Gigabyte GeForce GTX 960 2 way SLI vs 970

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DarkTron

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Hello!

I plan on buying a gaming PC, and I wanted to ask you out there which one of my ideas on buying a graphics card is the best. I wanna play League of Legends, Minecraft modpacks with shader, Heroes of the Storm, Garrys Mod, GTA V and games like that.

My options are:

- Buy one Gigabyte GeForce GTX 970 Gaming G1
http://www.gigabyte.com/products/product-page.aspx?pid=5209#ov

If I buy one 970, I will get a H97 Mobo and probably just 8 instead of 16GB Ram. At the moment, so at the start of this build i wont be overclocking, because I would need a Z97 board wich is more expensive, an extra cooler and a Intel K processor

- Buy one Gigabyte GeForce GTX 960 Gaming G1
http://www.gigabyte.com/products/product-page.aspx?pid=5400#ov

If I buy one 960 with 4GB VRam, i can 2 way SLI it after like 1 year, so I can (and kind of have to because of the ability to 2 way SLI) get a Z97 Mobo, 16GB Ram, and still a non K processor, but I can buy one later, probably when Intel releases their new 1150 processors.

I hope you understand what I want to know :D

Thanks for every help.

 
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junkeymonkey

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why not look at reviews and read whats said ??

Value and Conclusion
http://www.techpowerup.com/reviews/NVIDIA/GeForce_GTX_960_SLI/25.html


this was interesting to me in it ..

Since this is our first multi-GPU review after new-generation consoles settled into the market, we noticed a worrying trend in game engines (particularly with cross-platform games for new-generation consoles) where deferred rendering doesn't take advantage of multi-GPU setups; in games such as Dead Rising, Assassin's Creed: Unity, or Ryse. A tell-tale sign of such an engine would be the lack of MSAA support. That could spell trouble for not just a SLI setup with affordable graphics cards as it could also hit NVIDIA's enthusiast-grade multi-GPU market hard, including its flagship dual-GPU solutions.
 
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RobCrezz

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The 960 4gb sli would outperform the 970. However, you may find it hard to find one retail in a years time. I know many people have trouble finding GTX 770 4gb version for SLI currently.

I would recommend going for the 970. 8gb of system ram will be enough.
.
There isnt much performance benefit (for the cost) to overclocking the CPU
 
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ExtreamChaozZ

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I would go with the one gtx 970 build as for starter it allows you to upgrade to sli gtx 970 for more performance, plus you don't really need 16gb or ram for gaming 8gb is the sweet spot at the moment. Plus if you ever want to water cool there are blocks for the 970 and I don't think there are blocks for 960 yet. Hope this helps mate :)
 
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DarkTron

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Ok, thanks for the advice!
 
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McDuncun

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Dude with the extra VRAM the 960 looks alot more appealing for sure, but the reality is that giving it more than 2 gb of ram is in my opinion because they gave it 2 gb for a reason, the reason being again as my knowledge about this goes is that for a GPU to be able to accommodate more ram that it was built for in the beginning is, it must be able to actually fill up all the ram in the first place.

That`s why I think they gave it 2gb to start as the GM206 chip is only powerfull enough to fill up around about 2gb or a little bit more maybe. I`d say going sli with 2 960`s is very nice and the scaling is good given the power of them in the first place. I`d still go with a single 970 and sli that later on. Whilst you can still change your mind... Go for that...
 
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DarkTron

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Well, thanks! If you say 8GB ram are enough, Ill get that for now, I can upgrade them to 16GB in one year if I want. If I now got 16GB, so 2x8GB I could possibly go for 32GB after some time, but I guess soon there will be a new socket, a new chipset with DDR4 Ram and so on...
For water cooling: I will probably get a Water cooling for CPU once, like Corsair H105 or something if I'm once going to overclock my CPU, but I wont do anything on my graphics card with water :D
The idea to probably get 2 970s in like a year is also good, but what would you say if I get the 970:

Should I still go for the Z97 Mobo so I can get a K series processor in a year and overclock it and get a second 970 too, or will I be fine with the H97 without overclocking or second GPU?
 
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DarkTron

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Ok, thanks but again as I just replied to someone else:

Should I still go for the Z97 Mobo so I can get a K series processor in a year and overclock it and get a second 970 too, or will I be fine with the H97 without overclocking or second GPU?
 
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Brunostako

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If you want to SLI in the future you will need a Z97 MoBo, those are the only mobos that come with SLI-Ready (only some models, check if the mobo is SLI-ready). None of the H97 mobos come with SLI compatibility.
 
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junkeymonkey

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''We find 2GB is shy yet sufficient, 4GB offer you a little breathing space, but do not expect miracles in performance.''

''do remember that when you open up your wallet. Purchasing this product to game at WQHD / 2560x1440 is not advised though, 1080P is the space and domain of the GeForce GTX 960.''

http://www.guru3d.com/articles_pages/gigabyte_geforce_gtx_960_g1_gaming_4gb_review,26.html

and don't forget the giga 970 got a lower end user 54% rating at newegg over the the msi-68% and evga [there older now dated card ] 61% --

lots recommend giga as best but then why a low satisfaction rating ?? if the best it should be high?? [opinion]
 
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McDuncun

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Well that mainly depends on the cpu your going for... I`d say be safe and go for a Z97 and a K but a 4690 i5 non k can handle 970`s even though being on the lvl... An i7 4790 will do it no problem... Not to mention 2 960`s... I`d say go Z and K but if you budget dictates otherwise then go straight up H and Non-K
 
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DarkTron

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Now I don't know what I'll get yet, but it will be a Z97, most likely without 2 Way SLI because that +30€ again and +30€ for a better power supply.
But another question: Will the 970 work with a i5 4460?
 
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