Seeking upgrade advice - SLI or new card??? see details

[muckle]

my scenario:

i5 760
8gb ram

gigabyte super OC 470
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814125338&Tpk=gtx%20super%20overclock%20470

Absolutely love the card, it's a beast. unique design sets it above every other 470 (arguably, if you will)

My setup has been able to eat up every game I've thrown at it on max'ed settings 1920x1080

Back in October of last year when I built my computer my approach was to get a powerful single card with the option for SLI later - I don't even really think I need an upgrade quite yet, however this particular model 470 seems to be pretty hard to find - there's like one store that sells them and there was ONE on ebay last time I checked.

So basically, when it's time to upgrade would I do better from a value/performance standpoint to add an additional 470 or seek a new card or cards altogether. I guess my idea was that by adding another 470 I would not be negating the value of the one I've already purchased.

Thoughts??

 

[mactronix]

By the time your 470 cant cope anymore there will be single cards out there that are a decent enough upgrade to warrant upgrading. Also consider that games are not really getting that much more demanding.
Personally I like to wait until the card I have still has a resale value and there are decent upgrades available then sell the old card to offset the cost of the new one.

Mactronix

 

[DXRick]

If/when you need it, the i5-760 will become the limiting factor.

 

[mactronix]

If/when you need it, the i5-760 will become the limiting factor.

No NO NO [:lectrocrew:1] [:lectrocrew:1] [:lectrocrew:1]

Mactronix

 

[muckle]

No NO NO [:lectrocrew:1] [:lectrocrew:1] [:lectrocrew:1]

Mactronix

Yes, I did not want to hear that my proc will inhibit my video card upgrade.

I need a greater understanding of how far I can push my video card setup and increase gaming performance within the confines of my i5 760/asus p7p55d-e pro proc/mobo combo. The chipset on my mobo is of course already outdated. In what degree do these have to be upgraded in unison???

However I do know that users have been wildly successful in OC'ing the i5 760. I have played around with it a bit and pushed it up from the stock 2.8 up to 3.4 with temps maxing out with 70c at full load with hyper 212+ cooler (side note - is that good?)

 

[mactronix]

While this isn't directly relevant, in as much as it dosent include teh hardware we are discussing i hope it will show that you have no need to worry.
http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/core-i3-gaming,2588.html

This link and the others linked to should help your understanding as well, please take a look at all 4
http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/balanced-gaming-pc-overclock,2699.html

Mactronix

 

[muckle]

While this isn't directly relevant, in as much as it dosent include teh hardware we are discussing i hope it will show that you have no need to worry.
http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/core-i3-gaming,2588.html

This link and the others linked to should help your understanding as well, please take a look at all 4
http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/balanced-gaming-pc-overclock,2699.html

Mactronix

Thanks for the good articles. Makes me feel better about my setup. I wish there was an easier way to see how X proc will run with X video card with X amount of RAM etc to see how well an upgrade would work out as new stuff comes out... but with so many combinations thats difficult to catalog i guess. There's prob a thread on it somewhere

 

[mactronix]

No there isn't.
I actually went to Toms with the idea that they do a chart much like the ones they do now which was basically guide for just what you are asking.
It would test at what point a GPU upgrade would be pointless without a CPU upgrade as well. Ram wasn't a factor in my initial suggestion but is a good idea.
Any way the idea went to the guys at the top and they sent me back the links i sent to you.


Mactronix

 

[muckle]

No there isn't.
I actually went to Toms with the idea that they do a chart much like the ones they do now which was basically guide for just what you are asking.
It would test at what point a GPU upgrade would be pointless without a CPU upgrade as well. Ram wasn't a factor in my initial suggestion but is a good idea.
Any way the idea went to the guys at the top and they sent me back the links i sent to you.


Mactronix

That's too bad, because that would be really helpful, a lot of people would appreciate it.

I might go to them as well. Maybe if enough people suggest it they'll come around!

 

[muckle]

No there isn't.
I actually went to Toms with the idea that they do a chart much like the ones they do now which was basically guide for just what you are asking.
It would test at what point a GPU upgrade would be pointless without a CPU upgrade as well. Ram wasn't a factor in my initial suggestion but is a good idea.
Any way the idea went to the guys at the top and they sent me back the links i sent to you.


