GTX 570 vs HD7770, Worth buying older hardware?

[SecretCobraz]

I am looking for a card to replace my 9800GTX+ I already know there will be a bottleneck with my Core2Quad Q9400

I can get a decent deal on a used GTX 570 for about $200 vs $150 for a new 7770.

The 7770 is the best current-gen, price-performance card on the market right now, and I really don't like buying last-gen hardware, but I only have around $200 total to spend right now, and I want to make the most of it.

 

[SecretCobraz]

My motherboard won't support SLI or CrossfireX, and the bottleneck with the Q9400 still bothers me about how much performance I won't be able to utilize.

 

[mpheng]

I'd suggest the GTX 570, it'll destroy the 7770 in performance. Although the 7770 would use less energy but they just don't match in performance.

 

[SecretCobraz]

I'd suggest the GTX 570, it'll destroy the 7770 in performance. Although the 7770 would use less energy but they just don't match in performance.

I have a 680w PSU, so power isn't a huge concern, just buying older and used hardware is what kills me.

How much of a bottleneck do you think I would have with the 570 compared to the 7770?

My only problem would be if the $50 extra I put down on a 570 really wouldn't show better performance because of the bottleneck from my Q9400. I heard if you overclock it from 2.6Ghz to upwards of 3 Ghz it might help but my CPU Cooler is a piece of trash.

 

[eddieroolz]

You could spend the $25 to buy a CM 212 Evo, and overclock away.

 

[Guest]

a GTX 570 will not be bottlenecked by your cpu. ( or should i put in the "depending on the game and resolution" disclaimer )

the 570 was released in Q3 of 2110; your cpu was released in Q3 of 2008.

now would you get more FPS with a sandy bridge i5?
yes.
but that has nothing to do with the cpu bottlenecking the 570 but the limitation of the cpu; there is a difference.

 

[SecretCobraz]

You could spend the $25 to buy a CM 212 Evo, and overclock away.

Can that fit a socket 775?

 

[SecretCobraz]

Best answer selected by SecretCobraz.