GPU upgrade options; feedback wanted soon

Joseph DeGarmo · Aug 23, 2015

I will be upgrading the PSU soon and I need to decide whether to get the SeaSonic Snow Silent 750w or 1050w model depending on the future GPU configuration. I'm making my PC a full-on white / blue themed build with custom blue PSU cables. I was looking at the GTX 980 and 980 Ti HoF cards on the Galax website since the designs would fit my themed build perfectly. With DirectX 12 on the rise, I would need to find out if pairing a GTX 980 with my GTX 970 would be enough. Getting a GTX 980 Ti HoF and a 1050w PSU will cost $250 more than getting a GTX 980 + 750w PSU. I could use my existing GTX 970 as a PhysX card or a supplementary card on DirectX 12 games, but I think it's better to sell the GTX 970 and buy two GTX 980s for SLI. Should I sell the GTX 970 and get two GTX 980 HoF cards and a 750w PSU or keep my GTX 970 for now and buy a GTX 980 Ti HoF card and a 1050w PSU? I also saw an MSI GTX 980 Ti silver card, so maybe get that one instead of the Galax card? I'm planning on upgrading from a 1080p monitor to a 1440p 144 Hz G-sync monitor later on down the road.

babernet_1 · Aug 23, 2015

Hate to tell you this, but Nvidia is a fail with DirectX12. Their graphics card are actually slower while AMD's cards are about 40% faster. In fact, the AMD 290X is as fast as the 980TI. So a FuryX will be considerably faster than the 980TI. Looking forward, I'd go with a FuryX. Probably at least 35% faster than the 980TI.

Joseph DeGarmo · Aug 23, 2015

So is there a good white or silver model FuryX model I should be looking at, then? Or just get two GTX 980s for SLI?

Actually, all the FuryXs I found come in black, so nah. Maybe I should just stick with two GTX 980s in SLI then.

Mousemonkey · Aug 23, 2015

babernet_1 :

How did you determine that?

Joseph DeGarmo · Aug 23, 2015

Or could I just get an ASUS GTX 970 Turbo GPU (white card) and run it with my existing GTX 970? But I don't want my EVGA card to look black anymore.

Perhaps get custom stickers or decals for my EVGA card and place it underneath the new ASUS card to hide the black facing? Or even plasti-dip it according to these forums? http://forums.evga.com/GTX-970-FTW-Ugly-blue-decals-How-to-remove-them-m2307127.aspx

g1abhi · Aug 23, 2015

babernet_1 :

I wuld wait for a real game to come out rather than base my decision on a single benchmark. Amd wins in benchmarks anyways. Nvidia optimization wins at the end for real games

Joseph DeGarmo · Aug 23, 2015

If I mod the EVGA card with Plasti-dip, would that be considered safe? If so, then I could do that and SLI the GTX 970 and get the 750w PSU which is the cheapest route.

g1abhi · Aug 24, 2015

how about the asus gtx 970 4gb

Joseph DeGarmo · Aug 24, 2015

g1abhi :

Yeah, I'm thinking about that ASUS GTX 970 Turbo. I should not have any issues running that with an EVGA card in SLI, correct?

g1abhi · Aug 24, 2015

Joseph DeGarmo :

Yes, manually matching the clock speeds should do the trick ,so that none of them is throttled . Although i think , if you can unmount the EVGA GPU plastic plate , then spray painting it white is a better solution . Also this can make it look more awesome but will cost more:
https://www.nzxt.com/product/detail/138-kraken-g10-gpu-bracket.html

g1abhi · Aug 24, 2015

Although i found this :https://www.evga.com/support/faq/afmviewfaq.aspx?faqid=59534
Getting anything else seems risky now

Joseph DeGarmo · Aug 24, 2015

I like the option of the NZXT Kraken GPU cooler. If the blue model is a pale blue, then I'm up for that one. I want to add some blue highlights to a white build. I'd prefer a light blue color, but if only the CPU cooler and RAM sticks are navy blue, then that's fine. If I need another EVGA SSC or FTW card, will that GPU cooler be compatible with the EVGA GTX 970 SSC and FTW models?

It seems that the Kraken G10 is not compatible. And if I spray paint the EVGA cards, it could void the warranty, which is a shame. At least I'd rather keep my old GTX 970 and mod it, then just add this GTX 980 Ti. http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814127891&nm_mc=AFC-C8Junction&cm_mmc=AFC-C8Junction-PCPartPicker,%20LLC-_-na-_-na-_-na&cm_sp=&AID=10446076&PID=3938566&SID=

g1abhi · Aug 24, 2015

kraken works with evga gtx 780 , thats for sure.http://www.overclock.net/t/1487012/official-nzxt-kraken-g10-owners-club
I am 99% sure that it will work with the gtx 970 too. Why do you think it will not work ?

