Whats the logical upgrade from my 280x? Used/new Fury?

[severus]

I'm currently using a

i5 2500k 4.4ghz
Biostar TZ68A+
16gb EVGA DDR3 1600
BenQ 144hz 24" monitor

I had a HD7970 ghz edition in this PC until about two weeks ago. Went on craigslist to get a 280x dirt cheap for my ITX build and then my HD7970 started overheating (upon further inspection, the thermal paste needed to be replaced), swapped it out with the 280x and have been running that since.

I'm playing Battlefield 1 on auto settings, which are all high with some AA and other visual enhancements, however I wouldn't consider that my primary game. I primarily play league competitive CS:GO, Guild Wars 2 and casually GTA V and now BF1.

I can get a NIB Sapphire Fury Nitro from Microcenter for $279 and I think 4gb of ram is more than ample for 1080p with what I play considering I'm not even maxing out my 280x, or should I spend less an get a used GTX 970 for around $150?

Is there any real point in upgrading my graphics card, and if so to what? I'd like to, I want to, but I don't necessarily feel like I NEED to. It's been roughly 5 years since I built this system (it started with a GTX470 back in 2011) and it feels incredibly strange that there's no real defacto reason to upgrade. I'm not sure if the component industry has leveled off since Sandy Bridge or not, but I remember at the time I build this machine I NEEDED to upgrade because my e6750 simply couldn't play games anymore. This just doesn't seem to be the case as I know people with 965BE and Q9550's that can still play the games I play at decent settings.

Perhaps there's other board members that feel the way I do about this.

 

[Dave2150]

I'd highly recommend upgrading to 1440P or 4K. Yes there is a reason to upgrade GPU, to enable higher resolutions.

Resolution = the amount of detail in each frame. 1080P is the lowest of the low (for 2016), so no wonder 5 year old potato hardware can run it.

 

[Bacon1]

Right now the cheap 470/480 are the best buys. There was a 8gb 480 for $200ish on Jet and close on newegg with the masterpass coupon.

 

[Capt Caveman]

I actually purchased that same Fury from Newegg for $245($270-$25 Masterpass by Mastercard) this weekend and got it today. After selling my R9 290, the upgrade will hopefully only cost me $100.

 

[severus]

I'd highly recommend upgrading to 1440P or 4K. Yes there is a reason to upgrade GPU, to enable higher resolutions.

Resolution = the amount of detail in each frame. 1080P is the lowest of the low (for 2016), so no wonder 5 year old potato hardware can run it.

I just bought this monitor. I was on a 1440x900 60hz monitor for a few years that I found inferior to my NEC 20" CRT, but the CRT took up too much space. No reason to game at a higher resolution for competitive play. I find myself usually using 640x480 for Counter Strike so the models are as large as possible. It makes seeing enemies easier

 

[Headfoot]

The last game I can recall playing at 640x480 was probably Doom, the first one

 

[Dave2150]

The last game I can recall playing at 640x480 was probably Doom, the first one

Same here, last game I played at 640x480 was the original Doom in 1993 (23 years ago) when I was 8

Then again I shouldn't be surprised, there are still people watching black and white TV's, as they believe it's more immersive etc, each to his own I guess.

 

[Ransu70]

I'd highly recommend upgrading to 1440P or 4K. Yes there is a reason to upgrade GPU, to enable higher resolutions.

Resolution = the amount of detail in each frame. 1080P is the lowest of the low (for 2016), so no wonder 5 year old potato hardware can run it.

I disagree with some of Dave's points. While the i5-2500k is old, it is a VERY good processor (I have one myself). I thought of upgrading to Skylake, but the real benefit was too small.
4K isn't what most people need, it just requires a lot of extra GPU power. I bought to my job a 4K monitor (to be furure proof), but running it at FullHD for now, gives less good quality.
The 1440 monitor however is a good option if u have a bigger monitor.

I had a 6970 GPU which was ok until I bought FALLOUT 4, then I had to upgrade, I chose an R9 390. I think u mentioned u had OC the 2500k, which is easy and safe with the 2500k and squeeze the gap to a i7 4770.

 

[Elixer]

I'm currently using a

i5 2500k 4.4ghz
Biostar TZ68A+
16gb EVGA DDR3 1600
BenQ 144hz 24" monitor

I had a HD7970 ghz edition in this PC until about two weeks ago. Went on craigslist to get a 280x dirt cheap for my ITX build and then my HD7970 started overheating (upon further inspection, the thermal paste needed to be replaced), swapped it out with the 280x and have been running that since.

I'm playing Battlefield 1 on auto settings, which are all high with some AA and other visual enhancements, however I wouldn't consider that my primary game. I primarily play league competitive CS:GO, Guild Wars 2 and casually GTA V and now BF1.

I can get a NIB Sapphire Fury Nitro from Microcenter for $279 and I think 4gb of ram is more than ample for 1080p with what I play considering I'm not even maxing out my 280x, or should I spend less an get a used GTX 970 for around $150?

Is there any real point in upgrading my graphics card, and if so to what? I'd like to, I want to, but I don't necessarily feel like I NEED to. It's been roughly 5 years since I built this system (it started with a GTX470 back in 2011) and it feels incredibly strange that there's no real defacto reason to upgrade. I'm not sure if the component industry has leveled off since Sandy Bridge or not, but I remember at the time I build this machine I NEEDED to upgrade because my e6750 simply couldn't play games anymore. This just doesn't seem to be the case as I know people with 965BE and Q9550's that can still play the games I play at decent settings.

Perhaps there's other board members that feel the way I do about this.

Clearly, you don't see the need, and if those are the only games you will be playing for the next few months, I think it is far better to wait for 2017.
Not only are new GPUs coming out (which will be faster than the Polaris), but new CPUs as well, and I don't really see any reason why you should upgrade now.

I'd say, save up, and if you are going to upgrade, might as well make the upgrade 3X or higher than the performance you got now.

 

[freeskier93]

I just jumped on the R9 Fury Nitro for $270 on Newegg to replace my R9 280. Got tired of playing the waiting game with Vega.

I bought my 280 last year brand new for dirt cheap and it was a fantastic buy. Was originally looking at a 480 but when I saw the price on the Fury I saw the same opportunity for a better buy on a "last gen" card. Even if you think you'll still want to jump to Vega the Fury is still a good buy because you can get a years use out of it then upgrade to Vega once prices have settled.

 

[Dave2150]

I just jumped on the R9 Fury Nitro for $270 on Newegg to replace my R9 280. Got tired of playing the waiting game with Vega.

I bought my 280 last year brand new for dirt cheap and it was a fantastic buy. Was originally looking at a 480 but when I saw the price on the Fury I saw the same opportunity for a better buy on a "last gen" card. Even if you think you'll still want to jump to Vega the Fury is still a good buy because you can get a years use out of it then upgrade to Vega once prices have settled.

You'll still pay more in the long run.

 

[Headfoot]

Yeah I can't say im on board with the Fury upgrade in today's market. The performance out of those chips just varies so wildly between games that can make use of that power or not