Upgrade advice from 7870 Tahiti LE

[highlanderfil]

Got the following machine (upgraded XPS 8700):

i7-4790
24 GB RAM
Samsung Evo 250GB SSD
Antec Gaming 700 Watt PSU
Acer B326HULYMIIDPHZ monitor (32 inch, 2560x1440)

Playing mostly sports/racing games. What's a good replacement for the 7870 to balance the machine out? Want to spend under $250 if possible.

 

[JDG1980]

Got the following machine (upgraded XPS 8700):

i7-4790
24 GB RAM
Samsung Evo 250GB SSD
Antec Gaming 700 Watt PSU
Acer B326HULYMIIDPHZ monitor (32 inch, 2560x1440)

Playing mostly sports/racing games. What's a good replacement for the 7870 to balance the machine out? Want to spend under $250 if possible.

For pure performance per dollar, an AMD R9 290 is hard to beat. Power usage is higher than with the Nvidia solutions, but your 700W PSU should be adequate, and you'll get about double the shader power and memory bandwidth of your 7870. The Sapphire R9 290 Tri-X is a highly regarded design, and you can find these for $200-$250 used on eBay (or new for $274.99 after rebate on Newegg).

 

[highlanderfil]

For pure performance per dollar, an AMD R9 290 is hard to beat. Power usage is higher than with the Nvidia solutions, but your 700W PSU should be adequate, and you'll get about double the shader power and memory bandwidth of your 7870. The Sapphire R9 290 Tri-X is a highly regarded design, and you can find these for $200-$250 used on eBay (or new for $274.99 after rebate on Newegg).

Thanks! I'll look for one of those.

 

[RussianSensation]

Asus DCUII R9 290 = $240 after 7% coupon and rebate
XFX R9 290 with lifetime warranty = $240 after rebate

 

[casiofx]

Can your case really fit R9 290? it seems the clearance is not that long.

 

[raghu78]

If you can spend USD 280 I recommend the Sapphire R9 290X Tri-X (USD 280 after mail in rebate). + USD $20 off w/ promo code NEWAPR75, limited offer. one of the best R9 290X cards in terms of cooling and acoustics. definitely worth the extra 30 bucks. make sure you can fit the card as its 305 mm long. :thumbsup:

www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814202145

 

[Techhog]

If you can spend USD 280 I recommend the Sapphire R9 290X Tri-X (USD 280 after mail in rebate). + USD $20 off w/ promo code NEWAPR75, limited offer. one of the best R9 290X cards in terms of cooling and acoustics. definitely worth the extra 30 bucks. make sure you can fit the card as its 305 mm long. :thumbsup:

www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814202145

"If you can spend USD 280 I recommend spending USD 300 and getting $20 back 3-6 months later possibly."

 

[highlanderfil]

Yeah, we're tracking north of where I want to be. OK, how about I make it an $200 budget?

Speaking of length, it probably shouldn't be longer than the 7870 as that was a tight fit already.

 

[highlanderfil]

Asus DCUII R9 290 = $240 after 7% coupon and rebate
XFX R9 290 with lifetime warranty = $240 after rebate

Not anymore...

 

[raghu78]

OP would you tell us whats the longest card your case can fit ? Because there are quite a few good options like Gigabyte R9 280 OC

www.amazon.com/Gigabyte-Radeon-Display-PCI-Express-GV-R928WF3OC-3GD/dp/B00J41A5GK/

The problem in your case is you already have a HD 7870 Tahiti LE with 1536 sp. So even a R9 280 which is a HD 7950 with 1792 sp or R9 280X which is a HD 7970 with 2048 sp is only a marginal upgrade. But if you want a real upgrade look no further than the R9 290 Tri-X. USD 260 (240 after mail in rebate)

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814202143

For 1440p gaming a 4GB card is the minimum if you want to run the latest games at the highest settings.

 

[RussianSensation]

Yeah, we're tracking north of where I want to be. OK, how about I make it an $200 budget?

Speaking of length, it probably shouldn't be longer than the 7870 as that was a tight fit already.

The problem with the $200 budget is everything in it is not worth buying.

R9 290 is 50-60% faster than the $180 GTX960 2GB/$240 960 4GB, but even compared to the R9 280X, the after-market 290 = 290X makes it 35% faster than the 280X. The price/performance on 960/280X don't work well against the $240 R9 290, while 960 2GB is basically worthless for modern gaming in the next 2 years due to having only 2GB of VRAM bottlenecking it. $160 R9 280 is a not a real upgrade from a 7870XT LE. So really the most viable upgrade for you is an R9 290.

BTW, yesterday Newegg had Sapphire Tri-X R9 290 refurbished for $215. I guess you aren't checking the site daily as you missed that deal.

Right now Sapphire Tri-X R9 290 is $240.

 

[Gikaseixas]

OP if you want a solid upgrade listen to those who recommend the 290, you can't go wrong with such low prices.

 

[highlanderfil]

OP if you want a solid upgrade listen to those who recommend the 290, you can't go wrong with such low prices.

$300 isn't "low" as it is out of my budget. So my best bet is either to get a different card or wait until the 3-series comes out and the 290 inevitably drops.

