New monitor and/or video card advice

[ak2000spooky]

I'm looking to get a new monitor and perhaps a new video card (going down a slippery slope again). I don't know if I should wait for 4k monitors to drop or wait for the next gen of video cards or just pull the trigger now. Budget (up to $800 for a monitor and up to $600 for a GPU).

I'm looking for either a 27" or a 32" that I will wall mount on a full motion long arm mount. I was thinking either 2650x1440 or 2650x1600. 120hz would be nice, but I haven't seen any out there at those resolutions. I thought of getting a new video card so I can run games (fps/rpg/strategy) at at least 50-60 fps on high settings, but haven't seen any that are in my budget and new tech.


So I found these monitors and have no clue on a new card:

1. ASUS PB278Q
2. ASUS PG278Q
3. BenQ BL3200PT
4. Samsung S32D850T


Games (FPS/RPG/Strategy): Diablo 3, Counter-Strike GO, Battlefield 4, Skyrim, Fallout NV, Civ 5, Dota 2, Hitman, Tomb Raider, Wargame,etc.

Current System:
- Intel i7-3770k
- Sapphire Vapor-X Radeon HD 7970 Ghz Edition 3GB 384-Bit GDDR5
- 180GB Intel SSD
- MSI 277A-G41
- 16GB G.Skill Ripjaws X Series
- Soundblaster X-Fi Titanium HD
- 32" Samsung 1920x1080p 120Hz TV
- 5.1 Onkyo Surround Sound System

 

[drapacioli]

7970 GHz edition and you want to upgrade? Wow, ok, I wish I was in your position (Stick rockin' a 6870 myself!). There's actually not much to choose from that's any sort of significant upgrade. but there are a few like the Titan Z and R9 295X2, but these are just way out of that price range if memory serves. There are also SLI/Crossfire options, if you're looking for that (I personally prefer to avoid those, but if you want to consider them let me know). Just so I know and don't recommend you a card that your system can't power, what's the system's PSU right now?

 

[Matthew-san]

This is the perfect monitor for you. It is $799, 144Hz, and has a resolution of 2560x1440p. The first monitor to ever have 144 Hz and 1440p resolution.

http://www.tigerdirect.com/applications/searchtools/item-details.asp?EdpNo=9175893&SRCCODE=WEBGOOPA&utm_source=google&utm_medium=paid_search&utm_campaign=paid_search_google_pla&scid=scplp1566688&gclid=Cj0KEQjwvqWgBRChnMjQ7u7UzOUBEiQAooXvYSfdXN4x4ELDYQsnbIWMS8vr_aRW035fqTFN49VXmBIaAont8P8HAQ

The EVGA GeForce GTX 780 Superclocked 6GB would handle that monitor superbly.

http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00K699CRW/?tag=pcpapi-20

I hope I helped!

 

[Matthew-san]

Oh, I almost forgot to mention. The ASUS ROG Swift monitor has a game changing new technology called G-sync which eradicates all screen-tearing by syncing the refresh rates between your graphics card and monitor. It is currently the only monitor that you can buy on the mainstream market that already has G-sync installed. You will need a Nvidia card to take advantage of G-sync functionality.

 

[drapacioli]

The GTX 780 is a marginal upgrade, only one step on the Tom's GPU hierarchy chart: http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/gaming-graphics-card-review,3107-7.html

There are 780Ti's in that price range though, in particular from Gigabyte and MSI. They are currently $620 and $630, but have mail-in rebates that will bring it down to $599, which is just in your budget. If you can afford it, that is a marginal step up from the 780 and therefore a larger step up from the 7970 GHz edition.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814127770&cm_re=780_ti-_-14-127-770-_-Product
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814125489&cm_re=780_ti-_-14-125-489-_-Product

 

[Matthew-san]

Perhaps but the 780 6GB is adequate for the monitor I suggested and his overall build. Plus, he saves money by going with my option and has some extra VRAM for if he ever wants to have multiple monitors.

 

[drapacioli]

Sure, if you're going multi-monitor more VRAM is definitely the way to go, especially if we're talking multi-4k displays.

 

[Matthew-san]

It would end up being 4k indeed! I bought a 1080p 144 Hz monitor right before the ROG released. :/ It is an awesome monitor, don't get me wrong but I was trying to decide between 2k or 144 Hz.

 

[ak2000spooky]

7970 GHz edition and you want to upgrade? Wow, ok, I wish I was in your position (Stick rockin' a 6870 myself!). There's actually not much to choose from that's any sort of significant upgrade. but there are a few like the Titan Z and R9 295X2, but these are just way out of that price range if memory serves. There are also SLI/Crossfire options, if you're looking for that (I personally prefer to avoid those, but if you want to consider them let me know). Just so I know and don't recommend you a card that your system can't power, what's the system's PSU right now?

