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Do I buy another 290x or not...

JimBobJr88

JimBobJr88

JimBobJr88

Associate
Joined
13 Jan 2010
Posts
25
Guys,

I find myself in a bit of predicament at the moment. I'm not sure whether to purchase another 290x 8GB MSI Gaming graphics card or just get something newer in preparation for some 4k gaming... Granted, I will probably have to Crossfire/SLI some other high-end card in order to play games in 4K at a fps rate I would be happy with but still. Starting again with a new high-end card should land me in better stead for the future, should it not?

Long and short, am I wasting money investing in another 290x?

Thanks,
 
Haha. Nothing wrong with a short answer... What would you go out of interest if you were to buy a new high-end gpu with the ambition of buying another a little later in the year for SLI/Crossfire configuration? A 980? Cards £600+ are not in my budget. Thanks,
 
I've found my self in an odd position... I had two 780 Lightnings an for gaming at 1440p they were perfect. One went pop, so that left me with one which tbh worked fine but it was the worse of the two for clocking so I was never really happy... I sold that on whilst it was still worth something and stuck a 7950 back in. Now though it seems I either go for a 980 or a 390 when it's out but even then, will it match a 290x 8gb? I am still contemplating buying 2 of them and sitting on them for a couple of years... Tricky times :(
 
I would wait until amd release there new card(s) as it's just on the horizon :) (June I Believe)

See how they cope with 4k then go from there :)

And there is also 980ti coming out too :)
 
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Yeah that is a tricky situation. The trouble is, there is never a good time to buy anything, especially in the world of high-end gaming hardware. There is always something new around the corner. The 290X that I have is great, no denying that. But I'm not sure if I would buy another, kind of becoming a little old now a days. I would perhaps hold off for a bit and have a look at the 300 series. Or purchase a 980? That's my train of thought at the moment.
 
The 290x's are great if you are at higher resolutions without spending £1000+. But nothing at the moment can handle 4K I'd wait, see what AMD bring. I don't think 4K will be doable properly for a good couple of years yet. And graphics cards too without running 3 or more of them anyway.

If you can pick up a cheap one second hand then why not? Matt is using 4 of them at 4K I believe. They're more than capable and there's benchmarks to prove that. They keep up with the 980 which is double the price! The only thing is crossfire profiles, great if all you play is battlefield :D

I was going to go crossfire but im waiting for the new cards and then see where it stands, unless I can get another cheap one, then it would be rude not too!
 
savagesam117 said:
The 290x's are great if you are at higher resolutions without spending £1000+. But nothing at the moment can handle 4K I'd wait, see what AMD bring. I don't think 4K will be doable properly for a good couple of years yet. And graphics cards too without running 3 or more of them anyway.

If you can pick up a cheap one second hand then why not? Matt is using 4 of them at 4K I believe. They're more than capable and there's benchmarks to prove that. They keep up with the 980 which is double the price! The only thing is crossfire profiles, great if all you play is battlefield :D

I was going to go crossfire but im waiting for the new cards and then see where it stands, unless I can get another cheap one, then it would be rude not too!
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So you run 4k do you?

I run a pair of Titan Blacks and I have no problems cranking 4k and neither do a pair of regular 4gb 290s so you're obviously doing it very wrong.
 
ALXAndy said:
So you run 4k do you?

I run a pair of Titan Blacks and I have no problems cranking 4k and neither do a pair of regular 4gb 290s so you're obviously doing it very wrong.
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No I don't. I can't afford too. I meant with games coming out being more and more demanding it. I was only going on what I have read from other people.
 
savagesam117 said:
No I don't. I can't afford too. I meant with games coming out being more and more demanding it. I was only going on what I have read from other people.
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Rubbish. Go read Custom PC's review of the 295x2. It shows it clearly being able to run 4k very well.

As I said I run 4k and my Titan Blacks do a sterling job.
 
The 295X2 is perhaps an interesting card but again, with the 300 series on the horizon it is probably definitely worth waiting to see what the next crop brings. The Titan's are just too expensive. I couldn't justify the purchase unfortunately.
 
Dual cards may run 4k okay but with that your at the mercy of dual card support. Nvidia seems to provide better SLI support than AMD do crossfire support so out of the two that's the better option however. Seeing how a TX manages acceptable 4k and the 390x may be close to that the Opening poster would be better off waiting and getting that because at least when there's no dual card support in he'll have better single card performance than the 290x gives.
 
old gamer said:
i was tempted by a 295x2 as it can be had for £500 but im holding out for the 390
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Is probably the most sensible advice I could give right now. Obviously with 6gb vram I've been OK for the most part.

Games I tested were Crysis 3 (which is rubbish any way but was more than playable) BF4 (again not my sort of game but ran locked at 60 FPS) and Dying Light which needed some fettling as the SLI profile was broken but again, locked at 60 FPS.

If you really, truly can't wait then buy a set of 4gb 290s. They will offer a decent 4k experience for £50 or so less than a 295x2, but obviously the X2 takes up less space and will be quieter.

To the OP.

If you've already made the investment into one 8gb 290x then logically it would be wise to buy another. The only way you will beat that set up is with two Titan X or two of the new AMDs.

I held out for Titan X but the price is just beyond stupid so I am going to see what AMD come up with now. I have a third Titan Black I could throw in but I still don't believe in any more than two GPUs. Natural progression for me will be two of the new AMD cards, which hopefully come in at around a grand. That's probably the price I will bite at, though in honesty as I said the pair of Titan Blacks I run now are more than adequate for 4k, especially given I still play Fallout 3.
 
Bonjour said:
when CF is working.
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That's the problem, when it's not you get 290x performance which is lacking at 4k, I haven't tried 4k but it must be lacking as I maxed my 290x with the AMD version of dsr and it struggles at that which is lower than 4k.
Then there's the temps, I bought my 290x with the intention of going crossfire but I ended up with a crud MSI TF 290x gaming that left me with temps which I couldn't expect to add another card too.

If you want to run a wide selection of games and play new releases as there released then you need to go for a single high end gpu. Even if you then crossfire/sli that at least you have the single card performance in support.
 
All about price, pick one up 2nd hand for circa £160-170 and ,personally, i would say thats the best best till the next gen of cards matures slightly (and the inevitable price drop etc)
 
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