Replacing a HD7970, need advice

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AstralKnight

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Mar 7, 2013
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My GPU is on the verge, and needs replacing quite badly. I figured this is also a good time to upgrade a bit to be ready for new releases of games. But I'm unsure of what to actually get, considering wattage, compatibility, size, etc. I would greatly appreciate anyone who could recommend me one with the info below.

APPROXIMATE PURCHASE DATE: As soon as possible.

BUDGET RANGE: Around $500 for the GPU.

USAGE FROM MOST TO LEAST IMPORTANT: Gaming is the main, and only thing I will be using the PC and GPU for.

CURRENT GPU AND POWER SUPPLY: Sapphire Radeon HD7970, XFX TS 550w

OTHER RELEVANT SYSTEM SPECS: Motherboard: Asus P8Z77-V LK Z77 LGA1155 R
CPU: Intel Core I5 3570K 3.4G 6M R
CPU Cooler: Cooler Master Hyper 212 RR-B10-212P-G1 RT
SSD: 128G Adata ASX900S3-128GM-C R
RAM: 4Gx2 GSkill F3-12800CL9D-8GBRL
OS: Windows 7 Home 64-bit
Case: Corsair Carbide 300R

PREFERRED WEBSITE(S): Newegg.com, Amazon.com

LOCATION: Henderson, Nevada

PARTS PREFERENCES: None, although I liked my AMD GPU while it worked.

OVERCLOCKING: Preferably No.

MONITOR RESOLUTION: 1680x1050

ADDITIONAL COMMENTS: Would like to be able to play the most recent games like Metal Gear Solid V and Fallout 4, and the more demanding games like Warframe, on high-to-ultra settings and 60 frames per second. I live in a very warm area, within a old, dusty house, so if the card has good cooling on it's own it would be a plus.


I have been recommended the MSI Radeon R9 390 Gaming 8G, and the MSI Geforce GTX970 Gaming 4G by someone. Would these be good to consider, as well?
 
Solution
cub_fanatic
The R9 390 is a beast of a card but with your budget, you are in R9 Fury (non-X) and GTX 980 (non-ti) territory. You could go way under budget and drop $310-330 on a 390 and it will serve you well. The best part is that with your budget, you are only ~$120 away from a 2nd R9 390 in crossfire which your motherboard will support. You will, however, definitely need a new PSU in the 850W to 1000W or higher range. The 8GB of VRAM is ideal for dual 390's in Crossfire and it would deliver superior performance in all resolutions compared to pretty much any single GPU out. Even one on its own is a beast and should serve you well even if you never get a 2nd. But, with your budget, if you were going single card only, I'd go over budget and shop...
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Sakkura

Sakkura

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Aug 22, 2011
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An R9 390 or GTX 970 would be a good upgrade. Other than that, the only obvious upgrade I would suggest is the monitor. 1680x1050 is kinda low in this day and age, and there's not much reason to invest a lot in a powerful graphics card when you play at a low resolution.
 
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cub_fanatic

cub_fanatic

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Nov 21, 2012
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The R9 390 is a beast of a card but with your budget, you are in R9 Fury (non-X) and GTX 980 (non-ti) territory. You could go way under budget and drop $310-330 on a 390 and it will serve you well. The best part is that with your budget, you are only ~$120 away from a 2nd R9 390 in crossfire which your motherboard will support. You will, however, definitely need a new PSU in the 850W to 1000W or higher range. The 8GB of VRAM is ideal for dual 390's in Crossfire and it would deliver superior performance in all resolutions compared to pretty much any single GPU out. Even one on its own is a beast and should serve you well even if you never get a 2nd. But, with your budget, if you were going single card only, I'd go over budget and shop for a GTX 980 or R9 Fury. Both are beastly and have their trade-offs. Personally, though, I'd pick the 980 even though the Fury is the better card on paper. The 980 is also closer to your $500 budget ($520) than the Fury ($550).

I also agree with the above post about your monitor. While any of the cards I suggested are probably overkill for that resolution, you are guaranteed 60 FPS in pretty much everything with them at maxed out or close to maxed out detail. Plus, when you upgrade your monitor, you will be properly equipped to handle 1080p or even 1440p.
 
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AstralKnight

Honorable
Mar 7, 2013
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It looks like the R9 390 would be a good card for me, then. I was told by someone that the GTX 970 runs much cooler though, which would be really nice in my situation. Are the differences large enough that the R9 390 would be better, or is it all preference? And should I look for a specific brand for these GPUs? It's probably irrelevant but I want to be sure.

Is my monitor really that outdated? I know it's not the biggest one out there, but it's worked for me, and I thought I was getting a lot of detail in that resolution already.
 
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