Cosidering the EVGA Classified GTX 770....

[looper]

I was considering getting the nVidia 770 'Classified' at the end of this summer to hold me over until maybe the Winter of 2014, when I would do a whole new rig. This computer is for gaming, both FPS's (BF3) and MMOG's. I game at 1920x1080/1200 with one monitor.

Another question...
Also thinking about getting a TN panel 24" monitor to replace the Dell, maybe the BenQ XL2420TE, and running LightBoost with 120hz refresh, reducing lag/delay... that monitor is @ $399. Worth it for what I do on this computer? I'm a decent BF3 player now with a 1.51 K/D ratio.

 

[Face2Face]

I am seeing the Classified cost @ $500 Ouch.. that's pretty steep. You should buy a 27" Catleap and spring for a GTX 780 instead of going with a 1080P TN panel and a pricey GTX 770.

 

[RussianSensation]

GTX770 is already one of the most overpriced cards out and $500+ for a GTX770 is simply $ wasted. At that point go all out for a GTX780 or drop down to a 1Ghz 7970 which is 95% as good.

After-market GTX780 is 40% faster than GTX770.
http://www.computerbase.de/artikel/...it-geforce-gtx-780-super-jetstream-im-test/2/

That should tell you how horrible a $520 GTX770 is.

If you play BF3, you might as well save $160 towards your Winter 2014 GPU upgrade and just get an HD7970 1Ghz. GTX770 holds no advantage worth talking about in that game. MMOs are mostly CPU limited, which means overclocking your CPU would help you more.

Check this out:
http://www.superbiiz.com/detail.php?name=AT-H7970CB

1Ghz 7970 with 4 free games - $360 + $12 shipping - $15 off with w/code: IRENA2815 (ends 07/15/2013) = $357

 

[Elfear]

Having played around with Lightboost for the last week I am sold. The lack of motion blur is amazing. I may switch back to my 30" sometime but for now I really like the Lightboost tech.

Also, I would consider the Asus VG248QE over the BenQ if you want to try Lightboost. That's what I bought and I've been very happy with the monitor.

Lastly, a guy named ToastyX designed a Lightboost program to make it work in 2D and with Radeon compatibility. Works great with my AMD cards.

 

[Carfax83]

RS, at least try reading your own graph correctly before you try to "convince" this guy to buy AMD..

The GTX 780 is not 40% faster than the GTX 770 according to the graph, it's 21%. And this is at 2560x1600 with MSAA 4x, which is way above what he'll be playing at.

The GTX 780 is on average 16% faster than the GTX 770, provided you don't use expensive forms of AA at already very high resolutions.

To the OP, if you're only going to hang on to the card for a year, I would get a cheaper GTX 770, like the Gigabyte version which costs 50 dollars less and is clocked almost as high as the Classified.

Although if you only game at 1080p, not sure you really need 4GB of VRAM.

 

[looper]

Wow, all these responses... thx, guys.

First off, when I get the new rig in Fall/Winter of 2014, the GTX770 would stay... would not replace that...

Second, did not mean I wanted the 4GB model of the 770, wanted the 2GB one...sorry. That's @ $400. or so.

The AMD 7970 is enough of an improvement over the 5870 to be worth doing?

To repeat, I will game at 1920x1080/1200 with one monitor....

 

[Carfax83]

In that case, I would get the fastest 2GB GTX 770 like the MSI Lightning, which has a high factory overclock.

If you clock it to 1250, it will be within about 4% of the much more expensive GTX 780. At about 1300, it will be at near parity.

 

[Face2Face]

At 1080P stock for stock the GTX 770 2GB and 7970GE 3GB are pretty close in BF3. You probably won't even notice a difference. That deal RS posted is a pretty good one if you want the games, even if you don't I don't see the need to spend more for a card that is not much faster at stock (I assume you won't OC?). And yes the 7870GE and GTX 770 will be a large improvement over the 5870 - I don't know the numbers, but you will be pleased with either one.

