Card to buy now in the ~$400 range

nombrecinq

Senior member
May 15, 2005
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Currently I have a GTX 275, and it works well enough but circumstances have it that I can do an upgrade now. I will either be getting a 30" IPS soon, or 2x 24" IPS monitors, so the card needs to be able to drive a 30" nicely. In terms of games I do mostly Bad Company 2, and I'll definitely be jumping on Battlefield 3, GRAW 3, Crysis 2, etc.

Some cards are starting to offer Display-Port in addition to HDMI. Is that something I should care about?

I haven't been looking very long, but so far I have my eye on the 6970 and the GTX 570.

There's also a planned nVidia event later this month, so is it worth waiting till then?
 

toyota

Lifer
Apr 15, 2001
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if you are not going to use a sig then please list the specs of your pc when asking for video card advice.
 

nombrecinq

Senior member
May 15, 2005
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Okay I added a sig. I left out the boring stuff like my 6 year old DVD drive, wifi card, etc.
 

toyota

Lifer
Apr 15, 2001
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a gtx275 is more than enough for your current 1440x900 res. unless you have concrete plans for a new monitor in the next few weeks then just wait before upgrading.
 

nombrecinq

Senior member
May 15, 2005
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The thing is I need to do it this month probably, because the 275 is needed elsewhere. I could probably wait a couple weeks though.
 

1ManArmY

Golden Member
Mar 7, 2003
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I'm also in the market for an upgrade from an GTX 275. I'm gaming at 19 X 12 and have been playing mostly BF BC2, Vietnam, L4D2, and Aliens vs Predotor.
I just picked up Mafia II and Metro 2033 with my pre-order of Homefront.
Which card should I shoot for? I was also thinking of picking up more memory since it's cheap should I even bother getting another 6 gigs?
 

SickBeast

Lifer
Jul 21, 2000
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For $400 it would be hard to beat a pair of GTX 560s in SLI. If you want to save $100 you could even go with 460s.

That said, the 2gb AMD cards might be a better bet for that type of setup, especially if you game at high resolutions or with multiple displays.
 

MentalIlness

Platinum Member
Nov 22, 2009
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For $400 it would be hard to beat a pair of GTX 560s in SLI. If you want to save $100 you could even go with 460s.

That said, the 2gb AMD cards might be a better bet for that type of setup, especially if you game at high resolutions or with multiple displays.

This man has skills. :)....Id follow his advice to the letter.
 

Skurge

Diamond Member
Aug 17, 2009
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Strom scout is a pretty small case, would those cards fit?

IIRC it has similar dimensions to a CM690 and a 6970/570 look like a tight fit if I look at mine.
 

Shmee

Memory & Storage, Graphics Cards Mod Elite Member
Super Moderator
Sep 13, 2008
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actually, since the OP mentions getting a 30", he would probably be best off with 2 6950's, as he will greatly benefit from having 2 GB at the high resolution. at that res, I seem to remember it will beat 580 SLI.

FYI, I went with 2 6950's, both from xfx, got them for $290 each. Keep in mind you may be able to overclock them/flash them to 6970's, if that is ur kind of thing, which would help performance even more.
 

Skurge

Diamond Member
Aug 17, 2009
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actually, since the OP mentions getting a 30", he would probably be best off with 2 6950's, as he will greatly benefit from having 2 GB at the high resolution. at that res, I seem to remember it will beat 580 SLI.

FYI, I went with 2 6950's, both from xfx, got them for $290 each. Keep in mind you may be able to overclock them/flash them to 6970's, if that is ur kind of thing, which would help performance even more.

$250x2 seems a bit over his budget.
 

RussianSensation

Elite Member
Sep 5, 2003
19,458
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Do you have room for a triple slot videocard? If so here's a gtx 580 for $460 after rebate with 2 free games. Artic cooler should leave you plenty of overclocking headroom.
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...-073-_-Product

Don't waste your time on the 570 or 6970 IMO.

HD6950s unlocked into 6970s in CF for $470 >>>> GTX580 for $460. Perfect for a 30 inch monitor. GTX580 is not more than 15% faster than a single 6970 at 2560x1600. Therefore, it's not even a contest. :thumbsup:

$250x2 seems a bit over his budget.

True. Then a single 6950 2GB for now and a 2nd one 12 months later :)
 
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nombrecinq

Senior member
May 15, 2005
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Strom scout is a pretty small case, would those cards fit?

IIRC it has similar dimensions to a CM690 and a 6970/570 look like a tight fit if I look at mine.

Yeah its dimensions are limited. If I were to do it again I'd do a big-honkin case for sure.