Please don't buy a 960

[79wjd]

I don't give a shit ! If you so worried about power consumption cost that turn off your dam PC and stop gaming ... problem solved and then you will have to best more efficient power consumption.

Please try and be more ignorant. 

[typographie]

Stop being a troll.

...he said, apparently oblivious to the irony.

 

The R9 280 isn't even strong enough to support as much VRAM as it actually has, a GTX 760 4GB couldn't even use more than 2GB, what are you talking about?

 

It's inaccurate to say they "can't use" their VRAM. They can use it, in the sense that games will fill their frame buffers with data if they need to. It's that at the settings and resolutions that traditionally demand that much VRAM, their midrange graphics processors are out of steam anyway.

 

Not so much of an issue lately with games like Shadow of Mordor that can eat up enormous amounts of VRAM despite not being particularly difficult to run otherwise. I wouldn't have ever recommended paying extra for a 4 GB version of the very mediocre GTX 760, but the R9 280 comes with 3 GB in the stock configuration at the baseline price.

[Suika]

I don't give a shit ! If you so worried about power consumption cost that turn off your dam PC and stop gaming ... problem solved and then you will have to best more efficient power consumption.

The issue here is that you're arguing from personal experience. 99.999% of the people here will not have the exact same personal experience as you in life. Ever.

 

Electricity is a concern and worth considering for most normal people. To put it in perspective, the difference in operating cost between an i5-3570k and FX-8350, on average, was $5-15 a year depending on your local costs. That was a 37W difference between the two TDPs. The GTX 960 versus the R9 280 is a 180W difference. That is a lot of extra money, about five times as much as the $5-15/year.

[I/O]

The issue here is that you're arguing from personal experience. 99.999% of the people here will not have the exact same personal experience as you in life. Ever.

 

Electricity is a concern and worth considering for most normal people. To put it in perspective, the difference in operating cost between an i5-3570k and FX-8350, on average, was $5-15 a year depending on your local costs. That was a 37W difference between the two TDPs. The GTX 960 versus the R9 280 is a 180W difference. That is a lot of extra money, about five times as much as the $5-15/year.

13 dollars a year come on man. If you can't afford your hobby then I suggest to get another job and or upgrade you skill set and training.

[79wjd]

13 dollars a year come on man. If you can't afford your hobby then I suggest to get another job and or upgrade you skill set and training.

Lets see, I can buy a 970 or a 290x. The 970 costs about $50 more abd both yield similar performance, but one directly saves me $30 a year and indirectly even more by lowering my AC costs.Ya, let me go with the one that doesn't save me that yearly money. Not to mention less heat in produced within the case means a higher overclock on the cpu as well. 

[Techteen14]

For someone like me who doesn't game, wants a small, power efficient and quiet card with enough VRAM to run dual 24" 1080p monitors, the 960 is PERFECT.

I think I'll pick up the $215 ASUS model because of its color scheme and compact size.

[79wjd]

For someone like me who doesn't game, wants a small, power efficient and quiet card with enough VRAM to run dual 24" 1080p monitors, the 960 is PERFECT.

I think I'll pick up the $215 ASUS model because of its color scheme and compact size.

It really isn't though as 2gb is starting to see it's end of life at 1080p high-ultra settings. 

[I/O]

Lets see, I can buy a 970 or a 290x. Both cost about the same amount and both yield similar performance, but one directly saves me $20 a year and indirectly even more by lowering my AC costs.Ya, let me go with the one that doesn't save me that yearly money. 

Failed metric. The power consumption myths have been debunked. I suggest you get a hard core hobby like snowmobiling and then you will understand that computers are an extremely cost effective and dirt cheap hobby. I went into the back country on BC Canada last weekend sledding and the trip cost me close to $1000 bucks so ya PC gaming is a very cheap hobby.

[79wjd]

Failed metric. The power consumption myths have been debunked. I suggest you get a hard core hobby like snowmobiling and then you will understand that computers are an extremely cost effective and dirt cheap hobby. I went into the back country on BC Canada last weekend sledding and the trip cost me close to $1000 bucks so ya PC gaming is a very cheap hobby.

Yes, it's comparatively cheap, that doesn't mean I'm just going to throw away money -- money that I can spend elsewhere. Also it was FX cpus vs. intel cpus that were debunked due to the power draw of the two being MUCH closer together than the difference between the 970 and 290x. 

[Techteen14]

It really isn't though as 2gb is starting to see it's end of life at 1080p high-ultra settings.

Yeah, my Google Chrome and Google Docs need to run at 240FPS on ultra settings. Don't want to lag so much I can't headshot those homework assignments. /s

Let's re-read my post

For someone like me who

doesn't game,

wants a small, power efficient and quiet card with enough VRAM to run dual 24" 1080p monitors, the 960 is PERFECT.

I think I'll pick up the $215 ASUS model because of its color scheme and compact size.

[Suika]

13 dollars a year come on man. If you can't afford your hobby then I suggest to get another job and or upgrade you skill set and training.

Now you're just plain ignorant, the fact that I decided to make an attempt to argue shows just how foolish I was to drop down to your level.

