Need a new graphics card for BF3 and Skyrim, etc

[crono89]

Hey guys, I think it's about time I upgraded to a new card for all these new games coming out. I currently have a GTX 260 and it's a tight fit in my computer already so I need to make sure the new one fits the case. Here are a list of my specs.

G.SKILL 4GB (2 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR2 SDRAM DDR2 1066 (PC2 8500) Dual Channel Kit Desktop Memory Model F2-8500CL5D-4GBPK

Western Digital Caviar Black WD6401AALS 640GB 7200 RPM SATA 3.0Gb/s 3.5" Internal Hard Drive -Bare Drive

GIGABYTE GA-MA790X-UD4P AM3/AM2+/AM2 AMD 790X ATX AMD Motherboard

XFX GX260NADFF GeForce GTX 260 Core 216 896MB 448-bit GDDR3 PCI Express 2.0 x16 HDCP Ready SLI Supported Video Card

AMD Phenom II X4 940 Black Edition Deneb 3.0GHz Socket AM2+ 125W Quad-Core Processor HDZ940XCGIBOX

Antec earthwatts EA500 500W Continuous Power ATX12V v2.2 80 PLUS Certified Active PFC "Compatible with Core i7/Core i5"

Anyone have a good recommendation? I'll probably put off ordering it until closer to the holidays. Also should I order 4 more gigs of the DDR2 ram so I have 8 gigs? Any other upgrades I might need? Should my processor and motherboard be good or should I look into changing them too?

Thanks for the help.

[michael_d]

BF3 is not demanding at all as it offers only marginal improvement over BFBC2. I can run it on Ultra at 2560x1600 with a single Radeon HD5870 never seen it dip below 26 FPS, crossfire scaling is very good with this game though I would say about 80% and with HD6000 even higher.

Skyrim system requirements are even lower.

I would wait for the new series of cards which should be out early next year.

[luisnhamue]

Really? Because I've got an HD 6950 and "there's something wrong".

Ultra settings definitely is not things for kids brow.

If you want it to run smoothly, u have to put all settings to high or dial with some settings, mixing ultra & high.

[Airmantharp]

BF3 is not demanding at all as it offers only marginal improvement over BFBC2. I can run it on Ultra at 2560x1600 with a single Radeon HD5870 never seen it dip below 26 FPS, crossfire scaling is very good with this game though I would say about 80% and with HD6000 even higher.

I use a pair of HD6950 2GB cards to keep it around 60FPS on the ground and 100FPS in the air in multi, with high settings, high post-AA, and ultra textures at 2560x1600. One should be enough for those settings at 1080p; but you're going to want to go higher if you want to run all ultra.

[StefanVonS]

I'm also a HD6950 user and run BF3 at Ultra 1920 x 1080. No idea the frame rate, but to my eye, completely smooth.

[cjcerny]

Depends on your budget. HD6870 is a great buy for $150. If you have more to spend than that, the HD6950 and HD6970 are also good choices, as are the 560TI, 570, and 580.