2GB VRAM vs 4GB

[Honeydiddle]

Hi all,

 

I know many people post these but im looking at buying a GTX 770 and wondering whether to get 2GB or 4GB, i play a few open map games like Planetside 2 and skyrim. Only have one 32" monitor at 1080p and will not get dual screens.

 

Thanks in advance

[JordanMac]

for 1080p go for 2gb, you only need 4gb for multiple or high res screens.

[Jamdude]

for 1080p go for 2gb, you only need 4gb for multiple or high res screens.

This.  You'd be wasting your money getting the 4GB.

[WoodenMarker]

Have you considered getting a 7950/7970 instead? The 7970 is pretty neck to neck to the 770, has 3GB vram, and should be significantly cheaper. 

[Honeydiddle]

Yeah you are probably right, my main game uses physx and i would love to have it but the 7970 is way better priced

[Jamdude]

Yeah you are probably right, my main game uses physx and i would love to have it but the 7970 is way better priced

If the game you are talking about is Borderlands 2 then you can enable PhysX with an AMD card.

[Honeydiddle]

Main game is planetside 2, massive open maps so pretty intensive game

[FloRolf]

Skyrim sometimes uses over 3gb, just sayin. I would go for the 4gb model or a 7970.

[KieranThePCGuy]

Yeah you will definitely be fine for 2GB with 1080p. It's higher resolutions than 1080p where the extra vRAM would be handy. I've never used PhysX so I don't know what it's like, but the 7970 is a very good card and a good price now too! And has 3GB of vRAM.

[Honeydiddle]

To be honest the only games i will be playing is planetside 2, BF3/4 Call of duty Ghosts and definitley Arma 3

[Chatzev]

Sorry to crush your dreams buddy, but planetside 2, an already demanding game, slows the F**K down with physx and crashes every half an hour or so. (With it enabled)

[fishymamba]

Sorry to crush your dreams buddy, but planetside 2, an already demanding game, slows the F**K down with physx and crashes every half an hour or so. (With it enabled)

 

Runs perfectly fine with my 660 Ti. 

 

On to the OP's question, 2GB will be fine for your needs, I don't expect any of those games to use over 2GB VRAM at 1080P. Skyrim only uses more than 1.5GB if you mod the hell out of it. 

[jscho]

Sorry to crush your dreams buddy, but planetside 2, an already demanding game, slows the F**K down with physx and crashes every half an hour or so. (With it enabled)

I can play on ultra with my overclocked 680, PhysX on and during the hugest of gun fights, I never drop a frame.

 

2GB is enough. I run two 1080p monitors and it's amazing.

[SteepGnomeKing]

With Planetside 2 having PhysX and Arma 3 is suppose to be incorporating it you would be much better off with a Nvidia card. Plus 4 more new games that are going to have it are Witcher 3, Rise of the Triad, The Bureau Xcom, and Batman: Origins

 

The 2GB is enough at 1920x1080. It's hard to say how much VRam is actually being used because if you have a 3gb card you will have more VRam usage than a 2gb card because you have the extra space.

I have a 4gb card and run 1920x1080 and had Metro:2033 using 3.2gb of VRam. While that wasn't needed it was just using it because I had the space. So when someone says they have 2.3gb of VRam usage a 1080 while another has 1.5 I would venture to say that the higher number has more VRam on board not because they are using more.