# Graphics Card under Rs. 4000



## power_8383 (Apr 20, 2012)

Hello guys,
I want to buy a graphics card to play the games released upto 2010.
Please suggest me the best graphics card in this budget.

It would be more than great if I can play those games even at low to moderate details.

Can this graphics card handle GTA 4, Sniper:Ghost Warrior, NFS Shift etc ?
Flipkart: Zotac NVIDIA GeForce GT240 1 GB GDDR5 Graphics Card: Graphics Card

Are there any other cheaper alternatives ?

My System Configuration :-
Processor :- AMD Phenom II X4
Motherboard :- Asus M4A78LT-M-LE
RAM :- 4GB DDR3
PSU :- FSP SAGA II 500w


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## desiJATT (Apr 20, 2012)

Your configuration looks good. Go for HIS HD6670 1GB DDR3 for around 5k. Far better choice than GT240. Increase your budget by 1K to get a more better performer. 

If you can't increase your budget, go for HD5670, like Powercolor, costs around 4.2k, slightly lower performer than HD6670 theoretically, but you won't notice the difference.


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## coderunknown (Apr 20, 2012)

HD5670 & HD6670 are basically same. HD5670 1Gb GDDR3 is available for 4k. better than GT240. overclock really nicely.


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## thetechfreak (Apr 20, 2012)

Another vote from my side for the HD5670. The HD 6670 is just a re-branded version of the older card.


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## saswat23 (Apr 20, 2012)

Nope, HD 6670 has about 15%-20% better performance than HD 5670. 
For 4k, HD 5670 1GB DDR3 is easily available.


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## power_8383 (Apr 20, 2012)

Thanks for your replies guys.
But should I buy *HD5670 512MB DDR5* or *HD5670 1GB DDR3*


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## saikiasunny (Apr 20, 2012)

You should go for the ddr5 version as it is overall faster than the ddr3. You won't need 1 gb of vram at low resolution.


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## coderunknown (Apr 20, 2012)

saswat23 said:


> Nope, HD 6670 has about 15%-20% better performance than HD 5670.
> For 4k, HD 5670 1GB DDR3 is easily available.



yes my bad. HD6670 is ~15% better than HD5670. 



power_8383 said:


> Thanks for your replies guys.
> But should I buy *HD5670 512MB DDR5* or *HD5670 1GB DDR3*



GDDR5 is better than GDDR3. though real life performance won't be much different as it is a lowend GPU. whatever GPU you buy (HD5670 or HD6670) get the GDDR5 version. 512Mb VRAM is enough for HD5670. you should be able to play most games maxed out. i have it and run most games at HD resolution but mid details else it starts to lag.


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## dibya_kol (Apr 21, 2012)

^^ HD res with that gpu ? Like to know which games and how was ur fps ?


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## coderunknown (Apr 21, 2012)

whole Crysis series with everything set to mid. With COD too you can't max out. But the GPU took the most beating in BF2. even at low setting, game was barely crossing 30 (haven't tested with FRAPS but it was not running smooth). still during intense fight it started to get real slow. running GPU on stock speed.

so it still has some life left but i doubt 2013 games will run at HD resolution.


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## thetechfreak (Apr 22, 2012)

dibya_kol said:


> ^^ HD res with that gpu ? Like to know which games and how was ur fps ?



its normal. My old 9500Gt can run intensive games like Gta IV at 1024x768 with most settings set at maximum. Cannot test a higher resolution as my monitor is still CRT.
Medal of Honour 2010 gives a comfortable 40 fps at that resolution with settings as max. Modern Warfare 3 too runs at a very playable fps of around 30 with most things maxed out.
although there is a mind overclock to my card.

its not suprising to see a lot newer card perform good.


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## power_8383 (Apr 22, 2012)

Thank you guys for your replies, but budget restriction is playing more imp role in my home than I had thought. 

Guys, please tell me will this graphics card be able to play the games I have mentioned ?
I am not looking for a future-proof graphics card.
Flipkart: Zotac NVIDIA GeForce GT240 1 GB GDDR5 Graphics Card: Graphics Card.


