Should i buy an rx 570 8GB or 580 4GB?

[x0red]

Do i jump on an extra 4GB vram on the 570 or should i jump on the 580 with 4GB??

I'm having such a hard time deciding which is the better deal.

 

[Rifter]

Ive got a 480 8GB, and a 1440p monitor, i can count on one hand the number of times ive seen it use more than 4GB, i usually run medium/high settings.

If you are on 1080p then 4 GB will be fine, on 1440p or 4k, id spring for the 8GB.

 

[x0red]

I bit earlier and ended up grabbing the sapphire nitro+ 580 4gb on sale. Seemed like the best deal to be had considering the little cash i had to spend and the fact it came with 2 of 3 games of my choice.

I don't have a 4k display anyways ,and if i can upgrade the cpu / mobo ram combo before i die ... i'll be content with that alone.

 

[torlen11cc]

You didn't make a mistake by buying a RX 580 4GB, it is a better choice than taking a RX 570 8GB, especially if you play on 1080p.
An extra VRAM could help, but that wouldn't be significant with mid range GPUs.

 

[Jaskalas]

You should be able to enjoy that GPU, just don't set textures to "ultra" in the newest games and you should be fine for a couple years. And often (in the past) those extra VRAM hogging textures don't make much difference.

 

[mohit9206]

Despite all other people in here suggesting 4GB RX580 i would say RX570 8GB is the better buy and will last longer than the 4GB card. I already made a thread about it and yet people keep giving wrong suggestions about buying a card with less vram i don't understand why? VRAM requirements keeps increasing every year and the whole "Since you play at 1080p 4GB would be fine" argument is so wrong since just 2 or 3 years ago the same people were saying "Since you play at 1080p 2GB would be fine" but is it today? No it isn't and neither will 4GB in a couple of years at 1080p. In fact it already isn't enough now and you want to further handicap yourself with just 4GB?

If you have read Anandtech's RX590 review this is what they said to say in conclusion " Once again though, we've observed that VRAM is never enough. It was only a few years ago that 8GB of VRAM was considered excessive, only useful for 4K. But especially with the popularity of HD texture packs, even 6GB of framebuffer could prove limiting at 1080p with graphically demanding games. In that respect, the RX 590's 8GB keeps it covered but also brings additional horsepower over the 8GB R9 390. For memoryhogging games like Shadow of War, Wolfenstein II, or now Far Cry 5 (with HD textures), the 8GBs go a long way. Even at 1080p, GTX 980/970 performance in Wolfenstein II tanks because of the lack of framebuffer. For those looking to upgrade from 2GB or 4GB cards, both the RX 580 and RX 590 should be of interest."

Everyone here who said 4GB RX580 should think a bit harder and understand that unlike you guys who change cards every time the season changes most people like to keep cards for as long as possible (atleast 4 years on average) and 4GB is already not enough at 1080p yet you keep suggesting low vram cards even when RX570 is strong enough to utilize more than 4GB when required. RX570 8GB will last longer than 4GB RX580 of which there is no debate. The bottleneck will become the vram before gpu horsepower does.
So stop looking at this with a very narrow perspective and think about the repercussions of running out of vram and how damaging it is to gameplay experience.

 

[VirtualLarry]

RX570 8GB will last longer than 4GB RX580 of which there is no debate.

I agree. Double the VRAM out-weighs the slight (less than 25%?) extra shader power. (Unless you're mining with it.)

Edit: Let's just say that I'm happy that the RX 590 only comes in 8GB variants right now, and no 4GB variants. So people can't make bone-headed moves that cripple their video card 2-3 years in.

(Of course, I have been mining a little with mine, so I'll be happy if the fans even last 2-3 years.)

 

[mohit9206]

I agree. Double the VRAM out-weighs the slight (less than 25%?) extra shader power. (Unless you're mining with it.)

Edit: Let's just say that I'm happy that the RX 590 only comes in 8GB variants right now, and no 4GB variants. So people can't make bone-headed moves that cripple their video card 2-3 years in.

(Of course, I have been mining a little with mine, so I'll be happy if the fans even last 2-3 years.)

