Graphics Cards

[timbo343]

Ive been out the gaming scene on PCs for years, possibly going back to when COD4 was released. Im wanting to get F1 2013 classic edition and run in on the machine. It will just run on the Quad Core 2.5Ghz Q8300 with 4Gb Ram and Windows 7 x64 however my graphics card is an ATI 4300/4500 and its rubbish, so i am wanting to know what is possibly the next best card i could get to run this game without many problems. I have been looking at the MSI GT640 both the 1gb and 2Gb version. Is there any point in getting the 2Gb version at the moment? I need a graphics card that doesn't have a power molex on it either as my PSU is only a 300w.

 

Can anyone recommend anything please.

[synaesthesia]

640 wont be bad but you won't be pushing anything in HD on that machine :/ Don't think you'll get much better though without extra power requirements.

 

Don't hold out for the Classic version of 2013 btw. Very disappointed you can't actually race a full field of classic cars, just half a field of 3 teams and their various era cars (I.E 92 williams, 96 williams, 98 williams with 3 years of Ferraris, the 80s is limited to Lotus, Williams, Ferrari and Brabham)

[timbo343]

Thanks. I know im not going to get anything decent on the machine but dont want to spend too much on it just for an f1 game(s).

Oh i see, its a bit of a let down is it?

[synaesthesia]

Game itself is fine if not quite good. Seems a little "easier" - knocked a full second off my silverstone laptime with a controller which seemed weird. Didn't get much of a chance to play it (was a friend's) but mostly wanted to see & play the classic side of it hence the dissapointment. There's something weird about winning a race you've driven as Nigel Mansell in a 92 williams then being congratulated by The Git Villeneuve driving a 98 williams and Schumacher in the 96 ferrari. Doesn't sit right Plus on top they're "even" - so you'll have a good race between 92 cars and 98 cars which is daft.

[sonofsanta]

A 7770 might be right for you, doesn't need any external power connectors - it's powered solely by the PCI-E bus. £75: PowerColor HD 7770 GHz Edition 1GB GDDR5 DVI HDMI.. | Ebuyer.com (including a free game of your choice from a decent selection in the bronze category)

 

Really, though, 300W is not enough power to run anything great

[mac_shinobi]

Get a better PSU and get a newer gfx card ?

[3s-gtech]

7770 is available for some very keen prices at the moment, less than £70 for a card that will handle modern games at medium/high settings at up to 1080P. The 7790 is just being replaced with the R7 260X (a rebranding), which may have positive knock on effects on pricing of the older cards.

 

300W will power a decent gaming system, if it's a quality unit Review: Sapphire AMD Radeon HD 7790 - Graphics - HEXUS.net - Page 10

Edited October 9, 2013 by 3s-gtech

[timbo343]

Thanks all for the suggestions. Will look at getting a better PSU too, should a 450W - 500W PSU do?

[sonofsanta]

Thanks all for the suggestions. Will look at getting a better PSU too, should a 450W - 500W PSU do?

 

Oh heavens yes, so long as you get a proper PSU - e.g. Antec, Corsair, and not whatever eBuyer are selling for £15. You can get a reasonable estimate of required wattage with a PSU calculator: eXtreme Power Supply Calculator

 

You could always bump up to a 7800 series card or a 660Ti with a 500W PSU (assuming your case isn't stuffed full of loads of other power draining guff).

[timbo343]

There is hardly anything in my case that is power draining, im not a gamer by any means.

 

Thanks