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Mid+ range gaming price/performance GPU selection?

R

RanceJustice

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Hello everyone! I'm thinking of purchasing a new GPU as a present for an avid gamer (mostly MMO), and while I've been following the price and performance comparisons of the highest tier cards (ie 290x vs 780 Ti .) I don't feel that I have the same knowledge of slightly lower tiers.

At the moment, she is using a vastly out of date GeForce GTX260 (192 I think..not 216), which has served well, but has gotten long in the tooth. I'd like to purchase something for her that will give her a long lifespan of gaming at high settings (perhaps not forced AA/AF or anything) at around a single 1920x1080 (or 1680x1050) monitor. She mostly enjoys MMOs and whatnot so she's not specifically inclined toward say, a particular "benchmark title" like BF4 or Crysis3, but I do want it to be powerful enough for when next-gen stuff like Star Citizen, WildStar, Elder Scrolls Online etc... arrive, she'll be able to enjoy most of the shiny.

I personally lean towards AMD cards because of various ethical and technical reasons (ie I prefer open solutions to proprietary ones), including Mantle (upon which Star Citizen and many others will likely run), and the option for better GPU cryptocurrency mining and other APP/DirectCL etc... elements, as well as (current price spike not withstanding) usually better price-performance. However, I'm willing to look towards Nvidia as well.

Thus, I've been considering the following...

AMD R9 270x, 280x
Nvidia 760, 770

which I am guessing fall into the "mid+ range" for both price and performance. Assuming I can obtain the cards at close to retail prices , would anyone have suggestions for cards in the $200-400 range? I'd also be willing to say... purchase multiple less expensive cards if they are boosted above single more expensive ones, such as a pair of 270x, which (individually, and as a pair) seem to be a sweet spot for price/performance and will have plenty of power for gaming and whatnot, for quite a long time.


Anything else I might not be considering? Thanks.
 
GeForce GTX260 (192 I think..not 216)
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If her GPU is that old, what are the rest of her specs like?
I wouldn't pair a $200-$400 GPU with a system still running a C2D/C2Q especially for MMO's.
 
TaintedSquirrel said:
If her GPU is that old, what are the rest of her specs like?
I wouldn't pair a $200-$400 GPU with a system still running a C2Q especially for MMO's.
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She is on a C2Q (who's mobo and PSU recently died), but came into a free AMD 6100 FX and Asus 990x mobo from a family member, so that's something for the moment. Within the next month or two, she's going to go for a more or less complete rebuild, so I wanted to give her something for now that would be viable when she pairs it with a 4770k or so. She also just bought a Corsair RM Series 750w, so she's set for a new power supply for awhile methinks. Even if she won't get the most out of it right now, the GPU it will still be better than what she has an one less thing she'll have to buy for the rest of the overhaul.
 
Xaeos said:
She is on a C2Q (who's mobo and PSU recently died), but came into a free AMD 6100 FX and Asus 990x mobo from a family member, so that's something for the moment. Within the next month or two, she's going to go for a more or less complete rebuild, so I wanted to give her something for now that would be viable when she pairs it with a 4770k or so. She also just bought a Corsair RM Series 750w, so she's set for a new power supply for awhile methinks. Even if she won't get the most out of it right now, the GPU it will still be better than what she has an one less thing she'll have to buy for the rest of the overhaul.
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Well in that case, I would go with a 2GB 760, she will be able to play just about anything at 1080p, BF4 will be doable on Ultra and 2xMSAA averaging high 50's to low 60's....

Unless you're camping an AMD card, I can't think of a better option other than waiting to see what the midrange Maxwell parts will be like.
 
I'd suggest a GTX760, best bang for the buck card at the moment. The next step from there would be the GTX770 but I believe that's around $120 more expensive for not much more performance.
 
Get a 770 gtx, that will last her for a minutes, as a former fellow 260gtx owner thats what I would ypgrade to

(I would upgrade amd if prices would go back down)
 
Ah, okay so GTX 760 ($250-310+) or 770 ($370-420+) at the moment, generally? If I was going to camp an AMD card and was able to secure one closer to MSRP, would that be worthwhile? If so, which card and/or which prices would be worth it for said cards, in your opinion?

I've seen some 270x ($200-250)... would one of them be sufficient for the time being in terms of real world gaming performance? Also, it seems like if I was willing to put in a little extra or so, and go to around $425-460, I could get 2 of the 270x (non-ref cooler, 4gb edition), which I am to understand would outdo a single GTX 770 (non ref cooler, 4gb edition). It is my understanding that 2 (or 3?) card CrossfireX, of R9 generation cards, doesn't have problems with drivers or stuttering and whatnot anymore in general, but I've not run a multicard solution myself for quite some time (I actually had a great experience with a 4870x2 back in the day) so I can't know for sure.

Thanks!
 
A single good 770 4g would be better than a 270x crossfire setup

Even a 340 dollar 2g would be good


While the new R9-290 and 290x are smooth, the 270x is still based on the old architecture so its not as smooth and still needs a crossfire bridge, also the weaker the less smooth they are in crossfire
 
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I'd save your money and get a Radeon 270/ 270x, it will run anything at 1080p and costs a lot less than a GTX 760.

Then in a about a years time when the 20nm GPU's are out, sell it and upgrade (if you feel inclined).
 
I agree with the GTX 760 since I got one recently. I had an HD 5870 and game at 1080p.
If you do go with it I see a deal for a MSI GTX 760 reference design for $200 after $20 MIR.

MSI GTX 760 reference link

I had gotten my Zotac GTX 760 back on Black Friday w/ AC4 and SCBL combo for $200 flat.
 
I'd go for the 280x or the GTX 670. Best bang for the buck at the moment..
 
PcZac said:
760 performs better, runs at lower temps, and it quieter, for around the same price, I'd say 760 > 270X
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+1. The 760 is a better card than the 270/270x, given how close the prices are. If AMD still had competiitive pricing in the states I could recommend a 280x if you were willing to stretch the budget, but the 770 is also a much better value proposition at the moment. Either way you'll get better performance per dollar sticking with the green team.
 
PcZac said:
760 performs better, runs at lower temps, and it quieter, for around the same price, I'd say 760 > 270X
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I remember when the 270x first came out during the Q4'13, I could've gotten it for as low as $138 after rebate. Now its like $200. Lame. Same with the other R9 cards. The prices I've seen when I was doing my video card upgrade were:

R9 270X as low as $138
R9 280X as low as $270
R9 290 as low as $386
R9 290X as low as $485
 
Note said:
I'd go for the 280x or the GTX 670. Best bang for the buck at the moment..
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It's not much better than the 760, and is $100 more, if you can find it anywhere.

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