Expert advice needed

Cairnsey · 30 Dec 2014 at 06:55

Hi All,

I've bought some new components to build a new PC for BF4. I felt that my current Q6600 was just not cutting it anymore in BF4, which is pretty much all I play. I bought the following:

Gigabyte UDH5 Z97 Motherboard
Intel i7-4790k
8Gb DDR3 Corsair Vengeance RAM (can't remember speed)
Corsair 750D Obsidian case
Corsair H110 cooler.

I intend to run my existing GTX580 1.5Gb to see how it goes, with a view to upgrading if it's still a little slow. I want to run on ultra at above 60fps (1080p) and have two friends with 2600k's, 8gb and gtx580s. One says it runs ultra no problem, the other says there's a little bit of slow down. So first question:

1. What should I upgrade my GTX580 to? Is a GTX970 a good choice? Would getting a second 580 be a good move (If I upgraded PSU too?)

Secondly, my PSU is a Zalman 600HP, which according to those PSU calculator sites, should be more than capable, but I'm wondering, due to it's age:

2. Should I upgrade my Zalman 600W PSU also? (regardless of graphics cards)

Thanks for your time guys.

Doomedspeed · 30 Dec 2014 at 08:34

Hi.

That PSU looks good, so no need to upgrade it..

As for your friends. Do they both have 1.5gb 580s or does one have a 3gb version.

VRAM makes a big difference in BF4.. So the 1.5gb may struggle with BF4.

If you were to upgrade the GTX 970 (4gb) would be the best option, it will max out 1080p easily..

As for the brand the Galax infinity is the best choice, under £300 too..

Cairnsey · 30 Dec 2014 at 08:44

Cool, thanks. They both have identical cards, they're Gigabyte SOC's but not sure of the VRAM amount. Presume 1.5Gb for both, like mine. I can only presume one person's perception of "no problem" is another's perception of "a little slow".

So you don't recommend trying to source another GTX580? How does VRAM workout in a SLI scenario? is it all used?

setter · 30 Dec 2014 at 08:53

In sli you would still only have 1.5gb of vram. A 580 will struggle on bf4 on ultra with msaa. A 970 will comfortably run it maxed with x4 msaa at 1080p.

Doomedspeed · 30 Dec 2014 at 08:54

VRAM doesn't scale in SLI, that's why I don't think it's a great option. So even if you got a 3gb card (in SLI with your 1.5gb card) you'd still only have 1.5 gb of useable VRAM.

The 970 is a beast of a card and a hefty upgrade from your 580.

Cairnsey · 30 Dec 2014 at 09:14

Ah, thank you both. OK, so that begs another question the, if I were to upgrade my GPU to a GTX970, would I need to upgrade my PSU then? or is a 970 less power hungry?

DR_Pingu · 30 Dec 2014 at 09:17

Doomedspeed said:
Hi.

That PSU looks good, so no need to upgrade it..

As for your friends. Do they both have 1.5gb 580s or does one have a 3gb version.

VRAM makes a big difference in BF4.. So the 1.5gb may struggle with BF4.

If you were to upgrade the GTX 970 (4gb) would be the best option, it will max out 1080p easily..

As for the brand the Galax infinity is the best choice, under £300 too..

Or other perfectly spanking options are the MSI or Gigabyte G1, seem to still be the most highly regarded of the 970's out of the reviews I've read --- I can certainly vouch for the Gigabyte G1 Gaming too

(no coil whine at all on mine, left it on Valley on HD, max settings. Got a score of 2576, don't actually know if that's any good or not :rolleyes:

DR_Pingu · 30 Dec 2014 at 09:23

setter said:
In sli you would still only have 1.5gb of vram. A 580 will struggle on bf4 on ultra with msaa. A 970 will comfortably run it maxed with x4 msaa at 1080p.

Just to add to that:

Even if you got the 3GB 580 the SLI configuration will only count the lowest amount of VRAM so it'd 'make' the 3GB card only use 1.5GB, of which will be the max from the 2.

If you get a 970 you'll be future proofed, perhaps keep your 580's for a small, fun gaming rig for lesser demanding titles or something. I don't know how, or what is needed :rolleyes:

, but maybe even turn it into a media centre/server thing?

Cairnsey · 30 Dec 2014 at 09:59

I like the look of the GTX970 G1.....Hmmmm....

ED209 · 30 Dec 2014 at 10:15

i have the EVGA SC 970 and i like the look of that!

DR_Pingu · 30 Dec 2014 at 10:16

G1 ftw

Doomedspeed · 30 Dec 2014 at 18:39

YOUR BASKET
1 x Gigabyte GeForce GTX 970 G1 Gaming 4096MB GDDR5 PCI-Express Graphics Card £289.99
1 x GALAX GeForce GTX 970 OC Silent "Infinity Black Edition" 4096MB GDDR5 PCI-Express Graphics Card **WorldWide Exclusive** £287.99
Total : £577.98 (includes shipping : ).

Both have the same clocks.

The only difference is the infinity comes with a 'zero coil whine guarantee'..

I also think the RMA is with OCUK on the Galax too (as it was 'designed'by them).

TGReaper · 30 Dec 2014 at 19:47

+1 for the G1