Clever replacement for 560 gtx

[Temuka]

Hello guys! I want to upgrade from my 560 gtx as I found now it's kinda difficult to play modern games with it.

My RIG is :
Evga 560 GTX
Intel 3570K (OC-ed to 4.4)
G.SKILL Ripjaws X Series 8GB (2 x 4GB)
1TB HDD
Corsair A70 cooling
Corsair 700 PSU Modular

I'm Playing on Full HD Resolution (1920x1080)

So what will be clever update for my GPU ? R9 290 or GTX 970? Or maybe other? Or should I wait for 960 release for price drop?

Budget is around 200-300$

Thanks in advance !

P.S Is this one good? Price everyday changes,it's either 280 or 330$,why is that?

http://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B00HJO...110_SY165_QL70

 

[raghu78]

If you want to get a GTX 970 atleast be willing to spend USD 350 - 360 for some of the best custom models like Gigabyte GTX 970 G1 Gaming, Asus GTX 970 Strix or MSI GTX 970 Gaming. These are the best GTX 970 cards and are worth the money. Do not skimp at all. :thumbsdown:

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16814125684
http://www.amazon.com/Gigabyte-GeFor.../dp/B00NH5T1MS

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16814121899
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16814127832

For less than USD 300 the Sapphire R9 290 OC Tri-X (1 Ghz) is your best bet. excellent cooler. probably one of the best.

http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/radeon-r9-290-and-290x,3728-8.html
http://www.anandtech.com/show/7601/sapphire-radeon-r9-290-review-our-first-custom-cooled-290/4

"At 41.1dB the 290 Tri-X OC beats a number of Tahiti based cards, including our 7970GE and Sapphire’s own 280X Toxic, and it even edges out Asus’s impressive 280X DirectCU II. This not only makes Sapphire’s 290 the quietest high-end card we have, but it also means we’re seeing Sapphire dissipate an estimated 250W of heat while only generating a very, very limited amount of noise while doing so. Or to put this another way, Sapphire’s 290 is 16dB quieter than the reference 290, nullifying our earlier noise concerns and then-some."

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16814202080

at 1440p the GTX 970 OC would be 5% faster than R9 290 OC while at 1080p the lead would be 10%

http://www.hardware.fr/articles/928-20/recapitulatif-performances.html
http://www.techpowerup.com/reviews/MSI/GTX_970_Gaming/27.html

 

[Temuka]

If you want to get a GTX 970 atleast be willing to spend USD 350 - 360 for some of the best custom models like Gigabyte GTX 970 G1 Gaming, Asus GTX 970 Strix or MSI GTX 970 Gaming. These are the best GTX 970 cards and are worth the money. Do not skimp at all. :thumbsdown:

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16814125684
http://www.amazon.com/Gigabyte-GeFor.../dp/B00NH5T1MS

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16814121899
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16814127832

For less than USD 300 the Sapphire R9 290 OC Tri-X (1 Ghz) is your best bet. excellent cooler. probably one of the best.

http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/radeon-r9-290-and-290x,3728-8.html
http://www.anandtech.com/show/7601/sapphire-radeon-r9-290-review-our-first-custom-cooled-290/4

"At 41.1dB the 290 Tri-X OC beats a number of Tahiti based cards, including our 7970GE and Sapphire’s own 280X Toxic, and it even edges out Asus’s impressive 280X DirectCU II. This not only makes Sapphire’s 290 the quietest high-end card we have, but it also means we’re seeing Sapphire dissipate an estimated 250W of heat while only generating a very, very limited amount of noise while doing so. Or to put this another way, Sapphire’s 290 is 16dB quieter than the reference 290, nullifying our earlier noise concerns and then-some."

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16814202080

at 1440p the GTX 970 OC would be 5% faster than R9 290X OC while at 1080p the lead would be 10%

http://www.hardware.fr/articles/928-20/recapitulatif-performances.html
http://www.techpowerup.com/reviews/MSI/GTX_970_Gaming/27.html

So is 970 worth 90-100$ more than 290 in my situation?

 

[raghu78]

So is 970 worth 90-100$ more than 290 in my situation?

thats for you to decide. imo if you want the lower power consumption of GTX 970 and the lower ambient temps you have to pay the extra 80 bucks.

the R9 290 OC Tri-X is no slouch and will provide a similar gameplay experience but at higher power consumption and ambient temps. noise should not be a problem with outstanding coolers like Tri-X. imo I would pocket the saved money and get a R9 290 Tri-X.

