Upgrading - just need to pick a GPU

[velillen]

1. What YOUR PC will be used for.

Be mostly for gaming. Im not a hardcore gamer by any means and am fine with medium settings.

2. What YOUR budget is.

Since this is JUST for the GPU i was looking at ~250

3. What country YOU will be buying YOUR parts from.

USA

5. IF YOU have a brand preference.

NO brand preferences.

6. If YOU intend on using any of YOUR current parts, and if so, what those parts are.

Basically the rest of the PC
I5-4690K and Hyper 212 cooler
32GB of Gskill Ripjaw RAM
Thermaltake 750W PSU
Kingston V300 SSD
Gigabyte GA-Z97X-GAMING 5 mobo

7. IF YOU plan on overclocking or run the system at default speeds.

CPU might be OC'd (probably will be)....gpu not sure

8. What resolution, not monitor size, will you be using?

Currently 1080p monitor with a secondary 1440x900 monitor (both are pretty old)

9. WHEN do you plan to build it?
In the next week or so




So now that all that info is out there....i came across a great deal on the mobo so it kick started this build. Now everything is in the mail but the GPU. My current PC is a I3-2100T (i think) and a HD6950 GPU. It has done ok but gaming is lower FPS on low settings.

I know Skylake just came out but this is a bit of a "budget" minded build so reusing the ram and other parts is a nice thing. Plus a killer deal happened (pricing mistake) so i got some stuff cheap.

Im just not sure which GPU to get. It seems like some people recommend the R9 380, others the R9 280x, others G970's. So i come asking for help in picking. I want something as "future proof" as possible. Obviously i have been ok gaming on low but im hoping to get high settings now and in a couple years have to be dealing with low This will be my gaming PC for the next 3-5 years.

Thanks for any input.

 

[iceranger]

GTX 970 is a really great gaming cards if you are planning to go hardcore. it seems like people don't care about others needs and start suggesting crap. You should be fine with a GTX 960 or else get a GTX 950 when available they both are really great cards, and if you want to buy AMD then yes R9 380 or 280x are best in this budget.

 

[RussianSensation]

You should be fine with a GTX 960 or else get a GTX 950 when available they both are really great cards,.

The irony in your own posts is with your good intentions you recommend 2 of the worst price/performance cards out right now. One is gimped with only 2GB of VRAM (960) which automatically makes it worthless for gaming to keep for a period of 3-5 years as the OP wants, while the 960 4GB has a premium that makes it a terrible price/performance buy over R9 290/970 cards. The other is literally THE worst price/performance card out on the market right now - 950.

"At just $249, the Radeon R9 290 TurboDuo offers current-gen tech. Our tests show that the R9 290 is a whopping 52 percent faster than the $50 cheaper GeForce GTX 960 at 1920 x 1080 pixels, our target resolution. It also offers 4 GB of video memory. PowerColor added a factory overclock on top of that. If this doesn't highlight NVIDIA's terrible pricing for the GTX 960, nothing will."
http://www.techpowerup.com/reviews/DIY_Shopping_Lists/USD_800_Build_Guide/3.html

OP,

My #1 pick for you as of right now is the EVGA B-Stock 970 = $255. Very solid deal and if you buy with American Express, you can get the warranty extended by an additional year.

Alternatively, if you see a deal on an after-market R9 290/290X, grab one of those. At current prices with your ~$250 budget, skip 270X/950/280/285/380/960 2-4GB. Here is a quick summary chart that shows where all these cards stack up:
http://www.computerbase.de/2015-08/...#abschnitt_tests_in_1920__1080_und_2560__1440

If you want great price/performance, don't even bother with overpriced cards like 380/280X or 960. 960 is one of the worst priced cards on the market today because it takes 2 of those ($360) to just match a stock R9 290 ($220-250).

R9 380 makes no sense either since it's more expensive than the R9 285 for no particular benefits. 280X makes no sense since it's priced too close to the GTX970/R9 290 cards.

 

[LTC8K6]

I'd go with the GCN 1.2 R9-380 4gb for a budget AMD card.

I'd be looking at feature levels and the latest gpus for a card I was going to keep for a few years.

AMD GCN 1.2 cards 285/380/Fury cards, or NV Maxwell 2 cards such as the 950/960/970/980, depending on your budget.

So, I'd pick 960 or 380 with a $250 budget.

 

[DigDog]

R290 or GTX970; do you need shadowplay? if yes, get the 970, if not, get the 290.

 

[velillen]

R290 or GTX970; do you need shadowplay? if yes, get the 970, if not, get the 290.

Seeing as i dont even know what shadowplay is lol.

The ~250 budget is just sort of middle for me. I dont mind stepping up to $300 (top end more or less) if its going to get me a card that is a lot better.

The EVGA B stock 970 does seem like a good deal. Though i dont have an Am Ex card so it would just be a 1 year warrenty.

