Dear Oblivion forum readers...

Since it appears that my graphics card has officially crapped out, I am planning on going to the store tomorrow, I want some suggestions for a new graphics card that would run Oblivion on high settings and other games with nice graphics. Thanks for your suggestions and please tell me the approximate cost too.

I was thinking of this one actually,

http://www.bestbuy.com/site/PNY+-+NVIDIA+GeForce+GTX+460+1GB+GDDR5+PCI+Express+Graphics+Card/1234118.p?id=1218239484650&skuId=1234118&st=Select_PNY_On_Sale_20101125&cp=1&lp=2

What's wrong with getting a good brand, instead of a poor one, and payong a lot less?

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814130562

Cool, what specs should I look for in graphics cards?

The right place to start is with a budget that includes both the upgrade video card and upgraded power supply that goes with it. Power supplies, even top grade ones, gradually deteriorate with age and use, losing approximately 10% of capacity a year. That is the reason that hobby builder folks such as myself will overspecify, getting 550 watts when 400 is actually adequate when new. Then, after the budget, tell us what the default screen resolution you will be using is, and last, (if there is leeway), how high of an image quality setting do you hope to get?

Today's Mainline Graphics cards, such as the HD 5670, can run on a 300 watt original equipment power supply that is still new, as can yesterday's Mainline cards, the Radeon HD 4670, and the Geforce GT 240. There has been no newer Mainline card from nVIDIA since that graphics card a year and a half ago. They haven't released any Fermi for that class (there is no 440), and their 450 and 460 cards do require more power than a stock power supply offers.

If you didn't have access to a place such as this forum, you would need to compare Graphics Card core speeds, VRAM speeds, number of shader units, and memory system bandwidths. The amount of VRAM attached is of little overall importance compared to those other factors.

G

wow, sounds like a lot to look into. I need to get acquainted with the number of specifications in buying a graphic card. What were you saying about needing to buy a power supply?

you should've just carried your discussion from your previous thread:
http://www.gamesas.com/index.php?/topic/1143610-having-problems-with-launching-game/



Don't even bother getting that card if your PC doesn't have an adequate power supply in it to power it. You need to determine what your power sud justpply is and its specifications. Open up the case and look for the specification sticker on the power supply (should be labeled on the side of it) and post back here with these specs:

- brand and model
- wattage
- most important, amperage value for the +12V spec...there may be more than one so jot them all down.


And out of curiosity, what model is this Gateway PC of yours??? We may be able to pull info from that too.

Oh hey, I think that this might be the information that you need. Here's a computer identical to mine.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16883113058

That had no power supply information

It's a Gateway FX7026, stock with a 400 watt power supply. From the OP's earlier thread, I suspect that not only has the video card died, but the underlying problem is the power supply.

Should I just post new information such as separate topics in the same thread?

Don't worry about it at this point...enough has been said already to figure your situation out. Just....no more topics on the same things k?

So your PC has a 400W PSU with dual +12V rails rated at 16A each. I think you should replace it for a GTX 460. I too am wary about your current power supply situation considering that even your 8800GT crapped out....efficiency of that PSU may be decreasing. The model of the Gateway link you provided does take ATX power supplies from what I could search so this would be a decent power supply to get with the GTX 460 without breaking the bank:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817139004&cm_re=corsair_power_supply-_-17-139-004-_-Product

So, sorry again for my terrible-ness in computers, but are computers not designed to handle a new graphics card right off the bat?

I'm not sure what you're asking here. The power supply inside of your PC may potentially be the issue here and may be the reason why your 8800GT is dead. I'm telling you to replace it with that Corsair power supply I linked previously. The power supply is in my opinion the most important component in any PC...it powers everything, yet it can also destroy everything should it be of bad quality or be malfunctioning.

This is not a matter if your PC can handle the new video card...it's whether your current power supply can. I feel you should change it to be "safe" if you're going to get the GTX 460. The rest of your PC is fine to accommodate for the card. I hope this is more clear.....

Alright that makes sense, thanks for the info. I'll get on ordering those, hopefully I'll be playing Oblivion again in no time.