 

[blackened23]

I personally would not get a classified 770, as it is identical to the classified 680 with better VRAM chips. Personally, I was not impressed by the classified 680 by any metric - be it noise, overclocking, or temperatures in comparison to some of the best aftermarket GTX 680s. I used it for roughly a month before selling it and moving on. I thought the Lightning 680 was better in every conceivable way (I used both). Let me just be clear that the classified 680 got LOUD at high fan settings, and seeing as the classified 770 is the same card with better VRAM, it will also be loud.

I think the 4GB Windforce GTX 770 is a much smarter buy. You're paying a 50$ premium for the EVGA card - and you're essentially paying for nothing. You're paying for more noise, higher temps, which is all fine and dandy if you *NEED* a card to exhaust out of the back of the PC, but most folks don't. The Windforce Gigabyte 770 is superior, IMHO.

edit: I also agree that you do not need 4GB. 2GB should be fine unless you have an imminent upgrade planned for your monitor (surround, etc).

 

[RussianSensation]

RS, at least try reading your own graph correctly before you try to "convince" this guy to buy AMD..

The GTX 780 is not 40% faster than the GTX 770 according to the graph, it's 21%.

I did read the graph but you didn't read my post.

"After-market 780" = Palit GTX 780 Super JetStream

It's 41% faster.

You keep ignoring benchmarks at higher resolutions but if the OP intends to keep his card until winter 2014 that means he intends to play some next gen titles. Performance at 1600P is foreshadowing how next gen games will stress the GPU since higher rez puts increased load on the GPU. Seeing how a particular card respond to increased load in today's games has generally been a very good predictor of how cards would handle next gen games at reduced resolutions.

But OK, way to ignore the rest of my post. You continue to position my posts as "selling" AMD cards when all I am doing is highlighting how overpriced the 770 4GB is right now. Since the OP's goal is to use this card as a stop-gap, why would it be wise to spend $450-500 on a GTX770 when HD7970 1Ghz is nearly as good, while GTX780 not far away from that Classified rip-off card.

"Overall, the GeForce GTX 770 is an average 3% faster than the Radeon HD 7970 GHz Edition across all the tests."
http://www.xbitlabs.com/articles/graphics/display/nvidia-geforce-gtx-770_9.html#sect0

BTW, a stock GTX780 has no problem beating a GTX770 with 1220mhz core / 1267mhz Boost:

That shows just how ridiculously overpriced the 770 Classified is. Really you can get almost 2x GTX760 4GB in SLI for the price of that Classified card. :hmm:

 

[blackened23]

That shows just how ridiculously overpriced the 770 Classified is.

I completely agree with this. Based on my usage of the classified 680, there is nothing I can think of which can make the cost of the 770 classified worth it. Other aftermarket cards are just better, period, IMHO - look at the Gigabyte windforce, asus DC2, MSI twin frozr cards. Those are reasonably priced cards which are cooler, cheaper and quieter than the classified.

Again - the only reason to get that card is if you have a super small case such as mini ITX and are forced to exhaust all heat out of the rear. In every other situation, the classified is an incredibly poor buy.

 

[thilanliyan]

The AMD 7970 is enough of an improvement over the 5870 to be worth doing?

Absolutely a 7970 is a big improvement over a 5870. In your shoes I would either get a 7970/680 or spend more and get a 780 although the extra $250-$300 for a 780 over a 7970/680 is not worth the performance increase IMO.

 

[RussianSensation]

If you clock it to 1250, it will be within about 4% of the much more expensive GTX 780. At about 1300, it will be at near parity.

Can you please stop posting false info and ignoring facts?

I already posted graphs of GTX780 vs. max overclocked 770. If you are going to say consider an after-market 770, why wouldn't someone get GTX780 MSI Gaming or EVGA GTX780? A max overclocked 770 can't touch those cards, period. The difference is more like 15-16% and that's before overclocking the 780.

vs.

