Which graphics card would you choose?

[Anusha]

Hi guys,

 

I currently have a GTX 670 card in my rig. I am hoping to upgrade soon, but I have a small case - the Silverstone SG09 and I don't plan to change it. 

 

I originally wanted to get a GTX 970 but they aren't that cheap here.

 

So I am looking at other options as well. 

 

Palit GTX 970 blower style: $407

Galaxy GTX 970 EXOC: $416

MSI GTX 970 Gaming 4G: $425

 

Sapphire R9 290 Tri-X: $370

PowerColor R9 290 PCS+: $370

Gigabyte R9 290-OC (used but very good condition): $269

 

GTX 780 Twin Frozr 4S OC (used but very good condition): $354

 

I understand that the only way I might be able to SLI in thie case is if I go with Palit card. There is slim chance that I would SLI though.

 

I would definitely overclock, but I am quite sensitive to noise as well. And the case is only about two feet away from my ears, so the noise will be a concerning factor.

 

I would be able to sell my GTX 670 for around $150. Not anymore unfortunately.

 

What would you choose if you were in my position. 

 

 

 

 

[gollum99]

Maybe look for a used 290x? If you cant find one take the used 290!

[Laputacake]

The Galaxy or MSI 970

[d3sl91]

Hi guys,

 

I currently have a GTX 670 card in my rig. I am hoping to upgrade soon, but I have a small case - the Silverstone SG09 and I don't plan to change it. 

 

I originally wanted to get a GTX 970 but they aren't that cheap here.

 

So I am looking at other options as well. 

 

Palit GTX 970 blower style: $407

Galaxy GTX 970 EXOC: $416

MSI GTX 970 Gaming 4G: $425

 

Sapphire R9 290 Tri-X: $370

PowerColor R9 290 PCS+: $370

Gigabyte R9 290-OC (used but very good condition): $269

 

GTX 780 Twin Frozr 4S OC (used but very good condition): $354

 

I understand that the only way I might be able to SLI in thie case is if I go with Palit card. There is slim chance that I would SLI though.

 

I would definitely overclock, but I am quite sensitive to noise as well. And the case is only about two feet away from my ears, so the noise will be a concerning factor.

 

I would be able to sell my GTX 670 for around $150. Not anymore unfortunately.

 

What would you choose if you were in my position. 

I personally would go for the 970. 

 

It is lower wattage, and will run cooler which will be great for a smaller case.

http://www.anandtech.com/show/8568/the-geforce-gtx-970-review-feat-evga/15

[theKumba]

MSI GTX 970 Gaming 4G

OMG THIS IS MY 500TH POST!!!!!

JK IT WAS THE 499th post.

[costacis21]

i would recommend the gigabyte gtx970 g1. look ta jayztwocents' video. you can overclock, very silent. my only concern is the length.

[costacis21]

MSI GTX 970 Gaming 4G

OMG THIS IS MY 500TH POST!!!!!

JK IT WAS THE 499th post.

reply to my quote to get your 500th, and you will owe me a cookie :3

[theKumba]

reply to my quote to get your 500th, and you will owe me a cookie :3

OMG THIS IS MY actual 500TH POST!!!!!

[Anusha]

So you guys justify paying almost 60% more for the GTX 970 for better power consumption and 5-10% more speed? Maybe even 20% when overclocked.

[CopKillerGTA]

I'd definetly go for the MSI GTX 970, personally i am done with AMD, i get tired from them.. Anways, i like the design itself of the MSI and the cooler is pretty good, same for performance, and overclock ability. The golden mid-way to go if you ask me

[Anusha]

If I get the MSI, that's like saying goodbye to SLI right? Especially in that small case

[Bhav]

You shouldn't buy used AMD GPUs because they could have been used for mining 24/7.

[Anusha]

I probably will upgrade in a year so there isn't a big risk because I get a 1 month warranty as well so that I can return in case of an issue.

