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What top end GPU should I get?

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  • GPUs
  • Crossfire
  • Graphics
Last response: in Graphics & Displays
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January 6, 2014 9:17:20 AM

Hello. I want to get a new GPU but not sure which one to get. I currently have two 7950s which I'm going to sell.

My options are either the 780 ti or 780 from Nvidia. And from AMD the R9 290X or 290.

The prices of the R9s are not as attractive as they were at launch and the coolers are not that great. I also read that the 290X does not scale very well in Crossfire, is this true?
I plan on adding a second card for Crossfire or SLI later so I have to consider this.

I know the 780 ti and 780 have better coolers. I read that they keep the cards cool and run quietly and of course they look great. How do these cards scale in SLI compared to the R9s in Crossfire?

I know the 780 ti is $200 more than the 780 and only gives a small performance boost over the 780 right?

I'm also considering getting 2 770s as they are powerful cards and priced well.

I'm mainly looking for suggestions and your thoughts on these cards. Thanks!

More about : top end gpu

January 6, 2014 9:20:20 AM

Pavel Pokidaylo said:
Hello. I want to get a new GPU but not sure which one to get. I currently have two 7950s which I'm going to sell.

My options are either the 780 ti or 780 from Nvidia. And from AMD the R9 290X or 290.

The prices of the R9s are not as attractive as they were at launch and the coolers are not that great. I also read that the 290X does not scale very well in Crossfire, is this true?
I plan on adding a second card for Crossfire or SLI later so I have to consider this.

I know the 780 ti and 780 have better coolers. I read that they keep the cards cool and run quietly and of course they look great. How do these cards scale in SLI compared to the R9s in Crossfire?

I know the 780 ti is $200 more than the 780 and only gives a small performance boost over the 780 right?

I'm also considering getting 2 770s as they are powerful cards and priced well.

I'm mainly looking for suggestions and your thoughts on these cards. Thanks!


Considering R9 290X third part coolers are out extremely soon, I'd get one of those if I were you, or 2 R9 290s if your case has good airflow or if you are watercooling.
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January 6, 2014 9:32:24 AM

Thanks for the response Dylzan. My case does have good airflow I think. It's the Carbide 500R. I see they already have some third party coolers on those cards but they are priced a lot higher than the reference coolers. But what about Crossfire? I want to add a second card later but I read the 290s don't scale poorly in Crossfire.

Mantle and the fact that the new gaming consoles use AMD cards might suggest that a lot more games will be geared towards AMD. What do you think about that? Is it a significant factor to consider when choosing AMD or Nvidia now?

Honestly, I really like Nvidia coolers and want to try Nvidia since I've had AMD for a long time and want to try something different but I don't know =/
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January 6, 2014 9:37:29 AM

I know that XFX plan to release their coolers at the same price as their reference card. We are still in the dark in regards to mantle, as it's up to EA and Dice to impliment it into the buggy mess of BF4 before we see the effect it has. If you're going Nvidia then the GTX 770s in SLI would probably be the best option as they offer the best price to performance at the moment.
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January 6, 2014 10:12:51 AM

Honestly, I would steer clear from the amd options and get a 780. The 780 and the 780 ti really don't have much difference between them and the 780 is quite a bit cheaper as well. Like you said, if you do get a 780, you can SLI if you the best performance possible and blow the gtx 780 ti out of the water.

Why not amd?: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NpD_r53qxJc

If you insist on going for amd, DO NOT get the R9 290X, instead get the r9 290 as it a lot cheaper and there is only a couple fps difference between them.

Hope this helps :) 
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January 6, 2014 10:32:10 AM

Considering the current prices, I would not get a reference cooler R9 290X or 290. Those Asus and Sapphire cards look good but expensive.
You are right about the 290 being almost as fast as the 290X. The 290 is also 100 bucks cheaper than the 290X. The 290 was very attractive at $400 but there were no aftermarket coolers. Now the 290 is a little faster than a 780 and it's the same price but again, I wouldn't get a reference one. And the Nvidia coolers are great.

The 780 is 200 bucks cheaper than the 780 ti but it does give less performance.

2 770s in SLI would beat even the 780 ti and for less money. I'm actually considering getting two 770s because of this but that would not leave much room for upgrading later.

How much faster would 2 780s or 2 780 tis be than 2 770s?
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January 6, 2014 10:39:30 AM

Pavel Pokidaylo said:
Considering the current prices, I would not get a reference cooler R9 290X or 290. Those Asus and Sapphire cards look good but expensive.
You are right about the 290 being almost as fast as the 290X. The 290 is also 100 bucks cheaper than the 290X. The 290 was very attractive at $400 but there were no aftermarket coolers. Now the 290 is a little faster than a 780 and it's the same price but again, I wouldn't get a reference one. And the Nvidia coolers are great.

The 780 is 200 bucks cheaper than the 780 ti but it does give less performance.

2 770s in SLI would beat even the 780 ti and for less money. I'm actually considering getting two 770s because of this but that would not leave much room for upgrading later.

How much faster would 2 780s or 2 780 tis be than 2 770s?


The 780 ti sli will be 10 fps better than the 780 at the max. difference between the 780 ti and the 770 is about 35 fps

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January 6, 2014 10:44:46 AM

well, that is a colossal difference between the 780 ti and the 770. But it also costs over twice as much.

but two 770s would be faster than a 780 ti right?
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January 6, 2014 11:56:50 AM

Pavel Pokidaylo said:
These two look pretty good... http://www.legitreviews.com/asus-r9-290x-directcu-ii-sa...

And yea 2 770s would probably be a little faster than 780 ti right? But if I get one of the 780s now I can add another later and that would blow the 770 combo away.
Yes, 770 SLI would be better than a 690 performance wise (still the most powerful graphics card)

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January 6, 2014 12:14:01 PM

So basically it's down to sli 770s now or a 780 ti/ 780 and then a second one for SLI later.
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January 6, 2014 12:42:55 PM

Pavel Pokidaylo said:
So basically it's down to sli 770s now or a 780 ti/ 780 and then a second one for SLI later.


A single card configuration is safer/more legit than sli. I will always go for powerful card rather than purchasing two less powerful cards for SLI
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