Joseph DeGarmo · Aug 24, 2015

I read somewhere that the cooler is compatible only with the blower style reference cards. Can anyone confirm that will work with an EVGA GTX 970 SSC ACX 2.0?

g1abhi · Aug 24, 2015

http://forums.evga.com/EVGA-GTX-970-SC-with-NZXT-Kraken-G10-and-Corsair-H90-Installed-m2284090.aspx

Joseph DeGarmo · Aug 24, 2015

Then I probably cannot install a backplate. Just for the sake of future-proofing and since the Snow Silent 1050w PSU model has a large warranty, then I think I'll just get that PSU since it's just a $50 price difference. Then I'll look into using a color mod for the EVGA card and add a new GTX 980 Ti later on. Any risks with using plasti dip on the GPU? http://www.plastidip.com/

g1abhi · Aug 25, 2015

Depends on how you apply it, it should only be on the outside , anything on the inside of the plastic plates may cause an increase in size and create problems in fitting back tothe gpu.

Joseph DeGarmo · Aug 26, 2015

Then, since the 1050w PSU is no longer on sale, I will get the 750w PSU model on newegg. As far as the GPUs are concerned, I'll go no higher than a GTX 980. However, what it looks like I will end up doing is customizing the cooler plate and backplate on my existing GPU and do the same with another EVGA GTX 970 SSC card which can be purchased at some Best Buy retail stores or online. The plasti dip looks to be the best solution since it is removable and with that being said, will not void the warranty. So the bottom line is, I will get the 750w PSU and likely add another GTX 970 for SLI to get increased performance in games like GTA V and The Witcher 3. I don't think the VRAM on a GTX 970 is much of a concern because I will go no higher than 1440p and DirectX 12 will combine the VRAM on both GPUs anyway. I'll try the plasti dip solution and see how that goes. Otherwise, I may end up getting a Galax GTX 980 HoF and trade my existing GTX 970 for another one of those for SLI.

So how does this look?

http://www.amazon.com/Pack-Plasti-Purpose-Coating-Intense/dp/B00RV4E0JK/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1440578357&sr=8-2&keywords=plasti-dip+teal&pebp=1440578354344&perid=0DZ0D3D1FY6RVAEBXDNA

Can I apply this to the PSU cables as well?

g1abhi · Aug 26, 2015

They are braided cables , i wont really do that if i want to change it in future , since it might be really hard to remove. Try it on a single cable first . and then try to remove it. You can also try sleeving for changing psu cable colors.

g1abhi · Aug 26, 2015

Joseph DeGarmo :

Then, since the 1050w PSU is no longer on sale, I will get the 750w PSU model on newegg. As far as the GPUs are concerned, I'll go no higher than a GTX 980. However, what it looks like I will end up doing is customizing the cooler plate and backplate on my existing GPU and do the same with another EVGA GTX 970 SSC card which can be purchased at some Best Buy retail stores or online. The plasti dip looks to be the best solution since it is removable and with that being said, will not void the warranty. So the bottom line is, I will get the 750w PSU and likely add another GTX 970 for SLI to get increased performance in games like GTA V and The Witcher 3. I don't think the VRAM on a GTX 970 is much of a concern because I will go no higher than 1440p and DirectX 12 will combine the VRAM on both GPUs anyway. I'll try the plasti dip solution and see how that goes. Otherwise, I may end up getting a Galax GTX 980 HoF and trade my existing GTX 970 for another one of those for SLI.

So how does this look?

http://www.amazon.com/Pack-Plasti-Purpose-Coating-Intense/dp/B00RV4E0JK/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1440578357&sr=8-2&keywords=plasti-dip+teal&pebp=1440578354344&perid=0DZ0D3D1FY6RVAEBXDNA

Can I apply this to the PSU cables as well?

Looks good , nice reviews for it.

Joseph DeGarmo · Aug 26, 2015

All right, then. Some retailers like Lowe's and CarQuest may have some in stock, so I'll check there first. I'd rather get the teal color, but it seems to only come in packs. I may look into applying it to the CPU cooler fan as well.

Joseph DeGarmo · Aug 31, 2015

So I decided to pull the trigger on the SeaSonic Snow Silent 1050w PSU since Amazon has it on sale for $209.99, $20 cheaper than Newegg. I ordered a custom white modular PSU cable set as well. As for the graphics cards, I will see if I can custom paint the backplate and attach some white electrical tape on the front panel to create a custom sticker. Then early next year, I will save money towards that silver MSI GTX 980 Ti and in 2017, sell the GTX 970 and buy a flagship Pascal card (GTX 1080 Ti or whatever it will be called). A single GTX 970 or even two of them in SLI will simply not cut it in GTA V on maxed settings due to that infamous "3.5 GB VRAM bug". Hopefully this will work out that way. Any issues with painting the backplate? Is there a required type of paint to use?

GPU upgrade options; feedback wanted soon

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