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## thetechfreak (Apr 22, 2012)

yes. Should give decent performance at good resolutions. Just donot expect all games to run at max 1080p resolution with all eye candy turned up. Although some might. You can also use Msi Afterburner to overclock a bit if you find there is too much lack in performance.


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## coderunknown (Apr 22, 2012)

GT240 is like 10-15% slower than HD5670 . so decide accordingly. overclock will make the gap narrow & may match HD5670 at high overclock.


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## power_8383 (Apr 22, 2012)

Hey guys, I have just seen some video reviews of *Radeon HD 6450 1GB GDDR3* on youtube.
This card looks awesome !
And more importantly, it is just for Rs. 2,500 (Well within my budget.)

Do you recommend it ?


Let me clear once again that I do not want a future proof card.
I don't expect it to play games released after 2010.
I have no problem running those games even at 1024x768 resolution.


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## saikiasunny (Apr 22, 2012)

Well if possible go for the gt440. It is faster than gt240 and comes close to 5670.


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## saswat23 (Apr 22, 2012)

For around 2.5k, instead of HD 6450 i would suggest you to get the GT-520 rather. But when you can get a DDR5 card well within your budget why dont you get it. 
So, GT-240 1GB DDR5 at 3.2k and HD 5670 1GB DDR3 at 3.9k are the only good options. If you can spend Rs.500 more then get the HD 5670 1GB DDR5 version. Its the best option.


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## thetechfreak (Apr 23, 2012)

@power_8383 rather than going for that low profile card get this for for less than 1k more. 
Flipkart: Zotac NVIDIA GeForce GT240 1 GB DDR3 Graphics Card: Graphics Card


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## huntu123 (Apr 23, 2012)

talking about alternate choices, if you dont mind buying 2nd hand cards, you can easily get a used hd5770 for less than 4k which will be far better than any of the options above...just my 2 cents


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## saswat23 (Apr 23, 2012)

thetechfreak said:


> @power_8383 rather than going for that low profile card get this for for less than 1k more.
> Flipkart: Zotac NVIDIA GeForce GT240 1 GB DDR3 Graphics Card: Graphics Card



But why do you suggest the DDR3 version. DDR5 version costs even less.


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## thetechfreak (Apr 23, 2012)

saswat23 said:


> But why do you suggest the DDR3 version. DDR5 version costs even less.



Oops. Seems my mobile loaded wrong link. Had lots of tabs open got a bit confused. Sorry.

OP get DDR5 version of that card


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## power_8383 (Apr 23, 2012)

saswat23 said:


> But when you can get a DDR5 card well within your budget why dont you get it.



It's just that I will be using this graphics card for only 6 months, so I didn't want to spend even 500 rs. extra.



huntu123 said:


> talking about alternate choices, if you dont mind buying 2nd hand cards, you can easily get a used hd5770 for less than 4k which will be far better than any of the options above...just my 2 cents



I don't like to buy second hand stuff, sorry. 



saswat23 said:


> But why do you suggest the DDR3 version. DDR5 version costs even less.



Perhaps he has posted that link by mistake.
Anyways, I have decided to buy GT240 1GB DDR5 from 'TheITWares'.
Thanks.


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## thetechfreak (Apr 24, 2012)

> Perhaps he has posted that link by
> mistake.
> Anyways, I have decided to buy
> GT240 1GB DDR5 from 'TheITWares'.
> Thanks.


yes. My mistake. Best of luck anyways


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## dibya_kol (Apr 24, 2012)

there is nothing called 'future proof' in gpu arena. at lower res that card is fine and u can use it as a physx card in future too .. But 5670 would be nice. Anyway it's ur call. Best of luck ..


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## power_8383 (Apr 25, 2012)

I have deposited the money in ITWARES's bank account, but received an e-mail saying that 'this product is not in stock'.  
(Ordered GT240 1GB DDR5)


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## Skud (Apr 25, 2012)

Ask for a refund.


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## SunE (Apr 25, 2012)

Yes ask for a refund and order from flipkart. Don't panic you'll get your money back as soon as possible


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## Skud (Apr 25, 2012)

Yeah, ITWares is one of the reliable online shops despite having their share of hiccups.


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## power_8383 (Apr 25, 2012)

I am not worried about my money, I know he is a trusted guy bass uss card par dil aa gaya tha.


