Upgrading from GTX 480

[sonny24]

Hey everyone, recently I have been thinking about upgrading from my EVGA GTX 480 for a couple reasons:

1. It is UNGODLY hot.
2. The power consumption is a bit much.
3. I have been thinking of 3 monitor setup or 1440p/1600p resolution down the line, so I would need more VRAM, and I'd have to use SLI, and I really don't want two of those monsters sucking out more power.

So my question is what would be a good card to upgrade to? I don't particularly care which brand (I've used Nvidia my whole like, but if AMD works, I'm all for it). I at least want something comparable (better if possible). Money is a little tight right now too, so cheaper better. I have been taking a look at various things, and I was wondering what it 384-bit means? How would it compare to a modern 128-bit card?

Thanks so much

If it helps I currently have a i7-3930k and 8 GB of RAM

 

[austing]

GTX 660ti
GTX 670

Or

Radeon 7950
Radeon 7970

Are your options.

Any of those is taking a HUGE ammount of stress off of your power supply.

Those all do N-Surround/Eyfinity

384-bit means that the memory bus is larger, the memory travels faster and is more efficient.

A 1GB 256 bit isnt as fast as far as memory as a 1GB 384bit

 

[Embra]

Budget?

 

[abCasPeRR]

Well budget comes into effect, but I agree with austing. The 660 Ti-670 7950-7970 range would be a really good upgrade if your wanting it 300 and below.

 

[mesab66]

Good options there.

For very good info have a look at: http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/gaming-graphics-card-review,3107.html

To let you know how your current card compares with any eventual choice, check out: http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/gaming-graphics-card-review,3107-7.html

 

[Sunius]

A 1GB 256 bit isnt as fast as far as memory as a 1GB 384bit

That's not accurate. Memory speed = Memory Frequency * Memory Bus Width.

For example, if 256 bit one has 6000 MHz frequency, while 384 bit has 4000 MHz frequency, their speeds would match.

256 * 6000 = 1536000
384 * 4000 = 1536000

 

[sonny24]

Thanks for the replies!

I would like to keep it sub-$300 if possible, unless you think that there is one that is above and beyond.

How do those 4 cards compare? Would there be any downsides?

Regarding the memory bus size, would I notice the decrease when upgrading to any of those?


For comparison sake, When playing Far Cry 3, I am playing with everything on Ultra and MSAA x4, how would these compare?

 

[Embra]

Bang for your dollar, get the HD 7870.

 

[sonny24]

I see some good deals out there on the 7950, how would that compare to a 660 ti? I've never owned an AMD before, is there any downside/upside in games?

I was looking at this one: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814150588

How is it for overclocking?

 

[PizzaShyguy]

I see some good deals out there on the 7950, how would that compare to a 660 ti? I've never owned an AMD before, is there any downside/upside in games?

I was looking at this one: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814150588

How is it for overclocking?

None that I can think of besides Physx and no CUDA. I think a 7950 should suit you well or a GTX 670 which ever you end up buying should make you happy with the performance you will get.

 

[Sunius]

I see some good deals out there on the 7950, how would that compare to a 660 ti? I've never owned an AMD before, is there any downside/upside in games?

I was looking at this one: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814150588

How is it for overclocking?

Performance is very similar to GTX 660 Ti. You won't be sorry getting either card.

 

[amuffin]

Realistically a 480 to a 660ti isn't really worth it, you'd have to be looking at something like a GTX 670.

 

[Sandouby_96]

go for the 7950 it has a bigger memory bandwith and the main reason cuz u said u r looking forward to using 3 monitors and the eyefinity Tech from AMD is much better than the nVidia's Surrounding and it doesn't draw alot of power too

 

[Sunius]

^

How exactly is it better? Because you need to use a plethora of adapters to make it work?

 

[sonny24]

A lot of you are suggesting the 7950. If I overclocked it, would it perform equivalent to the 670? I have a 750W power supply, so I'm not entirely sure about how much room there is to overclock.

Also, how is XFX as a brand? I've never bought any of their cards before. I'm really leaning towards taking the plunge on that one.

 

[Sunius]

Don't forget you can overclock GTX 660 Ti as well.

Read this article:

http://techreport.com/review/23981/radeon-hd-7950-vs-geforce-gtx-660-ti-revisited/11

 

[amuffin]

XFX is the EVGA of AMD cards.

 

[sonny24]

I'm torn more and more about which way to go! Hypothetically, if I stretched a bit and got a low priced 670 like this:
EVGA reference card would it be worth it in terms of performance per $?

Otherwise I would just go with a 7950.

This is a hard choice considering how beastly the 480 was

 

[austing]

If you saved up for a low end 670, you'd have to OC it to the next tier of AMD GPU's, so basicly, its an endless cycle of cat an mouse over preformance.

I just buy and enjoy what I have the money to afford, and I've never been envious of anything better because I know I can just get it second hand for cheap in 6 months haha.

You can pick up two 460's for less than 100$ each, and get the preformance of a GTX580 for almost half price. The power of second hand is amazing really.

 

[Embra]

I agree with the first half of what "austing" has stated above., but I would strongly recommend buy a single gpu. It is always tempting to think about going a little bit over your budget, but remember budgets are made for reasons.

A 7870, 660ti or 7950 will all give you a great gaming experience at 1080p.