item I want ;_. >_< Bestbuy and Futureshop both have a "free shipping over $39" deal.

 

@ IVIYTH0S: If I may, how can the POWERCOLOR AX4850 be better for me?

 

5) I've already decided on the following parts:

- Gigabyte AMD790 Motherboard GAMA790XT-UD4 ($137.99)

- AMD Phenom X4 Quad-Core Processor 9850 Black Edition ($150.99)

- KINGSTON 4GB (2X2G) DDR3-1333 (KVR1333D3N9K2/4G) ($108.99)

- SEASONIC POWER SUPPLY S12-II 500WATT ATX ($101.99)

- Samsung 1TB 7200RPM SATA II,32MB CACHE ($100.99)

- LG 22X Internal SATA DVD Rewriter (GH22LS40) ($34.99)

- Samsung SyncMaster 20" Widescreen LCD Monitor (2033SW) <--- Max. Resolution = 1600 x 900 ($169.99)

- (I'm still looking for a case with cooler too)

 

Total Cost (so far): $805.93

I'm trying to keep my rig under $1000. At most, I can push my budget to $1100.

 

What SHOULD my rig have to make use of the GTS 250's full potential?

 

- I initially decided on the GTS 250 mainly because of the power savings. If it can compete with the other cards in terms of graphics and speed, but on less power, then I'd prefer it. I leave my CPU on like all the time so those pennies add up!

 

Is there anything in my rig that you guys would not recommend? Or maybe an idea of something that is comparable but cheaper? Any and all advice is very much appreciated! Thank you!

 

P.S. I'm a she. =)

It's up to you, the power savings are marginal but there. If you aren't running a physx kind of stuff than it should be a no brainer to get the same performance for cheaper with the 4850 (as even with shipping it'd be cheaper right??)

:thumbs-up: to female computer builders!

Edited September 23, 2009 by IVIYTH0S

[Karonysus]

Based on this and all the other things you've said I think the best card for you is a 9800 GT it is reasonably priced and uses even less power than the GTS 250 (though I think the power usage between the gts 250 and a 4870 is negligible).

 

GTS 250s are not economical and you should not get one. If you want to play games on max get a 4870 or a gtx 260 from newegg.ca (unless I've misunderstood pricing in canada) if you want to play games every now and then get a 9800gtx or a 9800gt.

 

As a side note physx is a proprietary physics engine thing for nvidia graphics cards that doesn't even matter with the games you play as far as i can tell.

 

The GTS 250s from the graphs of the site that I linked are only not economical for SLI, but they seem to be the best without SLI. I actually wasn't planning to get another card. I just want one and be done with looking for more for a few years. Does anyone here use SLI? If so, can I get some reviews (what it does for you and your experience) about it please?

 

@ IVIYTH0S & xchrissypoox: Thank you for the 9800 GTX recommendations! I've done more research into it and I have a feeling I'm going to end up with one!

Edited September 23, 2009 by Karonysus

[IVIYTH0S]

The GTS 250s from the graphs of the site that I linked are only not economical for SLI, but they seem to be the best without SLI. I actually wasn't planning to get another card. I just want one and be done with looking for more for a few years. Does anyone here use SLI? If so, can I get some reviews (what it does for you and your experience) about it please?

 

@ IVIYTH0S & xchrissypoox: Thank you for the 9800 GTX recommendations! I've done more research into it and I have a feeling I'm going to end up with one!

cool, how much have you found them for??

[Karonysus]

Well first I actually swapped out two things from my rig. I'm getting:

A406-1116 :: XION Power Real 1000W ATX Power Supply ($114.97)

 

I'm also trying to decide between three monitors:

ASUS VH242H 24" Widescreen LCD Monitor - 1080p, 1920x1080, 20000:1 Dynamic, 16:9, VGA, DVI, HDMI. Black

vs.

I-inc iH-252HPB 25" Widescreen LCD Monitor - 1080p, 1920x1080, 15000:1 Dynamic, 800:1 Native, 2ms, 16:9

vs.