And if you are going to make a good recommendation for the 770, $50 for the Lightning is once again money wasted. The 770 Gaming overclocks nearly as good:

But has a far superior cooling system/fan.
http://www.techpowerup.com/reviews/MSI/GTX_770_TF_Gaming/25.html

Most people would take 20-30mhz less GPU overclock on the 770 for the quietest air cooled 770 which makes the 770 Lightning a bad deal against its Gaming brother.

 

[Face2Face]

Looks like the GTX 770 Classified come with cooler options?

 

[Carfax83]

I did read the graph but you didn't read my post.

"After-market 780" = Palit GTX 780 Super JetStream

It's 41% faster.

That's an overclocked card that is much more expensive, against a stock card. Yeah, great point....

You keep ignoring benchmarks at higher resolutions but if the OP intends to keep his card until winter 2014 that means he intends to play some next gen titles. Performance at 1600P is foreshadowing how next gen games will stress the GPU since higher rez puts increased load on the GPU. Seeing how a particular card respond to increased load in today's games has generally been a very good predictor of how cards would handle next gen games at reduced resolutions.

Now you're just making stuff up. The OP expressly said he's going to be gaming at 1080p and 1200p, which does not require a lot of VRAM.

And extrapolating how much VRAM next gen games are going to use by looking at 1600p isn't exactly scientific. It's akin to "guesstimating."

But OK, way to ignore the rest of my post. You continue to position my posts as "selling" AMD cards when all I am doing is highlighting how overpriced the 770 4GB is right now. Since the OP's goal is to use this card as a stop-gap, why would it be wise to spend $450-500 on a GTX770 when HD7970 1Ghz is nearly as good, while GTX780 not far away from that Classified rip-off card.

The OP retracted his comment and said he wants the 2GB version, not the 4GB version. And the Classified is definitely a rip off no doubt.

BTW, a stock GTX780 has no problem beating a GTX770 with 1220mhz core / 1267mhz Boost:

For someone that posts a lot on Anandtech, you never use this website's benchmarks. I don't know how credible Xbitlabs is, but in the Anandtech review, the overclocked GTX 770 at 1241 MHz was close to the GTX 780:

That shows just how ridiculously overpriced the 770 Classified is. Really you can get almost 2x GTX760 4GB in SLI for the price of that Classified card. :hmm:

I agree, the Classified is overpriced. I already said as much.

 

[RussianSensation]

The AMD 7970 is enough of an improvement over the 5870 to be worth doing?..

HD5870 ~ HD6950.

HD7970 @ 1180mhz is about 2x faster on average at 1080P.
http://tpucdn.com/reviews/HIS/HD_7970_X_Turbo/images/perfrel_1920.gif

In BF3, 7970 overclocked is going to be more than twice as fast against the 5870/6970s.

If you want a bargain of the bunch, MSI Gaming GTX760 overclocked is an excellent upgrade. Sell your 5870 and get this card and you'll be amazed at the value for a relative small cash outlay.

 

[Carfax83]

I already posted graphs of GTX780 vs. max overclocked 770. If you are going to say consider an after-market 770, why wouldn't someone get GTX780 MSI Gaming or EVGA GTX780? A max overclocked 770 can't touch those cards, period. The difference is more like 15-16% and that's before overclocking the 780.

vs.

And if you are going to make a good recommendation for the 770, $50 for the Lightning is once again money wasted. The 770 Gaming overclocks nearly as good:

You need to stop using disreputable benchmarks to prove your point.

The TPU benches make no sense, as they use the exact same figures for 1920x1080p and 1920x1200p MSAA 4x.

The 7970 GE gets 85.4 FPS at 1080p, and the exact same results at 1200p?

Give me a break Use more reputable sources.

