Is it worth upgrading my 980ti?

[Fat Eric]

Hi guys,

 

Just looking for some input on wether or not it's actually worth it to upgrade my GPU.

I got a Gigabyte 980ti in 2016 and have been very happy with it since then. Since I don't play a lot of games I tend to fall behind on "the game front", so the things I play are usually a few years old when I buy them on some Steam sale.

Other than that I sometimes use it for rendering things out in After Effects or edit some video.

 

The reason I'm asking is that I'm seeing that there's reasonably priced ($2-300) GPUs on the market, but I'm not sure wether or not it's really worth it given that I'm pleased with what I've got. I mean, will investing in a new card significantly future-proof my computer or something? Other than that, the only reason I can think of is "upgrading because the current one is old", which all in all isn't really a valid one in my book. Still, even though I'm basically answering my own question here I can't really shake the feeling that it's about time to upgrade solely because it's been a few years since last time. 

 

Any inputs and thoughts are very welcome.

[AndreiArgeanu]

First, chances are, those 200-300$ GPU's are maybe similar if not worse when it comes to performance when compared to your 980ti.

Second, you should only really upgrade your PC when you're not satisfied with the performance. If your current PC is serving you well and you see no issue with it, then don't upgrade it.

As far as I'm concerned you should keep your money and your card for a while longer, the 980ti is a capable card even in modern titles and I see no reason to change it if you're satisfied with it.

[WereCat]

It's very unlikely you can actually get a $300 GPU in this market that actually outperforms your 980ti. You should likely hold on onto it.

[Moonzy]

39 minutes ago, Boondock said:

I'm not sure wether or not it's really worth it given that I'm pleased with what I've got.

just save up for when you actually need an upgrade

esp when GPU prices now are kinda high (it's probably not coming down anytime soon, though)

[Fat Eric]

3 hours ago, AndreiArgeanu said:

First, chances are, those 200-300$ GPU's are maybe similar if not worse when it comes to performance when compared to your 980ti.

Second, you should only really upgrade your PC when you're not satisfied with the performance. If your current PC is serving you well and you see no issue with it, then don't upgrade it.

As far as I'm concerned you should keep your money and your card for a while longer, the 980ti is a capable card even in modern titles and I see no reason to change it if you're satisfied with it.

 

2 hours ago, Moonzy said:

just save up for when you actually need an upgrade

esp when GPU prices now are kinda high (it's probably not coming down anytime soon, though)

 

3 hours ago, WereCat said:

It's very unlikely you can actually get a $300 GPU in this market that actually outperforms your 980ti. You should likely hold on onto it.

Thanks, guess I'll hold on to it then!

I have been thinking about perhaps watercooling the GPU only, though, mostly because, well, watercooling. At one point I even got an EK full cover copper block, too, together with second hand radiators and things. All I'm missing is a reservoir, tubes and fitting, but again, I'm asking myself – is it really worth it? What I want, basically, is for the computer to be as silent as possible while still allowing OK temps, and hey, if there's room for overclocking that wouldn't be too bad either.

[Sir Beregond]

There's no such thing as future proofing. Either it's meeting your needs or it's not.

 

Also I'd really want to know what cards you are seeing for $200-$300, because I highly doubt they'd outperform your 980 Ti.

[Moonzy]

6 hours ago, Boondock said:

is it really worth it?

It seldom is

You're not gonna suddenly get 50% more performance just from water-cooling, depending on your luck it's probably more like 5-10% at best

But the cost associated and the maintenance hassles, might as well just get a better card

In term of silence, if you're willing to trade some performance, lowering the power limit is a good way to reduce temps and thus fan speed, but do take note that the fan only refers to your core temp and the other parts of your card (like VRAM) may run hotter with low fan speed

 

But if you're interested in having fun with water cooling, go for it, experience it

[Fat Eric]

10 hours ago, Sir Beregond said:

There's no such thing as future proofing. Either it's meeting your needs or it's not.

 

Also I'd really want to know what cards you are seeing for $200-$300, because I highly doubt they'd outperform your 980 Ti.

Let's see.. mainly variants of Radeon RX 6500 and GeForce GTX 1650.  

[hollyh88]

20 minutes ago, Boondock said:

Let's see.. mainly variants of Radeon RX 6500 and GeForce GTX 1650.  

i would wait. it can probably last you another year if you use the right settings. its just not worth it to get a gpu in these days. as you are always paying more than you should for the perf you get. 

[Sir Beregond]

6 hours ago, Boondock said:

Let's see.. mainly variants of Radeon RX 6500 and GeForce GTX 1650.  

Yeah definitely wait. The 6500 XT is just a cutdown laptop GPU repackaged as a desktop card. And the 1650 is what...3-4 years old now?