Is the 970 or 980 still a viable purchase?

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ChickenNoodleSoup

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Apr 23, 2014
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Hi all. I am thinking of upgrading my GTX 660 which is getting a bit old now, and the GTX 970, 80, or 80ti seemed like the best options. However, is the 970 and 980 still going to be viable in a year or so seeing as it is already around 2 years old? Would it be best to wait until the new pascal cards, upgrade to a 970/80, or spend more but get a 980ti? Thanks for anyone who can be bothered to read this and reply.
*I would rather stay away from AMD cards due to power consumption and the like, but if they have the most viable cards for now then they would be considered.
 
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jeffler383
Interestingly enough, my previous rig was an MSI gaming laptop with a 780m, which was rated right around the same performance of a desktop 660. I finished my desktop build a few months ago and got a great deal on a new EVGA GTX 980 SC (a little over $400) and I'm extremely happy. Using precision x makes overclocking amazingly simple, and I'm running a stable 1450mhz core. I also upgraded my monitor to 1440p with gsync and the experience is jaw dropping.

I considered waiting till late in the summer when the new generation would become available, but I was getting tired of having to tune down all my settings and my laptop was getting a little tired overall. If you can wait I'd say do that - but if not any of the 970+ will still be...
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10tacle

10tacle

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Dec 6, 2008
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You can find a good factory overclocked 970 that can overclock more and equal a stock reference 980. I'm doing exactly that on my two EVGA 970s in SLI. Here's the card overclocked and tested (EVGA 970 SSC ACX 2.0+):

http://www.bit-tech.net/hardware/graphics/2015/05/08/evga-geforce-gtx-970-ssc-acx-2-0-review/9

^^That card has gone for as little as $300 when on sale and with a rebate (in the US anyway). If you can wait for just a few more months, the 970 replacement will be out and it likely will have more than 4GB VRAM (possibly even 8GB) and be equal to or even faster than the 980 right now for a good chunk of less money.

If you can't wait, get a factory overclocked 970 (EVGA, MSI, ASUS) and then sell your 660 for whatever scratch you can get for it...likely it will at least pay for a couple of new games on Steam as they are selling on eBay for at least $100(US).
 
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jeffler383

jeffler383

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Interestingly enough, my previous rig was an MSI gaming laptop with a 780m, which was rated right around the same performance of a desktop 660. I finished my desktop build a few months ago and got a great deal on a new EVGA GTX 980 SC (a little over $400) and I'm extremely happy. Using precision x makes overclocking amazingly simple, and I'm running a stable 1450mhz core. I also upgraded my monitor to 1440p with gsync and the experience is jaw dropping.

I considered waiting till late in the summer when the new generation would become available, but I was getting tired of having to tune down all my settings and my laptop was getting a little tired overall. If you can wait I'd say do that - but if not any of the 970+ will still be a huge upgrade.
 
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Jimmyduxfan

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AMD extra power consumption equals up to $10-$12 a year at most. I just got the Asus Strix R9 390 with 8gb Vram onboard for $330 w 30 mail rebate. That doubles the 970's Vram for about the same price. The double Vram is definetly more future proof. Very happy with my gpu, everything at highest settings above 60 fps, some alot more. Paragon, Heroes of Storm, Overwatch, Dying Light, etc
 
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ChickenNoodleSoup

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Thanks for all the replies guys. And Jimmyduxfan, its not about the fact that AMD will cost more in bills as I dont pay them, but rather that I would have to spend even more on a new PSU which I would rather not do.
 
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Jimmyduxfan

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I belevie ur bio says u have a 750 psu? Thats pleeeenty. I'm running a 650 with a AMD cpu & gpu and I'm fine. U can plug ur setup into pcpartpicker.com and it'll show u what u need, as well as being great place for pricing and parts. GL
 
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