If you were spending the same USD 360 I would still get the R9 290 Tri-X and get a 128 GB SSD. That makes a huge difference overall when working or playing games. The PC is much more responsive, games load faster and you get work done faster. Thats a bigger advantage than 5 - 10% more frames

http://www.amazon.com/Samsung-Electr.../dp/B009NB8WR0

 

[Keysplayr]

The GTX960 is rumored to be launching in January. That's probably an even better option. And still get your SSD that you've never asked for. It's up to you if you can wait though.

 

[Temuka]

The GTX960 is rumored to be launching in January. That's probably an even better option. And still get your SSD that you've never asked for. It's up to you if you can wait though.

But that gpu is weaker than 290 so whats the point?

 

[Keysplayr]

But that gpu is weaker than 290 so whats the point?

Says who? We don't know how it will perform yet. Alternatively, you can also wait, save up 30-50 bucks more for the 970 and have 290X speeds and far less power consumption. No SSD though.

 

[Gikaseixas]

The 970 it's a excellent performer but so is the 290. Very close in performance. Read a couple of reviews and try to make up your mind. I would get 970 if it wasn't for the higher price but the delta doesn't justify so like I said many times before... 290 + SSD

 

[Temuka]

Says who? We don't know how it will perform yet. Alternatively, you can also wait, save up 30-50 bucks more for the 970 and have 290X speeds and far less power consumption. No SSD though.

I think 960 will be budget card,no? Im pretty sure in that. Its like 560<570,660<670,760<770,see the logic? ))

So 970 is pretty same as 290 or 290x? I thought it was like 290 though... Forget about ssd. So you tell me to wait for 960 for price drop 970 and buy 970 for like 50$ less?

 

[raghu78]

I think 960 will be budget card,no? Im pretty sure in that. Its like 560<570,660<670,760<770,see the logic? ))

So 970 is pretty same as 290 or 290x? I thought it was like 290 though... Forget about ssd. So you tell me to wait for 960 for price drop 970 and buy 970 for like 50$ less?

The problem with waiting is something better is always round the corner. AMD's next gen R9 3xx GPUs with High bandwidth memory (HBM) are due for a late Q1 2015 launch (March). That could bring serious price competition to Nvidia's GTX 980 and GTX 970.

http://forums.anandtech.com/showthread.php?t=2409989

http://www.overclock.net/t/1526789/chiphell-possible-380x-preview

http://www.overclock.net/t/1530716/...-fiji-380x-and-bermuda-390x-benchmarks-leaked

The R9 290 is going to provide a similar gameplay experience as GTX 970. look at the latest games and you will see both very close. anybody who is telling you that GTX 960 is going to match R9 290 is lying.

Farcry 4

http://www.techspot.com/review/917-far-cry-4-benchmarks/page3.html
http://www.purepc.pl/karty_graficzn...e_test_kart_graficznych_i_procesorow?page=0,5

Dragon Age Inquisition

http://www.purepc.pl/karty_graficzn...a_wymagania_jak_smok_test_wydajnosci?page=0,6
http://www.techspot.com/review/921-dragon-age-inquisition-benchmarks/page4.html

the GTX 960 has no chance of matching a R9 290.

 

[RussianSensation]

So is 970 worth 90-100$ more than 290 in my situation?

Not in your case. An after-market 290 for $250 + 128GB Crucial MX100 SSS for OS (or similar) is far better than a 970. Right now your mechanical drive is an anchor to your overall system feel. While the 970 might be 5-7% faster at 1080p, the SSD is 3-6X faster in general system feel/responsiveness:

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=yQjc-XW0G7Y

If you don't want an SSD, it's your choice of course, but I think it's a huge mistake. Right now your system feels like a 2008 computer without one. If all you want is a videocard upgrade, then grab the a $220 His ICEQ 290:
http://forums.anandtech.com/showthread.php?t=2413976

The performance = 290X, then take $80-100 savings and put it aside for a GPU upgrade in 3-4 years based on your upgrading history. Why pay 40-50% more for a 970 for 5% more performance when you keep your GPUs for so long? You would be better off taking that $80-100 saved now and getting another next gen GPU for $250 in 2017-2018, which for you would actually mean a $150-170 upgrade since you saved $ today.

If you wait another 30 days, you don't lose much as I think 960 will force big price drops on the 290. Worst case, there will still be $250 290 cards.

 

[Temuka]

To get things straight: I dont live in US and I use 3rd party company to ship my orders,so I cannot use rebates and such things

I think to buy 290 in January from amazon for around 270$ and 840/850 pro ssd,do I need to take 256gb or 128 will be enough?

