R9 280X to GTX 1060?

[zPanic]

Hey there.

I'm a new user to the LTT forums, so I'm hoping I'm posting this topic in the right place.

 

My current PC is a secondhand PC of which I had the CPU, motherboard and RAM upgraded from a FX6300, 8GB ram, Asrock FX990 Extreme3 to an i7 6700k, 16GB ram, and an Asus z170 Pro Gaming, and a new CPU cooler. I also added a Samsung EVO 850 250GB SSD.

The rest of my build is unchanged; the HDD is the same, my cables are the same, and my GPU is the same.

Currently, I'm using a Sapphire R9 280X Dual-X, which is a fairly decent card. It's keeping up well with all of the games I play.

However, I'm looking to upgrade because I'm financially able to, to prepare for the future.

 

From what I've seen, the GTX 1060 is a fairly reasonably priced GPU, with great performance.

I'm good with computers when it comes to software, and handling a PC that's actually running.

However, I've never built/upgraded components into a PC myself.

For this, I have two questions, since I cannot find a proper answer on the Internet for one of these, and for the other I'd just like people's opinions.

 

1. Will the cables I'm currently using for my 280X fit into a GTX 1060? I have no idea how many pins it has, and whether the cable itself will be compatible with the GTX 1060.
2. Is it worth it to upgrade to a 1060 from my current card? My current card runs almost any and every game on medium to high settings. However for some of them I do experience it hovering between 50-70 FPS. 

For those who read this far, I thank you, and I'm eagerly awaiting your responses.

[samcool55]

To connect to the motherboard it uses the PCI-E connector, the veery long one that plugs into the motherboard.

Power wise it uses PCI-E connectors. You have 2 versions. a 6-pin and an 8-pin.

Most graphics card use them. Sometimes they use 2 6-pins, or 2 8-pins or 1 6-pin and 1 8-pin. It depends. Every graphics card is different.

 

Also are you talking about a 1060 3GB or 1060 6GB? Or maybe about the 11Gbps versions? They are all different. A 1060 3GB for example uses a slower gpu than the 1060 6GB.

[Jurrunio]

1. check the top of the graphics card. you can see what power connector(s) it's connected to. The site of Sapphire suggest it to be 1 8 pin and 1 6 pin. Since 1060s use either a 6 pin or an 8 pin depending on the manufacturer of the card, you certainly got the cable to power the card.

 

2. This question depends on your budget. If you can afford the 1070, get one. It will handle games for 3 years at high settings at the very least. Either versions of the 1060 can't promise that. Since you are upgrading from a more-than-usable card, it's better to get something that is expensive, but is still affordable and will withstand games coming out in the future for years.

If you don't have that budget and don't want to wait for a 1070 (I see no reason for that), get a rx 470 4gb. It carries the greatest value of graphics card with this level of performance.

 

3. Check your power supply. Powering power-thirsty old AMD products for so long and being part of a used machine means a good check is necessary. If it is something highly rated in this list, then go on. If not or you see a lot of dust inside, replace it before it does something bad.

 

Edited April 21, 2017 by Jurrunio

[zPanic]

15 minutes ago, Jurrunio said:

1. check the top of the graphics card. you can see what power connector(s) it's connected to. The site of Sapphire suggest it to be 1 8 pin and 1 6 pin. Since 1060s use either a 6 pin or an 8 pin depending on the manufacturer of the card, you will have to do more research.

 

Thank you for your reply.

I've done some further research now that I'm actually quite close to making a decision on buying a new GPU.

It seems the RX480 is a better choice over the GTX 1060, and I'm probably going to go with the SAPPHIRE NITRO Radeon RX 480. 

 

Will this work with my current cables?

[Jurrunio]

4 minutes ago, zPanic said:

 

Thank you for your reply.

I've done some further research now that I'm actually quite close to making a decision on buying a new GPU.

It seems the RX480 is a better choice over the GTX 1060, and I'm probably going to go with the SAPPHIRE NITRO Radeon RX 480. 

 

Will this work with my current cables?

I would wait for a bit until RX 580s are widely available, so you can pick up older RX 480s  at lower prices. Are you sure you don't want to spend more though?

Edited April 21, 2017 by Jurrunio

[Starelementpoke]

14 minutes ago, zPanic said:

 

Thank you for your reply.

I've done some further research now that I'm actually quite close to making a decision on buying a new GPU.

It seems the RX480 is a better choice over the GTX 1060, and I'm probably going to go with the SAPPHIRE NITRO Radeon RX 480. 

 

Will this work with my current cables?

480 would be fine, but 580's are out. Might as well grab one of those ones.

[zPanic]

14 minutes ago, Jurrunio said:

I would wait for a bit until RX 580s are widely available, so you can pick up older RX 480s  at lower prices. Are you sure you don't want to spend more though?

 

3 minutes ago, Starelementpoke said:

480 would be fine, but 580's are out. Might as well grab one of those ones.

 

I would've liked to spend more if I were able to.

Currently living at home and doing internship at a company where I'm going to sign a contract so I can start from July 1st after my exams.

Mom wants me to move out so I'm saving as much as I can, but I can only afford to spend about ~200 euros or so.

So unless I get hit with a massive stroke of luck, buying an RX580 is out of the question for me..

[Jurrunio]

Just now, zPanic said:

 

 

I would've liked to spend more if I were able to.

Currently living at home and doing internship at a company where I'm going to sign a contract so I can start from July 1st after my exams.

Mom wants me to move out so I'm saving as much as I can, but I can only afford to spend about ~200 euros or so.

So unless I get hit with a massive stroke of luck, buying an RX580 is out of the question for me..

Well, an RX 470 4GB is the best then because of its value for money. It can be overclocked safely to reach 480's performance.

[zPanic]

10 minutes ago, Jurrunio said:

Well, an RX 470 4GB is the best then because of its value for money. It can be overclocked safely to reach 480's performance.

 

I can match a SAPPHIRE NITRO Radeon RX 480's pricepoint, which is about ~250 euros.

I don't really want to go for an RX470, since I'm doubting the fact it'll improve on my already decent Sapphire R9 280X too much..

[zPanic]

Just now, huilun02 said:

As at time of writing,

According to Tweakers.net pricewatch, this is the cheapest RX 480 available in NL. Cheaper than the cheapest GTX 1060 3GB. RX 580 starts at €231.

 

Thank you for this! The RX 580 is only €231 according to Tweakers, that's true.

I checked the retailer's site, and I'm fairly unfamiliar with it.

Also wondering how well the Sapphire Pulse version will perform.

I just want something that makes a notable difference with my current GPU.

Thank you once again for providing me those listings.

[zPanic]

On 4/21/2017 at 1:31 PM, Jurrunio said:

Well, an RX 470 4GB is the best then because of its value for money. It can be overclocked safely to reach 480's performance.

 

On 4/21/2017 at 1:44 PM, huilun02 said:

As at time of writing,

According to Tweakers.net pricewatch, this is the cheapest RX 480 available in NL. Cheaper than the cheapest GTX 1060 3GB. RX 580 starts at €231.

I do not live in Europe.

 

On 4/21/2017 at 1:23 PM, Starelementpoke said:

480 would be fine, but 580's are out. Might as well grab one of those ones.

Hey guys. Here to give you an update. I budged and ordered a Sapphire RX 580 Pulse 8GB. I just got it in the mail, and installed it. It's currently installing my drivers. Surprisingly easy to upgrade a graphics card. Thank you for all your help; if you want, I'll give an update on the card's performance after trying it out for a bit.