Noob needs help upgrading GPU

bardoodla · Aug 2, 2015

Just finished my first build a month ago and my buddy let me use his ATI 5750 card to save some money. Looking to upgrade. I have an ASUS|M5A99FX PRO R2.0 990FX AM3+ M/B and was looking into the MSI GTX 970 GAMING 100ME card. Just wondering if that would work or if you guys have any better recommendations. I play games like both Metro's, the witcher series, elder scrolls and want to try out the crysis series. Thanks

rcald2000 · Aug 2, 2015

What are you full system specs. Please includes your power supply's mfg/model/wattage, as that's very important information.

bardoodla · Aug 2, 2015

rcald2000 :

bardoodla · Aug 2, 2015

It's an antec EA-430-430watt max, figured I'd probably need an upgrade there as well. 500 gb SSD, 8gb ram, AMD FX-6300 Vishera 6-core

RockyPlays · Aug 2, 2015

How much are you willing to spend?

RockyPlays · Aug 2, 2015

If you have that Psu, you can only really get a GTX 960, which also has a 100me edition. But if you upgrade the psu you will have much more options.

rcald2000 · Aug 2, 2015

@barboodla, I'm very good at spending other people's money. I always like to recommend that when people have to upgrade that they go up to a 850 watt tier 1 or 2 PSU. The reason is that 850 watts is enough wattage for the user to upgrade to two top tier Nvidia cards with moderate overclocking in the future, if they want. But if money is tight then we can help you find something cheaper.

*** power requirements for graphics cards ***
http://www.realhardtechx.com/index_archivos/Page362.htm

*** PSU tier list ***
http://www.tomshardware.co.uk/forum/id-2547993/psu-tier-list.html

rcald2000 · Aug 2, 2015

* First PSU is enough wattage for up-to a single GTX 980 Ti. The second card is enough wattage for up to two GTX 980 Ti's in SLI. Obviously they are both more than enough for your GTX 970.

EVGA SuperNOVA GS 220-GS-0650-V1 80 PLUS GOLD 650 W 5 yr Warranty ECO Mode Fully Modular
$84.99 after $10.00 rebate card
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817438048&cm_re=evga_gs_650-_-17-438-048-_-Product

EVGA 220-G2-0850-XR 80 PLUS GOLD 850 W 10 yr Warranty ECO Mode Fully Modular
$129.99 after $20.00 rebate card
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817438018&cm_re=evga_g2_850-_-17-438-018-_-Product

bardoodla · Aug 2, 2015

Should I shoot for something that could put out 600-650? Or would that be overkill? I found a Corsair(heard that was a good brand?) for a decent price. Will there be a big difference between the 960 and 970? Again very new at this so be gentle.

rcald2000 · Aug 2, 2015

Depends which Corsair. Corsair CX is not a good power supply. You can check the tier list I posted below and pick out something that suites you. You could get away with a 550 watt tier 1 or 2. I only recommended no less than 650, so that you had room to upgrade passed the GTX 970 in the future. The chose is yours.

bardoodla · Aug 2, 2015

See neither of those EVGA's are too expensive, the 980 however is a bit much for me. I see what you're saying with the extra wattage for future purchases. What do you guys think about AMD cards?

bardoodla · Aug 2, 2015

I think I will heed your advice with the 850w EVGA, not too pricey, 10 year warranty and I feel like I'll be able to use it for years to come. Thanks rcald2000 you're the man

rcald2000 · Aug 2, 2015

I like AMD cards. But be aware that they generally use more wattage than their Nvidia counterparts. I see a lot of people talking about MSI's R9 390 lately. If I was getting one, I'd probably try to find a good deal on a used 290X on Ebay if possible. I like finding deals on older generation stuff. I don't have experience with their latest offerings, but I've heard that the R9 390 doesn't have much room for overclocking, while the GTX 970 definitely does. I love the 970's. I think they should be $50 cheaper at this point, but Nvidia didn't ask my opinion =>

rcald2000 · Aug 2, 2015

I have the 850 unit myself. Actually I own two 850's, two 1300's (all gold efficiency) and one 1200 (platinum efficiency). I think they are good units for the the quality that you get. I have the two 850's for my friend's and mom's build that I'm working on, I have two 1300's because my video card came with a 50% off coupon on PSU's, and I used my friend's coupon as well. I bought the 1200 before I knew about the coupons.

