Advice on GPU upgrades

revaew · Apr 9, 2014

So right now I have a GTX 770 2GB. I want to move into the realm of 1440p gaming or 120Hz+ monitors. So I am wondering what would be the potentially most feasible way to upgrade my rig. Should I go for a 770 SLI set up or should I get something like a 780/780ti? If I got the 780/780ti, I would eventually want to get a second one to SLI those together, but this also brings up the issue of my PSU and how I would need to upgrade it. Would it be worth the performance gains to upgrade my PSU in order to go the 780/780ti SLI route? I probably don't plan on really overclocking at all either. Thanks

Specs:

i7-3770k
8GB G.Skill
ASRock Extrem4
EVGA GTX 770 2GB
Corsair TX 750
HAF 932
Sandisk 120GB SSD
2TB Seagate HDD

aatje92 · Apr 9, 2014

Since you already have an 770 i'd say SLI that mofo

PSU should be fine

But if you want to expand in the future you are stuck to your 2 770's. So a single card would be better but budget unfriendly for you right now.

Danbuscus25 · Apr 9, 2014

that psu will handle a single 770, 780, or 780ti, but it doesnt have quite enough amps on the 12v rail for sli. i would go with a single 780ti.

maurelie · Apr 9, 2014

You will need more than 2GB of RAM for 1440p and up. Since the GTX 770 you have is 2GB of VRAM, adding another 2GB GTX 770 will stay at 2GB of VRAM. Get the GTX 780 or Ti if possible

revaew · Apr 9, 2014

I'm not so much concerned with the budget per se. If the gains from upgrading the psu and going to 780 route were enough to "off-set" the cost, then I would be willing to do it. Obviously 780 ti's SLI'd would be more capable than 770's SLI'd, but would it be a big enough margin to justify the extra cost of the cards themselves plus a PSU upgrade? If I am not mistaken, 750W is not enough to do 780 SLI, and I would need a minimum of 850W. Also, If I did do 770's I was already looking into getting a 4GB set instead. I could do the EVGA trade up program still. So that offsets it a bit.

Danbuscus25 · Apr 9, 2014

well, its not always about watts, you need enough amps. so, your current psu can only handle 1 of those cards, so i would suggest you get a 780ti, and later if you want to sli it then get another psu with atleast 84 amps.

revaew · Apr 9, 2014

So I would need to upgrade my PSU regardless if I wanted SLI then?

aatje92 · Apr 9, 2014

Your current psu will be fine if it has enough connections.

revaew · Apr 9, 2014

It has enough connectors for SLI, so it would be able to handle to 770's? And if so, I am aware that two 2GB cards still only uses 2GB, so would stepping up my current card to 4GB and then getting another 4GB card yield a more cost effect performance boost than getting a single 4GB 780ti?

Danbuscus25 · Apr 9, 2014

no, your current psu can not handle 770, 780, or 780ti sli. yes, it has enough connectors, but it cant deliver enough power. if you tried to sli them, once you start playing a game your pc will shut off, and the psu will likely get damaged.

revaew · Apr 9, 2014

so, factoring in the need for a better PSU, would stepping up my current card to 4GB and then getting another 4GB card yield a more cost effect performance boost than getting a single 4GB 780ti?

Danbuscus25 · Apr 9, 2014

ok, the best route you can take is to get a single 780ti, or even r9 290x if you would prefer, and keep your psu. in the furure, when you want more performance in future games, you can buy a second 780ti/r9 290x and sli/crossfire them, and get a better psu. as of now, both the 780ti and r9 290x can max out any game at 1080p.

revaew · Apr 9, 2014

Well I was looking to do 1440p not 1080p. Does that change your response at all?

Danbuscus25 · Apr 9, 2014

well, a 780ti should play games at 1440 on ultra. how many monitors do you use?

revaew · Apr 9, 2014

Right now I am just using a 32" Samsung tv. I don't own an actual monitor at the moment and I was going to be getting one so I decided I wanted to try and move up to 1440p. I am not entirely sold on a multi-monitor set up either because I move around alot for my job as well as I live someplace different on weekends vs the weekdays.

Danbuscus25 · Apr 9, 2014

ok, well for 1 monitor/tv you would want the 780ti, for multi monitor setup you want the r9 290x for the extra vram.

revaew · Apr 9, 2014

should I take Mantle into consideration for this as well? and does the extra VRAM on the 290x actually make a large enough difference or would that only be if I was getting the multiple monitors?

Danbuscus25 · Apr 9, 2014

well, with mantle, game developers will be making games able to better use mantle. so, the 780ti and r9 290x are pretty much neck and neck, however, most r9 290x cards are REALLY long, most full towers cant even support it without removing drive bays. so, the avarage length of the r9 290x is about 340mm ish, so most mid tower cases are ok aslong as you remove a drive bay to fit it. so, if you are planning on multi monitors, or will be playing at really high res, like 1440 and up, go with the r9 290x. if only 1 monitor and under 1440p, then the 780ti would be better.

revaew · Apr 9, 2014

So for one monitor at 1440p, the r9 290x would give me more of what I would be looking for?

Danbuscus25 · Apr 9, 2014

they are very close, but at 1440p then the r9 290k is just barely on top. if you can find a 780ti for significantly cheaper than a 290x, like $60 cheaper or more then you will probly wanna get that.

revaew · Apr 9, 2014

ok. and if I went with the 290x or the 780ti, would the current PSU be enough to OC the CPU if I needed it? I have read that a stock 17-3770k can bottle neck an r290 or 780ti at 1440p.

Danbuscus25 · Apr 9, 2014

yes, you have enough room for OC'ing, just make sure your cpu has good cooling. and i doubt the i7 3770k will bottleneck them, but ive never own it so im not 100% sure.

revaew · Apr 9, 2014

Ok cool. Thanks for all the input.

Advice on GPU upgrades

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