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Advice on upgrading exist graphics capability

Stevolution

Stevolution

Stevolution

Associate
Joined
20 Aug 2012
Posts
150
Hi all.
We built an Overclockers tower gaming rig - probably the best part of 2 years ago.

Its base spec is:

Intel Core i7-4770K 3.50GHz (Haswell) Socket LGA1150 Processor
Gigabyte Z87X-D3H Intel Z87 (Socket 1150) DDR3 ATX Motherboard
Patriot Viper "Black Mamba" Generation 3 16GB (2x8GB) DDR3 2133MHz Dual Channel memory
MSI HD 7950 Twin Frozr III Boosted edition 3072MB GDDR5 PCI-Express GPU

I seem to remember that you can crossfire the graphics cards (basically add another?)... but I can't find one to match the above and its all unknown to me. I assume life has moved on and that option is now gone.

Only reason I ask is my other half ran a new game today and the frame rate was 29 - way down on the days when we started.

Options? I seems a real shame to bin the perfectly good 7950 above - plus I don't want to bash a pile of cash on the head for minimal improvement.

Just as a side note, we have never overclocked the system. I looked into doing that when we built it, but just wasn't confident enough to have a tweek.
Does overclocking the graphics gain you all that much?
We basically selected the pre-set 'extreme' setting and left it at that.

Any guidance gratefully received
 
get another 7950 they don't have to be the same brand,all it will do is bring the gpu speeds to the lowest card.
Also what game did he try? and what's your budget for a new card?
 
She try.... my wife is the gamer - not me!

Game - Shadow of Mordor.

So if I can find another 7950 and crossfire them (why can't I find them in OC?)... will the improvements be better than simply replacing the card for a newer version?

Budget... mmm. I suppose a few hundred pounds. At then end of the day, she doesn't need the settings set to Ultra for everything.
She got 44fps when V-sync was off, but the tearing was pretty bad. Dropped to 29fps when on... but amazing picture.
 
You can crossfire with any 7950 or 7970 card, doesn't have to be same model or make.
Even the 280/280X will also work since they are Tahiti core gpu's too. You only find most these used since most retailers won't be selling older cards. Expect to pay around £80-£120 depending on if it's a 7950/280 or a 7970/280X.

I have mine overclocked and get close to gtx980/390X performance in games that support crossfire. You'll need at least a 650W power supply.
 
I fitted an 850w PSU when we built it - just in case.
Thanks for the advice, I will have a look and see what I can find

Had a look on OC... Can't find anything compatible (I don't think)
 
Last edited:
Stevolution said:
She try.... my wife is the gamer - not me!

Game - Shadow of Mordor.

So if I can find another 7950 and crossfire them (why can't I find them in OC?)... will the improvements be better than simply replacing the card for a newer version?

Budget... mmm. I suppose a few hundred pounds. At then end of the day, she doesn't need the settings set to Ultra for everything.
She got 44fps when V-sync was off, but the tearing was pretty bad. Dropped to 29fps when on... but amazing picture.
Click to expand...
What graphic setting is she using?

This game is so demanding, that you should not use the usual approach of putting everything on Ultra.
 
Doing what she always does..... full everything. Not sure, but she did say it was totally maxed out on the settings and resolution.
Some of the best graphics I have seen her play.
I have to say, if the average was 29fps (according to the games benchmark), it really did seem fine and fluid.

I have to say also that this tower system we built hasn't blinked since we built it a few years back. It has (touch wood) been damn bulletproof.
The temps never go very high at all. I fitted my own temperature system with a custom LCD that displays case temps (top, middle and bottom), GPU, hard drives, SSD's, CPU etc.
Fans never ramp up at all.

Maybe a little overclocking is called for? (If I knew what the heck I was doing)
 
I would leave V-Sync off personally until you get the same fps as the monitor (i.e 60). Depends how bad the tearing is though I guess. Also turn AA down, if you are running AA at something like 8x that will be destroying the FPS. Also texture quality, do not run the ultra quality texture pack, that card does not have enough VRAM. Those few changes should make the FPS improve quite a lot.
 
Iwill go have a play with the settings later. She says its been fine however.

The tearing with V-sync off was very bad.

If I find another 7950 for a reasonable price.... is it worth the Crossfire upgrade?
 
Due to wanting to avoid crossfire issues I'd go for a card such as a 390 and sell the 7950 That will mean it costs you a couple of hundred quid depending on what you get for the 7950 but it will seem worth it when you hit games with dual card issues or no profiles and find yourself back on the single 7950 performance level. That will give you a significant performance boost and also make newer tech available in the future. As you're not really into overclocking go for the model with the biggest box clock which is the MSI 390 Twin Frozer 5.

https://www.overclockers.co.uk/showproduct.php?prodid=GX-289-MS&groupid=701&catid=56&subcat=3059

The Nvidia 970 would also be a nice upgrade.
 
My 7950/7970 crossfire combo has been great. Plays everything I've thrown at it with ease. I am always tempted to upgrade but I see no real reason.

Get a second hand 7950/70 for about 70-80 quid and notice a good boost.
 
Mmm... Just ran the auto config on the game and it dropped one setting (can't remember what) to high instead of ultra..... 51fps.

Its not an issue... the games play fine. It was only an upgrade I was considering, as I thought the 7950's would have dropped a lot in price.

I will look about...

ooh yes, an Nvidia 970 would be nice
 
I think I have decided to go for a new card anyway.

I like Nvidia stuff, so I will keep an eye out for a good bargain on OC around the £250 mark.

Thanks for all the advice guys
 
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