I would ideally like to keep the price in the $150 range, but if there is a huge difference in performance in going up to $200 I wouldn't be opposed to it. I'm not sure which PC specs you will need to make a suggestion on which graphics card is right for my computer so I have included some below (please tell me if you need anything else, my PC has quite a few years behind it so im not sure if getting the latest and greatest grahpics card is worth it.
PC Details:
Better gameplay (I play dota 2)
A second hand gtx 970?
I also suggest getting more ram, an ssd and consider overclocking the cpu.
If I start replacing a bunch of things I think I would just build a new PC as my brother still uses this current one so could just give it to him
A few questions before we can provide an answer
1) What games do you play/intend to play?
- games such as dota2, csgo or wow can very easily run on your $150 gpu. More modern games would benefit from the added power.
2) What resolution does your monitor run at?
- At 1080p you could get away with a $150 budget probably. If it's anything less then $150 would definitely be enough.
3) Are you happy with turning settings to medium or even low to get better fps?
- If yes, then the $150 budget will be fine.
Check out this review and scroll down about halfway where you see some bar graphs. The 1050ti is your $~200-220 and the 950 is your $150 card. Generally 30 fps is the bare minimum for playability although I'd argue that number to be closer to 45-50. 60 fps is ideal.
Also consider buying 2nd hand ;)
1) I play dota 2 seriously and overwatch and csgo casually so dont mind about be able to comfortably play the later 2.
2) my monitor is pretty budget even when I got it atleast ~7 years ago not sure how to check if its 1080p
3) I would continue to play this at the lowest settings regardless of gfx card to get the highest fps.
I also read somewhere that certain cards might not fit in my pc case or be compatible? (Not really sure about this)
Oh I just rechecked those pics you uploaded and you're running at 1920x1080 = 1080p.
Anyway if you're going to be playing at lowest settings then the $150 option will definitely be enough. In Overwatch you should be reaching >100fps and on csgo and Dota2 you should reach >200fps with either the gtx 950 or rx 460 - whichever one you can get for cheaper.
Will either those be okay with my mother board?
ASUSTeK Computer INC. P7P55D LE (LGA1156)
@aaronza:
Brand new?
Try a RX 460, GTX 1050 Ti, RX 470
…any higher and you'd start bottleneck.
Used?
R9 290
GTX 970
Doesn't sound like you have a high-power PSU, or lot's of thermal control.
I wouldn't try to break the budget in your place.
But with RyZen on the way, it might be a good time for you to consider an upgrade soon.
@aaronza: yep as long it's a "pci-e" card it's compatible :)
And i mentioned gtx950 but gtx 1050 is also an option. They perform about the same so whichever one is cheaper (or the rx 460 if that's cheaper)
GTX 1050ti should be good, although its a little over the budget
what are you trying to achieve?