Upgrading to R9 390, GTX970 or something else?

Steadi07

Commendable
Apr 24, 2016
3
0
1,510
Hi

I am on the lookout for a new gpu, as my current one, Radeon Hd 5850, is straining. And it's a borrowed one, so technically not even my gpu.

PC specs:
i5 4690K
6 GB ram, but upgrading to 16 soon
GA-Z97P-D3 motherboard
Dell 1920*1200 screen
Seasonic G-series 550w psu

I'm considering either the GTX970 or the R9 390, which in my country are similarly priced.

I consider myself a relative amateur in the hardware-area; know how to assemble the PC myself, but lacking when the really technical stuff gets introduced. I've tried reading a bunch of artucles but haven't always ended up more decided afterwards.

Games-wise, I play Cities:Skylines, Space Engineers, Euro Truck Sim 2, Wargame, but would like to be able to play GTA V and Fallout 4 and similar to thoseHi

I am on the lookout for a new gpu, as my current one, Radeon Hd 5850, is straining. And it's a borrowed one, so technically not even my gpu.

PC specs:
i5 4690K
6 GB ram, but upgrading to 16 soon
GA-Z97P-D3 motherboard
Dell 1920*1200 screen
Seasonic G-series 550w psu

I'm considering either the MSI GTX970 or the R9 390, which in my country are similarly priced.

I consider myself a relative amateur in the hardware-area; know how to assemble the PC myself, but lacking when the really technical stuff gets introduced.

Games-wise, I play Cities:Skylines, Space Engineers, Euro Truck Sim 2, Wargame, but would like to be able to play GTA V and Fallout 4 and similar to those on a decent graphics level.
I've actually stopped looking to play demanding games because the PC couldn't handle it.


So, please enlighten me into why the R9 390 or the GTX970, or none of them? Would the 8 GB memory on the 390 make a large difference performance-wise?

I have considered waiting for Pascal, but honestly, I'd like to upgrade now, and I'm very rarely a first-mover, so the only reason to wait for Pascal would be for prices to fall on current gen. But whether or not that would happen, I don't have the necessary info to conclude, so feel free to inform me here as well. . I've actually stopped looking to play demanding games because the PC couldn't handle it.


So, please enlighten me into why the R9 390 or the GTX970, or none of them? Would the 8 GB memory on the 390 make a large difference performance-wise?

Are the heat/noise-levels similar?

I have considered waiting for Pascal, but honestly, I'd like to upgrade now, and I'm very rarely a first-mover, so the only reason to wait for Pascal would be for prices to fall on current gen. But whether or not that would happen, I don't have the necessary info to conclude, so feel free to inform me here as well.

Thanks!
 
Solution
Both are good.
Check the reviews of each card, both Asus and MSI sell several variants of the GTX970, each subtly different.
If you're in the USA, Asus just aces (or seems to) MSI on the warranty.
Me, I'd get whichever looks best to me (you ;) ).
Pascal should be released early in June of this year but there is no word on pricing or availability.
It was recently rumoured that Nvidia and its partners have stopped making the GTX 970/980/980Ti: http://www.techpowerup.com/221783/nvidia-reportedly-stops-production-of-certain-maxwell-gpus This is a common thing to do, and I'm noticing a shortage of high end AMD cards over here in the UK as well, suggesting they are also running down production prior to the launch of their new 'Polaris' cards. With that in mind, don't expect to see any price cuts when the new cards are released, in fact it's likely you'll see the old cards going up in price as current power users buy up the last remaining stock so they can go SLI or Crossfire (dual card setup).

In your case I'd get a GTX970 rather than wait.
 

Steadi07

Commendable
Apr 24, 2016
3
0
1,510


Just realised that my question managed to get all bungled up in the formatting and replicated, but at least it was understandable.

From my understanding, the R9 390 comes into its own with presented with resolutions of above 1080p, and especially when reaching 1440p and above. I don't plan on getting anywhere above 1200p and probably mostly no more than 1080p.

So, basically, I'm 90% certain I'm going with the 970.

Are there any difference in choosing the MSI over the ASUS GTX970-card? Not planning on doing any overclocking, though I prefer a quieter card if possible. And, I've read a bit about the ASUS coil whine, which would suck to be hit by.

The difference in price between the ASUS and MSI cards are negligible.

 
Both are good.
Check the reviews of each card, both Asus and MSI sell several variants of the GTX970, each subtly different.
If you're in the USA, Asus just aces (or seems to) MSI on the warranty.
Me, I'd get whichever looks best to me (you ;) ).
 
Solution

Steadi07

Commendable
Apr 24, 2016
3
0
1,510


From what I've been able to find, I can only get the MSI Geforce GTX 970 Gaming in Denmark, where I live, so I guess that's going to be the choice :)

The MSI is supposed to be a bit quieter than ASUS or most of the other GTX970's, and I really like my quiet, so that does count a bit, haha.