1440p Gaming, R9 380 w/ i5-2500K, Should I upgrade? What?

vipergod2000

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Mar 16, 2011
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My current Rig specs =

Intel Sandy Bridge i5 2500K @ 4.5Ghz @ 1.312V (CM Hyper 212 Plus)
ASUS STRIX R9 380
Asus P8P67-Pro
G-Skill Ripjaws 8GB (4 x 2GB) PC12800 @ 1866Mhz
Samsung 850 Evo 500GB SSD
500 GB Seagate Barracuda
4TB WD Green
2 TB USB 3.0 5Gbps Seagate FreeAgent GoFlex Desk
Seasonic 80plus Platinum 1000W PSU
HP Z27i @ 27" - 2560x1440.60hz IPS
HP Z24i @ 24" - 1200x1920.60hz IPS Portrait
AudioEngine A5+ Speakers
SVS SB-2000 12" 500watt Subwoofer
CM Storm Sniper Black

Currently gaming at 1440p, loving DOOM, Dying Light, Rainbox Six Siege, some DOTA. I use my computer excessively for surfing, productivity, music and occasional movies. Gaming is about 30% of my usage.

I previously had 2 x Asus 7970s running in crossfire. I RMAed both of them and they gave me 2 x 380s to replace them. I tried selling both and wanted to jump to a GTX 970 but only sold one, then Pascal was announced so I held back. Now recently eyeing the ZOTAC GTX 1080 AMP! Extreme.

So basically I'm not sure what I should do, or if a 1080 is overkill for 1440p or wise to futureproof for AAA titles for now. Not sure if my 2500K @ 4.5Ghz will bottleneck a single 1080 too. I hear DDR4 ram is where its at, but my system is perfectly fine the way it is now, snappy, fast. Also recently Contemplating a 4k screen, or a Acer XB271HU for 1440p @ 165hz too.

I feel i'm mainly lacking graphics as a 380 isn't getting constant 60fps in the better titles @ 1440p.

Multiple questions in there, appreciate some insightful suggestions on upgrade path guys.
 
Solution

xFeaRDom

Estimable
If you're happy with your current system, and it runs perfectly how you want it with nothing holding you back, then in my opinion, there's no point upgrading and spending a lot of money, especially on a 1080. Currently, also in my opinion, a 1080 is definitely overkill for 99% of games.

If you're wanting to upgrade your GPU, the best bet is probably a 1060 or 1070, obviously the 1070 being better and the 1060 only running at a performance similar to the 980 (Non-Ti). A GTX 1070 will definitely run at max settings, 1440p @ 60Hz (Or 165Hz no doubt), and your CPU will not bottleneck this, although it is overclocked to 4.5GHz, so that should be nothing to worry about, as these GPUs are extremely powerful.
 

vipergod2000

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Mar 16, 2011
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Thanks for the input. I checked up the benchmarks for the 1070 vs 1080 and you are correct. The 1080 is overkill for 1440p and anything that it struggles at are purely titles that aren't optimized, and can simply be fixed by dialing details like shadows down from Ultra to Medium for example and sustain 60fps.

CPU, Mobo and Ram wise, it seems I'm doing well so that's not something I'll change unless something blows.

The monitor upgrade however is a likely path I will go down very soon - and I'm really liking all reviews of the Acer Predator X34 Ultrawide 21:9 3440x1440 monitor. 4K to me will take a bit of time before gaming on it optimally will happen, as from experience I'm not a fan of multi-card configs and the problems that plague SLI and Xfire.

With that in mind,
2560x1440 = 3,6M pixels,
3440x1440 = 4,9M
3840x2160 = 8,2M

I'm assuming a GTX 1080 in that case would make perfect sense as it's got the guns to be able to power Ultrawide resolution @ 100hz ? I tested a 120hz Gsync monitor the other day playing BF4 and immediately noticed the fluidity, made me realize what I'm missing out on - no screen tear and jitters ! In that case, would a 1080 make absolute sense? What does it take to really game at 4K @ 60fps ? Not an early adopter here, but curious!
 

xFeaRDom

Estimable


I mean, if you're willing to drop that much money on a 1080, go for it, but in theory, it isn't really worth the money if you aren't going for High Resolution and High Hz, but the 1080 would most likely allow smooth, 4K and High Hz, so if you're willing to get that then sure, if you're not going for that, like I said, the 1080 is overkill, as the 1070 will most definitely allow 1440p and 100+ Hz.
 
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