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Upgrade from gtx 280

S

slamcmy

Limp Gawd
Joined
Sep 10, 2007
Messages
241
hi guys i got the upgrade itch and well i wanna ask the experts ;) ......so this is my scenario, imma be playing BF3 really hard i also play crysis 2, world of warcraft and metro....as of now i have a 22" samsung monitor maximum resolution 1680 * 1050 ( im thinking in an upgrade too) if i do upgrade my monitor it'll be to a 24" 1920 * 1080....but i dont know which video card should i get....the rig i have is on my signature i really dont know if im gonna see a big difference between lets say a gtx 280 vs 560ti or 6950 or gtx 570 im pretty much stuck there, also im not sure if i shoild get a 1gb version or 2gb version ( future proof )...this are my options:

-get a 2nd gtx 280 and sli ( tho i think they are gonna be really hot and consume alot of power )
-get 2 560ti and sli ( tho i really like 1 gpu solution )
-get 1 560ti
or switch sides to amd 6950 or 6970 (tho ive never owned an ati card)

i really dont know if a single 560ti will be faster than a gtx 280, i wanna get something thats significantly faster than what i have now, if possible with a lower power consumption so help me decide pretty much im stuck with 560ti, gtx 570, and 6950, 6970.....thank u very much for your attention
 
You *could* get another 280. That's the cheapest option. A single 560 Ti is definitely faster than a single 280, but probably not by a huge margin. I just went from 280 SLI to a 570, and the performance is equal or better with the 570 depending on the game (1920x1080).

I wouldn't bother getting a 2 GB card if you are only going to game at 1680x1050. I would probably go with a 570 or 560 Ti with the potential of going SLI in the future.

I am looking to sell a couple GTX 280s if you end up going that route. :cool:
 
560Ti or if you can wait, get a 600 series nVidia when they arrive early next year
 
+1 for a 560 /w option to sli in future or 600 series nvidia down the road
 
thanks for all your replies....is a 560 ti good for a 24" monitor ? 1920 * 1080 cause theres a chance that ill upgrade my current monitor, also is my current power supply enough to handle 560 ti in sli....remember ill be playing bf3 and ive heard it needs 2 gb video cards so im really lost....lets say i keep my current monitor, is a 560 ti enough to play bf3 at high settings and lets say 2x AA ? thanks again
 
1gb is not going to be enough for BF 3 on Ultra settings and 2x AA. really even the gtx560 ti itself is a little to weak to do that even if it had more vram. gtx570 is the very lowest I would upgrade to coming from a gtx280 and playing at 1920x1080. and with your cpu, gtx560 ti sli would be held back plus the 1gb of vram would limit the point of adding the second card since you would not be able to crank all settings in some games. the 2gb models cost almost as much as what you can the faster gtx570 for.

I would just stick to your current 1680x1050 monitor unless you were having issues with it. the gtx560 ti would be almost the perfect match then. of course the gtx570 would still be better for those really demanding games but it costs quite a bit more.
 
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If you're gonna step into higher resolutions, I agree the 560Ti probably won't be enough to push BF3 maxed out. But don't plunk down $400+ for a 570 or 580 when the next gen is around the corner. Those new cards will be here before you know it and you'll likely regret it as nVidia's new architecture is projected to be approximately 2-3 times as powerful as the current one. Try to be patient. You'll get more life out of your system. If you absolutely must play those new games immediately, I would recommend buying a 560Ti and use your current LCD. Then when the new cards are released, buy one, buy the new monitor you want and then sell your 560Ti.

Hope that helps.

It's funny actually. I'm sort of in the same boat. I'm running a GTX280 with my Q6600 and have had no reason to upgrade for almost 4 years. I am going to stick it out until Kepler and Sandy Bridge E arrive.
 
a gtx570 can be had for 260 bucks and comes with Batman Arkham City that you can sell for 25-30 bucks. Kepler may not be out for 6 months so that should have no bearing if you need a gpu now. and waiting is not always good as we saw with Bulldozer and even the first Fermi cards.

but yeah for his current situation I would just stick with the 1680x1050 monitor and grab a gtx560 ti.
 
Approximate figures

GTX280: 100%
GTX460 1GB: 120%
GTX560: 140%
GTX560 Ti: 160%
GTX570: 175%
GTX280 SLI: 175%
GTX580: 205%
GTX460 1GB SLI: 220%
GTX560 SLI: 260%
GTX560 Ti SLI: 295%
GTX570 SLI: 320%
 
From personal experience I can say that a 570 is definitely a little faster than 280 SLI...especially in terms of minimum framerate, but also like 10-15% average as well.
 
If you do go the GTX 280 route -- I can hook you up for a good price :)

I have my BFG GTX280 OCX (666Mhz clock rate) I'm looking to sell. (includes SLI bridge)

Either way -- I know how you feel, I'm gaming on a 1920x1080 monitor as well, and was only running a single GTX.

If interested give me a shout -- I have plenty of heatware and such :-p
 
If you upgrade your monitor, go with a 6950 2GB. If you find you're not getting the performance you want from it, you can Crossfire it for not much more than a decent 560ti SLI setup and will have better performance.

If you don't upgrade your monitor, go with a 6870 1GB, simply because it's quite a bit cheaper than the 560ti's for almost as much performance. It would be more than enough at 1680x1050. This Gigabyte is only $169.99 after MIRs, and includes a free copy of DiRT3. XFX had a deal last month or the month before where it was $169.99 for a dual-fan card, but included DiRT3, Shogun 2, and Deux Ex: HR. Shop around =)
 
Also keep in mind how overclockable the 460/560's are, thats the sole reason why i havent needed a second 460 1gb yet and all i play at is 1920x1080 res
 
Get another used GTX280 for cheap to SLI and wait for the next generation of cards. That's the cheapest method. It'll be around the same performance as a 6950 or even better, depending on the games. I've owned SLI'd GTX280s and upgraded to a 6950. The only real difference is less noise, heat and power consumption of a single card.
 
ok....it looks like the final battle its gonna be between the gtx 560 ti and the 6950 ( both 2gb vram models) just because ill be upgrading my monitor from my current 22" 1680*1050 to a 24" 1920*1080, now what video card will be better ( cooler, less power consumption, faster ) and finally is it worth it to go for the 2gb vram models for my rig....thanks again ;-)
 
Will the single 560ti really be a big enough of a bump to justify the cost?

I just went 1080p on my singer 460, and it's tough to find what's worth blowing the money on for the next upgrade. I think I'm just going to wait and see whats out next.
 
slamcmy said:
ok....it looks like the final battle its gonna be between the gtx 560 ti and the 6950 ( both 2gb vram models) just because ill be upgrading my monitor from my current 22" 1680*1050 to a 24" 1920*1080, now what video card will be better ( cooler, less power consumption, faster ) and finally is it worth it to go for the 2gb vram models for my rig....thanks again ;-)
Click to expand...

2GB will be worth it at 1080p if you play top titles like Battlefield 3. The HD6950 is a better card than the GTX560Ti, more muscle behind it. The tougher things get, the better it becomes.
 
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