 

[tweakboy]

I was considering getting the nVidia 770 'Classified' at the end of this summer to hold me over until maybe the Winter of 2014, when I would do a whole new rig. This computer is for gaming, both FPS's (BF3) and MMOG's. I game at 1920x1080/1200 with one monitor.

Another question...
Also thinking about getting a TN panel 24" monitor to replace the Dell, maybe the BenQ XL2420TE, and running LightBoost with 120hz refresh, reducing lag/delay... that monitor is @ $399. Worth it for what I do on this computer? I'm a decent BF3 player now with a 1.51 K/D ratio.

Sorry to burst a bubble but the monitor has 7ms to 12ms ,, so there will be mouse lag when vsync is on, and ghosting and motion blur. I play vsync on 70hz 1ms latency, so its CRT like!

 

[moonbogg]

Lordy lordy, classified is too costly for the extra 2fps you get. I'd never buy a classified anything from EVGA. Money = wasted. Mind = blown that people pay it.

 

[RussianSensation]

Give me a break Use more reputable sources.

This is getting tiresome. It's obvious you are more interested in defending your GTX770 SLI purchase in every post. Nearly every review on the planet shows that you cannot touch an after-market out of the box stock 780 with a max overclocked 770 even at 1280mhz Boost:

MSI Gaming 770 max overclocked
http://www.guru3d.com/articles_pages/msi_geforce_gtx_770_gaming_review,23.html

vs.

MSI Gaming 780 stock
http://www.guru3d.com/articles_pages/msi_geforce_gtx_780_gaming_review,27.html

The Palit 780 I linked is a stock after-market card. Computerbase has it 41% faster than a 770.

Hexus shows it to be 42% faster at 1600P.

At GameGPU, 780 OC leveled a 770OC while 770OC to 1300mhz could't beat an 1160mhz 7970GE. You once again dismissed those benches. In fact, you dismissed like 3-4 reviews now that show the same thing over and over - that 770 is overpriced, that 780 OC levels it and that 7970 OC and 770 OC are trading blows. The only outlier in all of this is the 770 and you are dead set on defending it.

Since no one is talking about SLI, why are you:

1) Downplaying the fact that GTX770 OC cannot convingly beat HD7970 OC in MMOs and BF3 despite a large price premium?
2) Ignoring the awesome value of GTX760 4GB OC? Really $290 card vs. $450 MSI Lightning 770?
3) Downplaying the massive overclocking headroom GTX780 has and stock performance of after-market 780 cards that not only have higher boost values but can maintain them longer due to superior cooling over reference 780s?
4) Keep ignoring that games are already using > 2GB of VRAM and BF4 alpha is eating up > 2GB easily? Why would someone pay $450 for a 2GB card in mid-2013?!!!
5) Keep ignoring that MSI Lightning cooler is inferior in every way to the MSI Gaming card that happens to cost $50 less!
6) Keep bringing up GTX770 overclocking to 1250-1300mhz, but what about buying an HD7970 for $330 and overclocking it to 1150mhz?

Even at $450, GTX770 is still overpriced. For barely more, you can get 2 solid 760s. You know how fast 2 overclocked 760s are considering stock 760 SLI beats Titan?

http://www.guru3d.com/articles_pages/geforce_gtx_760_sli_review,8.html

 

[AustinInDallas]

how does that compare to two 760s?

 

[Carfax83]

This is getting tiresome. It's obvious you are more interested in defending your GTX770 SLI purchase in every post. Nearly every review on the planet shows that you cannot touch an after-market out of the box stock 780 with a max overclocked 770 even at 1280mhz Boost:

Really? The OP was interested in a GTX 770, and then YOU bombard his thread by bringing up the 7970 and how the "aftermarket GTX 780" is a bajillion times faster, and somehow of better value despite him saying he's gaming at 1080p.

Hexus shows it to be 42% faster at 1600P.

Again, here you go bringing up an overclocked GTX 780, which the OP has no interest in getting

1) Downplaying the fact that GTX770 OC cannot convingly beat HD7970 OC in MMOs and BF3 despite a large price premium?

