Upgrade Advice/Opinion

[AdamAnubis]

There's been a nagging feeling in the back of my mind since the GTX460 came out, I've been eyeing it up but am unsure whether to take the plunge or not.

Currently I have the 8800GTX and have had for a while now, and while it plays most things fine, I think it's coming to the end of it's capabilities with some of the newer games (well, Mafia 2) but am unsure if this is just me trying to convince myself. Also though, it's running hot (82 deg Idle, hit 106 under load last night) and that's with reasonably good case ventilation (I think - 4x120mm). Plus there's the power consumption which is what tempting me with the GTX460.

Money's not exactly flowing currently but I can afford it (recent birthday) but would also like to have money. I wouldn't really want anything less powerful than the 460 as I do a fair bit of gaming (variety of games, varying performance needs).

My other option is buy a new case with better air flow and hope that the card holds out.

How much could I get for the 8800GTX? Is it really worth me upgrading?

[Domestic_Ginger]

30-40 i reckon. Check CeX and see it there is one local.

Might be worth seeing if you clean out the cooler a bit. I would suggest reapplying teh paste on it but the funny heat pads on the ram chips are a pain to replace so you'll have to spend upto £10 buying new pads. at 82 idle it sounds like a little sick.

[Pob255]

What case do you currently have?

On fleabay probably £40-50 on here less.

ps try cleaning out the cooler

[AdamAnubis]

30-40 i reckon. Check CeX and see it there is one local.

Might be worth seeing if you clean out the cooler a bit. I would suggest reapplying teh paste on it but the funny heat pads on the ram chips are a pain to replace so you'll have to spend upto £10 buying new pads. at 82 idle it sounds like a little sick.

Yeah, I did think that but too much hassle. It does however keep the room nice and warm in the winter

CeX buy for £40 according to their website. Apparently there's one locally Didn't realise.

http://www.maplin.co.uk/Module.aspx?ModuleNo=97184 Is my current case.

Ignoring the selling of it, do you think upgrading it is necessary in the first place?

[scaryjim]

what res is your monitor? If you're still at 1680x1050 you might get by with the 8800 for a little while longer. If you're at 1920 x 1080/1200 then I'd definitely upgrade if you can afford to...

But ultimately if your GPU is hitting > 100c under load then it's not going to be too long before you're talking about replacing a burnt-out GPU, rather than upgrading a working one that could be sold to recoup some of the money...

[Domestic_Ginger]

Ignoring the selling of it, do you think upgrading it is necessary in the first place?

Its down to you; if it does what you want it to do then carry on. I would try and get the temps down though.

Case looks okay. You can check all the fans are working perhaps.

[marktime]

Ignoring the selling of it, do you think upgrading it is necessary in the first place?

Only you can really answer this question. What games do you regularly play, and are you strugglling to run them at your current resolution? I switched from a 8800GTX to a GTX280 when they were a good price last year and it was a fairly mediocre upgrade, if I'm being honest.

The 460s are getting a lot of good press atm (probably quite rightly so) and look to be a good mid-range card, but moving from what was a real high-end card in its day to a 460 might leave you a bit underwhelmed. I keep telling myself this to try and not give in and upgrade to a 470, as the prices are starting to come down - there really isn't anything I play atm that would benefit from the relatively small performance gain on offer.

Of course if you're desperate to play one of the few DX11 titles out, then you have a better case. At the end of the day all these cards should only get cheaper in time, so I say upgrade when you really need to - don't give them your money until then!

[AdamAnubis]

Games that I'm playing with and my current set up even hiccups at: Mafia 2 (Demo) and AC2 (as I don't have dx11) plus perhaps Empire Total war/DoW2 but they're rareplays.

The main performance hogger though is Age of Empires 2 - beastly needs right there

Mmm, I am leaning towards 'upgrade now, save having to just buy a new one when it's burnt' but I'd also like to just wait till it's dead so the upgrade is justifyable in a way. I'm too much on the fence, I want and see the advantages of the new card, only thing that's holding me back is the guilt trip of buying it I can't see the 460 getting much cheaper either, or atleast not enough to be offset by selling the current card.

All the fans are working, probably needs a good hoover out though.

[marktime]

Sounds like you've already convinced yourself. Only one thing left to do in these situations, say two Hail Mary's and hit the buy button.

[AdamAnubis]

Sounds like you've already convinced yourself. Only one thing left to do in these situations, say two Hail Mary's and hit the buy button.

Dam you, you lot were meant to talk me out of it

[marktime]

At the end of the day it's only money. You'd probably only have spent it on food and keeping yourself warm this winter.

You can return the favour if you like and talk me into upgrading to a 470.

[Domestic_Ginger]

At the end of the day it's only money. You'd probably only have spent it on food and keeping yourself warm this winter.

Or feeding and warming his family of six and grandparents and cousins and ..... Now its gruel and hard bread not including what they can dig up in the garden.

[AdamAnubis]

Or feeding and warming his family of six and grandparents and cousins and ..... Now its gruel and hard bread not including what they can dig up in the garden.

Pfft, atleast I'll have DX11 support