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Upgrade to GTX 760 or GTX 970

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  • Gtx
  • Gaming
  • Graphics
Last response: in Graphics & Displays
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October 6, 2014 11:32:45 AM

Hi All,

I know these are stupid questions but I am really confused right now. Before the query, my gaming rig details:

EVGA GeForce GTX 460 1024MB GPU
Asus P5Q-VM Motherboard (G45 Chipset)
Intel Core™2 Quad Processor Q9550 (12M Cache, 2.83 GHz, 1333 MHz FSB) CPU
Dell E228WFP 22 inch Widescreen Flat Panel Monitor (max resolution 1680 * 1050)
Cooler Master HAF 912 Advanced Chasis (Cabinet)
Cooler Master N620 CPU Heatsink with 2*120 mm blue LED fan
Corsair TX 750W PSU
6 GB Kingston 800MHz DDR2 RAM (2*2GB, 2*1GB)
500 GB + 250 GB 7200 RPM Western Digital SATA HDD
Cooler Master 1*200 mm Red LED, 1*200 mm, 1*120 mm Case fan

I have not upgraded my rig as I have been in UK for last 2 years and my rig back in India :( 
Now, I am going back so time to upgrade.

Ques 1: will Q9550 still be good for High settings in latest games like Metro Redux, Watch dogs, Bioshock Infinite etc. As upgrading would mean mobo+CPU+ram :o 

Ques 2: I know my GTX 460 is not good now; should I upgrade to GTX 760 (EVGA Nvidia GeForce GTX 760 Superclocked ACX 2GB GDDR5 Graphics Card) for £165 or GTX 970 for £290.

Please note that my monitor is max 1680 * 1050 and I don't plan to upgrade as of now.
Any suggestions would really help.

More about : upgrade gtx 760 gtx 970

a b 4 Gaming
October 6, 2014 11:49:33 AM

1) Processor is fine, and will run those games on high and cope nicely.

2) Get a GTX 970, worth the extra. (even for that lower FHD res)

Your system will support that card.
October 6, 2014 11:54:01 AM

q9550 is good enough
gtx 970 is better than 760, it can perform metro redux in ultra settings
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a b 4 Gaming
October 6, 2014 1:03:47 PM

Current games will all benefit from a good GPU upgrade so it's the most cost effective way to go.
Consider looking into overclocking the current CPU, the faster it can be made to run, the better the system will perform overall.
There's no need to go for a GTX970 at that rez, besides, it'll only be held back significantly by the current CPU, even if it's overclocked. Only consider it as a long term purchase, something you'll transfer into a CPU/MB/RAM upgraded system next year, otherwise I suggest you look a little lower.
I'm a little reluctant to recommend a 2Gb card these days and the 4Gb GTX760/770 look overpriced compared with the 3Gb AMD R9 280/280X.
So:
1: It's not exactly slow, but overclocking will bring benefits, but even if you are lucky and obtain a good OC, it's still an older part, don't expect it to perform like one of those flashy Haswell upstarts.

2: For reasons detailed above, I'll recommend the R9 280, good ones can be found for under £170 but if you want to go Nvidia I'd opt for a 2Gb GTX760, the 4Gb GTX760 is too expensive for its performance and the 4Gb GTX770 is far too close to the vastly superior GTX970 to make it even worth considering.
October 6, 2014 1:33:40 PM

Thanks unknownofprob & abhishekmpelite for your comments.
Thanks coozie7 for helping me; After reading your post, I started thinking about when would I need to upgrade my mobo\CPU\Ram. I think I will upgrade only when they stop letting me play on high settings. Do you think my CPU will give up next year? If so, then as you suggested I will go with GTX 970 else will stick with GTX 760 for next 2 years and later upgrade everything.

Also, on a different note; do you guys suggest buying a 128\256 GB SSD; will that improve gaming performance significantly?
October 6, 2014 1:50:29 PM

my spec is like you except gtx 660also i consider upgrading to gtx 970 but many tell me that q9550 will bottelneck gtx 970
a b 4 Gaming
October 6, 2014 8:54:49 PM

gaurav0110 said:
Thanks unknownofprob & abhishekmpelite for your comments.
Thanks coozie7 for helping me; After reading your post, I started thinking about when would I need to upgrade my mobo\CPU\Ram. I think I will upgrade only when they stop letting me play on high settings. Do you think my CPU will give up next year? If so, then as you suggested I will go with GTX 970 else will stick with GTX 760 for next 2 years and later upgrade everything.

Also, on a different note; do you guys suggest buying a 128\256 GB SSD; will that improve gaming performance significantly?


I fine 128GB for a SSD is not enough space for me (even with only important files) and many, go 256GB. Then have a separate HDD for backups.
October 6, 2014 11:11:25 PM

newer games need more disc space unless you are using some repacked versions.you can see that call of duty ghost is somewhat 30 gb or more and some others got 35gb or more. so it is better to get a 256gb
October 7, 2014 3:36:59 AM

Thanks for the suggestion guys. But still the real question was:

1. Will updating to 256 GB SSD really give me significant difference in gaming experience?
2. I think I will upgrade my mobo\cpu\ram only when they stop letting me play on high settings. Do you think my CPU will give up next year? If so, then as you guys suggested I will go with GTX 970 else will stick with GTX 760 for next 2 years and later upgrade everything.
a b 4 Gaming
October 7, 2014 3:39:17 AM

"Will updating to 256 GB SSD really give me significant difference in gaming experience?"

Loading times (loading game maps ect./ application load times)/boot times yes.

CPU, the time when it gives it is the time when you do a task it cant handle, I can't estimate that.

October 7, 2014 4:35:00 AM

unknownofprob, Task for the CPU would be playing latest games in high settings. My question is when do you think my CPU will stop letting me play games in high settings. If its going to be only a year then I need to get GTX 970 now and upgrade my mobo\cpu\ram in next 6-8 months.
a b 4 Gaming
October 7, 2014 5:52:33 AM

It's hard to predict. I can only advise you to upgrade when you can tell it needs to be upgraded.
October 7, 2014 9:47:28 AM

Okk... Let me put the question this way then...

Will GTX 760 (EVGA Nvidia GeForce GTX 760 Superclocked ACX 2GB GDDR5 Graphics Card) be able to play latest games in high settings at full HD for the next 2 years? If no, then its a no brainer and I will go with GTX 970; otherwise I will stick to GTX 760.
a b 4 Gaming
October 7, 2014 9:49:31 AM

GTX 760 from what games are predicting at high, no. Get the GTX 970 for that, it'll do a far better job in the long run.
October 10, 2014 6:40:14 AM

better get 970, i hope it will handle upcoming games
!