[mythtvnz] Current graphics card recommendations

[Michael West]

On Sunday, 14 October 2012 10:16 a.m. Steven Ellis wrote:
>On Sat, October 13, 2012 10:35 pm, Michael West wrote:
>> On Saturday, 13 October 2012 7:37 p.m. Steven Ellis wrote:
>> O>n Wed, October 10, 2012 11:43 pm, Michael West wrote:
>>>> From: mythtvnz-bounces at lists.linuxnut.co.nz
>>>> [mailto:mythtvnz-bounces at lists.linuxnut.co.nz] On Behalf Of Scott 
>>>> Newton
>>>>>What do people currently recommend as I need to upgrade my system. I 
>>>>>was  thinking fo something along the lines of the GT620/630/640.
>>>>>
>>>>>Thanks
>>>>>--
>>>>>Regards
>>>>>Scott Newton
>>>>
>>>> I just got a GT 620 and it works fine for me at full HD with 
>>>> deinterlacing etc.  I can't see any good reasons to go higher just 
>>>> for mythtv playback myself.  When I ordered the 620 they sent me a 
>>>> 2GB GT
>>>> 650 by mistake and invoiced me for that instead which I wasn't going 
>>>> to pay for so had to return it.
>>>>
>>>
>>>Are any of these single slot?
>>>
>>>A lot of the newer cards are still dual slot which is a pain for 
>>>smaller  already rather full cases.
>>>
>>>Steve
>>
>> The GT 650 they sent me first was a dual slot but I think many GT 
>> 620's are single slot.  The GV-N620D3-1GL I got is single slot and I 
>> have it mounted right next to my HVR-2200 fine but it may restrict the 
>> air flow a little.  Just checked and while playing Full HD with 
>> advanced 2x etc the gpu reports 67C and the heatsink feels warm/hot 
>> but not too bad.  It is dual slot if you use the included low profile 
>> adapters unless you remove the VGA port.  Having the low profile 
>> option can be good if you change case later.
>>
>> Most 610/620/630 cards are single slot it seems with maybe the 
>> exception being some models with quite or passive Designs that take 
>> two slots. GT
>> 640 or higher dual slot are more popular.
>>
>> Michael
>
>Most GT620 cards I've looked at online require the space of two slots due to the heatsink/fan combination. Thats why I asked.

Yeah having a look at a few manufacturers it is a bit 50/50 as to what you get.  
Gigabyte is fine (this is the one I have).   There is only 2mm clearance for the fan to suck air in but it still works fine for me
EVGA have a single slot but it is not low profile
MSI does a single slot but they have two versions with the SAME model number and one version has a bigger heatsink/fan
Palit has a bigger heatsink that takes 2 slots
Asus has what looks a slightly bigger heatsink than Gigabyte and it may be a bit tight for single slot.  Hard to tell though.

Also remember that Low profile cards sometimes state 2 slots when they are referring to the Low profile adapter brackets so be careful to check.

Michael