Its actually only about 10% slower than the RX580. I'd take double the Vram over 10% performance any day of the week. And that 10% additional performance will quickly get wiped away and RX580 will stutter in games where more than 4GB will be required while RX570 will be smooth as silk. No idea why do others here think that 4GB 580 is better. Ofcourse if one can get 8GB 580 for a great price then why not but nobody should be touching a 4GB card when 8GB alternative is similar in price.

 

[Shmee]

If 4GB ram is enough, I would suggest a possible used Sapphire Nitro Fury, which is near 1070 level of performance, which can be had for under $200. They are great cards.

 

[Jaskalas]

If 4GB ram is enough, I would suggest a possible used Sapphire Nitro Fury, which is near 1070 level of performance, which can be had for under $200. They are great cards.

I mean, if you wanted it to double as a space heater?

• RX 580: 185w
• Sapphire Nitro Fury: 275w

 

[Shmee]

I did not mention power usage, I was talking about performance. 275W isn't all that much to make a difference anyway.

 

[mohit9206]

I bit earlier and ended up grabbing the sapphire nitro+ 580 4gb on sale. Seemed like the best deal to be had considering the little cash i had to spend and the fact it came with 2 of 3 games of my choice.

I don't have a 4k display anyways ,and if i can upgrade the cpu / mobo ram combo before i die ... i'll be content with that alone.

Congrats although i cannot say it was a wise decision. You will be upgrading the card earlier than if you had gotten 8GB 570.

You didn't make a mistake by buying a RX 580 4GB, it is a better choice than taking a RX 570 8GB, especially if you play on 1080p.
An extra VRAM could help, but that wouldn't be significant with mid range GPUs.

He did make a mistake, thanks to you guys. But i guess something is better than nothing.

If 4GB ram is enough, I would suggest a possible used Sapphire Nitro Fury, which is near 1070 level of performance, which can be had for under $200. They are great cards.

He already bought the card.

 

[Stuka87]

He will be fine with 4GB. I have a 4GB RX480, I have never had a single issue related to lack of VRAM. Sure at 4K, you could hit VRAM limitations. but even 4GB Fury cards perform adequately at 4K.

 

[mohit9206]

He will be fine with 4GB. I have a 4GB RX480, I have never had a single issue related to lack of VRAM. Sure at 4K, you could hit VRAM limitations. but even 4GB Fury cards perform adequately at 4K.

Maybe you don't play at highest settings so your vram requirement is lower. Some prefer highest settings but are ok with lower fps.
Also we'll see how ur RX480 4GB does in a couple of years.

 

[JPB]

I am also on a "lower" end card still. GTX 760 SC. I only play my games at 1080p still and I use this card. It only has 2GB of memory on it.....But, it plays "ALL" of my games fine. But what it doesnt do is, it doesnt run the games "I WANT TO PLAY" because of memory limitations. Which prolly is a mixture of that, and my FX 8120. I get low 30's / high 20's in the new doom. But an RX 570 based on benchmarks I have seen, runs it at full detail with a RX 570/80.

Anyway, I am deciding between the same two cards. An RX 580 4GB or a RX 570 8GB. For me, I will probably go with the RX 570 because a little overclocking, it gets really close to a RX 580. And "I" would prefer that I have more than enough memory, than not enough. And it'l probably be another two years, before I decide to go with any thing even near 4K. So the 8GB should suit me fine till then.

 

[JPB]

Maybe you don't play at highest settings so your vram requirement is lower. Some prefer highest settings but are ok with lower fps.
Also we'll see how ur RX480 4GB does in a couple of years.

I had that happen to me. When I bought my GTX 760 SC at launch, 2GB for 1080p was plenty for what I was doing. And now the newer games I want to play....my GPU doesnt have enough memory. So yea, ill be going with more next time. So RX 570 it is for me.

 

[mohit9206]

I had that happen to me. When I bought my GTX 760 SC at launch, 2GB for 1080p was plenty for what I was doing. And now the newer games I want to play....my GPU doesnt have enough memory. So yea, ill be going with more next time. So RX 570 it is for me.

Good decision. 8GB 570 should last you well into the PS5 generation while 4GB owners will face the heat as next gen consoles will most probably double the memory to 16GB pushing the vram requirements for PC ports significantly.

