Help choosing video card, power supply & case for $1000 i5-3570k gamer

[Soldor]

Hey all,

Going with the i5-3570k for overclocking
Z77 extreme4 asrock mobo
chrono 120gb ssd
g.skill 8gb ram
windows 7

Need help filling in the blanks.

Really need help deciding on a video card. Was leaning towards the radeon 7850. My price range for video card is $200-320 it all depends on where i get most bang for buck. need help choosing mid-tower and power supply after that. may do SLI in a couple years but won't do it off the bat. Also looking for a case that has usb 3.0 and 2.0, cost effective.

what would your top choices be please? thanks

 

[motorneuron]

I had been pretty down on the 7870 for the past few months because I didn't think it offered enough over the 7850 to be worth it. But there's a $270 post-rebate 7870 on Newegg now: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814127662&nm_mc=EMC-IGNEFL070312&cm_mmc=EMC-IGNEFL070312-_-EMC-070312-Index-_-DesktopGraphicsVideoCards-_-14127662-L09C The Twin Frozr has historically been a pretty decent cooler, too, so you can probably OC that thing quite a bit.

And then coming it right at your maximum price, post-rebate, is the Twin Frozr 7950: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814127667 Again, it's that same pretty good cooler, so you can probably OC this thing (and the HD 7000 series runs cool anyway).

Unless you go up to ~$400 to get a 670, which would be a good choice, I think you have to go AMD. It just doesn't make sense to get a 570 (or a used 580 or something nutty); they're too hot and too little VRAM.

As for lower price options, you could also get a 7850 and anticipate getting a second one in the not too distant future. But I abide by the old axiom that you should get the best single card you can afford and save SLI/Crossfire as a future upgrade path. I think we agree on that, though.

 

[FinneousPJ]

What he said.

Recommending a case is hard since I have no idea what you like.

As for PSU a quality 700W ish unit will do great for xfire in the future.

 

[Soldor]

Thanks for the responses.

What's the difference in performance between the 7850 to 7870 to 7950?

Also can you suggest a good PSU for future SLI/crossfire with whatever of these cards I get?

For a case just need usb 3.0 and 2.0 ports on it plus cooling is my main concern. thanks

 

[J_E_D_70]

Carbide 500 and 400 are great, solid cases and well ventilated. If you have the room, the Thor V2 has outstanding airflow and is quiet.

 

[FinneousPJ]

Case reviews: http://www.tomshardware.co.uk/eleven-hundred-storm-enforcer-agusta-arc-midi-kl04,review-32470.html

AMD GCN: http://media.bestofmicro.com/Q/A/328834/original/M2033%201920.png from article http://www.tomshardware.co.uk/radeon-hd-7870-review-benchmark,review-32392-7.html

Good PSU: Antec, Corsair, Seasonic, XFX

 

[motorneuron]

Here are some good benchmarks too, a bit broader:

http://www.anandtech.com/bench/Product/548?vs=550 (comparing 7870 to 7950)
http://www.anandtech.com/bench/Product/549?vs=548 (comparing 7850 to 7870)

The notable thing about the 7850 and 7950 is that, relative to the 7870 and 7970 (respectively), they differ more by clock speed than by silicon. But there is no reason you can't make up that clockspeed by overclocking. So the 7850 and 7950, once overclocked, are sort of better values than the 7870 and 7970. That isn't to say the 7870 isn't a good card, especially if it's pretty close in price to the 7850. But the jump to the 7950 becomes more dramatic once you factor in OCing. So if you can do it, I'd go to the 7950.