Buying Graphics, Need Advice

Tydude · Sep 17, 2015

I'm Looking to upgrade my PC by getting a new Graphics card I'm Buying and a new 1080p display: Acer XB270H Abprz 27-inch Display Full HD NVIDIA G-SYNC I'm asking for my birthday. The thing is I don't know what Graphics card I should get. I have a budget of around $300 and was wondering if I needed 4GB or 2GB card if I wanted to have high to ultra settings on games and run smoothly. I can only do NVIDIA because the monitor I'm wanting to get has G-SYNC on it. I hope you smart people can help me out.

Specs:
Intel Core i5-4440
NVIDIA GeForce GT 635 1GB GDDR5
8GB DDR3 Memory

itmoba · Sep 17, 2015

With a $300 video card budget, I recommend the Nvidia GTX 970.

Tydude · Sep 17, 2015

itmoba :

Ya that's what I was thinking but I wasn't sure
I'm going to put my specs up if you want to recommend a different one.

jloch21 · Sep 17, 2015

R9 390

Tydude · Sep 17, 2015

jloch21 :

Is that better than the 970?

jloch21 · Sep 17, 2015

In my opinion it is. People say different things. It has the 8GB of vram and is more future proof. Yes it runs hotter and uses more power but I think it is better than the 970.

pete_101 · Sep 17, 2015

Before deciding on the 970 or 390. What size is your PSU? As this will determine if you even have the power to run them or if a new PSU has to be worked into your budget.

Tydude · Sep 17, 2015

pete_101 :

How do I check?

17seconds · Sep 17, 2015

Your "dilemma" is actually pretty easy, pick your price point and get the card that fits your budget. Since you're getting a GSync monitor, you don't need to wade through the nonsense of people trying to recommend AMD after you've already expressed a preference, in bold no less.

At $300, there are plenty of GTX 970s available, including some of the top models going for $299: Gigabyte G1, MSI Gaming, and EVGA ACX.

Here's the latest chart from TechPowerUp:

http://www.techpowerup.com/reviews/AMD/R9_Nano/30.html

jloch21 · Sep 17, 2015

Sorry my bad just read new graphics card and 1080p

pete_101 · Sep 17, 2015

Tydude :

That's strange, I replied to this but don't see it anyway, so I'll answer again.
To check your PSU, either remove the side panel and see how many Watts it is and how many Amps on the 12V rail. Or if it's a prebuild, post the make and model and I'll look up what size PSU it has.

Tydude · Sep 18, 2015

pete_101 :

Tydude :

That's strange, I replied to this but don't see it anyway, so I'll answer again.
To check your PSU, either remove the side panel and see how many Watts it is and how many Amps on the 12V rail. Or if it's a prebuild, post the make and model and I'll look up what size PSU it has.

It's 280 Watts

17seconds · Sep 18, 2015

Tydude :

You will need to upgrade your power supply.

Here is Guru3D's power supply recommendation:
•GeForce GTX 970 or 980 - On your average system the card requires you to have a 500 Watt power supply unit.
•GeForce GTX 970 or 980 in 2-way SLI - On your average system the cards require you to have an 800 Watt power supply unit as minimum.
If you are going to overclock your GPU or processor, then we do recommend you purchase something with some more stamina.
http://www.guru3d.com/articles_pages/msi_geforce_gtx_970_gaming_review,7.html

Tydude · Sep 18, 2015

17seconds :

Tydude :

You will need to upgrade your power supply.

Here is Guru3D's power supply recommendation:
•GeForce GTX 970 or 980 - On your average system the card requires you to have a 500 Watt power supply unit.
•GeForce GTX 970 or 980 in 2-way SLI - On your average system the cards require you to have an 800 Watt power supply unit as minimum.
If you are going to overclock your GPU or processor, then we do recommend you purchase something with some more stamina.
http://www.guru3d.com/articles_pages/msi_geforce_gtx_970_gaming_review,7.html

Is this a good power supply? CX Series™ Modular CX600M ATX Power Supply — 600 Watt 80 PLUS® Bronze Certified Modular PSU

pete_101 · Sep 18, 2015

Tydude :

The short answer is NO, not a good PSU. Having said that it's not complete rubbish either, many people have a CX series PSU and they operate mostly without problems. Why they are not recommended is because they contain cheap parts that can fail, which has the potential to damage your other components.
The usual advice is to find a PSU from the top couple of tiers from the following link, the tier 3 are mostly OK too.
http://www.tomshardware.com/forum/id-2547993/psu-tier-list.html

Tydude · Sep 18, 2015

pete_101 :

Tydude :

The short answer is NO, not a good PSU. Having said that it's not complete rubbish either, many people have a CX series PSU and they operate mostly without problems. Why they are not recommended is because they contain cheap parts that can fail, which has the potential to damage your other components.
The usual advice is to find a PSU from the top couple of tiers from the following link, the tier 3 are mostly OK too.
http://www.tomshardware.com/forum/id-2547993/psu-tier-list.html

I'm not wanting to spend that much money on it like $100. Are there any others that are good?

sora · Sep 18, 2015

I would personally just go with the NVIDIA GTX 970. Also, get an XFX 650W power supply or a Seasonic 620W power supply as they use better capacitors than the Corsiar CX series of power supplies.

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