[waxer_R6]

Personally I would go for the blower style palit 970. Because the 970 doesn't use that much power even if overclocked to a certain extend and if you want to SLI you better go with reference designs due to space limitation in your case. And blower style cards blow hot air out of the case and don not just blow it arround your case. So if your case is small and doesn't have that much ventilation, take blower style cards.

And AMD, well the used cards may been used for mining what is not good at all and the heat output on those cards is enormous in comparison to the 970.

[waxer_R6]

Aaaaand i just took a look your case and you probably have installed some fans on the side of the case right next to the gpu. What would help with cooling the blower style gpu also in SLI! :-)

[Anusha]

I have the stock fan configuration. The fan not he side panel towards the front of the case brings in cool air so it is good for the graphics card. The manual of the case itself says that it is better to go for cards with blower style coolers.

The issue is, the ones currently available on the GTX 970 seems to be utter crap - not temps and noise wise. I am unsure whether to go with the Palit. If not I'd have night it already...I guess. If it was available with the NVTTM cooler, it is an instant buy.

[Finn1744]

A 970 in New Zealand new is fire trucking 1000$ usually

[Totally-A-Hero]

Ummm, that 290 sounds decent if not blower 970, also y upgrade? the 670 is stiill a gr8 card and i would wait if i were you, maybe grab another 670

[steffen_anywhere]

A 970 in New Zealand new is fire trucking 1000$ usually

 

Holy Shit...For reals?

[Anusha]

Ummm, that 290 sounds decent if not blower 970, also y upgrade? the 670 is stiill a gr8 card and i would wait if i were you, maybe grab another 670

it's not enough for 1440p. and my card it too loud and heats up a lot. i tried removing the heatsink and cleaning up/ replace the thermal paste, but the stupid screws Palit has used are impossible to unscrew without me buying some special tools. 

 

anyways, the video card feels out of place compared to other components in my rig. 

 

the problem with SLIing is that the current card is thicker than two slots, so i cannot install a 2nd card in the Maximus VII Gene board that i have. besides, i don't think the GTX 670 cards with blower style coolers were good. and i have a 650W PSU, which is stretching two far with two GTX 670's even if the board allowed me to install a second card.

 

basically i want a new card. i can wait to see AMD's response or NVidia's response after that, but i know that the launch prices of any card won't be reasonable here in Japan, and the prices won't drop until the next big thing comes out. for example, the GTX 980 sells for $700 or more. GTX 780Ti prices were somewhat on par with USA prices throughout the year, but they didn't drop once the 900 series came out unlike in USA where you can get a 780Ti for around $420. here it is still hovering around $600-700 mark. sucks! luckily for us, the 970 was released at a very low price so even after the premium, they are somewhat affordable. 

to save on the prices, i have to go for the second hand highend cards of the previous generation. those are sold by guys who upgrade to the newer generation at any price. the 290 and the 780 I've listed in the first post are such cards. They are in immaculate condition as per the rating the shop selling the card. (People sell it to the shop and the shop sells at a higher price. It would be cheaper to directly get it from the person, but the shop offers limited warranty and it is worth the extra $20-30 because you never know what the quality of these used cards are).

 

i found a R9 290x for $333 brand new, but it has a crappy cooler. custom one, but no better than the stock cooler. slightly quieter but still hits 94C. shame! otherwise i would have gone for it.

 

as of right now, i'm set on the MSI but i lose SLI. hopefully i will never want to SLI.

[waxer_R6]

I'd say good choice I'm owning an msi card myself and it's perfect have fun with it

[Anusha]

Ordered the MSI card. Should arrive tomorrow. It would be a tight fit in the case though. And I think I killed my chances of going SLI. 

[Aristocrates]

I would recommend the Asus Strix 970, but it was apparently too sexy to be on your list

[Aristocrates]

MSI is a solid choice

[fakeirish]

Personally the MSI GTX 970 Gaming 4G just cause I want the MSI X99 SLI Plus and people are saying the 970s are the best right now