Mactronix

Acutally I just found your thread on the matter and commented. Let's see some more support for this!

http://www.tomshardware.com/forum/21366-9-best-matching-hardware#t491801

 

[DXRick]

No NO NO [:lectrocrew:1] [:lectrocrew:1] [:lectrocrew:1]

Mactronix

For gaming, the 760 is on a par with the i3-2100. Here is a benchmark for SC II using a GTX 480 @ 1080P. Here is one for Metro 2033.

These two games are CPU dependent and will choke an 13-2100 during heavy action (see min FPS).

I rest my case.

 

[mactronix]

For gaming, the 760 is on a par with the i3-2100. Here is a benchmark for SC II using a GTX 480 @ 1080P. Here is one for Metro 2033.

These two games are CPU dependent and will choke an 13-2100 during heavy action (see min FPS).

I rest my case.

Your proving nothing my friend, please don't ever become a lawyer :lol:

Mactronix

 

[muckle]

Your proving nothing my friend, please don't ever become a lawyer :lol:

Mactronix

Mactronix, while I want you to be right (because I own an i5 760), I'd be curious to hear some points on how you reach this opinion. Please enlighten us. DXRick did link some articles that more or less besmirch the 760 with guilt by association.

 

[mactronix]

2 cherry picked benchmarks that are not even designed to check for what we are talking about hardly provide a compelling case. I'm just off out but i will answer your request later.
Start by looking at the specs of the CPU's in question. You cant over clock the i3 but its stock speed is faster than the 760 which is why it seems a fair comparison. the 760 on the other hand is A natively quad cored while the i3 is a duo with MT and the 760 can clock up to 4 GHZ

Later
Mactronix

 

[mactronix]

Other things to consider.
How much harder to run do you think games are going to get ? Not much is the quick answer as just about everything these days is console ported. Sure there are exceptions.
Take a look at the 3rd part of the balanced platform article, it includes an OCed 750 and yours is a few Mhz better being a 760.
The article uses a 5970 among others, thats a dual GPU. SLI 470's are a little better depending on the game but seriously look at the info you already have. Can you seriously see even giving an overly generous 25% increase to the 470's see any reason to think that anythings going to "Choke" your CPU ?
Take a look at overclocking numbers http://www.xbitlabs.com/articles/cpu/display/amd-phenom-ii-x6-1055t-overclocking_7.html#sect0

Mactronix

 

[browsingtheworld]

For gaming, the 760 is on a par with the i3-2100. Here is a benchmark for SC II using a GTX 480 @ 1080P. Here is one for Metro 2033.

These two games are CPU dependent and will choke an 13-2100 during heavy action (see min FPS).

I rest my case.

Please stop suggesting the 760 will bottleneck anything. It's a beastly processor and will handle anything out there. It's an i7 without hyperthreading.

If it does become a bottleneck after a few years you can overclock it to i5-2500 speeds.

 

[DXRick]

Of course I cherry picked those two games! They are the only ones that will test his system at 1080P.

When I built my i7-950 system last year, I chose an HD 6870, with a motherboard and PSU that would allow me to add another. I looked at MANY GPU charts, and concluded that I could run everything (except maybe those two games) at 1080P. If a game had a problem at 1080P, I could run at 1680 x 1050. I also noticed that those two games are the only ones that test CPUs.

Back to the OP's question: Should he add another 470 to play games at 1080P?

The 470 is faster than my HD 6870. The OP is asking about the future, suggesting he is having no problems now playing games at 1080P. The only games that currently test a GPU at 1080P also test CPUs. However, the OP did not say he is having problems playing games now, and we don't know if he is playing those two titles. He is concerned about future games.

Should he try and obtain another very rare gigabyte super OC 470?

He said "My setup has been able to eat up every game I've thrown at it on max'ed settings 1920x1080."

I said "If/when you need it, the i5-760 will become the limiting factor."

Or to put it another way: If a game comes out that you cannot play at 1080P, I imagine that it will also need a faster CPU. I am extrapolating from I have seen with the only two games that test CPUs and GPUs at 1080P. Being a programmer, I know that SC II tests CPUs because of all the processing it must do every frame to animate hundreds of objects (AI, physics, path-finding, special effects, etc.) . I don't know why Metro 2033 is such a beast.

