Help buying video card

[atticus finch]

I'm looking to buy a new video card, but I'm not very computer savvy, and all the choices are confusing me. I have a Geforce 9500gt 1gb, and I want something that will perform better but not bankrupt me. Anyobdy have any suggestions?

 

[Mise]

http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/best-graphics-card-game-performance-radeon-hd-6670,2935.html

all you need to know

 

[Maniacal]

What is your budget?

For $100-150 there are the NVIDIA GTX260 and ATI 5770, $150-200 for the NVIDIA GTX 460, and apparently the GTX 560 as well (I don't know how different the 460 and 560 are).
Prices from Newegg.

I bought a GTX 260 in May 2010 to replace my dead 8800GT and its been great as it is running everything at high if not maxed out (within reason, I don't bother raising AA above 4 usually).

No idea about the newer ATI cards. Both ATI and NVIDIA produce good cards but ATI usually has more problems with its drivers (including the occasional game (Civ4 had this issue, The Saboteur was only playable with NVIDIA cards) that is unplayable on certain ATI cards on release, although this may also be partyl the developer's fault too).

 

[atticus finch]

I've been reading some reviews of the NVIDIA GTX 260 and I really like the looks of it. What games are you playing maxed out and at what resolution?

 

[Maniacal]

Napoleon: Total War, The Witcher 2 (one of the most detailed and beautiful games I have ever seen, also a good RPG but has a bad inventory), Bad Company 2, Crysis, Portal 2, and many many others that are (almost all) more than 2 or 3 years old and would work on any current card

My resolution is 1680x1050 (22" LCD monitor).

The GTX 460 replaced the 260, doesn't cost much more and will probably last a couple of years longer. Of course it also helps that very many new games actually push the PC to its limits (largely because so many games are also designed to work on the consoles).

 

[tokala]

Just make sure your old computer can handle those powerful cards. Cooling, case size and especially power supply is important there.

And you should have at reasonably modern CPU to really make use of those cards.

The 460 has a small chance to cause compatabiliy issues in older boards, too.
You should check this with your mainboard's manufacturer.

 

[GenMarshall]

The thing with comparing video cards is that it's hard to compare between an AMD and a Nivida, well for me anyways. Though I did have issues with my ATI 5770's drivers.