Acer H233Hbmid 23" LCD Monitor - 5ms, 1920x1080, 40000:1, 1080p Capability, HDMI

 

The first one is $10 more expensive but is rated 4.9 of 8 reviews (doesn't seem to be any major complaints + it has both DVI and HDMI which I like the option of choosing, but it has 5 ms response time. Whereas the 2nd one doesn't have DVI, rated 4.5 of 70, and apparently there are several complaints about the blacks on the screen not being true, however it has response time of 2 ms. The third one is $20 more than the 2nd + seemingly less viewing angle, but 4.8 review of 23, higher contrast ratio and doesn't have any reviews indicating to a major problem. Might anyone be able to help me pick which I should get?

 

Oh, I'll mention what is important to me in a monitor:

- Support HD

- Has HDMI input

- Colours

- Able to see from fair distance rather comfortably from reasonable angles (like say 3 people were watching together)

- Is response time between 2 ms and 5 ms even noticeable?

 

Not important:

- Size

- Speakers

 

Either way yes, my resolution and power have gone up. Perhaps that will help with the decision for the video card?

 

I'm trying to buy from either tigerdirect.ca or lucomputers.com as I'm getting about $500 in parts already from each of them. Though they have a very limited selection on 9800 GT/X/+. =(

 

I'm currently looking at this one:

http://www.tigerdirect.ca/applications/Sea...&CatId=3669

 

But it's about $200. Is it worth it?

 

I've noticed a trend:

9800 GT 512 MB averages around $100-140, but for $30 more of the same brand I can make it a 1GB.

9800 GTX+ 512 is at least $150, but for about $50 I can get it as 1 GB.

 

Would it be better to get the GT 1GB or GTX+ 512MB if I had to choose?

Edited September 24, 2009 by Karonysus

[IVIYTH0S]

Well first I actually swapped out two things from my rig. I'm getting:

A406-1116 :: XION Power Real 1000W ATX Power Supply ($114.97)

 

I'm also trying to decide between three monitors:

ASUS VH242H 24" Widescreen LCD Monitor - 1080p, 1920x1080, 20000:1 Dynamic, 16:9, VGA, DVI, HDMI. Black

vs.

I-inc iH-252HPB 25" Widescreen LCD Monitor - 1080p, 1920x1080, 15000:1 Dynamic, 800:1 Native, 2ms, 16:9

vs.

Acer H233Hbmid 23" LCD Monitor - 5ms, 1920x1080, 40000:1, 1080p Capability, HDMI

 

The first one is $10 more expensive but is rated 4.9 of 8 reviews (doesn't seem to be any major complaints + it has both DVI and HDMI which I like the option of choosing, but it has 5 ms response time. Whereas the 2nd one doesn't have DVI, rated 4.5 of 70, and apparently there are several complaints about the blacks on the screen not being true, however it has response time of 2 ms. The third one is $20 more than the 2nd + seemingly less viewing angle, but 4.8 review of 23, higher contrast ratio and doesn't have any reviews indicating to a major problem. Might anyone be able to help me pick which I should get?

 

Oh, I'll mention what is important to me in a monitor:

- Support HD

- Has HDMI input

- Colours

- Able to see from fair distance rather comfortably from reasonable angles (like say 3 people were watching together)

- Is response time between 2 ms and 5 ms even noticeable?

 

Not important:

- Size

- Speakers

 

Either way yes, my resolution and power have gone up. Perhaps that will help with the decision for the video card?

 

I'm trying to buy from either tigerdirect.ca or lucomputers.com as I'm getting about $500 in parts already from each of them. Though they have a very limited selection on 9800 GT/X/+. =(

 

I'm currently looking at this one:

http://www.tigerdirect.ca/applications/Sea...&CatId=3669

 

But it's about $200. Is it worth it?

 

I've noticed a trend:

9800 GT 512 MB averages around $100-140, but for $30 more of the same brand I can make it a 1GB.

9800 GTX+ 512 is at least $150, but for about $50 I can get it as 1 GB.

 

Would it be better to get the GT 1GB or GTX+ 512MB if I had to choose?