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## SunE (Apr 25, 2012)

Are yaar flipkart se mangwa lo. Nothing you can do if the GPU gods don't want you to purchase from theitwares


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## dibya_kol (Apr 25, 2012)

flipkart is the best IMO


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## power_8383 (Apr 26, 2012)

Decided to buy *HD5670 512mb DDR5* from THEITWARES. (Rs. 4,200/-)


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## dibya_kol (Apr 26, 2012)

good luck .. Happy buy ..


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## power_8383 (May 1, 2012)

I will receive the HD5670 512mb DDR5 in a day or two.
But I have a doubt.
Do I need to disable the onboard graphics after installing this new graphics card ?


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## saswat23 (May 1, 2012)

Nope, the IGP will disable itself upon installing the Gfx card. Just put the VGA cable in graphics card's VGA out.


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## Skud (May 1, 2012)

On certain boards you need to set the primary graphics adapter in BIOS manually.


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## coderunknown (May 1, 2012)

insert GPU, clear CMOS, boot.


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## power_8383 (May 2, 2012)

So I have received the graphics card today.

I installed it and booted the computer, installed the graphics card drivers.
After restarting, the GPU was producing noise as if it is overheating.

So I tried to play Sniper Ghost Warrior on 1024X768 resolution (high settings) the game was running very smoothly but suddenly after 10-15 minutes, the computer hanged hence I had to power off the pc directly.

What could be the problem ? 

(Even right now while I am typing, there is a lot of fan noise inside the cabinet.)


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## Skud (May 2, 2012)

Post your idle and load temperature of the cards. Use GPU-z, HWinfo or Hwmonito.


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## power_8383 (May 2, 2012)

*Idle temperature.*
*gpuz.techpowerup.com/12/05/02/csn.png
&
*gpuz.techpowerup.com/12/05/02/52p.png

*After playing Sniper - Ghost Warrior for 15 minutes.*


*gpuz.techpowerup.com/12/05/02/a5h.png


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## Skud (May 2, 2012)

Temps seem OK to me. Might be some problem with the fan itself.


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## power_8383 (May 2, 2012)

I have played this game for an hour and temperature hasn't crossed 63°C.
But the fan is producing lot of noise.

This is my first Graphics Card, so that's why I maybe too conscious.


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## coderunknown (May 2, 2012)

mine runs absolutely silent even after 5-6hrs of heavy gaming. check if fan is touching the frame.


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## power_8383 (May 3, 2012)

Sam said:


> mine runs absolutely silent even after 5-6hrs of heavy gaming. check if fan is touching the frame.



Ok, I will do that.
And one more thing. I am getting "enter setup to recover bios settings" message every time I start the computer.

After some googling I came to know that I need to reset the CMOS or update the BIOS. (Haven't tried yet.)


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## koolent (May 3, 2012)

Reset the CMOS, its an easy option, then update your BIOS if availible.

Observe the fan position, it must exactly be in the center.

The temperatures do not depend upon the hours of gaming, it is cooled by the fan every 5 seconds effectively.


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## power_8383 (May 3, 2012)

First I have reset the CMOS and then updated the BIOS.
Now that BIOS error message has gone.

And I have also observed that it is the SMPS fan which is producing noise, not the graphics card's fan.
What could be the problem ?



koolent said:


> Observe the fan position, it must exactly be in the center.
> 
> The temperatures do not depend upon the hours of gaming, it is cooled by the fan every 5 seconds effectively.



Thanks for your reply, but which fan ?


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## pkkumarcool (May 3, 2012)

how much fps are u getting in sniper ghost warrior at high setting?


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## coderunknown (May 3, 2012)

power_8383 said:


> And I have also observed that it is the SMPS fan which is producing noise, not the graphics card's fan.
> What could be the problem ?



as i said. Arctic cooler is cool + silent.
is your PSU sold? maybe some dirt or fiber got stuck in the spindle.



koolent said:


> it is cooled by the fan every 5 seconds effectively.



hmmm


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## connoisseur (May 3, 2012)

I was looking for a card under similar budget.
Decided GT 240 but isn't available anywhere in my city.
The stupid guys suggest me other cards instead whose reviews aren't good.
One even said "Ye card to company ne manufacture karna hi band kar diya hai" (the company has stopped manufacturing this card) 
I hesitate buying from an online store, because, what if there's some problem after a few time, how will I avail the warranty, there's no service center by this company in my city.


