Upgrading from GTX 280 216Core to GTX 560Ti 448Core

[MooseHead]

Hello there TH-ers!

I have a question for you folks... Right now I'm being stuck between a tight budget and an old-ish GPU. I found a replacement that sounded pretty sweet, but I want others' opinions, too.

My current rig is:

Mobo: ASUSTeK M4N78 Pro
CPU: AMD Phenom II X4 940 --> OC'd @3.4GHz
GPU: BFG GeForce GTX280 216SSC --> stock as of several months.
RAM: 4GB Mushkin XP2-8500 DDR2 (yeah, I know, OLD, but I'll change the mobo later in the summer...)
PSU: Cooler Master GX Series 750W 80+ Bronze PSU

I usually run my games at 1680x1050, Crysis and Crysis Warhead run decently on Very High/Ultra combinations, Crysis 2 is really good on all max, though I'm having some issues with BFBC2 (my fave multiplayer shooter) and BF3, as well as Skyrim.

I got $300 in my pocket as computer money, and I got my eyes on these :

EVGA 012-P3-2078-KR GeForce GTX 560 Ti 448
ASUS GeForce GTX 560 Ti 448Cores DCII
ZOTAC GeForce GTX 560 Ti 448 Cores 1GB GDDR5
MSI GeForce GTX 560 Ti 448 1280MB GDDR5 OC

I'm looking to get some suggestions and a bit of guidance; I'm looking for a decent upgrade over my GTX280, and I'm also looking for a GPU that won't melt through my case and spit flames out the back when I run games like GTAIV, STALKER Clear Sky, and STALKER Call of Pripyat at high/maximum settings. (Several times I've been playing Pripyat on medium-high at average FPS, only to exit and realize to my horror that the GPU was at 100+ Celsius/212+ Fahrenheit! could have roasted some high-tech bacon on that...)

So, whaddaya think? Which company's getting my money?

 

[DM186]

I would go with the MSI one. Here is a link compairing the your 280 to the 560 448 but it would only show the 285. Also here is another link for the MSI one. Good luck to you.

http://www.anandtech.com/bench/Product/317?vs=499

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814127615

 

[gary1]

Have you seen the 7850 at all?

 

[GI_JONES]

I was recently in a similar situation..PhenomII X4 955BE with a GTX260 core216, gaming at 1600 X 900. I bought the MSI one you have linked to 3 weeks ago, and couldnt be happier. BF3 on ultra, no problem..Crysis maxed out, no problem. Its fairly quiet, you can hear it but its not like a dustbuster running in your pc. It doesnt seem to be a hot running card either. You wont be sorry Oh and BFBC2 absolutely flies!(i dont have the other games you mentioned)

 

[DelroyMonjo]

Where is 7850 cheaper? Look at this review, a 7850 2GB vs a 560Ti w/ 1284 Vram. And a 560Ti/448 scales closer to a 570.

 

[DelroyMonjo]

Hehe, yeah, I like HWCompare since they don't use real benchmarks, they are theoretical.

 

[DelroyMonjo]

http://hothardware.com/Reviews/AMD-Radeon-HD-7870-and-7850-GPU-Previews/?page=8
Keep grasping, Halliburton...
At least we know the drivers work on Nvidia cards...

 

[gary1]

I don't get it Delroy..

"while the Radeon HD 7850 finished about 10% faster than the GeForce GTX 560 Ti and nipped at the GTX 570's heels."

 

[MooseHead]

[SOLVED]: Thanks for all the input, ladies and gentlemen.

I was going to go for the MSI GTX560Ti 448, but instead I got my hands on an MSI GTX570. Bought it for $300 from Kijiji, snatched the 3-year MSI warranty as it was untouched, and even so paid $20 less than I would have for a 560Ti 448!

Cheers!

 

[MooseHead]

I was recently in a similar situation..PhenomII X4 955BE with a GTX260 core216, gaming at 1600 X 900. I bought the MSI one you have linked to 3 weeks ago, and couldnt be happier. BF3 on ultra, no problem..Crysis maxed out, no problem. Its fairly quiet, you can hear it but its not like a dustbuster running in your pc. It doesnt seem to be a hot running card either. You wont be sorry Oh and BFBC2 absolutely flies!(i dont have the other games you mentioned)

Yes, I found that the newer MSI cards are much more compact and sturdy than EVGA's of BFG's... My new GTX570 from MSI has 2 fans, bigger heatsink, aluminium casing/cover, and still it's 1.5 inches shorter than my old BFG GTX280. And in idle, with the fan at 70% (else it sounds like a jet turbine hahah... even the sound is better!) it sticks at 25-26 *C... My house is 22 *C average.

I'm not even going to bother explaining the difference between game performance, cause I'd have to write 2 separate books on it.

 

[MooseHead]

Best answer selected by MooseHead.