850w. I bought the 7970 1.5yrs ago, but to run the higher res I need a better card. Figure I can sell this one and add some to get a better one.

 

[ak2000spooky]

The ASUS ROG SWIFT PG278Q was one of the monitors I was looking at, unfortunately I have an AMD card and I don't see the value in getting a current Nvidia card before they release the 8xx series. Also, I read several reviews saying the monitor is great, but since it is the first of its kind it has several issues out of the box. I probably won't have multiple monitors, but I do heavily mod games like skyrim so the extra Vram is nice.

 

[drapacioli]

The ASUS ROG SWIFT PG278Q was one of the monitors I was looking at, unfortunately I have an AMD card and I don't see the value in getting a current Nvidia card before they release the 8xx series. Also, I read several reviews saying the monitor is great, but since it is the first of its kind it has several issues out of the box. I probably won't have multiple monitors, but I do heavily mod games like skyrim so the extra Vram is nice.

If you're only looking to go AMD, there's nothing to upgrade to in your price range except the r9 290x. It'll have a much better pixel rate than the 7970, which means better performance at higher display resolutions. The 780 beats it in some areas and the 780 Ti beats it flat out though.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/ProductList.aspx?Submit=ENE&N=100007709&IsNodeId=1&Description=r9%20290x&name=Desktop%20Graphics%20Cards&Order=PRICE&Pagesize=20&isdeptsrh=1

I'd go for the $599 Asus model, which is supposed to run very cool. It'll be a huge change from that personal space heater that is the 7970 GHz

 

[ak2000spooky]

The ASUS ROG SWIFT PG278Q was one of the monitors I was looking at, unfortunately I have an AMD card and I don't see the value in getting a current Nvidia card before they release the 8xx series. Also, I read several reviews saying the monitor is great, but since it is the first of its kind it has several issues out of the box. I probably won't have multiple monitors, but I do heavily mod games like skyrim so the extra Vram is nice.

If you're only looking to go AMD, there's nothing to upgrade to in your price range except the r9 290x. It'll have a much better pixel rate than the 7970, which means better performance at higher display resolutions. The 780 beats it in some areas and the 780 Ti beats it flat out though.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/ProductList.aspx?Submit=ENE&N=100007709&IsNodeId=1&Description=r9%20290x&name=Desktop%20Graphics%20Cards&Order=PRICE&Pagesize=20&isdeptsrh=1

I'd go for the $599 Asus model, which is supposed to run very cool. It'll be a huge change from that personal space heater that is the 7970 GHz

I don't mind AMD or Nvidia,I had both before. I'm just wondering if its worth it to wait and get a higher resolution when the new Nvidia cards come out later this year or if the difference/price will not be worth the wait. I think 4k is still a couple of years away from begin in my price range (aka running games in ultra).

 

[ak2000spooky]

I don't have many nice things, but I like to have my gaming PC in the upper tier!

 

[drapacioli]

Well if you want to skip the new monitor for now and put all your money into the GPU you could go for the 295x2, which is about the best you can get: http://www.newegg.com/Product/ProductList.aspx?Submit=ENE&N=100007709&IsNodeId=1&Description=r9%20295x2&name=Desktop%20Graphics%20Cards&Order=BESTMATCH&isdeptsrh=1

Should be able to handle two 4k monitors once the price drops if you can't afford a new GPU at the same time too. Very good deal with the recent $500 price cut too.

 

[ak2000spooky]

Honestly I just wanted a new monitor, but I always end up trying to upgrade everything. 1.5yrs ago I got the i7-3770k for a great price and somehow ended up also upgrading from 8GB of ram to 16GB, upgrading from a GTX 470 to the 7970, and getting my first SSD... The current TV I use has too much lag when I play FPS games and I don't like the artificial up-scaling to 120hz.

 

[drapacioli]

You seem indecisive. How about just waiting for the price to go down then?

Either that or get a halfway decent 1080p monitor while you wait. Anything is better than using a TV as a screen.

 

[Matthew-san]

I know what you mean about the upgrading. There is always one more thing You should wait for the Nvidia GeForce GTX 980 which will surpass the 780 and perhaps equal the 780 Ti in performance with an addition in VRAM at a 4GB starting point. 8GB versions will be released in the near - future. The GTX 980 will most likely release in approximately 2 weeks. That is what the press is advertising. Check out some of the articles online if you need more information.

 

[ak2000spooky]

Thanks everyone! I am very nitpicky when buying things... took me a week to decided what card I wanted when buying the 7970. After spending a couple of days researching different resolutions and their respective requirements, differences between IPS and TN, reading reviews, I was hoping to get some more opinions. Y'all have been great.

 

[drapacioli]

haha yeah, I can be that indecisive sometimes too. Good things happen when you wait though

 

[Matthew-san]

I usually wait a week or so as well to buy my computer components but that is because I never have the funds to purchase them! Lol Then I spend the next month deciding what to get!