 

[DigDog]

shadowplay is awesome; the GPu stores some (up to 15 minutes, if i recall correctly) of the gameplay (or anything else that goes through the GPU - even the desktop) and allows you to save it AFTER you have played, without using (almost) any CPU power.

you play a game. you think "hmm, this has been a good game. i think i will save it". you hit alt+F10 and the last 15 minutes are saved to disk.

way better than FRAPS or OBS, saving a 12 min video takes about 2 seconds on my cheap SSD, and i have no framerate impact from using it.

you can also launch it before and it records like any other recording software, but still up to a maximum of 15 minutes. (i think)


i have heard that AMD has something similar, but i don't know much about it.

 

[iceranger]

The irony in your own posts is with your good intentions you recommend 2 of the worst price/performance cards out right now. One is gimped with only 2GB of VRAM (960) which automatically makes it worthless for gaming to keep for a period of 3-5 years as the OP wants, while the 960 4GB has a premium that makes it a terrible price/performance buy over R9 290/970 cards. The other is literally THE worst price/performance card out on the market right now - 950.

with all else being equal the 950 is much better card over AMD due to Nvidia’s constant onslaught of Game Ready drivers and slick software ecosystem. Oh yeah it might not stand anywhere near a 970 because 970 is the real deal but isn't 970 going out of OPs budget costing around $350?

about GTX 960

I suggested (that link) the 4GB version of 960 which is still under budget making it the best card to game on for next few years in this budget and so is r9 380 if you want to go that way. But, i agree buying a 280x makes no sense at all.

 

[velillen]

shadowplay is awesome; the GPu stores some (up to 15 minutes, if i recall correctly) of the gameplay (or anything else that goes through the GPU - even the desktop) and allows you to save it AFTER you have played, without using (almost) any CPU power.

you play a game. you think "hmm, this has been a good game. i think i will save it". you hit alt+F10 and the last 15 minutes are saved to disk.

way better than FRAPS or OBS, saving a 12 min video takes about 2 seconds on my cheap SSD, and i have no framerate impact from using it.

you can also launch it before and it records like any other recording software, but still up to a maximum of 15 minutes. (i think)


i have heard that AMD has something similar, but i don't know much about it.

That has zero interest to me then. I could care less about recording gameplay

 

[RussianSensation]

I'd go with the GCN 1.2 R9-380 4gb for a budget AMD card. I'd be looking at feature levels and the latest gpus for a card I was going to keep for a few years.

I don't know how many times other gamers have told you -- this doesn't matter. What matters most are (1) GPU horsepower and (2) VRAM capacity. These 2 aspects will matter far more than a DX12 feature level. No DX12 feature level will ever overcome a 40-60% GPU performance deficit. Plus, by the time DX12 start becoming mainstream, it'll take years. R9 290 is more than 40% faster than the R9 380 and given the OP's budget and the small price delta, the 380 isn't worth purchasing for its GCN 1.2 feature set.

So, I'd pick 960 or 380 with a $250 budget.

That's great so you concede you are giving out advice with 0 logical facts to back it up then other than your opinion. If you had provided a logical basis with proof on how the extra feature set of these cards will matter, it would be a different story. You keep insinuating that the more modern feature set of 380/960 will make those cards last longer than say a 290 but it's simply false. With a $250 budget, the only cards for PC gaming that are worth buying are 290/290X and 970. If his budget was $150, then sure cards like 285/960 are worth considering.

Recommending cards that are 40-50% slower in the $250 budget bracket, when there are cards that fit the budget is simply bad advice.

shadowplay is awesome;
i have heard that AMD has something similar, but i don't know much about it.

AMD has a very similar feature. You can record gameplay in Raptr.

with all else being equal the 950 is much better card over AMD due to Nvidia’s constant onslaught of Game Ready drivers and slick software ecosystem.

None of these factors matter when 950 is a slower card than 280/285/280X and 290. In non-gameworks titles, 950 gets destroyed by cards that cost similar to it like 960/280/285/380.

$155 285 = aka 380 is 49% faster than a 950 in this title:
http://www.computerbase.de/2015-08/trine-3-benchmark-grafikkarte/

If anything, it's AMD that tends to support their GPUs longer by providing more performance boost in games. Looking at how Kepler cards lost a lot of performance in games, this isn't a strong argument in favor of NV at all.

I suggested (that link) the 4GB version of 960 which is still under budget making it the best card to game on for next few years in this budget and so is r9 380 if you want to go that way. But, i agree buying a 280x makes no sense at all.

But his budget is $250 not $200 so why would you recommend a 960 4GB when a $250/$255 R9 290/970 is 50%+ faster, and that's being conservative.

Of course if someone waits long enough, the best deals disappear and now all the b-stock 970s are gone.
http://www.evga.com/Products/ProductList.aspx?type=8

OP, your best bets are either to wait for another 970 to come back in stock or get an after-market 290/290X. For example, PowerColor PCS+ R9 290 for $250.

 

[FearfulSPARTAN]

I'd go with the GCN 1.2 R9-380 4gb for a budget AMD card.

I'd be looking at feature levels and the latest gpus for a card I was going to keep for a few years.

AMD GCN 1.2 cards 285/380/Fury cards, or NV Maxwell 2 cards such as the 950/960/970/980, depending on your budget.

So, I'd pick 960 or 380 with a $250 budget.

