New Build - Video Card Questions and some other mid/high end builds.

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Tyhe

Honorable
Aug 20, 2013
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10,510
Hey guys!

First off, new to the forums but this seems to be an awesome community. I am in the market to build my first mid/high end gaming rig. Been debating between just getting another gaming laptop or get a gaming rig with better performance per dollar. Think I convinced myself to get an actual tower (despite how awesome the new alienware 18 looks.. over priced but it is tempting).

Anyways I digress, my question is gtx 770 sli versus 7990. What's your opinion now that 7990 can be acquired for $700? Lowest I saw a gtx 770 is still $400. With the performance between the two set ups being around ~5 fps of each other on pretty much every benchmark for some modern games, would it be better to get a 7990?

Also if I were to go the SLI route, which card should I get? The PNY GTX 770 looks pretty awesome (think that's the titan looking one). But that would probably be purely for looks. Should I go for 3GB? Is the new GTX 770 Asus ROG poseidon worth waiting for? Water blocks on a video card is an interesting prospect.

Secondly is the i5 4670 a better deal than getting the i7 4770K? Is it that big of a performance jump in everyday use (my understanding its not going affect current gen games).

Finally, what are your thoughts on liquid cooling? Necessary if you are looking to overclock? I like the noise reduction but it's quite a bit more.

 
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eversonic

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Jan 13, 2012
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18,510
I can't answer all of your questions, but I can give my opinion on a few things.
Water blocks will likely not be what you are looking for. Unless someone can prove to me otherwise it seems like a lot of $, for badly implemented brain bling. It will have to come down in price or increase in functionality to be worth it to me.

I'd love to see what people say about the SLI VS 7990 because I'm struggling with that myself this week.

Liquid cooling. I'm a huge fan of it. Depending on your climate liquid cooling makes more sense. I live in a dusty environment by nature and I clean my case way too often. I've had liquid cooling on rigs for the last 10 years and I've never regretted it (except maybe the first rig, the price was too high). I also like the closed system kits just for CPU's.

i5 4670 vs i7 4770k. You are correct, you won't notice a jump in everyday use, nor will it affect your gaming at the moment. However of the two of them the i7 should theoretically be supported longer and be more "future proofed".

PS. Towers are addictive. I have huge ugly box towers but I can't stop. Coolermasters, HAF, Obsidians.. I don't have tiny asian hands and I like having room in a case. My next rig I will try the Obsidian 900D.
 
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Someone Somewhere

Someone Somewhere

Titan
Sep 23, 2012
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7990 has microstutter issues - the frames don't come evenly.

i5-4670K is you best option if you want to OC.

Water cooling isn't always all that quiet - sometimes the pumps buzz, and good air coolers are quieter, cheaper, and better than CLLCs. Custom loops are a different matter, but you'll pay for it.
 
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T

Tyhe

Honorable
Aug 20, 2013
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10,510
I heard there were some issues with the 7990 but it was remedied with a new driver? I don't know if I remember reading that or remember someone complaining about that. Still though I hear the 7990 can certainly hold its own and relatively future proof. My thinking behind the 7990 route is it's minimum $100 less (assuming you get the most basic GTX 770 at $400) and if I want more performance a year down the road I can purchase another 7990 and run it crossfired.

What I hear about the i7 is it is a lot of wasted potential because nothing takes full advantage of it unless you do video editing or CAD.

Also what motherboard do you guys recommend. It is kind of hard to go through the reviews on newegg because I feel like someone complains about the BIOS on every motherboard. The only big deal breaking complaint on any of them is the sound card or perhaps the lack of space.

I am also not convinced with the waterblocks. I am pretty sure they are unnecessary and only for aesthetics.
 
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T

Tyhe

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Aug 20, 2013
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10,510
So running crossfire 7990 is probably not a good idea then. Fair enough. But as a standalone card does it still present the stuttering (even after the so called fix?). Just wondering if it has to do with heat and bad fan design or something with the card itself.
 
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