 

[highlanderfil]

OP would you tell us whats the longest card your case can fit ? Because there are quite a few good options like Gigabyte R9 280 OC

www.amazon.com/Gigabyte-Radeon-Display-PCI-Express-GV-R928WF3OC-3GD/dp/B00J41A5GK/

The problem in your case is you already have a HD 7870 Tahiti LE with 1536 sp. So even a R9 280 which is a HD 7950 with 1792 sp or R9 280X which is a HD 7970 with 2048 sp is only a marginal upgrade. But if you want a real upgrade look no further than the R9 290 Tri-X. USD 260 (240 after mail in rebate)

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814202143

For 1440p gaming a 4GB card is the minimum if you want to run the latest games at the highest settings.

Ah, there that $250 card is again. Screw it. Sold. It should just about squeeze in, but I'll measure the case again tonight just to be sure.

 

[raghu78]

Ah, there that $250 card is again. Screw it. Sold. It should just about squeeze in, but I'll measure the case again tonight just to be sure.

The R9 290 Tri-X measures 305 mm in length. So check your case. btw thats what I call a real upgrade. HD 7870 Tahiti LE is on par with a HD 7950 at 800 Mhz.

http://www.techpowerup.com/reviews/Club_3D/HD_7870_jokerCard_Tahiti_LE/28.html

R9 290 is roughly 60 - 65% faster than a HD 7950 (800 Mhz) / HD 7870 Tahiti LE. :thumbsup:

http://www.techpowerup.com/reviews/NVIDIA/GeForce_GTX_Titan_X/29.html

 

[RussianSensation]

R9 290 is roughly 60 - 65% faster than a HD 7950 (800 Mhz) / HD 7870 Tahiti LE. :thumbsup:

http://www.techpowerup.com/reviews/NVIDIA/GeForce_GTX_Titan_X/29.html

:thumbsup: It's nice to see someone actually taking the advice for once and upgrading for a nice performance bump, not an 11-15% increase. :sneaky:

 

[highlanderfil]

The R9 290 Tri-X measures 305 mm in length. So check your case. btw thats what I call a real upgrade. HD 7870 Tahiti LE is on par with a HD 7950 at 800 Mhz.

http://www.techpowerup.com/reviews/Club_3D/HD_7870_jokerCard_Tahiti_LE/28.html

R9 290 is roughly 60 - 65% faster than a HD 7950 (800 Mhz) / HD 7870 Tahiti LE. :thumbsup:

http://www.techpowerup.com/reviews/NVIDIA/GeForce_GTX_Titan_X/29.html

12 inches...so about 2 more than the 7870. Will be a tight squeeze. What are my options if that doesn't work?

 

[Makaveli]

:thumbsup: It's nice to see someone actually taking the advice for once and upgrading for a nice performance bump, not an 11-15% increase. :sneaky:

Agreed good choice OP.

I'm in the same boat I don't do gpu upgrades until the next one is +50% faster than my current.

The current cheap price of the 290x and 290 really gave me something to look at but from a 7970Ghz wasn't a large enough jump for me yet.

 

[highlanderfil]

Just looked at the insides of an old XPS 8700 case (mine hasn't made it here yet). It will definitely extend way into the area under the hard drive bay, but given that I'll be running a modular power supply, shouldn't be too messy. Ordered it.

 

[highlanderfil]

Actually...would you recommend the card I ordered, a more expensive 290X or a GTX970? I might be able to finagle my way into a good deal with the Staples 20% off coupon, so might try for a more expensive card if they have it in stock.

 

[Techhog]

Actually...would you recommend the card I ordered, a more expensive 290X or a GTX970? I might be able to finagle my way into a good deal with the Staples 20% off coupon, so might try for a more expensive card if they have it in stock.

I'd personally say that you're fine since you already ordered it. The 290 is easily the best high-end card in terms of price/performance. Nothing even comes close. I upgraded from a 7950 to a GTX 970, bit I definitely would have saved myself some money and got a 290 if not for a couple of GameWorks games coming soon.

 

[Leyawiin]

There was a $299.99 R9 290X (Sapphire) a few days ago, but its gone. That's the problem (or benefit depending on how patient you are) to the top AMD cards. They're prices are constantly going up and down. What you ordered is a decent/average deal. I got a new R9 290 last November for $239.99, but again, you have to be patient enough and diligent enough to catch those kind of deals.

 

[highlanderfil]

The reason I ask is because I could probably score a 970 for about $260 right about now. Special order at the kiosk, price match, use coupon (if it works out, of course, but I have a friendly manager at a Staples here). Worth the extra $30 or so?

 

[Techhog]

The reason I ask is because I could probably score a 970 for about $260 right about now. Special order at the kiosk, price match, use coupon (if it works out, of course, but I have a friendly manager at a Staples here). Worth the extra $30 or so?

Oh. In that case, go for it, especially if you over clock.

 

[MeldarthX]

https://pcpartpicker.com/parts/video-card/#c=152&sort=a8&page=1


239 Tri-x 290 with a rebate - depending on how long you want to keep the card......that's the one to go with 5-7% difference between 970 and 290X which disappears with a small OC at 1080P - higher rez at least with the 970 the gap disappears and no 3.5 ram issues.