Amount of VRAM to run 2560x1080

[Mike Square]

Hello,

 

I'm looking to build my first pc.  I am planning on using an rx580 as my monitor of choice is a Freesync monitor.  I didn't want to go the NVIDIA GPU/G-Sync route because that setup would cause me to exceed my $1500 budget (n.b. as this is my first rig, I need a monitor so that too is part of the budget).  I was hoping to strictly buy from Micro Center (I prefer buying in person rather than online), but their selection of rx 580s are limited.  I thought that I may need 8 GB VRAM to properly run the 29" ultrawide I am hoping to buy, but someone/some people have taken the 8 GB cards I was looking at.  They have one "open box" 8 GB card from MSI but I figured that 

1. I want to avoid open box when I'm trying to build a pc to last me a good number of years

2. The red isn't going to match the black/blue/white scheme.  I know this sounds petty but it's going to look extremely off considering that I am going for a case with a tempered glass side panel.

 

The only cards that are in stock AS OF NOW are 4gb cards from Sapphire (nitro+), MSI (Armor), and XFX.  Currently, I am thinking about the sapphire card, because I have heard good things about its design and performance, but then again, I am unsure whether it will be able to run games properly at 2560x1080 as it has 4gb VRAM.

 

TL;DR: I would like to know whether 4gb VRAM is sufficient to run games properly at 2560x1080 at 75 fps or whether I should buy an 8gb RX 580 online, even though prices are inflated

 

My Parts, if it helps:

 

Ryzen 7 1700 w/ wraith spire

ASRock X370 Taichi mobo

EVGA 650BQ 650W 80+ Bronze

Cooler Master MasterFan Pro 12mm Air Pressure (2)

G. Skill Trident Z RGB 2x8gb DDR4: 3000

Toshiba OCZ RD400 256gb NVME

Toshiba P300 2TB 7,200 RPM HDD

NZXT S340 Elite

LG 29UM68-P (monitor of choice)

 

Thanks!

[Crunchy Dragon]

I would imagine even 3Gb VRAM is fine for 2560x1080 gaming. You should be fine with the 580 4GB.

 

Welcome to the forums!

[Princess Luna]

Yes it is, you can take the idea of the following video on the 1060 3gb to the rx580 4gb on 2560x1080p:

It will be plenty for every thing today, might fall short here in 2ish years however if you plan on replacing by then I really don't see the 8gb as "future proof" what so ever.

[Duskie]

Played at 2560x1080 on dual R9 290X's for over a year, it was fine with 4GB VRAM.

[Valkyrie Lenneth]

the amount of vram used is not determined by resolution output, its based on texture resolution, and that does not increase by increasing resolutions, u could load in 8k textures into a gpu and see them at 320x240 for example but it would loko blurry because the output resolution is too low to show the sharpness of the textures, however it is equal in amount of vram used if u have a 8k texture at output resolution 320x240 or 4k, vram is not determined by output resolution, but texture resolutions, shadow resolutions,shade textures,particles ect ect ect

[Cyracus]

Though you said you are apprehensive about buying online, it's worth taking a look, might find the parts you prefer for less, and pretty much every online retailer pcpartpicker links to is reputable https://pcpartpicker.com

[Mike Square]

Thank you for your helpful responses!  I just didn't know whether an ultrawide (2560x1080) changes recommended vram.  In the description of one of Linus' videos, it shows a recommendation for the rx 580 (4 gb) for 1080p, but for 1440p, it shows a recommendation for the rx 580 8gb variant, and I made the assumption that a 2560x1080 ultrawide would be a middle ground for those resolutions.  

 

 

33 minutes ago, Princess Cadence said:

if you plan on replacing by then I really don't see the 8gb as "future proof" what so ever.

One primary factor for my build is "future proofing," hence why I went with an AMD processor, as AM4 will be supported until 2020.  When the time comes I can just change CPU's, but I am unsure about GPU's because pricing is fluctuating like crazy because of cryptominers so I'd like to get a GPU that lasts me quite a bit of time, assuming that games are going to be using more and more VRAM as the years go on.

[Crunchy Dragon]

8 minutes ago, Mike Square said:

One primary factor for my build is "future proofing," hence why I went with an AMD processor, as AM4 will be supported until 2020.  When the time comes I can just change CPU's, but I am unsure about GPU's because pricing is fluctuating like crazy because of cryptominers so I'd like to get a GPU that lasts me quite a bit of time, assuming that games are going to be using more and more VRAM as the years go on.

If it's future-proofing you're looking for, it doesn't get any better than the 1080Ti. AMD has nothing that comes close to the 1080Ti and it will last a good long while. That said, you won't be able to future-proof your GPU if you're not spending a whole lot on it, 4Gb isn't going to last very long as games start to use more and more VRAM. If you got an 8Gb variant of the 580 you'll be able to play games on it longer as it has the VRAM to allow newer and more demanding games to run on it.

[Princess Luna]

37 minutes ago, Mike Square said:

One primary factor for my build is "future proofing,"

I strongly suggest a Vega 56 or GTX 1070 whatever cheaper throw 980 Ti used in the mix.

[Valkyrie Lenneth]

1 hour ago, Mike Square said:

Thank you for your helpful responses!  I just didn't know whether an ultrawide (2560x1080) changes recommended vram.

a higher resolution requires more pixels to be rendered, as for amount of vram, it will remain the same as that is based on texture resolutions ect

 

1080p is a pretty nice standard and what most cards are based on, thus for a higher than 1080p resolution u usually need a more beefy gpu to run stuff on ultra

i personally think the rx580 is a fine card for 1080p, but above 1080p i would go with somthing better

 

1080p = 2073600  pixels needing to be rendered

 

2560x1080 = 2764800, so basicly u could say roughly 30% more gpu power is required to get the same performance, however it aint that simple to determine fps more things are factors

[yaya1]

Although AMD's memory compression technique works quite well in my experience, I'd opt for the 8GB version, since my 4GB R9 380 nitro runs at its limit with ROTTR with very high textures at 1080p... In case you're not going to replace it in the next 1-2 years, rather go for the 8GB version. But it highly depends on your needs(the games you play and applications you use), I'd also consider if you'll be adding more/higher resolution monitors in the future.