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** Minimum Graphics To Run Smooth 4k **

ttechf

ttechf

Senior member
Hi,

I'm wondering what is the minimum I can get away with in terms of smooth non-stuttering 4k resolution playing games on ultra high best settings?

Would I need 2 graphics cards? Can I get away with 1 powerful one?


I'd love to hear some comments and suggestions. Thank you! : ]
 
Ultra High best settings?

Not even 2x Titan X OC can do it. As soon as you turn on 4x MSAA in modern games, performance goes to crap.

GTA V being the recent example, according to review sites like [H], maxed out with MSAA, Titan X SLI got ~32fps average.

Once you remove the desire to "max ultra best" and tone some things down,

2x Fury X and 2x 980Ti custom OC models will deliver excellent performance at "close to best" settings at 4K.
 
Ah I see. Okay, what compromise should I live with then without sacrificing too much quality? High settings without all the eye candy? Medium settings?
 
Alright, I looked at some reviews for top cards. The top two, I forget which ones said you only need to run 1 of them in your PC to play 4k games at good settings.
 
2 x Fury X or 2 x 980 Ti will let you turn on a mix of high/ultra details and run at 60fps with the majority of games. The only exceptions are games that don't support multi-GPU, or are extremely CPU bound.
 
ttechf said:
Alright, I looked at some reviews for top cards. The top two, I forget which ones said you only need to run 1 of them in your PC to play 4k games at good settings.
Click to expand...

I've never read any such review this generation but then it depends greatly on the types of games you play, the level of FPS you require (30 fps avg, 60 fps avg, 60 fps minimums?), your sensitivity to micro-stuttering and what you consider "good" settings. Some people might find gaming 4K on medium @ 30 fps good and others want 4K at very high quality with 60 fps.

Something to keep in mind is games will only get more demanding. If you think you can just purchase 980Ti SLI or Fury X CF today and be set for 4-5 years, then 4K is not for you. 4K like 1440P/1600p of the past will require constant upgrading to flagship cards because. The highest resolution PC gaming has always demanded having the most cutting edge GPUs for never ending demands of next gen PC games or the never ending barrage of poorly optimized console-to-PC ports.

As Silverforce11 alluded to earlier, the level of GPU horsepower required depends widely on the game:

http://www.techspot.com/review/1033-gtx-980-ti-sli-r9-fury-x-crossfire/

IMO, if a game isn't running smooth, the resolution is secondary and if you can't max out most settings, then resolution cannot hide lower quality shaders, textures, shadows, god rays, etc. Therefore, if you can't play 4K at High-Very High @ 60 fps, then I'd much rather pick a 144Hz 1440P or even a 60-100Hz 1440P monitor instead and upgrade to 4K when it's more affordable.
 
Depends on a game.
Some games can get CPU or IO limited and thus cannot be fully 'smooth' 60fps.

I would advise to get a Freesync / G-Sync monitor, it helps to prevent stuttering a lot.
 
Last edited:
95% games would give you 60+ FPS constant or with minor dips here and there with a single 980 Ti at 4K maxed out as long as you disable all forms of AA.

Some games may require 980 Ti SLI but they would be the few odd ones.

You may be able to run many many (but not the top 10-15%) games on the above settings on a single 980 or 390X as well.

This post assumes an average of 50-75 FPS or some games and a minimum of 40-60 FPS for others.
 
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