I haven't seen a good head to match up yet by reputable websites on a GTX 770 OC vs a 7970 OC other than HardOCP, and they didn't bench BF3.

Ignoring the awesome value of GTX760 4GB OC? Really $290 card vs. $450 MSI Lightning 770?

If you recall, the OP specifically requested a GTX 770

3) Downplaying the massive overclocking headroom GTX780 has and stock performance of after-market 780 cards that not only have higher boost values but can maintain them longer due to superior cooling over reference 780s?

And what does this have to do with the OP's gaming needs?

4) Keep ignoring that games are already using > 2GB of VRAM and BF4 alpha is eating up > 2GB easily? Why would someone pay $450 for a 2GB card in mid-2013?!!!

If a game uses more than 2GB of VRAM, it's for preloading and caching game assets, or due to very high levels of AA.

No game needs 2GB right now. I run Crysis 3 at VHQ 2560x1440 SMAA 2x and it only uses 2.1 GB..

At 1080p it would be markedly less. Games will find a way to use extra VRAM if you have it, but no game needs 2GB at the moment.

5) Keep ignoring that MSI Lightning cooler is inferior in every way to the MSI Gaming card that happens to cost $50 less!

What makes you say the Lightning cooler is inferior?

 

[Face2Face]

I think we need to have a Bench-Off!

RS and his 1150mhz 7970 VS. Carfax83 and one if his 1280Mhz GTX 770's

Now what to benchmark??

 

[blackened23]

If you clock it to 1250, it will be within about 4% of the much more expensive GTX 780. At about 1300, it will be at near parity.

What? Let's analyze this statement. I had 680 lightnings that clocked at 1406mhz and over 7ghz on the VRAM. The lightning was the highest overclocking 680, and seeing as the 770 = 680 with better VRAM chips, this is a useful comparison: I've done comparisons between it and the 770 lightning over at OCN because they are identical cards with a different BIOS. Let me say that again: The 680 and 770 are 100% completely identical but the 770 has a new BIOS and higher clocked VRAM chips. So with that being the case, my 680 lightning easily hit 7ghz + on the VRAM. And the 680 lightning smashes the 770 lightning because the 770 lightning doesn't have the over-voltage options that the 680 lightning has. And when I say smash it, it decimates the 770 lightning due to the lack of over-voltage on the latter part.

Comparing a 680 lightning at those same clocks 1406mhz / 7ghz VRAM - my GTX 780 is still substantially faster than ever that card (I upgraded to the 780, obviously) and it is immediately noticeable when doing any type of game or benchmark in a single card configuration. The GTX 780 smashes it. I'm using the factory overclocked SC ACX card. Oh, you say, but I can overclock a 770 to be near a 780. Yeah, then you can overclock the 780 too and then what happens? You're back to where you started. The 780 is still substantially faster. I think these comparisons are worthless - nearly every card can overclock to be close to the worst higher SKU, eg a 770 can overclock to near the level of the worst garbage reference 780. But there is absolutely no way a 770, even overclocked, will touch an aftermarket 780 with a similar overclock. I really do hate these type of comparisons "but I can overclock my card to be as fast as X" ? You can still overclock the other card, rendering the entire comparison useless.

Anyway, with all that being said, the 770 is still a substantially better value than the 780. You can say that and I will absolutely not agree with you, the 770 is a better card in terms of price/performance by a mile. You can get two 770s and smash a single 780 for a similar cost. I just take exception to the "it matches the 780". I don't really agree to that, because when you do an apples to apples comparison with both cards overclocked the 780 is substantially faster. Yes, it is a worse value. Terrible value, even. But faster.

 

[blackened23]

I think we need to have a Bench-Off!

RS and his 1150mhz 7970 VS. Carfax83 and one if his 1280Mhz GTX 770's

Now what to benchmark??

GLquake obviously :|