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## coderunknown (May 3, 2012)

usually company doesn't have service center by their name. instead some third party offers RMA. like for Asus, XFX its Rashi. Gigabyte it Accel. MSI i think its tirupati or aditya. so service center should be there.


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## Cilus (May 4, 2012)

power_8383, clear the SMPS fan from dust 1st. USe any kind of blower to remove the dust from SMPS. Another thing, also the update the motherboard BIOS to the latest version.


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## topgear (May 4, 2012)

@ power_8383 - do what Cilus has told - still you are facing the PSU fan noise issue try this :
Fan maintenance - oiling bearings for fun and profit!


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## power_8383 (May 4, 2012)

pkkumarcool said:


> how much fps are u getting in sniper ghost warrior at high setting?



At 1024x768 (Best Quality)
Min: 46  Max: 47



Sam said:


> as i said. Arctic cooler is cool + silent.
> is your PSU sold? maybe some dirt or fiber got stuck in the spindle.



No, I am still using FSP SAGA 500.
And sorry, I thought the noise was coming from SMPS fan, but the noise is coming from CPU fan.
It is spinning too fast. (Temperature is OK though.)



Cilus said:


> power_8383, clear the SMPS fan from dust 1st. USe any kind of blower to remove the dist from SMPS. Another thing, also the update the motherboard BIOS to the latest version.



I have already updated the BIOS.
And I have just observed that CPU fan is making the noise.



topgear said:


> @ power_8383 - do what Cilus has told - still you are facing the PSU fan noise issue try this :
> Fan maintenance - oiling bearings for fun and profit!



Thanks for the link. 

*@ All

Is it normal CPU fan speed ?* (It was after I played Sniper Ghost warrior for 15 minutes.)

*img.techpowerup.org/120503/Untitled12.png


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## saikiasunny (May 4, 2012)

Ofcourse not. The high rpm of the fan is making the noise. Try to lower the fan speed if possible.


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## thetechfreak (May 4, 2012)

Yes its fine. 4000 rpm is not high. The fan works hard to keep processor cool. Nothing to worry as of now


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## topgear (May 5, 2012)

@ power_8383 - Speedfan has lots of glithces and needs to be configured prperly to get accurate sensor readings - so you better use HWinfo and post a screenshot here.


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## power_8383 (May 5, 2012)

saikiasunny said:


> Ofcourse not. The high rpm of the fan is making the noise. Try to lower the fan speed if possible.





thetechfreak said:


> Yes its fine. 4000 rpm is not high. The fan works hard to keep processor cool. Nothing to worry as of now





topgear said:


> @ power_8383 - Speedfan has lots of glithces and needs to be configured prperly to get accurate sensor readings - so you better use HWinfo and post a screenshot here.



@ saikiasunny
Yesterday it went to 6000RPM while I was playing GTA IV. 


@ thetechfreak
But my CPU fan used to be very quiet before installing this graphics card.
It's too noisy now.


@ topgear
Even HWmonitor was showing the same.


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## saikiasunny (May 5, 2012)

Theres no problem with the fan but to be silent, fan should be spinning at 1.5k to 2k rpm. Can you specify the cpu temps. At 6k, the cpu might be going through hell


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## power_8383 (May 5, 2012)

*img.techpowerup.org/120505/max%20temp.png


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## saikiasunny (May 5, 2012)

The temps appear fine. Try to reseat the heatsink, or try with other cooler.


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## topgear (May 6, 2012)

@ OP - HWmonitor and HWinfo are 2 different apps and HWinfo's reading are more accurate.

from the HWmonitor screenshot it's clear that the CPU is not overheating and the gpu temp is even OK but there should be at-least 15-20c temp difference between idle and load cpu and GPU temp if any resource hungry game is used - So my suggestion is to start and run HWinfo on background and play games like BFBC2/Crysis for at-least an hour - this way HWinfo will be able to log min and max temp properly and post the HWinfo here.

