Selecting a final graphics card

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Karen Lynn

Karen Lynn

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Nov 17, 2013
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I have the money, ready to buy my new graphics card, and I'm wanting tips/info/suggestions.

Current build:
Gigabyte 990FXA UD3
AMD FX-4350
Crucial Ballistix Tactical (8gb stick)

I'm looking between the GTX 760 and the R9 270X. I'd like tips on this decision, and any experience the community has with the lines. I'm not too hung up on brands, but lean slightly towards gigabyte, and (cheesy, but...) that the PCB is black.

For the R9 270X:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814125496

For the GTX 760:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814125494
 
Solution
geofelt
All the guts of nvidia cards are exactly the same.
The cards differ in the aftermarket cooles and the amount of factory overclocking.
If you live in the US, EVGA is about the best choice. They have an active USA based user forum.

In general, graphics cooler sound is proportional to the rpm that the fans need to run at.
Blower fans are usually a bit smaller, but they will tend to run slower because they get cooler air to work with.
If you buy a stronger card, it will not need to work so hard and the noise will not be an issue.
Check out some comparison reviews with cards mounted inside a case.
I can only comment that my GTX780 does not have a noise issue. Ever. I hear the case fans more.

There is always some limiting factor. CPU or...
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geofelt

geofelt

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Oct 9, 2006
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The GTX760 is considered slightly stronger than the R9 270X.
It would take a synthetic benchmark to tell the difference.
The R9 cards are heavily overclocked so they need better coolers. In general, they run hotter and noisier than their nvidia equivalents.
Regardless, both cards you listed have 4gb of vram.
The extra cost over 2gb is probably not worth it.
Read this: http://www.pugetsystems.com/labs/articles/Video-Card-Performance-2GB-vs-4GB-Memory-154/

I might pick this evga gtx760 superclock:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814130934
It's boost is the same as the windforce and comes cheaper.
I also like the direct exhaust cooler which gets hot air out of your case directly and keeps your cpu cooler.
 
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Karen Lynn

Karen Lynn

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Nov 17, 2013
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ClutchC: Thanks for the info and tips.

Geofelt: How is EVGA's track record on reliability? I've never had experience with them.

How is the sound and quality of the blower style/direct exhaust cooler?

Edit: I won't have much bottlenecking with this set up, will I?
 
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xxthunder256xx

xxthunder256xx

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May 19, 2013
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I'd go with the GTX 760. It is slightly faster in general, and also has support for Shadowplay, which believe me, is the best recording software there is.
This is definitely a plus because of the 0 fps loss, although on a 4350 you might lose 3 or 4 sometimes, which is still unbelievable.

And to answer your earlier question, no there won't be any bottleneck. The only slight downside is in large servers or the 3 or 4 fps in Shadowplay.
 
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geofelt

geofelt

Titan
Oct 9, 2006
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All the guts of nvidia cards are exactly the same.
The cards differ in the aftermarket cooles and the amount of factory overclocking.
If you live in the US, EVGA is about the best choice. They have an active USA based user forum.

In general, graphics cooler sound is proportional to the rpm that the fans need to run at.
Blower fans are usually a bit smaller, but they will tend to run slower because they get cooler air to work with.
If you buy a stronger card, it will not need to work so hard and the noise will not be an issue.
Check out some comparison reviews with cards mounted inside a case.
I can only comment that my GTX780 does not have a noise issue. Ever. I hear the case fans more.

There is always some limiting factor. CPU or GPU.
For a balanced gamer, I suggest a graphics card that is about 2x the cost of the cpu.
That puts your FX-4350 and GTX760 at exactly the right relationship.

You will want about a 500w psu to power the GTX760.

 
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Solution
Karen Lynn

Karen Lynn

Honorable
Nov 17, 2013
22
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10,520
Thanks, Geofelt. Everyone gave great answers, but I'm giving the green box to Geo for the delving into details.

Seriously, thanks, all of you.

I'm running a corsair CXM 750, so I know I've the power.
 
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