Gpu buying options...

[theaterix]

So im looking at now buying a new GPU as i was advised by a nice gentleman that a sick watercooling loop was, in fairness a bit of a waste as my money would be better spent on a new GPU and a monitor, which i see a lot of point in.
I have about £1200 in total but would much prefer not to spend it all if you gentlemen (I know yous wont) can save me some money hehe.
What card(s) should i be looking at..?

My current system is:
AMD 8320 CPU
Corsair H100 Cpu cooler
MSI 990FXA-GD65 MOBO
Corsair Vengeance 8gb 1600Mhz RAM
Sapphire Reference R9 290 GPU
Corsair CX750M PSU
LG 29UB65-P Monitor

What should i be looking out for? Also, what specific brand if there is any to avoid? I am aware of EVGA being one of the very best, but is there any massive Nono's?

 

[theaterix]

Do you want 1 card or 2 cards, and you get to choose from amd or nvidia (fury or 980ti)

Oooo i like you i get choices And i would like performance per pound really, I personally love AMD and would like to put my money into their pocket, but if they are going off the one thing i loved, then its pointless isnt it!
1 or 2, i dont really mind too much if i am honest

 

[theaterix]

£1200 just for a GPU? Or 2?

Nono, thats my overall budget lol, id only be wanting to spend like 500-600 realistically

 

[theaterix]

If you love amd i go freesync 144hz, 1440p and a pair of r9 390s, but your need a new psu aswell.

Yeah i pre thought about this, and i would also like a new case, so that could set me up for a nice looking build which is what i want

 

[theaterix]

Grabbing a 2nd hand 290 for around £130 is an option, but he OP would need to upgrade his PSU to at least at decent 850W...and then also if he's not upgrading his monitor to higher than 1080p res, the FX8320 will bottleneck the crossfire setup quite heavily (at least until dx12 properly takes off).

So to crossfire or not would be depending on if OP will be moving on from 1080p I guess.

I am currently on 2560x1080, yes 1080p, but i like to describe it as the half way point between 1080 and 1440? I would be looking to upgrade to probably 2560x1440 if one at 144hz comes out, and is a decent price!

 

[theaterix]

You need to have a chat with tonyturbo78 as he got a 1440p 144hz

How would i go about doing that?

 

[theaterix]

http://forums.overclockers.co.uk/member.php?u=153018

Not sure how to straight out message him so send a friend request
What should i be asking?

 

[theaterix]

Hi mate, got your friend request. What's up man?

Read above mate, You have a 1440p screen apparently?

 

[theaterix]

yes I do. I have the BenQ 1440p Freesync monitor which is an incredible screen. Freesync/Gsync is a total game changer, definitely recommend getting one of these http://www.overclockers.co.uk/showproduct.php?prodid=MO-113-BQ&groupid=17&catid=948

Regarding your path, you're in quite a tricky position I'd say. While that 290 is still a pretty decent card, you have quite a few options right now which is a little tricky. Throwing a Freesync screen to that 290 as it is will feel like your frames have taken a jump anyway. Freesync has a brilliant way of making the motion and frame feel so smooth, at times it feels like you're actually playing at 30% more fps when you're obviously not.

With Pascal and the next round of cards less than a year away, adding the Freesync might be a good start, but that cpu/ram and card will need to be upgraded at some point as it'll be a bottleneck. You could always get a 2nd 290 with a Freesync screen which would be a lovely boost, quite a powerful setup for less that £500, but you would need to upgrade your CPU, mobo and RAM to really push both those cards.

Or you could upgrade your motherboard, RAM and CPU along with the Freesync monitor and keep plugging away with the one 290 for the time being until the big cards come out next year. That way you'll have the base of your rig there, you wont get a bottleneck etc.

I myself am running MSI 390 crossfire setup on a I7 3770k, it absolutely tears games to pieces at 1440p. Most of my games sit at a 120fps cap that I have enabled, only few exceptions like Witcher 3, GTAV where I can't keep it at 120fps with ultra settings. I still believe, not just because I have that kind of setup, that for your money you get one hell of a bang for your buck on crossfire 290/390 (no need for X models). It'll quite easily match the fastest 980ti/Titan setup out there, in some cases beat it, to me it's a bit of a no brainer as I've had very little issues with crossfire in all the years I've been running various setups.

I have just watercooled my cards, just recently done my first custom loop, it's a wonderful route IMO, incredibly cool and insanely fast.

this is how the BenQ looks and size

You definitely want to get a Freesync screen though, like I said it's a game changer.

