Questions about upgrading video in a 4 year old gaming rig.

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John Sheehan

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Jan 31, 2014
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I just purchased a EVGA GeForce GTX 760 4GB.

I am replacing an ASUS Radeon HD 6870 1GB.

My computer started with BSOD's a few weeks ago, and before that I noticed video degradation (higher GPU temps, freeze ups and slow downs) - so I suspect it's the video card.

I do have a few concerns though. My build is 4 years old. At the time it was decent - but the chipset is AMD as well as the CPU (Phenom II 1090T BE). The MB only has PCI Express 2.1

So, my questions are as follows:

Will I see a performance hit because of either the AMD chipset or the PCI-E 2.1 slot?

How much better is the GTX760 than the HD6870?

Will my rig hold up with more modern CPU's for the next few years?

I have been thinking of doing a whole new build - but cash is a little tight so I figured I'd try to get this one running good, then next year when I build a new system I will put SteamOS (if it takes off) on this computer and give it to my son. That's part of the reason I decided on Nvidia as Valve has been working closely with them.

I don't build much anymore. In fact, before this 2010 build, my last build was dealing with IRQ hell with modems, SCSI cards and IDE slave/master jumpers... seems that's all a thing of the past... thankfully...
 
Solution
woltej1
You probably could use a good cpu OC to keep up with modern graphics, but it is a 6 core so it might fair well. You won't see a hit because of the chipset or 2.1. I'm not sure your cpu will hold up for another few years depending on what performance you expect.

On a side note, unless you're planning to SLI that 760 with another 4gb 760, then you wasted some money as you only see performance differences between 2 and 4gb models at high resolutions and in SLI. If you can return it and save money by getting a 2gb or put a little more money into a 770.
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woltej1

woltej1

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Nov 15, 2010
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You probably could use a good cpu OC to keep up with modern graphics, but it is a 6 core so it might fair well. You won't see a hit because of the chipset or 2.1. I'm not sure your cpu will hold up for another few years depending on what performance you expect.

On a side note, unless you're planning to SLI that 760 with another 4gb 760, then you wasted some money as you only see performance differences between 2 and 4gb models at high resolutions and in SLI. If you can return it and save money by getting a 2gb or put a little more money into a 770.
 
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John Sheehan

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Jan 31, 2014
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I got the 4GB to future proof if I decide to get a 4K display - would I need another 760 in that case?
 
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aevm

aevm

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May 18, 2007
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Oh yes, if you're going to pay on a 4k monitor you will want a second GTX 760 all right.

Read this review. It's about a card made of two GTX 760 cards on a PCB. It will give you an approximation of what GTX 760 SLI does at 4k.
http://www.kitguru.net/components/graphic-cards/zardon/asus-gtx-760-mars-review-1600p-ultra-hd-4k/
 
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John Sheehan

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Jan 31, 2014
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That's what I figured. I'll keep the 4GB (got it on sale) - that way a year from now I have the option of getting another 760 if I do finally get a 4K screen (those should drop in price this year too). Right now, I paid ~$40 more for the 4GB version. Which isn't bad if it gives me more options down the road..
 
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