[Jon4010]

I'm going to start out by saying I'm no expert on computers, but I know the basics. I'm looking for a budget card (something around $200). If you guys could please list some of the best options I would appreciate it.

My specs:
Intel Core i5-2400 CPU (outdated ik) @ 3.10GHz
8 GB RAM
NVIDIA GeForce GT 520 (yes, really)
and I only have 300W power supply. I may have to change that too.

Thanks.

 

[Jon4010]

New thoughts on this?

MSI GeForce GTX 960 DirectX 12 GTX 960 2GD5T OC 2GB 128-Bit GDDR5 PCI Express 3.0 x16 HDCP Ready SLI Support ATX Video Card - Newegg.com

Would my power supply be able to handle it tho?

 

[Panther063]

If you look at the specifications they recommend a 400W power supply.
You should look for a graphics card that doesn't need power connected to it through a 6 pin or 8 pin cable.

 

[Frost_Byte]

A GTX 750ti with no power connector should work with the 300w PSU, but if you get the GTX 960, though very efficient in it's own right, I would get a 450W-500W just for the overhead and possible future upgrades. Something like a Seasonic 520w would be perfect.

 

[Panther063]

A GTX 750ti with no power connector should work with the 300w PSU, but if you get the GTX 960, though very efficient in it's own right, I would get a 450W-500W just for the overhead and possible future upgrades.

Asus and MSI both make a GTX 960 that do not require a power connector and can be used with the existing PSU.

 

[Frost_Byte]

Asus and MSI both make a GTX 960 that do not require a power connector and can be used with the existing PSU.

Yes, but one would not want to run a GTX 960 on a 300W power supply - even if the power is PCie/mobo supplied.

 

[prodigal74]

A quality 350-400W PSU should be enough - Seasonic or XFX for example.

 

[Frost_Byte]

A quality 350-400W PSU should be enough - Seasonic or XFX for example.

It doesn't have to be Seasonic or XFX. That is what this forum promotes on a relentless basis non stop, but it can be another quality power supply as well.

 

[satrow]

TSF doesn't promote those PSU brands, they're simply used as the example of makers that don't have any mediocre, or worse, units across their entire ranges, making them an easy recommendation with a wide distribution.

In this low wattage range, there are a huge number of PSUs available but a very low number of reviews, there are other quality PSUs but it would take some time to figure out which models/ranges from other makers that are as good, or better, than these brands.

Here's a recent round up of smaller PSUs, mostly from a European perspective - what's commonly available there: 39 300-450 watt PSU group test: cheap and good | Hardware.Info United Kingdom

Note that there are a number of recommended Be Quiet! PSUs there but there are many, especially the older ranges/models, that aren't as good as the 'worst' from Seasonic/XFX. Similar can be said of many other makers.