Jesus christ that setup is absolutely unreal!!
If you dont mind me asking, what parts do you have in that loop, and how much did it cost in total? Reason I ask is that is what i was actually looking to do a loop, but you haven't included your CPU, which i did not think of at all, and having a H100 myself, i think i would be alright in that regard.
I am in need of a new case, and was looking at:
https://www.overclockers.co.uk/showproduct.php?prodid=CA-205-CS&groupid=2362&catid=1489
I think the extra 290 and a freesync monitor seems to be the way i am edging, i must admit. Although I do love my ultrawide, so i really do not know what im going to do there, maybe dual i really dont have a clue.
Realistically here's my plans, tell me what one you think will be best, or if you can think of anything else, feel free to add.

1) Upgrade to 2x R9 290 and get the FreeSync monitor you linked. Sell my CPU/Mobo and upgrade to a 4690k/4790k and motherboard, and then the case. Dependant on cost, get the waterloop in there. See how i like the monitor and if i dont like, return before 14 days is over.

2) Stay with 1x R9 290, Get the FreeSync monitor, sell Cpu/Mobo and upgrade that instead and wait for Pascal or the AMD equivalent.

3) Eat cookies, take a bath in the money, wait for Pascal and buy the best of the best.

4) Just upgrade CPU/Mobo/Ram and get the Freesync as a second/gaming monitor,

 

[theaterix]

thanks for the kind words on the rig guys

Like I said, your in a really tricky position. While the 290 is a nice card, do you really want to upgrade a system and base WC around an aging card/mobo and cpu setup now? There's no doubt, 290 crossfire is a lovely setup, but without water it will get pretty warm in there, unless you get another reference 290 with an exhaust.

I honestly am not sure what to suggest, I think it would depend entirely on how much you game on your PC and what games you play.

See, I'm a huge FPS nut and love maximum eye candy so really need lots of power to get 1440p up above 100fps for the freesync to really shine. But if all you play is single player games, then maybe one 290 is good enough to keep you around 60fps on a freesync screen which will feel nice. There are a few guys around here that run 290X and freesync, and they say it feels lovely even around 60fps.

I think honestly from those choices, if I was in your shoes, I'd probably go for option 2 or there abouts. The 290 is still a really decent card, I'd say you'd get a very nice bump in gaming enjoyment upgrading your CPU and mobo to a 4790k and mobo combo, then add another 8GB RAM to match what you got. Get a Freesync screen and feel the fluidity around 60fps until the big cards come out next year. Then at least you'll have the case, a 4790k/mobo setup which will be a solid base for many years, then you can start planning on WC around that end of next year with the big cards that are due to come along. Of course If you go Freesync then you're tied in with AMD, but if you love them, then I'm sure you've no issue with that. I've been with AMD hardware for 10 or so years now, rocked out crossfire setups for years and have had no issues what so ever.

Think that sounds like the best idea. See how much money i have left over and maybe buy myself a scooter as its my 16th in a months time To be honest, i love AMD and will probably always buy the 2nd tier card, 290, 390, Fury Non X etc, and Freesync will be worth it for me. If not the scooter, i think I will get another 290 if budget allows etc.
Give me 10 minutes to piece a basket together on OCUK.

 

[theaterix]

Okay, tell me what i can improve, or is a waste of money, bare in mind, i am selling my current parts, so can make up some of the money Here we go...

BenQ XL2730Z 27" 2560x1440 TN FREESYNC 144Hz: https://www.overclockers.co.uk/showproduct.php?prodid=MO-113-BQ

Intel Core i7-4790K 4.00GHz:
https://www.overclockers.co.uk/showproduct.php?prodid=CP-541-IN

2nd GPU - Shmebay £160 ish

EVGA SuperNova G2 1000W:
https://www.overclockers.co.uk/showproduct.php?prodid=CA-003-EA

Phanteks Enthoo Luxe:
https://www.overclockers.co.uk/showproduct.php?prodid=CA-004-PT

Gigabyte Z97X-Game-Plus Intel Z97:
https://www.overclockers.co.uk/showproduct.php?prodid=MB-524-GI

Kingston HyperX Fury Black 16GB:
https://www.overclockers.co.uk/showproduct.php?prodid=MY-196-KS

That is what i am looking at, its going to come to ROUGHLY £1300... Suppose, for that, i am getting a full insane PC hahaha. Plus a few hundred quid cashback from selling my current one lol

 

[theaterix]

I still think rather than buying everything in one go, you could consider just getting the Freesync monitor alone first (something you will definitely buy either way), and see how it improve your gaming experience...then you can take it from there, to think about toward which direction should you upgrade.

THIS. Think it seems like a very logical idea, do yous think i should wait for black friday? Also, can i get free delivery by linking my forum account to my OCUK account?