Need help choosing GPU

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location201

location201

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I need help choosing my GPU for my first build. I plan on using an AMD FX-8350 as my CPU with an Asus Sabertooth 990FX R2.0 motherboard. I've also got my cooling figured out. Or at least, I have it figured out for my CPU. I'm not really sure what to get for my GPU though. I plan on playing using quite a big screen with an additional (smaller) screen. What would be a good card(s) to use that are cheap but will allow me to play the latest games at a decent performance? I'm stumped on what to do for the GPU. Too many fanboys on the web to get reliable information when it comes to this. I can probably spend £300-350 on a GPU(s) and I'd be willing to buy an additional one at a later date should I need it to SLI.

So to sum it up, what GPU setup should I get that won't cost me an arm, a leg and one of my kidneys? Thanks in advance. :)
 
Solution
MeteorsRaining
For multiple screens, the first thing I'd recommend is atleast 3GB VRAM, 4GB recommended, concerning your budget.

A GTX 770 or 280X is what I'd start at, but at that range, the competition is essentially b/w 290 and 780.

I'd get 290 here 2 main reasons:

It costs much less than 780 while providing the same (if not better) performance.
It has 4GB VRAM vs 780's 3GB, which'll benefit in both multiple screens and CF in future.

Video Card: Sapphire Radeon R9 290 4GB Vapor-X Video Card (£309.59 @ Overclockers.co.uk)

^Arguably the best 290 with solid cooling and low sound levels, amongst all other competitors, will serve the purpose w/o being too much on the pocket :)
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exroofer

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R290. One with an improved cooling solution. Or R280/R280x for later crossfire. Should fit with in your card budget.

I get decent performance at 1080p now with a 7870, running second monitor at the same time. Any of the above would be a fair step up from mine.
And would be good for higher resolutions, especially the R290.
 
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MeteorsRaining

MeteorsRaining

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Jul 27, 2014
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For multiple screens, the first thing I'd recommend is atleast 3GB VRAM, 4GB recommended, concerning your budget.

A GTX 770 or 280X is what I'd start at, but at that range, the competition is essentially b/w 290 and 780.

I'd get 290 here 2 main reasons:

It costs much less than 780 while providing the same (if not better) performance.
It has 4GB VRAM vs 780's 3GB, which'll benefit in both multiple screens and CF in future.

Video Card: Sapphire Radeon R9 290 4GB Vapor-X Video Card (£309.59 @ Overclockers.co.uk)

^Arguably the best 290 with solid cooling and low sound levels, amongst all other competitors, will serve the purpose w/o being too much on the pocket :)
 
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location201

location201

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Okay. Thanks for the answers. One last further question and I'm going to probably sound a little stupid for asking this but crossfire. From my understanding it's similar to doing SLI but is the process for setting it up easier, harder or much and such the same?
 
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MeteorsRaining

MeteorsRaining

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SLI is for Nvidia GPUs.
CFX is for AMD GPUs.
Both the above mean to get 2 same model GPUs and running them on a single rig.
Much more the same process.
 
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location201

location201

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Thanks. Looks like I'll be going for the Radeon then. :)
 
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geofelt

geofelt

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The answer is simple.
Buy the most expensive graphics card that your budget and psu will allow.
At any price point, performance differences can by identified by synthetic benchmarks, but are not detectable in actual gameplay.

The screen size is unimportant, it is the resolution that taxes the graphics card.
Attaching a side monitor adds no load.
I saw no difference when I attached a side monitor to a second cheap discrete card.

Personally, I like the Nvidia cards and drivers better.
But... the R9 cards come overclocked and do show up well in synthetic benchmarks. They also run hotter and will slow down if overheated.

The FX cpu's seem to be very popular. I think because they are cheap. But, their cores are slow. Few games will ever use more than 2-3 of the 8 cores. I would spend the cooling dollars on a intel quad which will be a better gamer, even at stock.
 
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location201

location201

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Awesome. I think then, I'll do this build >http://uk.pcpartpicker.com/p/MW9rpg Though, I might make an alteration with the case when I go to buy it. Though it is slightly more than I wanted to spend. I'll probably just stick to my stock cooler as well for my CPU.
 
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location201

location201

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Nice! Thanks for all the help. I've never done a build from scratch before so I've been a little overwhelmed with choosing the parts.

 
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