Im sorry but that is stupid, just because a 960 has full support for dx12 does not mean when dx12 games actually come out it will magically beat a 290 and its not like a 290 will see no benefit from dx12.

The OP has no brand preference and does not appear to use nvidias software so a 290 is the best recommendation for his budget or the 970 b stock that was posted previously.

 

[FearfulSPARTAN]

I 100% agree with russian in this case

 

[velillen]

Thanks guys. I think Ill pick up either a 290 or wait for the B stock 970 again

 

[LTC8K6]

I still don't understand attacking a person's opinion.

The OP asked for opinions.

I gave mine.

I'm not sure why that deserves the attacks?

 

[LTC8K6]

And now the OP threw his budget out the window...

 

[velillen]

And now the OP threw his budget out the window...

i had mentioned in another post i could do up to ~300. Plus the B stock 970 was 255 and the R290's (after rebates) can be had for 250-270. So i dont really consider 20 bucks more blowing my budget out the window



ive been eyeing the XFX Double Dissipation Radeon R9 290 now though. lifetime warranty and Ive had good luck with XFX in the past.

 

[LTC8K6]

i had mentioned in another post i could do up to ~300. Plus the B stock 970 was 255 and the R290's (after rebates) can be had for 250-270. So i dont really consider 20 bucks more blowing my budget out the window



ive been eyeing the XFX Double Dissipation Radeon R9 290 now though. lifetime warranty and Ive had good luck with XFX in the past.

Thanks for not calling me stupid for my recommendations! :biggrin:

XFX is a good company.

 

[LTC8K6]

Also, I shouldn't have used the term "feature levels", because I didn't even mean DX12.

I meant the things the newer chips do better than the older chips, like compression and video encoding, etc.

http://amd-dev.wpengine.netdna-cdn..../07/AMD_GCN3_Instruction_Set_Architecture.pdf

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Maxwell_(microarchitecture)#Second_generation_Maxwell_.28GM20x.29

 

[FearfulSPARTAN]

i had mentioned in another post i could do up to ~300. Plus the B stock 970 was 255 and the R290's (after rebates) can be had for 250-270. So i dont really consider 20 bucks more blowing my budget out the window



ive been eyeing the XFX Double Dissipation Radeon R9 290 now though. lifetime warranty and Ive had good luck with XFX in the past.

My experience with XFX is good so far, my card doesnt have the lifetime warranty but it works fine. There is also this card http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814131569&cm_re=r9_290-_-14-131-569-_-Product. But for not much more the XFX has the lifetime warranty

 

[redzo]

My experience with XFX is good so far, my card doesnt have the lifetime warranty but it works fine. There is also this card http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814131569&cm_re=r9_290-_-14-131-569-_-Product. But for not much more the XFX has the lifetime warranty

I was about to post the same newegg PowerColor TurboDuo Radeon R9 290. Great performance / $ ratio. It's 239$ right now. It was reviewed by hardocp and it seems to be quite a solid package(cooling included). The 2 year warranty seems to be it's only drawback.
Review for the PowerColor TurboDuo Radeon R9 290: http://www.hardocp.com/article/2015/06/22/powercolor_turboduo_r9_290_4gb_oc_video_card_review/1

 

[LTC8K6]

My experience with XFX is good so far, my card doesnt have the lifetime warranty but it works fine. There is also this card http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814131569&cm_re=r9_290-_-14-131-569-_-Product. But for not much more the XFX has the lifetime warranty

$219 after rebate...I would have to agree, that is a heck of a deal.

 

[happy medium]

So i dont really consider 20 bucks more blowing my budget out the window

but youll need to keep the windows open to get rid of the heat from the 290x.
grab a 970.

 

[redzo]

Not only that I consider future proofing a fantasy, this generation is probably the worst time to summon the future proofing argument.
Current generation is just a bridge(migration to the next api) between dx11 and dx12. I think that in about 2 years max, current gpu's will s*ck big time.

For me is mostly psychological. I enjoy the product most if I know that I've got the best deal ever(max performance for my budget). That's why I would have probably ended up with that cheap r290. If OP is willing to add another 50$, he should just get a cheap 970 and that is it.

The 380 and 960 are not worthy off your $$$ because they are too slow, period. You sacrifice too much performance for only a few bucks less.

 

[Yuriman]

Not only that I consider future proofing a fantasy, this generation is probably the worst time to summon the future proofing argument.
Current generation is just a bridge(migration to the next api) between dx11 and dx12. I think that in about 2 years max, current gpu's will s*ck big time.

For me is mostly psychological. I enjoy the product most if I know that I've got the best deal ever(max performance for my budget). That's why I would have probably ended up with that cheap r290. If OP is willing to add another 50$, he should just get a cheap 970 and that is it.

The 380 and 960 are not worthy off your $$$ because they are too slow, period. You sacrifice too much performance for only a few bucks less.

I have a suspicion that the huge gains in performance are mostly over. GPUs aren't going to double every 12 months like they used to. We'll see some performance per watt improvements, yeah, but newer processes don't drive costs down like they used to, either.

 

[LTC8K6]

If Pascal does not bring a large gain in performance, it will be a disappointment.