1 more thing: when should I buy 290??

 

[R0H1T]

Wait for the GTX960 to release, that'll get things moving in the midrange. Also the yet to be released AMD 3xx series might be a good option, if priced right, of course there's no release date leaked thus far. As for the SSD, get the 850 EVO as & when it goes on sale, if need be use camelcamel for price alert.

 

[Ketchup]

There is always something new on the horizon, BUT I believe this is one of those times it would be wise to wait. See how 960 looks and then order the best for your budget. I waited a couple days and bought my 660 the day it was released. It has been a great card, and I feel it was worth the wait.

 

[cusideabelincoln]

I just upgraded from a 560 to a 280x and any game that wasn't CPU limited saw my framerates at least double. So anything faster than that will leave you really satisfied.

 

[skipsneeky2]

The 290 and the 970 are the only smart choices at this point,both incredible upgrades over that 560.Avoid any 2gb cards of either brand.At this point its up to you what you want to spend that dictates which gpu you buy.

 

[raghu78]

To get things straight: I dont live in US and I use 3rd party company to ship my orders,so I cannot use rebates and such things

I think to buy 290 in January from amazon for around 270$ and 840/850 pro ssd,do I need to take 256gb or 128 will be enough?

1 more thing: when should I buy 290??

the price on Sapphire R9 290 keeps fluctuating and sometimes goes as low as USD 270 (250 with rebate). so you could watch if prices hit that point.

But even now prices are very good. You can go for the Diamond R9 290 which has the same cooler as HIS Iceq.

www.amazon.com/Diamond-Multimedia-Me...dp/B00L1FPAK8/

As for SSD 128 GB should be fine. :thumbsup:

 

[Keysplayr]

I think 960 will be budget card,no? Im pretty sure in that. Its like 560<570,660<670,760<770,see the logic? ))

So 970 is pretty same as 290 or 290x? I thought it was like 290 though... Forget about ssd. So you tell me to wait for 960 for price drop 970 and buy 970 for like 50$ less?

And 960 < 970 Yes of course. And the 970 is more powerful than the 290. More in line with the 290X. Trades blows with 290X.

So like I said, If you cannot wait til January-ish, then buy what you want now. If you can wait, either save up a few more bucks and go for the 970 or see what the 960 brings to the table. Either way, the 960 should further force down the prices of 290, so either way you are golden.

Normally I'd agree with Raghu when he said that there is always something new around the corner. True, but this is most likely imminent (very soon) according to leaks and rumors. Might as well wait a few weeks.

 

[tweakboy]

Go for 760 GTX

 

[RaistlinZ]

I doubt the 960 will match the 290 in terms of performance, and the 290 has the benefit of 4GB VRAM.

The 960 will certainly use much less power though, if that's important to you.

 

[Keysplayr]

I doubt the 960 will match the 290 in terms of performance, and the 290 has the benefit of 4GB VRAM.

The 960 will certainly use much less power though, if that's important to you.

There isn't any basis for this doubt. There isn't any basis for the contrary either. That's why I suggested to wait a bit and see. Can't hurt.

 

[RussianSensation]

And 960 < 970 Yes of course. And the 970 is more powerful than the 290. More in line with the 290X. Trades blows with 290X.

You have to realize that reviewers test reference 290/290X cards, but when we talk about buying an after-market 290, the discussion is always around an after-market 290. An after-market 290 = reference 290X in benchmarks. Therefore, the only comparison that makes sense is 290X reference scores vs. after-market 970.

What you keep repeating only applies at 1080P and below.

At 1440P, 1600P and 4K, an after-market 290 and an after-market 970 are basically identical.

At 1080P, the 970 leads by about 6%

Given the price parity with after-market 290s, it's a serious consideration since 6% for $70-100 more expensive is a big premium. I would personally wait 30 more days to see if 960 forces more discounts on 290, or if it's better than a 290, grab it instead. I don't think a 960 can beat an after-market 290 = 290X and it will also have less VRAM. I would definitely take the savings from the 970 and put them either into an SSD or towards a future GPU upgrade.

 

[Shmee]

Good suggestions, I would say either get a good 290 when on sale, or even better wait for the 960 to come out, and make your choice then. Getting an SSD is also a very important upgrade. Would recommend the 850 Evo.

 

[boozzer]

op missed out on the 200$ tri x 290. too bad. the weeks before BF is always the time to shop for deals.

 

[Temuka]

op missed out on the 200$ tri x 290. too bad. the weeks before BF is always the time to shop for deals.

Tri-x was never for 200$ on amazon