Upgrade or SLI

Xytnz

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Currently I have one GPU.
It's a Zodac Nvidia GeForce G 630, with 4GB of dedicated memory.

I'm wondering if I should upgrade my GPU, and get something better (what would you recommend), or if I should purchase another and connect them via SLI.

I prefer playing games like Assassin's Creed, Skyrim, and the like.
 
If gaming is your first priority then upgrade the graphs card. I would say a graphics card below GTX 650 is not design for gaming. Do you have a budget and I may be able to help you find one?

I would only SLI if I game on multiple monitors or on a 4K monitors.
 

subliminalaffect

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There's alot of variables to that question. What kind of setup do you have now? What resolution do you play at? I'd upgrade the card if your power supply can support it. It seems silly to sli a lower tiered card for gaming. How much do you want to spend?
 

Xytnz

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I only game on one monitor, it's resolution is at 1600x900, and I am not currently looking to upgrade the display for quite a while.
As for the GPU; I am looking for something that's good, but not too terribly expensive.
Could you give me a few examples in each budget range (entry, med, high)?
Thanks!
 
The GTX 770 is recommended for the games you will be playing. But you could go with AMD if you don't need to record with Shadowplay (a free recording software for users with a Nvidia card).

For AMD, I recommend the R9 290 instead.

Just to add the 900 series will be released soon. ;)

Edit: Don't bother to spend the GTX 780 IMO. I pan to get the GTX 770 and did my research and has great benchmarks. :D
 


What's your CPU, RAM, motherboard, Operating System (32 or 64 bit) and PSU?

Let's see what you are running before you buy a videocard that won't improve performance.
 

Xytnz

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It's in my signature.
OS Windows 8.1 Pro, 64-bit.
 


Why do you only have 10 GB of RAM usable?
How much is installed?


I would go with the 760 IMHO, You'll Bottleneck on your CPU with the 770 or higher. You are better off buying a new CPU with the price difference.
 

Xytnz

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I have 12Gb installed. 2x4gb, and 2x2gb RAM sticks.
 
Take out the 2x2. All of your DDR3 RAM needs to match. That's hurting your performance. Your copy of Windows isn't even reading the RAM correctly, that's why it's reporting only 10 usable. That's a hardware error.

Use only 2 x 4 sticks in the two dual channel slots. If you want to increase your RAM, you need to buy a matching kit. You can't mix/match DDR3 RAM.
 

Xytnz

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I didn't know that.
should I got with 4x2gb, or just 2x4gb?
 


It's a dual channel motherboard, only go with 2x4.
Using two pairs of RAM stick in all 4 DIMM slots in a dual channel motherboard board is actually less stable, and often slower, than just 2 sticks paired correctly.

DDR3 RAM is very fast, and as a result, it needs to be paired correctly or it can cause instability and performance issues. That's why they generally sell it in matching kits, it's two sticks of RAM that were tested together to guarantee compatibility. Or 3 sticks for triple channel. Or 4 sticks for quad channel.