Choosing a second hand graphic card

Human_Bean

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Jan 21, 2017
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Hello guys, I have a question, 980 MSI gaming, 1060 palit Jetstream 6gb or Rx 480 nitro + OC 8gb? I ask specifically about these as I've come across some good second hand offers, for the two former and new for the latter. All cards around 200-250 € price range. I don't plan on gaming until my eyes pop out, nor overclocking until the PC stands up and walks out of the room on it's own, just one to two hours, every so often, at 1080p 60 FPS with Max or near to max settings. I don't intend to move to 4k at any moment. Specs: i7 4770, 8gb hyperx black 1866 MHz, asrock z87 extreme 4, 1tb 7200rpm Seagate HDD, 1 LG DVD drive/burner, NOX Urano VX 650W active PFC PSU (This is all I could find on this PSU, it doesn't seem to be at all known or popular outside Sah-pain, http://www.realhardtechx.com/index_archivos/Page2438.htm), HP 2210i 1080p 60Hz monitor, VGA, DVI-D and audio in ports. Needless to say I'm on a budget, my last amount of money will go into a card, I'm not extremely demanding, purchased all my PC parts second hand, and have happily played Mass Effect 2 for free from origin these past few weeks on, wait for it... Yep, Intel 4600 HD graphics, and quite impressed I might say, I haven't played any games in maybe...13 years? But after seeing games such as Witcher 3, ROTTR, far cry primal, shadows of mordor, etc...I... Had to see :). So that also gives away some useful info, it seems the games I like playing are mostly nvidia optimised, though I mention the 480 nitro since I've heard as of the last few weeks it's performance has further improved. Last game I ever played on a PC of my own was, hmmm... Indiana Jones and the emperor's tomb? Haha... I might experiment, enjoy, and sell the PC after perhaps a year or so. Anyways, any insight that might be useful would be appreciated, thank you everyone, have a good day!
 
Solution
Companies often do that, such as EVGA: they sell 2-3 versions of each GPU marked slightly different; stock, superclocked, and super-superclocked. They simply have different base frequencies. Virtually all companies will do this for different versions of the GPU. MSI sells armor, and armor OC (overclock) versions of their GPUs, Gaming and Gaming X versions of their gpus, etc. Same GPU, different clock speeds.

As for the 980Ti, the issue likely isn't going to be the amount of power that your PSU can put out (although it could be given that it is not certified at all) the issue is more the power that is delivered from your PSU fluctuating.

If you can get a certified refurb for less money that still has a 2 year warranty, I would...

Human_Bean

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Jan 21, 2017
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4,510

Haha, straight to the point ah? Thanks! Hmmm... Let's say, the 980 for 246, with shipping fees, and the 480 nitro for 260, shipping fees included, gameworks and the likes (and hairworks, yes please hairworks!), still the 480? Even 20 difference would hurt a little (boy, is this guy stingy or what??), aaaand... Still need to get a dvi-D cable (second hand 5€). Also, what about a 980 ti g1 gaming, under the same use scenario, with the current PSU, for 250? Thanks again, I wouldn't ask if I weren't feeling a bit overbeared by the choice, I really appreciate it! :) ;)
 

genthug

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I would need to know what condition the 980Ti is in used to have it for $250. Even with the release of Pascal that's pretty low for a 980Ti used. But, of the three, price/performance is going to be highest on a $250 980Ti. Without knowing anything else about that PSU I would scared to put a 980Ti paired with it. It would likely be just fine, it has 2 8pin PCIe cables, has enough power via the 12V rail, but it's throwing me off that there is no certification on it and it is not even semi modular. Those two facts point towards it being either older or not of good quality, and that is a bit off-putting.

If that 15 is bank-breaking, then go with what you can get within your price range, but for that 15 you're getting a new GPU, 4GB more of VRAM, and most likely a warranty. From launch to now many games have seen a 5-10% increase in performance on an RX480--just because of software optimization. AMD will likely be continuing that trend, and AMD cards are Async compute enabled for DX12.

