Looking for graphics-card upgrade advice (GTX 770)

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RetroGFX

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Jan 4, 2014
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I have a computer with an i5-2500k and a Radeon 6950 HD which has served me well for the past two years. It has started to be a little sluggish on the newest games while on high settings and what I usually do when this happens is to upgrade my entire rig; PC, mobo, gfx, ram, everything.

Since it looks like the i5-2500k still holds its own when it comes to gaming, I've been thinking that it might be worth it to only upgrade the graphics-card this time. The range of cards I've looked that seems to suit my needs the best is an iteration of the GTX 770. The R9 280x is actually more expensive than the GTX 770 in my country, so that seems like a no brainer.

So my question is: Is it worth it to upgrade only my graphics-card to a GTX 770 and leave the rest of the computer as it is? Will I experience enough of a performance boost so that it justifies a 390 USD expense.

Additionally, it looks like the MSI GTX 770 Lightning is the card that gets recommended the most out of the 770s here on the forums, but that is almost 90 USD more expensive than, say, the Asus GTX 770 OC edition in my country. To me the advantages of the MSI Lightning over the Asus OC card doesn't seem to justify an additional 100 USD.

I'd be thankful for any advice.
 
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jeremyp79

jeremyp79

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Jan 9, 2012
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The 2500k is a great cpu, no need to upgrade it. As for the gpu, the differences between the manufacturers will not be much in terms of fps, so get the one you like and can afford. I personally use an EVGA gtx 770 sc w/acx cooling, and I love it :)
 
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azzazel_99

azzazel_99

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Apr 19, 2008
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If you get the 770 I would say get the 4gb version as bf4 in alot of maps and situations uses over 2gb vram. Having said that evga is def the company to go with! I run the 2500k also and a gtx560ti classified from evga. I have my 2500k clocked at 4.4ghz and also run my gpu overclocked and let me tell you the 2500k at 4.4ghz is I do believe faster than the amd 8350 and it def holds its own and begs to be overclocked.
 
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thegameon

thegameon

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Mar 7, 2011
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make sure oc your cpu wel above 4.2ghz and what your budget on the gpu cuz 770 is nice wont last u too long like a year later ull get 40 50 fps maybe unless ur planiing to sli it, if not then get 780ti its simpy insane and it will last u for 2 years for sure
 
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Hunterr

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Dec 29, 2013
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Even though the r9 280x is expensive , i would go for it as it has 3GB . BF4 uses around 1.5 GB . 3GB would be more ideal for next gen games. i
currently own one right now and its great . But if you want the 4GB Gtx 770 can be another choice.
 
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MS S Sapto

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Nov 14, 2013
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just upgrade the gpu and you will be fine and ya that 2gigs of gpu ram isnt enough for games like bf4 and some other 2014 popular games so go with what ever brand you like asus and msi they are both good as hell i personally use asus though but ya go for the 4gig ver of 770 and you will be fine :)
 
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ProWilma

ProWilma

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Oct 30, 2013
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Your CPU and other components are fine and are powerful enough. You are absolutely correct in saying that the additional hundred dollars required for a lightning version does not justify its extra expense. The asus card has a terrific CUii cooler that will provide more than enough cooling headroom for overclocking. My personal recommendation is to find a 770 from EVGA, their customer support, mod ability and RMA policy is unmatched, I don't know what country you're from but the EVGA version should be similar to the asus version.
 
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jaggedIT

jaggedIT

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Feb 17, 2014
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NVIDIA GeForce GTX 770 $339-390 Bench=11310 it can play almost all games on ultra settings!!!

here is its number on the 3d mark test number 8
27d8ee24c1a6a08cad7e837c395b55b8-400-256


as to your cpu...here is a cheap i7
Intel-Core-i7-4700MQ-front.jpg
vs
Intel-Core-i5-2500K-front.jpg


Reasons to consider the
Intel Core i7 4700MQ vs i5-2500k


Report a correction



Is hyperthreaded
Yes vs No Somewhat common; Maximizes usage of each CPU core

Newer manufacturing process
22 nms vs 32 nms A newer manufacturing process allows for a more powerful, yet cooler running processor

Significantly lower typical power consumption
38.19W vs 112.55W 2.9x lower typical power consumption

More number of displays supported
3 vs 2 1 more number of displays supported

Significantly higher Maximum Operating Temperature
100 °C vs 72.6 °C Around 40% higher Maximum Operating Temperature

Significantly better performance per watt
22.31 pt/W vs 6.37 pt/W Around 3.5x better performance per watt

Marginally newer
Jun, 2013 vs Jan, 2011 Release date over 2 years later

Better PassMark score
7,946 vs 6,383 Around 25% better PassMark score

Better turbo clock speed
1,150 MHz vs 1,100 MHz Around 5% better turbo clock speed

Much lower annual home energy cost
11.32 $/year vs 41.29 $/year 3.6x lower annual home energy cost

Significantly lower annual commercial energy cost
41.17 $/year vs 110.03 $/year 2.7x lower annual commercial energy cost


my answer is yes its worth it!!!

 
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mathieub

mathieub

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Jan 6, 2014
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The GTX770 is a great card, go with the gigabyte version since the windforce cooling system on it is probably the best one available at the moment without having to put on your own custom cooling. As for 2GB vs 4GB the 4GB of vRam will only be needed if youre running 4K resolutions if youre doing 1080 you might as well save yourself the money sinc e you wont be filling it.
 
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Augman11

Augman11

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Jan 21, 2013
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A couple words of advice:
-avoid SLI/X-fire, they still haven't perfected it. Some people have luck, but its more trouble than it is worth.
-the 770 would be a great choice for an upgrade for you
-Take a visit to passmark.com when comparing video-cards, It will be your best friend. In fact i looked up your card vs. the 770 and you will get almost a double in performance.
-Your I5 is nice, no need to upgrade.

http://www.videocardbenchmark.net/gpu.php?gpu=Radeon+HD+6950
http://www.videocardbenchmark.net/gpu.php?gpu=GeForce+GTX+770
 
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R

Rami Zerker Reini

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Mar 20, 2014
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The GTX 770 is 4% better then the R9 280x but R9 280x does have 1GB more VRAM which is really helpful. If you want max performance go for the (Asus, I don't think you have to buy the Lightning since GTX 770 is beast anyway.) GTX 770. You could sacrifice 4% of performance and go with the R9 280x for more VRAM. Tough choice.
 
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R

Raxnos

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Jan 18, 2015
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Have you considered the 970? It's a bit cheaper than the 770 you suggested and runs quite a bit faster, plus I doubt your CPU would bottleneck the graphics card that much / at all. (source:http://gpuboss.com/gpus/GeForce-GTX-970-vs-GeForce-GTX-770). Also, just to make a bit more money to put back into the system, have you considered selling your old card? You could list on eBay or sell it to a friend or something. Oh, and over clocking you CPU could be a good idea (as long as you do it right) it just depends on how good your CPU cooler and the airflow in your case are.
 
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