Which Graphics Card Do I Need For My Gaming PC?

Toggle sidebar Toggle sidebar
E

EnderCrossed

Reputable
Nov 19, 2014
8
0
4,510
I'm planning out my ~$1200 rig but I was wondering what kind of graphics card I should get. Should I get the GeForce GTX 970, or the GeForce GTX 980? Perhaps even the 980 Ti? I'm looking for 1080p, 60fps on today's best looking games. This is my first gaming PC. Anything else I need to know?
 
Solution
DustinV
You should be able to fit a gtx 980 into a $1200 budget.

A 980 will guarantee 60 fps on all new games but a 970 will get the job done as well
Sort by date Sort by votes
DustinV

DustinV

Honorable
Dec 22, 2015
1,620
2
12,465
Here's a build to give you some ideas
Btw this ram is like really cheap right now, that's why I chose it, it's as cheap as slower speed ram

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: Intel Core i5-6600K 3.5GHz Quad-Core Processor ($238.99 @ SuperBiiz)
CPU Cooler: CRYORIG H5 Ultimate 76.0 CFM CPU Cooler ($46.99 @ Newegg)
Motherboard: Gigabyte GA-Z170-HD3P ATX LGA1151 Motherboard ($99.89 @ OutletPC)
Memory: Corsair Vengeance LPX 16GB (2 x 8GB) DDR4-2666 Memory ($59.99 @ Newegg)
Storage: Samsung 850 EVO-Series 250GB 2.5" Solid State Drive ($87.39 @ OutletPC)
Storage: Western Digital Caviar Blue 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($48.85 @ OutletPC)
Video Card: MSI GeForce GTX 980 4GB Twin Frozr Video Card ($465.54 @ B&H)
Case: Fractal Design FD-CA-CORE-3500-BL-W ATX Mid Tower Case ($54.99 @ NCIX US)
Power Supply: EVGA SuperNOVA GS 550W 80+ Gold Certified Fully-Modular ATX Power Supply ($69.99 @ Newegg)
Optical Drive: Asus DRW-24B1ST/BLK/B/AS DVD/CD Writer ($15.99 @ Newegg)
Total: $1188.61
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2016-03-26 19:48 EDT-0400
 
Upvote 0 Downvote
djreedj

djreedj

Honorable
Jan 14, 2016
1,721
1
12,160
I made the mistake of getting the 980. Once I got it I knew I could have so much more performance with the 980ti and extra vram, so I returned it and payed difference for the 980ti. Get the 980ti, you won't have to worry about a GPU upgrade for a couple years and even when you do all you need to do is get another 980ti. I HIGHLY recommend getting the 980ti, then cross that off your list of upgrades for your rig in the near future. And if you do, the EVGA 980ti SC+ ACX 2.0 is a little over 600 bucks and is a very very nice card.
 
Upvote 0 Downvote
djreedj

djreedj

Honorable
Jan 14, 2016
1,721
1
12,160
He didnt mention what game he wants to play on, it will be hard gettng 60fps on a lot of high graphic games like witcher 3 with a 970, and like i said the 980ti will be enough for him if he ever wants to play ANY game coming out in the future as well as upgrading resolution. its not overkill even on the 980ti 60fps witcher 3 some parts dip below 60fps
 
Upvote 0 Downvote
Alan Caldwell

Alan Caldwell

Distinguished
Jul 24, 2014
3,828
0
18,960


Here is a build with a GTX 980, a GTX 980Ti is overkill for 1080p gaming.
PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: Intel Core i5-6600K 3.5GHz Quad-Core Processor ($238.99 @ SuperBiiz)
CPU Cooler: Cooler Master Hyper 212 EVO 82.9 CFM Sleeve Bearing CPU Cooler ($24.89 @ OutletPC)
Motherboard: Gigabyte GA-Z170XP-SLI ATX LGA1151 Motherboard ($124.89 @ OutletPC)
Memory: Corsair Vengeance LPX 16GB (2 x 8GB) DDR4-2666 Memory ($59.99 @ Newegg)
Storage: Seagate Barracuda 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($45.89 @ OutletPC)
Video Card: Gigabyte GeForce GTX 980 4GB WINDFORCE Video Card ($493.98 @ Newegg)
Case: Corsair 500R White ATX Mid Tower Case ($79.99 @ Newegg)
Power Supply: SeaSonic 650W 80+ Gold Certified Semi-Modular ATX Power Supply ($62.00 @ Newegg)
Optical Drive: Asus DRW-24B1ST/BLK/B/AS DVD/CD Writer ($15.99 @ Newegg)
Total: $1146.61
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2016-03-26 23:05 EDT-0400


You can also wait for Pascal ;)
PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: Intel Core i5-6600K 3.5GHz Quad-Core Processor ($238.99 @ SuperBiiz)
CPU Cooler: Cooler Master Hyper 212 EVO 82.9 CFM Sleeve Bearing CPU Cooler ($24.89 @ OutletPC)
Motherboard: Gigabyte GA-Z170XP-SLI ATX LGA1151 Motherboard ($124.89 @ OutletPC)
Memory: Corsair Vengeance LPX 16GB (2 x 8GB) DDR4-2666 Memory ($59.99 @ Newegg)
Storage: Seagate Barracuda 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($45.89 @ OutletPC)
Case: Corsair 500R White ATX Mid Tower Case ($79.99 @ Newegg)
Power Supply: SeaSonic 650W 80+ Gold Certified Semi-Modular ATX Power Supply ($62.00 @ Newegg)
Optical Drive: Asus DRW-24B1ST/BLK/B/AS DVD/CD Writer ($15.99 @ Newegg)
Total: $652.63
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2016-03-26 23:06 EDT-0400

 
Upvote 0 Downvote
SGraph

SGraph

Reputable
Jan 1, 2016
16
0
4,520
I would go with a 780ti from ebay because it will play all games at 1080p 60fps and then you can put all the money you saved on the gpu toward nice peripherals.
 
Upvote 0 Downvote
djreedj

djreedj

Honorable
Jan 14, 2016
1,721
1
12,160


and my point was to spend the extra hundred bucks or so for a MUCH better card then the 980, the 980 shouldnt even be on the list of potential cards, 970 or 980ti for price to performance ratio
 
Upvote 0 Downvote
You must log in or register to reply here.

TRENDING THREADS

Latest posts

Moderators online

Share this page

COMPANY
RESOURCES
FOLLOW
Top Bottom