Undecided on what video card to get..

your first choice should be the AMD 7850. if you want to go with nvidia then check out the GTX 570 or wait for the release of the GTX660ti and see how it compares to the AMD 7850.

right before 300, would be 560ti's, 7850s, 560ti448cude, and 570's. though i recommend just getting a single card so you don't have to go through any problems with crossfire/sli.

Definitely a gtx 570.

get two gtx480 or two gtx570

This next topics has been merged by Mousemonkey

Undecided on what video card to get..

Nice, thank you all for the replies and suggestions.. Atleast I have some ideas. I am kind of an Nvidia fan but I do currently have a HD 5770 in my computer right now and thats why I was considering the 7850 as it PCI-e 3.0 ready (as is the CPU and MB I've chosen).

Decisions.. decisions.. lol

Thanks again!

I'd like to know why you are considering SLi/Xfire so much?

Why not just get a newer 6XX series card for a potential $100-200 in saving, have better performance, lower power usage, cooler production, and lower fan speeds?

I currently am using a 5970, and recently did a really nice overclock to my CPU to put it 4GHz, I have it water cooled with a single radiator closed loop system and recently just added 2 Noctua fans to put it in a push and pull config. I did this because obviously single radiator closed loop water cooling isn't the best and my OC brought my idle temps to ~50c with the fans it brought it down to ~40c.

What I had wanted to do was actually get a new video card but decided not to because I've been benchmarking BF3 and in Op Metro I get an average of 119 FPS @1920x1080, all Ultra no AA no Blur -- even though being suppresed is beyond rediculous in the game. What I am suggesting is though go for something new, don't go a single step above what you have now in terms of generational hardware.

You have a 5770 why go for 480's which were good but louder and ran hotter than most cards. And I am also a bigger nVidia fan and my suggestion is to go with a 670 or 680 and down the line if you get multiple monitors push it to a Sli config. Why Sli now with no real purpose when you get get a single card solution that performs better.

This is all my opinion, just simple advice from my perspective. You will decide what you want.

Another thing I might add is with the money you save, I see you want extra fans for your H100, I'd highly recommend getting 4 Noctua fans and put it in a push/pull config, I can almost bet the temps will be amazing. In all honesty I didn't think these fans would help, my older PWM fan would crank up speeds and sound like a jet blasting off when my CPU went up to higher temps. But with these 2 Noctua fans I barely hear them and it keeps my system very cool. The sucky thing is though even with a 92MM fan blowing the air out from the back the idle temps have stood generally the same at ~22-27c but I believe my ambient sensors might be on the frits because when I put my hand in my case it is actually very cool and I don't really feel any warm spots.

Thank you for the response Raze..

I am honestly thinking of just using 1 higher end card but the budget is still only $300 at the moment, I was just mulling over the idea of 2 slightly lower cards out performing 1 high end card. As I mentioned in the previous post I am an Nvidia fan which is why I'll wait to see what the 6xx series of cards offer. I'd like to utilize the PCI-e 3.0 ability I'll get from the CPU and MB combo though.

I did fail to mention that this computer will be a work in progress so to speak as I can't get all the components at the same time so I won't be building this computer probably for a couple months anyways. It'll give me time to view the newer generation of video cards and possibly increase my budget slightly to get a higher end card.

I did see a few reviews on those Noctura fans and I can see myself getting 4 of those for the H100 push/pull config. They are expensive for a fan but worth the money from the reviews I've seen on their performance.

Thanks!

Again my own opinion save up all your money.

If you have $500 now and want to in total spend $1,500, wait and save that money till you have it all.

Components will be cheaper when you want to get them.

I've wanted a 128GB SSD since like November been eyeing them at around $200-$300. I've had the money but I waited and I got to pick up a 256GB for $200. I couldn't be happier man.

Save up and save up, it will be so much more worth it to actually have what you want and still be able to save some money.

If your budget is lets say $1,000 right now in a long term investment all the parts you are looking at today in 6 months will be 10-30% off and then you will be able to invest that in a badass graphics card.

I agree completely, saving is the name of the game.. just so hard to do sometimes! lol

On a plus side, I get paid every 2 weeks which means I can potentially save $800-1,000 each month and I guess my spending limit has no cap right now so saving and waiting a bit for prices to go down is in my best interest. Who knows, I may update my list with a larger SSD like you did, or go with the i7-3770k instead of the i5-3570k. Anything can happen over the next month or two.

Right now the cost of the PC, including tax and shipping (I'm in Canada) is $1,700.. in a couple months it might be the same cost but with better components.

Time will tell!

I appreciate all the advice and everyones suggestions have not gone unheard.

Thank you

Save up another hundred, buy a 670, spend 5min OC'ing it to exceed a stock 680 and enjoy a card you will never hear running and never exceed 75C on max gaming loads.

You will not be disappointed  

I've chosen the Corsair AX850 power supply.. is that enough to handle the whole system I listed in the original post? I like that PSU because its fully modular and I like the idea that I only use the cables I need without extra cables taking up space.

I will be going with 1 high end card for sure, possibly the 670, 680 or HD 7950 3gb version listed here..

http://www.newegg.ca/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E1681...

It might be cheaper once I actually save up the money..

Get a 670.

As I've said and even the post before yours said, a simple overclock will get it to the performance of a 680.

It is actually baffling that the Asus DCII 670 got better benchmarks and reviews than the reference 680.

Look here at the Metro 2033 benchmarks
http://www.techpowerup.com/reviews/ASUS/GeForce_GTX_670...

And the game that really matters by today's standards in graphics BF3.
http://www.techpowerup.com/reviews/ASUS/GeForce_GTX_670...

I'm actually hoping myself that I can score a 670. But don't know how I will do it lol. My system is still very good.

Ok, Asus DC2 GTX 670 it is.. its a bit out of my price but who knows in a couple months there may be rebates on it or my cash flow increases a bit. lol


Thanks for the help in deciding!

850w should be way more than enough to power 2 670's and OC a cpu. Rule of thumb is ever new generation of gpu is more efficient than the previous generation, so gtx 6xx and hd 7xxx cards are power efficient.