Now you are all just arguing with me, without even answering the OP's question.

So, should he try to get another 470 or not??? I say NO.

 

[mactronix]

I don't much care if you were lead programmer on every AAA game for the last 5 years, suggesting that the i5 760 will limit dual 470's is just ridiculous.

The actual question was

So basically, when it's time to upgrade would I do better from a value/performance standpoint to add an additional 470 or seek a new card or cards altogether. I guess my idea was that by adding another 470 I would not be negating the value of the one I've already purchased.

So not just a plain do i SLI 470's then as you are suggesting.

My answer

By the time your 470 cant cope anymore there will be single cards out there that are a decent enough upgrade to warrant upgrading. Also consider that games are not really getting that much more demanding.

Seems pretty straight forward to me.

I suggest you now realize you were wrong to state what you did and like many on these pages you are not a big enough person to say "Hey you know what your right my bad" so have resorted to posting the usual bluster in an effort to push the discussion away from you being wrong

Mactronix

 

[DXRick]

I didn't say that 470 SLI will be limited by the 760 CPU. Adding another would almost double the FPS of most games. It would be mandatory at 2650 x 1600. Here is a chart showing this. The chart shows that at 1080P all games are above 30 minimum FPS (except Crysis Warhead at 29).

Anything above 30 FPS is unnoticeable.

 

[browsingtheworld]

Anything above 30 FPS is unnoticeable.

:lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol:

 

[mactronix]

I didn't say that 470 SLI will be limited by the 760 CPU. Adding another would almost double the FPS of most games. It would be mandatory at 2650 x 1600. Here is a chart showing this. The chart shows that at 1080P all games are above 30 minimum FPS (except Crysis Warhead at 29).

Anything above 30 FPS is unnoticeable.

Please stop now you are making yourself look very foolish and are just trashing the thread to massage your bruised ego.

@
muckle

I have given you my advice and all the info you should need to make an informed choice. maybe you could PM me if you need further advice. I don't want to play up to this clown anymore.
Good luck with which ever route you choose.

Mactronix

 

[Mousemonkey]

I didn't say that 470 SLI will be limited by the 760 CPU. Adding another would almost double the FPS of most games. It would be mandatory at 2650 x 1600. Here is a chart showing this. The chart shows that at 1080P all games are above 30 minimum FPS (except Crysis Warhead at 29).

Anything above 30 FPS is unnoticeable.

 

[DXRick]

Please stop now you are making yourself look very foolish and are just trashing the thread to massage your bruised ego.

@
muckle

I have given you my advice and all the info you should need to make an informed choice. maybe you could PM me if you need further advice. I don't want to play up to this clown anymore.
Good luck with which ever route you choose.

Mactronix

I will gladly admit I am a wrong, if you can provide some link or info that shows it. You are the one that is resorting to name calling, without any info to back it up. I am simply repeating what I have read over the years on various computer and gaming sites.

And, yes, my ego feels slighted when some obnoxious know it all child attacks me instead of attacking what I am saying and providing some info to prove his point. I have been wrong many times in my life, but I enjoy being corrected, because I want to know what the truth is.

For example, these replies do nothing to help me see the errors of my ways:

No NO NO [:lectrocrew:1] [:lectrocrew:1] [:lectrocrew:1]
:lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol:

 

[muckle]

Oh Lord what have I done....

Yeaaah Toms needs to reconsider that "how far can your proc take your GPU" article. Something a bit more authoritative here could reduce the vitriol.

I thank everyone for their opinions.

In any case I'll be hanging on to my current setup a while, until it starts inhibiting gaming really. Then I'll take a look at the hardware landscape. Essentially I'll have to revisit the issue lol.

And for the record my current setup runs SCII on maxed out settings smooth as silk.

 

[DXRick]

I am still wondering how I can be wrong when I point out that the 760 has a min FPS of 29 in Crysis Warhead (attempting to show that the CPU can be limited in current games), and I am wrong again when I say that FPS above 30 is not noticeable.

But, I have encountered "experts" like this before on the internet and doubt I will get an intelligent answer.