Updating My Graphics Card - Nvidia GeForce GTS 450

This behemoth is my new graphics card. The GTS 450 was released sometime around September, designed to be a mid-range performance graphics card (compared to current high-performance) that is also affordable. I got mine for about $170, incredibly cheap considering I was upgrading from a previous mid-range performance graphics, the Nvidia GeForce 8600GT. The 8600GT was basically the beta version of Nvidia's future graphics cards. Most games for PC recommend an Nvidia card 8800GT or better; Mass Effect 2 and Starcraft 2 both recommend the 8800GT or better. I purchased an HP Pavillion desktop as a Christmas present in 2008 which came preloaded with an 8600GT, then a very high caliber graphics card. The main reason for purchasing it was to improve the quality of FFXI and for future PC games. For 2 years, this graphics card has served me well, but it was time to update. Rather than simply buying a new PC, I got an Nvidia GTS 450 as the only update to my gaming PC. Although my power supply is 350 watts and the GTS 450 "requires" a 400 watt power supply, my computer hasn't blown up running Mass Effect 2, my most demanding game, on max settings.

The GTS 450 is a behemoth of a graphics card, I just needed to reiterate that. It's so big that it requires two slots on the rear of the computer for a dedicated vent! This is the first graphics card I've ever owned that is that gigantic. I've owned one in the past that an enormous fan the size of the entire PCB, but it wasn't large enough to require its own vent. The GTS 450 like every Nvidia graphics card since the 8600 is SLI compatible, meaning you can connect two graphics cards together (they must be the same model) on an SLI compatible motherboard (which I don't have). The purpose of getting two graphics cards is you need that many input slots for 3 monitors to get 3D Vision. ATI currently does not support 3D gaming, so Nvidia is making serious headway by supporting 3D gaming for the past 2 years.

I have a dual monitor setup for the first time right now, but I don't have two widescreen monitors yet. I can probably get a cheap 22" widescreen monitor to accompany my main monitor, but I really don't have a reason to have a dual monitor display other than being a total geek.

The difference between the 8600GT and GTS 450 is enormous. Just to put things into perspective, Nvidia ended their numbering at the 9800GTX and reset the numbering with the GTS/GTX series, starting with the GTS 100, so I basically jumped 14 graphics card upgrades. Mass Effect 2 was the only game I own that I was experiencing lag with, but the GTS 450 cured almost all lag issues. The only area in the entire game I've experience lag is the first area when you run through some smoke. When I was playing the PS3 demo, I also experienced lag there as well as other areas. Seeing that lag in the PS3 version, which is running Mass Effect 3's engine, made me that much more confident in my ability to run Mass Effect 3 when it comes out. Bioware previously said that if your computer could run Mass Effect, you could also run Mass Effect 2, but what many forgot to take into account is that the PC version of Mass Effect does not go up to 1920x1080. If you play Mass Effect 2 with the max settings from the original, then of course it will run, derp. Mass Effect 3 is a year away, but hopefully I will not need to update my rig anytime soon.

Also of note, I re-ran the Final Fantasy XIV benchmark. On the 8600GT on default settings, my computer was not good enough to run FFXIV. With the GTS 450 my score jumped from sub-500 to 3200, more than well enough to run the game in higher settings than the default. I am strongly considering getting Final Fantasy XIV for the sole reason that I can run the game and it is currently free to play.

I've debated upgrading my RAM from 4GB to 8GB, but I have yet to find a game that has recommended settings above 2GB.