BTW, for the 6K RPM fan speed make sure CnQ and Auto/Smart fan control is enabled in bios setting.


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## power_8383 (May 6, 2012)

@ topgear

Should I post the link of 'CSV' file, generated by HWinfo ?
It is also showing the same readings.


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## topgear (May 7, 2012)

^^ a simple screenshot will be just fine ... check my HD6850 OC review .. you will get a good idea.


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## power_8383 (May 7, 2012)

*img.techpowerup.org/120507/maxtemp.jpg

I have enabled 'Smart Q-Fan' in the BIOS. ('Cool n Quiet' was already enabled.)
There is much improvement now.


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## topgear (May 8, 2012)

everything looks ok except HDD temp and cpu fan speed - the HDD temp should not be over 40c ( 44c is the limit for most though ) - install a front intake fan.

Lower the cpu vcore to 1.3v or 1.25v and disable Smart Q Fan option - only left CnQ enabled.


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## power_8383 (May 8, 2012)

topgear said:


> everything looks ok except HDD temp and cpu fan speed - the HDD temp should not be over 40c ( 44c is the limit for most though ) - install a front intake fan.
> 
> Lower the cpu vcore to 1.3v or 1.25v and disable Smart Q Fan option - only left CnQ enabled.



I live in one of the hottest parts of Maharashtra, to iska bhi affect ho sakta hai na ? 
It has already crossed 40°C this summer.


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## topgear (May 9, 2012)

^^ yep, over 40c ambient temp could be a reason.

BTW, which cabby do you have and how many fans are there on the cabby.


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## power_8383 (May 9, 2012)

I have Iball Mystique cabinet which is having 2 fans. (Front and rear.)


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## koolent (May 9, 2012)

Well, those are enough fans for your cabinet.

Do one thing, take the CPU fan out and clean the port, and the connector, also blow over the CPU Fan Chip, and blow some air around the CPU Side, this might do. 

if this doesn't work, try plugging another CPU-Fan to the port, observe the noise. If fan is still spinnin bad, the problem is with the motherboard, else the problem is with your CPU fan.


Also what I think, your GPU fan might be drawing the air and so, tha CPU and GPU fan might be fighting for air.

Hope this helps..


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## Omi (May 9, 2012)

If there is space at the rear of the case take the front fan and shift it to rear. Will create a good -ve pressure forcing heat let out by GPU and CPU out quickly.

Try to Undervolt the cpu as suggested by Topgear it is effective in lowering the CPU temperature. Blow the dust off the CPU heatsink, dust gathering on heatsink reduces its effectiveness greatly.

There is a setting in bios that after CPU reaches a specific temps the fan will start accelerating, if its very low, increase that by a bit, so it starts acceleration late(not something really good, but works at times)

*Noise is far far better than elevated temperatures, which risks components.*
If noise is something that is really giving problems, take out the heatsink, clean it properly and reTIM the CPU.

Use of headphones recommended if all fails.

HDD temps are something that is not good, rest temps are fine.


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## topgear (May 10, 2012)

power_8383 said:


> I have Iball Mystique cabinet which is having 2 fans. (Front and rear.)



you can attach 2x 80mm fans on side panel with a little effort - do it and it will greatly increase air flow inside of the cabby and lower the heat.


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## power_8383 (May 10, 2012)

koolent said:


> Do one thing, take the CPU fan out and clean the port, and the connector, also blow over the CPU Fan Chip, and blow some air around the CPU Side, this might do.



Already did that while installing the graphics card.



Omi said:


> If there is space at the rear of the case take the front fan and shift it to rear. Will create a good -ve pressure forcing heat let out by GPU and CPU out quickly.
> 
> Try to Undervolt the cpu as suggested by Topgear it is effective in lowering the CPU temperature.
> 
> ...



I am not comfortable with assembling.
But I will try to undervolt the CPU.

And yes, I can live with this noise but not without my computer. 



topgear said:


> you can attach 2x 80mm fans on side panel with a little effort - do it and it will greatly increase air flow inside of the cabby and lower the heat.



I had that in my mind, but decided to wait till the monsoon.


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## topgear (May 11, 2012)

^^ any special reason for adding ( side panel ) fans on monsoon only ?


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