I'd get the Asus I guess, but look into a professional reviews of those monitors. I don't know much about I-inc either, but there must be reviews on it.

 

As for the videocard, a 512mb 9800gtx+ will be fine. The extra 512mb won't help out really on that card.

 

I assume you don't like ebay??

Here's some 9800gtx/gtx+'s

Here's some 8800gts's

Here's some 8800GT's

Here's some 9800GT's

 

Remember

the 8800GTS is about equal with a 9800gtx and a 9800gtx is about equal with a 9800gtx+ (all will perform the same if clocked identically, so if you know how to overclock your video card, you can really get a gold mind for well... less gold)

the 8800GT and the 9800GT are the same card

:thumbs-up:

Edited September 24, 2009 by IVIYTH0S

[Karonysus]

@ IVIYTH0S: Thanks for all the great links! And no, I'm not afraid of EBay... I've only ever had good experiences with it when buying but still, I feel like it's only a matter of time before I get unlucky. I usually look there last. >_>

 

I finally found a card that I'm rather pleased with:

 

BFG Tech BFGE98512GTXPOCE GeForce 9800 GTX+ 512MB 256-bit GDDR3 PCI Express 2.0 x16 HDCP Ready SLI Supported Video Card - Retail ($131.99)

 

It can be in a combo apparently... Should I buy the Vista Home Premium 32-bit with it? It's $134.99 (Including combo discount). I do need an operating system... It seems really expensive to get though >_< But at least it comes with a coupon for a free Win 7 upgrade. Do you guys think it's worth getting?

 

The grand total for this combo (including shipping, handling & tax)= $313.22

[Compxpert]

@ IVIYTH0S: Thanks for all the great links! And no, I'm not afraid of EBay... I've only ever had good experiences with it when buying but still, I feel like it's only a matter of time before I get unlucky. I usually look there last. >_>

 

I finally found a card that I'm rather pleased with:

 

BFG Tech BFGE98512GTXPOCE GeForce 9800 GTX+ 512MB 256-bit GDDR3 PCI Express 2.0 x16 HDCP Ready SLI Supported Video Card - Retail ($131.99)

 

It can be in a combo apparently... Should I buy the Vista Home Premium 32-bit with it? It's $134.99 (Including combo discount). I do need an operating system... It seems really expensive to get though >_< But at least it comes with a coupon for a free Win 7 upgrade. Do you guys think it's worth getting?

 

The grand total for this combo (including shipping, handling & tax)= $313.22

Can you opt for 64bit instead.. Only saying because you won't be able to take full advantage of your 4gb of ram.

[IVIYTH0S]

Can you opt for 64bit instead.. Only saying because you won't be able to take full advantage of your 4gb of ram.

, otherwise it sounds like the right decision to make. I guess just contact newegg about it. (unless they give you 32bit and 64bit as separate discs when it comes.

worst case I'm almost 100% certain your 32bit key will work on a 64bit vista home premium if you get it from microsoft directly or torrents. I'll try that tomorrow and see if it's possible

Edited September 24, 2009 by IVIYTH0S

[panjang110]

- Gigabyte AMD790 Motherboard GA-MA790XT-UD4 ($137.99)

- AMD Phenom X4 Quad-Core Processor 9850 Black Edition ($150.99)

- KINGSTON 4GB (2X2G) DDR3-1333 (KVR1333D3N9K2/4G) ($108.99)

 

opss, this is not right... that is an AM2+ Cpu you cannot use it with DDR3 and UD4 is for DDR2, i suggest you skip the DDR3 thing and get a better CPU like 940BE( if you can find one) or 720BE

[IVIYTH0S]

opss, this is not right... that is an AM2+ Cpu you cannot use it with DDR3 and UD4 is for DDR2, i suggest you skip the DDR3 thing and get a better CPU like 940BE( if you can find one) or 720BE

:thumbs-up: i didnt notice the ddr3, i definitely recommend against it since it isn't any faster than ddr2