1440p gaming w/ NVIDA

[wb182]

For the past year I've been gaming on a Sony Vaio S13 (GT 640M LE) after giving up my desktop and office so my newborn could have a playroom. Well, we're moving into a larger home, so I'm going back to the desktop.

I've already purchased a Dell U2713HM, because I couldn't turn down the $550 price on amazon. I'm now evaluating my options for building my own system or purchasing a pre-built. The purpose of this post though is in my shopping for a new system, what (NVIDIA only) card should i be considering for 1440p gaming.

Keep in mind that I have been gaming at 1600x900 on the 640M LE, so I'm used to making sacrifices on the video quality. I want my desktop to play most anything I throw at it on high, but I'm not expecting bleeding edge.

So here are the options I'm debating right now:

• Alienware X51 w/ GTX 670 (no possibility of SLI in the future)
• DS Bolt w/ GTX 770 (no possibility of SLI in the future)
• Build my own w/ GTX 760 -- adding another 760 in SLI a year down the road?

I've never previously considered an SLI system and am only doing so now that I have a 1440p monitor. My uninformed guess is that the 670 may be OK today, but leaves me completely unequipped for new titles over the next 12 months. SLI 760's could be complete overkill with a single monitor, along with obviously requiring a much larger chassis and more power. Is the GTX 770 "just right"?

Oh, one last relevant item towards my decision. Despite having the monitor already, I'm actually not in a huge hurry to buy the desktop as I won't be in my new house until mid-November. So perhaps the recommendation is "wait and see", but if so I'd still be curious what I should be on the lookout for.

 

[nismotigerwvu]

Building your own is almost always the way to go. Usually you'll save some money and even if you don't, you get the parts YOU want (better quality mobo/PSU/ect...). If you could, you'd really quite benefit in putting an extra 100 bucks towards your gpu and getting a 770.

 

[OatisCampbell]

Why NVIDIA only when AMD cards have the extra VRAM you may need when gaming at 1440P?

 

[adnank77]

Since you are going 1440p .. I highly recommend you keep a room for SLI/Crossfire .. You will need it in future ..

I'm having Crossfire of 7970 and it's enough to run 3 monintors at 1440 .. So I beleive one 7950 Card will be able to run smooth for 1440p

 

[3DVagabond]

Wait. AMD's new cards should be out by November and even if you aren't interested in AMD, it's possible that nVidia pricing might drop in response. Or, they might drop a new model or two in if that's the best way to compete. Either way, I don't see how you can lose by waiting.

Edit: ...and build your own. As has been said, pre-builts skimp on the less glamorous components like PSU, mobo, ssd/hdd, ram, and charge a premium for the pre selecting and installing of parts. Also some oem components don't carry as long of a warranty as the standard consumer models.

 

[DooKey]

Since it's going to be mid-November before you really need the card I would wait and see what things look like then. Anyway, I recommend the best card you can afford at the time. In the long run you'll be happier and it will resell for more when you do decide to upgrade. A single powerful card is better than two lesser cards in my opinion.

 

[cmdrdredd]

If you're buying right now and only a single card and only the choices you mention, a 770.

Still, wait a bit and build your own. See if there's any new AMD cards. Things may change. Do also leave room for SLI in the future. I find 2GB enough for today's games at 1440p but the performance of a single 670 was not enough.

 

[ggadrian]

If you're buying right now and only a single card and only the choices you mention, a 770.

Still, wait a bit and build your own. See if there's any new AMD cards. Things may change. Do also leave room for SLI in the future. I find 2GB enough for today's games at 1440p but the performance of a single 670 was not enough.

Well, that depends: if you play without antiliasing and you can live without maxing out everything in some games you might be fine.

I'm playing 1440p in a 680m and even in the games that I can't max at 1440p I like it more than 1080p.

 

[wb182]

Thanks all, exactly the feedback I was looking for. I think I've safely ruled out the X51 with the max GPU being a 670.

Leaning towards building my own, despite the frustration and cursing of my last 2 builds. Still not sure about SLI 760s vs single 770 (or an AMD in fairness). There's a cost premium to "saving room for SLI" beyond just the relatively cheap extra GPU in that I'll also need a bigger PSU and chassis.

So the new AMD cards are expected before Black Friday?

 

[cmdrdredd]

Well, that depends: if you play without antiliasing and you can live without maxing out everything in some games you might be fine.

I'm playing 1440p in a 680m and even in the games that I can't max at 1440p I like it more than 1080p.

A 680m is slower than a desktop 670 to begin with.

I can play with some AA just fine at 1440p and it just depends on the game. I generally play all my games at max settings (very high or ultra). I played crysis 3 all the way through at 1440p at very high with 2x SMAA. Didn't stare at the fps counter but it played smoothly. I do have SLi though, a single 670 would not have enough performance for me to be happy at 1440p. That's how I feel.

Thanks all, exactly the feedback I was looking for. I think I've safely ruled out the X51 with the max GPU being a 670.

Leaning towards building my own, despite the frustration and cursing of my last 2 builds. Still not sure about SLI 760s vs single 770 (or an AMD in fairness). There's a cost premium to "saving room for SLI" beyond just the relatively cheap extra GPU in that I'll also need a bigger PSU and chassis.

So the new AMD cards are expected before Black Friday?

Rumors say sometime in october but that's about it.

A good PSU and Case doesn't have to be ultra expensive. Even a good quality PSU like the Corsair TX850M which is $120 with a $20 rebate at the moment, would be plenty for SLI and your other components. You don't need $200 1000 watt Behemoths. The case is up to you. I have a large case but you don't need to buy the latest $200 case. There are often very good deals on Antec cases among others that go for as low as $90 at times.

 

[cmdrdredd]

double post

 

[wb182]

If I were to go SLI, it would probably be something like this http://pcpartpicker.com/p/1j080

Repurposing existing HDDs and OS from my htpc.

But that said, I should probably wait until November

 

[cmdrdredd]

If you can swing it, I'd get a K CPU and a decent cooler so you can overclock it easily.

If all you have in the budget is GTX 760s then I guess that's not too bad. I would be more inclined to start with a higher end GPU and wait until I could add another later on. That's just me though.

Things may change in October though.