Need some advice on a graphics card upgrade.

[CRH7386]

System Specifications:

I. Processor/CPU: Intel Core i7-2600K

II. Current Graphics Card: MSI N470GTX-M2D12 GeForce GTX 470

III. Display Resolution: Currently 1680x1050 but moving to 2560x1440

IV. Power Supply Unit Specification (Brand, Wattage, Ampage, Age): 750W PC Power and Cooling S75CF

V. Case Specifications(N/A, Model, Length, Low Profile, Cooling, HTPC, Water, Silent): Thermaltake Armor+


Hey everyone,

I was looking for some advice on upgrading my graphics card. I currently play games at the 1680x1050 resolution and my GTX 470 handles that pretty well but I will be buying a 27" monitor with the 2560x1440 resolution and was basically wondering if you think I should wait for the next line of cards to come out or if it's worth upgrading now? I was looking at getting this GTX 670 4GB since it's only $380 after rebate and from everything I've read, will handle the new resolution pretty well. Money isn't really all that important but I usually go with best bang for my buck. So I usually end up with the middle card in the Nvidia series. So how long do you think until the GTX 770 (guessing it will be the 700 series) comes out? I am willing to wait if it won't be that long since I can continue to use my current setup with no problems. I'm just looking forward to really upping my resolution to 2560x1440. Thanks for any help or suggestions!

 

[Termie]

Unfortunately, the GTX670 4GB is far from being the best bang for the buck, and so far, there's no evidence that the increased VRAM actually helps: http://www.hardocp.com/article/2013/01/08/asus_geforce_gtx_670_directcu_ii_4gb_gpu_review/

Even when SLI'd at 5760x1200, the VRAM still doesn't help enough to make it worthwhile: http://www.hardocp.com/article/2013/01/14/asus_geforce_gtx_670_directcu_ii_4gb_sli_review/1

The GTX470 you have now will likely be barely adequate at 2560x1440 in new games, so it might be worth buying something now, if you actually intend to upgrade your monitor before the next gen cards come out. The HD7950 and HD7970 are the best bang for the buck right now. If you don't yet have the monitor, though, you shouldn't buy a card in anticipation of needing it - just buy it when you actually need it.

 

[CRH7386]

Unfortunately, the GTX670 4GB is very from being the best bang for the buck, and so far, there's no evidence that the increased VRAM actually helps: http://www.hardocp.com/article/2013/01/08/asus_geforce_gtx_670_directcu_ii_4gb_gpu_review/

Even when SLI'd at 5760x1200, the VRAM still doesn't help enough to make it worthwhile: http://www.hardocp.com/article/2013/01/14/asus_geforce_gtx_670_directcu_ii_4gb_sli_review/1

The GTX470 you have now will likely be barely adequate at 2560x1440 in new games, so it might be worth buying something now, if you actually intend to upgrade your monitor before the next gen cards come out. The HD7950 and HD7970 are the best bang for the buck right now. If you don't yet have the monitor, though, you shouldn't buy a card in anticipation of needing it - just buy it when you actually need it.

Well, I guess I should have mentioned that I've always gone with Nvidia and have never had a reason to switch over. So best bang for my buck in regards to Nvidia cards. I'm not opposed to AMD but I just like to stick with what I know has been good to me. And the only reason I was going to go with the 4GB is because it's only $10 more than the 2GB version.

I can wait on the monitor purchase too, but I'm wondering how long it will be until the next series of cards is out and will the GTX 670 last with that resolution for a while or would I need to be upgrading pretty quickly? I don't upgrade my card every year but am okay with every 2 or 3 years.

 

[frankthetank195]

My 480 2win is great, check my sig to look at it. It runs everything amazing at 1920x1080, but the low VRAM forces me to use 2x MSAA or FXAA on games like BF3, Max Payne 3, or Far Cry 3. The difference is noticeable, but the games still look beautiful.

My only problem with the card itself is the necessary wattage. I ran mine on a 650W Corsiar fine, but it's about the same as SLI 6-series. Another issue, it's advertised as 2GB GDDR5 512-bit. That's double the effective values because it's a dual GPU

Unfortunately, I'm not sure where you could find it, because I know Newegg is out of stock. I'm actually looking to upgrade a little bit myself (660ti 3GB, maybe x2), so if you're interested I'd sell you mine. PM me if you're interested.