bardoodla · Aug 2, 2015

I think I'll go with the 850 evga and possibly even evga's 970 if not the MSI. You've been more help then anyone else I could find and will keep you in mind for future inquiries, thanks again good sir

rcald2000 · Aug 2, 2015

Anytime. I'm gaming noob myself. I do IT for hedge funds, but needed something to help me relax. Playing games and flying single prop airplanes is my thing now. Enjoy this wonderful weekend man.

bardoodla · Aug 2, 2015

rcald2000 :

bardoodla · Aug 2, 2015

You too dude, one more thing and you probably already answered this but the 970 will work with that M/B right? Gaming noob, what are you playing now?

rcald2000 · Aug 2, 2015

Good question. Yes, even though the card is PCIe 3.0 x16, and your slots are PCie 2.0 x16, it'll work. It'll work because it's backwards compatible by one generation. You have two slots that'll support that card. FYI: It's possible that you'll need to update your BIOS to have the card run smoothly but that really shouldn't be a big deal. Try the card without updating the BIOS and see if it works. If not then update the BIOS.

*** motherboard slot specs ***
2 x PCIe 2.0 x16 (dual x16)
2 x PCIe 2.0 x16 (x4 mode, black)
1 x PCIe 2.0 x1
1 x PCI

bardoodla · Aug 2, 2015

rcald2000 :

Good question. Yes, even though the card is PCIe 3.0 x16, and your slots are PCie 2.0 x16, it'll work. It'll work because it's backwards compatible by one generation. You have two slots that'll support that card. FYI: It's possible that you'll need to update your BIOS to have the card run smoothly but that really shouldn't be a big deal. Try the card without updating the BIOS and see if it works. If not then update the BIOS.

*** motherboard slot specs ***
2 x PCIe 2.0 x16 (dual x16)
2 x PCIe 2.0 x16 (x4 mode, black)
1 x PCIe 2.0 x1
1 x PCI

bardoodla · Aug 2, 2015

You looking to sell any of those PSU's?

rcald2000 · Aug 2, 2015

No, I plan on using most of them for builds and then keeping one on the shelf for redundancy.

bardoodla · Aug 3, 2015

rcald you still there for help? what's the difference in these 2 psu's? EVGA 220-GS-0850-V1 and the EVGA 220-G2-0850-XR. Is one a newer version, they seem to be basically the same to me.

RockyPlays · Aug 3, 2015

bardoodla :

The G2 is made by superflower and is an incredible psu. The GS is made by Seasonic and is also very high quality. Supposedly the GS might be slightly quieter. They are both very good Power supplies and I say buy whichever is cheaper, if they were the same price I would say go with the G2 as it is the best Power Supply you can buy for that price, but seeing how there is little to no difference between them, get whichever is cheapest. You cannot go wrong with either.

rcald2000 · Aug 3, 2015

* Both are rated tier one by Tom's Hardware experts. Both are highly rated by JonnyGuru. Personally I prefer the G2 over the GS, but you can't go wrong with either. I only buy G2 and P2 models, but I'm just overly picky. There is absolutely nothing wrong with the GS model.

EVGA Supernova GS 850W
* manufactured by Seasonic
* functionality and build quality rated 9.5 out of 10
http://www.jonnyguru.com/modules.php?name=NDReviews&op=Story&reid=414

EVGA Supernova G2 850W
* manufactured by Super Flower
* functionality rated 10, and build quality rated 9.5
http://www.jonnyguru.com/modules.php?name=NDReviews&op=Story&reid=377

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