How long before i need to upgrade my gpu?

[idriss]

Hey guys newcomer to the forum but also a computer nub..I just built my first sytem all by myself and without any help the other day. That felt awesome. Anyways i bought a GTX660ti and am wondering how long it will be before it cant run the latest games? I usually play dota 2 but ive got a borderlands fetish right now as well.

Also what do you guys think of my system?
Specs:
Mobo: ASUS PZ77 VLE
Hardrive: WD Caviar black 1TB
PSU: Thermaltake TR2 500w
Case: Bitfenix something stealth (lol)
DVDRW: some generic brand got it for like 20 bucks
RAM: DDR3 1600MhZ Patriot Black Mamba Viper 3 (something like that)
CPU: Intel i5 3570k (stock fan but gonna upgrade it before I OC
Total cost: 1500 because i had to get the Monitor, speakers, keyboard, mouse, and headset

Look forward to your replies

 

[idriss]

Ps the gpu is a Gigabyte oc windforce gpu with 2gb of gddr5

 

[computernoob29]

should last around two years, it will probly be able to run at medium atleast in two years

 

[brett1042002]

Kind of a vague question. A lot of factors play into whether you need/want to upgrade. It really depends on how well future games are optimized, their system requirements, and your expectations out of your rig.

My 5870 from '09 still plays my games on High settings (some eye candy disabled) with no issues, and smooth framerate. This includes Borderlands 2, WoW, BF3, Crysis, Planetside 2 Beta, Skyrim, etc. I don't crank AF and AA to max, and obviously no PhysX (AMD card). I mostly except whatever the game defaults me to, and so far it is generally High settings across the board.

I've got 3 years out of it so far, and plan on stretching it another year or so.

If you always expect to game on the latest titles @ Ultra/High settings, over 60 FPS, and High Resolution then you're going to be upgrading about every 1-2 years.

If you can live with High or Medium settings, disable some eye candy, and ~40-60 FPS then it may stretch out to 2-4 years, depending on the title and resolution. Maybe longer...

This is anyone's guess really.

Just my .02.

 

[idriss]

Kind of a vague question. A lot of factors play into whether you need/want to upgrade. It really depends on how well future games are optimized, their system requirements, and your expectations out of your rig.

My 5870 from '09 still plays my games on High settings (some eye candy disabled) with no issues, and smooth framerate. This includes Borderlands 2, WoW, BF3, Crysis, Planetside 2 Beta, Skyrim, etc. I don't crank AF and AA to max, and obviously no PhysX (AMD card). I mostly except whatever the game defaults me to, and so far it is generally High settings across the board.

I've got 3 years out of it so far, and plan on stretching it another year or so.

If you always expect to game on the latest titles @ Ultra/High settings, over 60 FPS, and High Resolution then you're going to be upgrading about every 1-2 years.

If you can live with High or Medium settings, disable some eye candy, and ~40-60 FPS then it may stretch out to 2-4 years, depending on the title and resolution. Maybe longer...

This is anyone's guess really.

Just my .02.

Fair enough. Basically i just want around 40fps in fps games in the future on high settings. Although i like to max everything out i am willing on giving up a few settings. On that PhysX note im pretty sure there is a way around it on an amd card, saw a video on youtube.

 

[geekapproved]

421 days, 6 hourrs, 41 minutes and 11 seconds. Please nominate this for dumbest question of the week drawing.

 

[neon neophyte]

that system should push through until the next generations of consoles come out and gaming takes a sudden step up.

 

[zdbc13]

At least a few weeks....

 

[idriss]

that system should push through until the next generations of consoles come out and gaming takes a sudden step up.

Hmm interesting, i guess it would make sense that companies would go with the highest end graphics to power the console if its gonna be around for many years

 

[idriss]

At least a few weeks....

Guess i need to go buy another card now -_-... not

 

[Onus]

Like Brett says, depending on settings, you could get years out of it, or play only until your potentially fecal (how old is it? Does it have a little voltage switch on it?) Thermaltake PSU blows electronic chunks all over it. For example if it is this: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817153113 the 350W you'll be pulling may be fairly close to its actual capacity.
(System load from http://www.extreme.outervision.com/psucalculatorlite.jsp )

 

[idriss]

Like Brett says, depending on settings, you could get years out of it, or play only until your potentially fecal (how old is it? Does it have a little voltage switch on it?) Thermaltake PSU blows electronic chunks all over it. For example if it is this: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817153113 the 350W you'll be pulling may be fairly close to its actual capacity.
(System load from http://www.extreme.outervision.com/psucalculatorlite.jsp )

Yes thats the one. SO what your saying is that my powersupply is inadequate? slightly confused by what your trying to say.

 

[Onus]

Your PSU is barely adequate; it's a notch or two above junk. A quality modern PSU has full range active PFC (no little voltage switch) and some level of 80+ certification; not so much for the efficiency, but that it was tested at 100% load for long enough to warm it up (even though the temp they use is only 23C). Seasonic, Antec, Corsair, XFX, new FSP, and Enermax/LEPA are among the better brands.

A PSU under stress runs warmer, and heat ages the capacitors more quickly, further reducing capacity. If you use that PSU, pay attention to how hot its exhaust is. Just warm is ok; hot isn't.

 

[idriss]

Your PSU is barely adequate; it's a notch or two above junk. A quality modern PSU has full range active PFC (no little voltage switch) and some level of 80+ certification; not so much for the efficiency, but that it was tested at 100% load for long enough to warm it up (even though the temp they use is only 23C). Seasonic, Antec, Corsair, XFX, new FSP, and Enermax/LEPA are among the better brands.

A PSU under stress runs warmer, and heat ages the capacitors more quickly, further reducing capacity. If you use that PSU, pay attention to how hot its exhaust is. Just warm is ok; hot isn't.

Thanks for that tidbit. Ill def keep an eye out for that and consider that on my next psu purchase

 

[turboshine]

Like Brett I had a 5850 for nearly three years and I was still able to play BF3 on high settings and get 45 to 50 FPS. I just built a new system and was going to hang onto my XFX 5850 but I had a buyer for the old i7 860 rig so I sold the card with it.

I just ordered the Asus 660ti from Newegg and it should be here Friday. I am realistically expecting 2 years at least, but that will depend on new games that come out like BF4. I rarely go with the newest card when I build a new system because over time prices will fall. I was tempted to get a 670 which may have future-proofed me for an additional year, but I couldn't justify the extra $100.

In the end, your card will be good until it can't run the games you play at what you consider to be acceptable settings.

 

[idriss]

Like Brett I had a 5850 for nearly three years and I was still able to play BF3 on high settings and get 45 to 50 FPS. I just built a new system and was going to hang onto my XFX 5850 but I had a buyer for the old i7 860 rig so I sold the card with it.

I just ordered the Asus 660ti from Newegg and it should be here Friday. I am realistically expecting 2 years at least, but that will depend on new games that come out like BF4. I rarely go with the newest card when I build a new system because over time prices will fall. I was tempted to get a 670 which may have future-proofed me for an additional year, but I couldn't justify the extra $100.

In the end, your card will be good until it can't run the games you play at what you consider to be acceptable settings.

Soo what fps should you be able to get playing bf3 maxed out on the 660ti? im asking because review sites have different fps's which confuse me