 

Honestly, I'm not going to argue with you. I'm going to warn users about your lack of credibility in the field of PC building, but I won't ever make the mistake of trying to prove anything to you. I've tried. Reason does not appeal to you, only AMD does. 

[I/O]

Now you're just plain ignorant, the fact that I decided to make an attempt to argue shows just how foolish I was to drop down to your level.

 

Honestly, I'm not going to argue with you. I'm going to warn users about your lack of credibility in the field of PC building, but I won't ever make the mistake of trying to prove anything to you. I've tried. Reason does not appeal to you, only AMD does. 

Ya better off just to get working so you can enjoy PC gaming instead of counting KW/Hs at the meter LOL.

[79wjd]

Yeah, my Google Chrome and Google Docs need to run at 240FPS on ultra settings. Don't want to lag so much I can't headshot those homework assignments. /s

Let's re-read my post

You don't need a GPU to run two 1080p monitors. integrated graphics can do that just fine. 

[Techteen14]

You don't need a GPU to run two 1080p monitors. integrated graphics can do that just fine.

I do want to get into some Photoshop, not heavy but still smooth.

[ACatWithThumbs]

Yeah, my Google Chrome and Google Docs need to run at 240FPS on ultra settings. Don't want to lag so much I can't headshot those homework assignments. /s

Let's re-read my post

For that the GTX960 is way to much in the first place that card runs something like Battelfield 4 maxed out no problem.

A GTX750Ti would be a way better choice if you only do light gaming and work.

[SIBERIAN_DICK_WOLF]

JESUS CHRIST WHEN WILL 3D VRAM UNLEASH

Everything is memory bound for me, with 4k gaming coming into play we need faster memory speeds than ever. I can't wait till we get 3D VRAM.

[SIBERIAN_DICK_WOLF]

But Nvidia is on the right path with all these full sized DP connectors. DP is the connector of the future.

[FreeDiver]

Ya better off just to get working so you can enjoy PC gaming instead of counting KW/Hs at the meter LOL.

My electricity rate is 34.10 cents a kilowatt-hour so anything that can lower the electricity bill helps a lot.

Also not everyone has AC, during the summer it gets so hot in my room I have to frequently take  cold showers to cool off. Its a little hard to enjoy PC gaming when you are sweating your ass off.

[I/O]

My electricity rate is 34.10 cents a kilowatt-hour so anything that can lower the electricity bill helps a lot.

Also not everyone has AC, during the summer it gets so hot in my room I have to frequently take  cold showers to cool off. Its a little hard to enjoy PC gaming when you are sweating your ass off.

You might need to get a bit more physically active to keep from sweating while stationary in front of keyboard playing games. Also an open window and fan do wonders in the summer heat and cold water helps allot.

[FreeDiver]

You might need to get a bit more physically active to keep from sweating while stationary in front of keyboard playing games. Also an open window and fan do wonders in the summer heat and cold water helps allot.

I have two open windows two fans and cold water, and only weigh 160 pounds. When its 95 degrees Fahrenheit with 80% or more  humidity your'e going to sweat.

[FreeDiver]

You might need to get a bit more physically active to keep from sweating while stationary in front of keyboard playing games. Also an open window and fan do wonders in the summer heat and cold water helps allot.

The point is for some people its better to get a GPU that puts out less heat all while consuming less electricity even though it may have less performance.

[-TesseracT-]

Like I would listen to what I/O says.

[KamiKatze]

Hahaha, i read the first two pages of this thread, it's halarious!

 

You get guarenteed fun when I/O gets into the argument. He does have a point however, the 960 is a bit underwhelming. The AMD 200 series however are getting old. And power efficiency is absolute key when building a PC. It costs less,  and you have less heat to deal with, which affects pretty much everything that needs to be cooled inside your PC. You get a much more silent and pleasant experience with a pwoer efficient PC component.

[zappian]

I have been saying this on the forums for a while , the 960 is pointless since the 280 is cheaper and better and the 280x is like 30 bucks more.

 

 

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814125726&cm_re=r9_280x-_-14-125-726-_-Product

 

Here a used 280x costs 160 euros , and that what im going to upgrade to.

 

If you get a 960 you have to put the filters at low and textures at medium or you will hit a brick wall on VRAM , with the 280/280x

you dont have that problem.

[Spev]

I for one think it makes sense. $350 for a 970 is a lot for some people, and a lot can't afford that, or a 980. $200 price point is a lot better. Sure, a R9 280 might perform a little better, but this is a newer card, it will have all the updates required, run cooler and quieter than the AMD cards, and more efficient. There are a lot of people who don't need large 3-4GB Vram. Lots of people out there just play Dota, League, Hearthsone, and some steam games. I have a friend who basically just plays League, and is looking for a new card cause his PC can't even max out that game lol. Cards like this are perfect for a lot of people. Then you say BUT BUT for the same price you can get a few more FPS with an AMD card! I think this argument can be invalid in some cases, because if I didn't NEED more stats I wouldn't mind spending $20 more bucks on a card that runs cooler, quieter, and is supported for a very long time to come......Plus NVIDIA discontinued the 700 series, they needed something for a lower price point. I don't think the card is that bad despite that hate. Sure you can get one maybe better for similar price, but not THAT much better...and it has Maxwel's efficiency...