Out of all of that, however, I would look at the warranty most closely. If you're getting the card used with a no warranty/no return policy vs getting the card new with a warranty/RMA policy, I would spend the $15 PURELY for that warranty.

Basically: 980Ti will be best price/performance but I am scared of your PSU given that a 980Ti can draw around 300W (average will be lower). Otherwise, I am still a fan of the new card because of perks you get for buying a new card over a used card.
 

Human_Bean

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Jan 21, 2017
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4,510

Hmmm... Good answer! Will take into consideration! Yes, it is an old (er) PSU, though it is advertised towards gaming on a reputable online shop in Spain, as well as towards SLI, so far I've had no problems with it, then again no graphics card inserted in the PC, so...! The 980 ti is, as stated and also shown through pictures, in near perfect condition, simply missing the box and "things", 250 is the initial bid, yet nobody bid so the advert was finished, or shown as ended, have thought of contacting the person selling it and asking if he'd still be interested, then again, being Spain, I expect some kind of angry self righteous retort, lately morality has been haywire all around hereabouts, don't know if it will be worth the bother (haha chuckle)...
As for the RX 480 nitro+ OC, I've thought the same as you, as well as a line of thought similar to yours behind the 980 ti PSU compatibility, then again, my stubbornness tells me, I could remove the DVD drive, to even lower in even the slightest the consumption, to allow for better power distribution to reach the card, rather than useless things as those... Hmmm... Also, they have a few of the nitro models in sale, though I've detected some sneaky business going on, since apparently there's three different models with similar denomination, yet different factory clock speeds. At a first glance, they all seem the same, but then by looking at the model number, the are in fact three separate ones. In addition they sell a refurbished like new one of the supposedly higher clocked one (1342 or something like that), model number ending in 01 (11260-01-20G-RAS), as well as something I hadn't seen anywhere else, a RAS denomination after said model number... Fishy, really fishy... It comes with the 2 year warranty, but in a neutral package minus the usual extra, possibly not useful at all contents. It goes for 247. Alas, 980 ti would be a wonder, but maybe safe side, is "thee" best play at the moment, considering the extremely close cut budget line, as well as, "NEED OF THE MOMENT". Ha... Long winded I guess, I needed to talk it all with someone, as I was going a bit bonkers, you know? :pt1cable:
In any case, I think I'll see if the price goes down a little tomorrow for the new properly boxed versions, if not, I might bid on some card on eBay, or just give it a break for a day or two. :) Many thanks for your extensive and lighting fast answer, Genthug, amituofo (for lack of words in the father language hehe!
;) :) )
 

genthug

Honorable
Companies often do that, such as EVGA: they sell 2-3 versions of each GPU marked slightly different; stock, superclocked, and super-superclocked. They simply have different base frequencies. Virtually all companies will do this for different versions of the GPU. MSI sells armor, and armor OC (overclock) versions of their GPUs, Gaming and Gaming X versions of their gpus, etc. Same GPU, different clock speeds.

As for the 980Ti, the issue likely isn't going to be the amount of power that your PSU can put out (although it could be given that it is not certified at all) the issue is more the power that is delivered from your PSU fluctuating.

If you can get a certified refurb for less money that still has a 2 year warranty, I would personally take that one. You get a warranty at the same price point of the 980 that you were considering.
 
Solution

Human_Bean

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Jan 21, 2017
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4,510


Thanks again! Apologies for the delayed response, quite hectic the last few days.
Anyways...I just bought the refurbished RX 480 Nitro+ OC (1342 MHz boost) version, with all it's accessories and 2 year warranty, and a DVI-D cable.
Thanks for the help, yep, had to agree with the warranty, and the new technology, as well as power consumption and compatibility, better stay on the safe side, thanks! Hehe :D In the end I got the best deal through the shop anyways, the other cards on eBay sold for more than I was prepared to pay, so it all worked out just fine. :)
Anyways, now just wait until I receive the card ( Wednesday most probably), so we'll see later on, for now, just excited. :):D Thanks again for everything Genthug, cheers! ;) :)

 

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