 

[JPB]

Good decision. 8GB 570 should last you well into the PS5 generation while 4GB owners will face the heat as next gen consoles will most probably double the memory to 16GB pushing the vram requirements for PC ports significantly.

I would also consider a NV card with more than 4GB ...or more than 6GB, if the card would cost around RX 570 price. But, My last card was a HD 6870. Before that I had a EVGA 9800 GTX. So as you can see, I alternate vendors, and it is AMD's turn. But anyway, I went from a 9800GTX 512MB, to a HD 6870 1GB then to a GTX 760 2GB. So it seems each time I upgraded, I only doubled the memory. But not this time.

EDIT: And when I do upgrade my monitor....it will be around 2K resolution. Not 4K.

 

[mohit9206]

I would also consider a NV card with more than 4GB ...or more than 6GB, if the card would cost around RX 570 price. But, My last card was a HD 6870. Before that I had a EVGA 9800 GTX. So as you can see, I alternate vendors, and it is AMD's turn. But anyway, I went from a 9800GTX 512MB, to a HD 6870 1GB then to a GTX 760 2GB. So it seems each time I upgraded, I only doubled the memory. But not this time.

EDIT: And when I do upgrade my monitor....it will be around 2K resolution. Not 4K.

I went from 1gb to 4gb.

 

[Stuka87]

Maybe you don't play at highest settings so your vram requirement is lower. Some prefer highest settings but are ok with lower fps.
Also we'll see how ur RX480 4GB does in a couple of years.

Every game I play I run at max settings with a very few changes. Namely things like motion blur, and I typically set shadows to medium, as its a very small visual change for a larger performance increase. Also, like 97% of gamers, I am at 1080P. There is not a single game that needs more than 4GB to run at 1080P. Sure, years down the road there will be some that do require more memory. But chances are by the time those come, this card won't be fast enough to run at high settings anyway, which will drop memory usage down.

 

[mohit9206]

Every game I play I run at max settings with a very few changes. Namely things like motion blur, and I typically set shadows to medium, as its a very small visual change for a larger performance increase. Also, like 97% of gamers, I am at 1080P. There is not a single game that needs more than 4GB to run at 1080P. Sure, years down the road there will be some that do require more memory. But chances are by the time those come, this card won't be fast enough to run at high settings anyway, which will drop memory usage down.

Sorry but "years down the road" is incorrect as Anandtech conclusion already confirmed 4GB is already not enough for some games at 1080p even on 6GB cards let alone 4GB. No one should be buying a 4GB option when 8GB is available for similar price is what I'm saying. Why would one want to deliberately handicap oneself from the get go? Makes absolutely no sense to me atleast.

But chances are by the time those come, this card won't be fast enough to run at high settings anyway

Another incorrect assumption.

 

[Headfoot]

a 10% deficit in core performance will be hard to notice. When you run out of VRAM and the game starts stuttering, it is extremely apparent. I would take the 8GB every day over 10% shader power. VRAM use keeps going up, and it seems that DX12/Vulkan native games just use more VRAM generally so that is starting to pick up. That being said, you can probably manage for quite some time on 4GB VRAM by running games at Medium and turning certain settings down when you run higher.

 

[Stuka87]

Sorry but "years down the road" is incorrect as Anandtech conclusion already confirmed 4GB is already not enough for some games at 1080p even on 6GB cards let alone 4GB. No one should be buying a 4GB option when 8GB is available for similar price is what I'm saying. Why would one want to deliberately handicap oneself from the get go? Makes absolutely no sense to me atleast.



Another incorrect assumption.

What article was this posted in? I have not seen any that say 4GB, yet alone 6GB, isn't enough for 1080P.

 

[whm1974]

What article was this posted in? I have not seen any that say 4GB, yet alone 6GB, isn't enough for 1080P.

I think 4GB should be fine for 1080p gaming for a while, but since I play at 1600p I may need to upgrade my GTX 970 sooner.

 

[mohit9206]

What article was this posted in? I have not seen any that say 4GB, yet alone 6GB, isn't enough for 1080P.

Anandtech RX 590 review final words and conclusion.