GPU dilemma

[Thunderpants]

I've just got my first Hackintosh up and running. Z77X UP5, 3770k, lots of Corsair logos on everything else.

In my bid to save some cash I ended up buying an XFX 6870 2Gb video card on ebay. I was rather miffed to find it a) dusty and b) louder than hell; sadly I'd had it lying around for so long, waiting for other parts, that I missed the window of opportunity to return it. (Or so I thought, judging by the seller's resounding silence to my plea for a refund.)

Yesterday I ordered a 3rd party GPU cooler (Scythe Setsugen) in a bid to silence this monster GPU which means this aging technology will have cost me a total of 133 euros (105+28)

Today, though, the seller belatedly contacted me and offered to refund me for the card.

So my question is, should I return the 6870 and cancel the Setsugen and get something nice and new instead? On paper my 6870 was a bargain (at 105 Euros) but in reality I'm not too happy with it (conspicuous absence of Corsair logos on all those dust particles). Any alternatives I should be thinking about in the 130-200 region? Any thoughts?

Cheers all in advance,

PS I use windows for occasional gaming - though as you can tell by my question I am not a gaming fanatic. I haven't had much luck getting the HD 4000 graphics working in OSX so some kind of card is obligatory.

 

[hmttony]

i would say return the Card and get a nvidia 650 or 650 ti which is priced around $150 .
The 650 would out perform your radeon and it happens to perform quite well on Mac osx .

 

[bthall]

PS I use windows for occasional gaming - though as you can tell by my question I am not a gaming fanatic. I haven't had much luck getting the HD 4000 graphics working in OSX so some kind of card is obligatory.

I've got the same motherboard/CPU and have had no problems getting the Intel HD4000 graphics to work. Have you checked your BIOS/UEFI settings?

Check out this site: http://www.hacksbyalfa.com

There is a guide for setting up the Gigabyte GA-Z77X-UP5 TH motherboard and it has the BIOS/UEFI settings for either the on-board Intel HD4000 by itself, an external GPU by itself, or both together.

Good Luck!
-bth

 

[Thunderpants]

Well, after some thought on 550s, 560s, TIs and OCs... and reading reviews, looking at benchmarks, my head hurts.

So I said "sod it" and bought the 660 instead, which ought to keep me happy for the next few years. 200 Euros, seems reasonable, and most of the reviews were really good. I got the MSI version with 2 fans.