Adding the GTX 780 Video Card to Our Dream Computer

September 3, 2014

In the last few weeks, I’ve been listing the components for an awesome new computer. If you are looking for a bargain-basement computer for the least amount of money possible, this isn’t it. But if you are willing to spend a little to get a lot of bang for the buck, this computer has you covered. For those who have missed one of the previous installments, I’ve listed them below.

Now it is time to add a video card to our system. For some users, the video circuitry included in the CPU might be enough. Unfortunately that isn’t always the case when working with graphics. If I’m editing photos on my laptop at a zoom level to show the entire image, there can be a lag between my moving the cursor and seeing the results on screen. This can make it very difficult to be accurate with my editing. That isn’t a problem when editing on my desktop that contains a good dedicated video card.

It would be easy to spend a lot more money on a card, but we may never see any benefits to such a powerful card unless gaming was involved. So I tried to find one of the most powerful cards available, while still trying to keep the price to a reasonable level.

My choice was the ASUS Direct CU II GTX 780. It currently sells for $439 at Amazon and there is an additional $20 rebate available. No, it is not “cheap” though it would be very easy to pick a card that cost twice as much or more. When building a fast computer meant to be a workhorse for 4-5 years minimum, you sometimes have to spend a little bit more for better parts.

This card is definitely powerful enough for editing graphics and would even be really good if you like to play games in your free time. Even with all that power, it is designed to be relatively quiet while also running at lower temperatures than other similar cards. Put this card together with the other components listed earlier and you’ll truly have a powerhouse computer!

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Foster D. Coburn III

Foster D. Coburn III is author of 13 best-selling books on CorelDRAW and has been a contributor to numerous technology and graphics-related magazines. Foster has taken many projects, including this Web site, from the early design stage through to a finished piece. He has been a featured speaker at many graphics conferences. His first Web site was built in 1995 and he has been working exclusively in WordPress since 2013.