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What would you do GTX970 or R9 390?

cee-S-dee

cee-S-dee

cee-S-dee

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Hi guys,

I currently have a MSI GTX780 Lightning but i have the opportunity to pass on a 2nd system to a friend but he would like the GTX780 included.

My current system is

[email protected] and i currently game on a 1920x1200p monitor. This is all housed in a cougar qbx Mini-ITX case with a Silverstone SFX-L 500W PSU.

I'm currently undecided on what card to get. Its currently a toss up between the GTX970 and the R390.

On the GTX side it would either be

Gigabyte GeForce GTX 970 G1 Gaming 4096MB
EVGA GeForce GTX 970 SC ACX 2.0 4096MB

Or on the 390 side

MSI Radeon R9 390 Gaming Edition 8192MB
Sapphire Radeon R9 Nitro 390 8192MB

They are all within a similar price range i'm just unsure what to go for. Is there a card that is more future proof or would last longer than the other? How would these handle resolutions like 1440p if i decided to do a monitor upgrade in the future? 4K doesn't interest me as i don't think my system would be able to accommodate the resolution.

Also with the Release of Windows 10 and DX 12 its also something that could tip the balance on which card to go for.

Thanks for taking the time to read and any input is greatly appreciated.
 
If you're planning on going for 1440p or 4K, then I would go for the 390 since the extra 4GB of VRAM will really give the leg up, especially if you want to do Crossfire in the future.
 
cee-S-dee said:
This is all housed in a cougar qbx Mini-ITX case with a Silverstone SFX-L 500W PSU.
Click to expand...

Blatant hijack alert!

Since reading the reviews I very much like the look of the Cougar QBX. How are you finding it? Also, none of the reviews I've read have pictures which give a size comparison. Yes, they give measurements but I have trouble visualising them. So how dinky is it really?
 
Worth noting, if you do go for a EVGA GTX 970 SC ACX 2.0 4096MB, EVGA have improved the card in later editions, with all the copper heat pipes making contact with the GPU, so cools better and the fan doesn't go past 36%

This is the one to have >> 04G-P4-3975-KR

 
I have the above 970 and I even with what im doing I think its cool running. I am running folding at home along side an amd 290 tri x and even with both cards at 100% usage and the evga 970 core at 1500 it doesn't go much above 50c , currently at 56c which is pretty much the highest it has ever been
 
I game at 1200p and I have a 970 G1. Great card.

I like the fact I have Game Works support and the Game Ready Drivers for every game.

As an example of performance - I have a maxed out Witcher 3 at 1200p on my machine (3570k) and it is smooth. Not 60fps obviously, but smooth that I don't see any stutter, slowdown or any lag at all. (Might be SSD that helps here)

8Gb of ram is useless at 1200p. Unless your a modder and need the VRAM.
 
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970 at 1080p 390 at a higher res

But coming from a 780 lighting i would be setting my sights on a 980ti/Fury tbh.
 
MrMD said:
970 at 1080p 390 at a higher res

But coming from a 780 lighting i would be setting my sights on a 980ti/Fury tbh.
Click to expand...

It's a very good point. Going to the 390/970 won't be that much of an upgrade and it is kind of wasting money. So either don't sell the 780 or get something faster.
 
I would say the 390 is the obvious choice here but the only thing that concerns me would be the 390’s heat output and your cases ability to expel all the hot air (it’s MATX). In this regard the GTX970 cooler running and less demanding power requirements might suit you better but if your confident with your case then go with the 390.
 
Freddie1980 said:
I would say the 390 is the obvious choice here but the only thing that concerns me would be the 390’s heat output and your cases ability to expel all the hot air (it’s MATX). In this regard the GTX970 cooler running and less demanding power requirements might suit you better but if your confident with your case then go with the 390.
Click to expand...

I don't think the 390 will be putting out much more heat than a gtx780 lightning so it should not be a problem.
 
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