Looking for a ~$300 video card recommendation

[Levii]

My AMD 6870 appears to have died on me, and I'm looking for a replacement around $300. I haven't been paying much attention to the video card market over the last several years, so I'm now a little lost on what my best options are. I have seen very few video card related [H]otdeals or Slickdeals over the last couple months, and the top tier cards appear to be both excessively expensive and overkill for my particular setup.

My setup (the parts that might matter, anyway):
Intel 2600k
16 gigs of ram (4X4)
Fractal Designs Case, circa 2011
24" monitor at 1900x1080

So, my questions:
Is there a compelling reason to take AMD over Nvidia, or vice versa?
What generations should I be looking at? R9? 780? I'm lost here.
Any issues I should be aware of with respect to newer cards and cases (size, cooling, etc)?

 

[lilfiend]

I'd try to pick up a 280x or 290, though most of them will have been mined on, so make sure you run it through the hoops to be sure.

On the green side I'd say something like a 770 or maybe someone cutting a deal on a 780.

You'd probably get more mileage out of this thread over in the video card section, you can pm a mod if you want it moved.

 

[primetime]

been seeing 7970's or 280x's floating around the 300 dollar range and i think it would require a jump to 450ish ta get anything better than that

 

[Levii]

Thanks guys, that was what I was looking for. I have my eye on a Asus 280x and will probably pick it up.