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Graphics Card Upgrade after 6/7 Years

Cork1n

Cork1n

Cork1n

Associate
Joined
27 Apr 2012
Posts
19
Location
N.I
Hi.

I have an AMD Radeon 7800 series card and i think it's time for an upgrade, I don't want to spend a tone of money on one, Maybe around £200 mark but could stretch it a bit if it's worth the investment.

Basically looking at AMD R series but not sure which one to go for,. i think i only have 500w power supply and not sure that's enough either for a good R series card.

Any help is much appreciated.
 
Cork1n said:
It's corsair and i have an i5 3750k.
Click to expand...

Well, as it sounds like you have a decent psu, you should be okay with a 280X - or maybe even something a little more demanding. Adding another £60+ to your budget would allow you to step up to an R9 390, which is the sweet spot for a high end card / value for money.

https://www.overclockers.co.uk/giga...ics-card-gv-r938xg1-gaming-4gd-gx-181-gi.html

https://www.overclockers.co.uk/powe...hics-card-axr9-390-8gbd5-ppdhe-gx-178-pc.html
 
Last edited:
Cork1n said:
Hi.

I have an AMD Radeon 7800 series card and i think it's time for an upgrade, I don't want to spend a tone of money on one, Maybe around £200 mark but could stretch it a bit if it's worth the investment.

Basically looking at AMD R series but not sure which one to go for,. i think i only have 500w power supply and not sure that's enough either for a good R series card.

Any help is much appreciated.
Click to expand...

My advice wait 6 months. New gen of cards made with new processes is due.
The value for money going to be better. Also current range of cards going to have a price crash on used ones
 
You have 2 options, either a 380, which is a step-up from the 7850/70 but not too much and within your PSU range; or a 390, which is a bit overbudget and you'd have to undervolt but which is a big stepup from your current card. The 3rd option is wait for Polaris in a few months. That's what I'd do tbh.
 
the 390 is a slightly better card but its not "much" better. I own a 390 and have owned a 970 and its swings and runabouts some games the 970 performs better others the 390. Forget the 8gb Vram argument it cant use it all as a single card. Both are excellent cards for the money however in your situation you could run the 970 on your PSU making it the clear winner for your setup imo. the 970 uses a Frugal 145 watts compared to the 390's 275 watts. a good 430 watt PSU will run it fine however it will not run a 390.

in terms of real world performance that you will notice with your eyes its so close and minimal. Plus the 970 overclocks quite a lot more than a 390 closing the gap completely if you wish to overclock.

second hand 970's can be picked up under £200 and given your PSU personally its the obvious choice. If you had a 600watt psu i would say get the 390 as you have the spare juice but you dont and there really is not that much more power on tap that it justifies the extra cost of a PSU.

Just my two pence worth not being bias as i have owned both and still own the 390.
 
Second hand 780 ti with a few years left on the warranty can be had for under £200. Mine performed better than a gtx 980 once overclocked. Even comparing to an overclocked 980 it was on par, if not quicker.
A good quality 500 watt psu should be able to take it
 
Randall8686 said:
the 390 is a slightly better card but its not "much" better. I own a 390 and have owned a 970 and its swings and runabouts some games the 970 performs better others the 390. Forget the 8gb Vram argument it cant use it all as a single card. Both are excellent cards for the money however in your situation you could run the 970 on your PSU making it the clear winner for your setup imo. the 970 uses a Frugal 145 watts compared to the 390's 275 watts. a good 430 watt PSU will run it fine however it will not run a 390.

in terms of real world performance that you will notice with your eyes its so close and minimal. Plus the 970 overclocks quite a lot more than a 390 closing the gap completely if you wish to overclock.

second hand 970's can be picked up under £200 and given your PSU personally its the obvious choice. If you had a 600watt psu i would say get the 390 as you have the spare juice but you dont and there really is not that much more power on tap that it justifies the extra cost of a PSU.

Just my two pence worth not being bias as i have owned both and still own the 390.
Click to expand...

Best advice in this thread. :)
 
sand_dune said:
You need to look again. 390 is a better card.
Click to expand...

Umm..... Care to explain?

The 970 wins on the following;

BF4 1440p
BF4 1080p
Crysis 3 1440p
Crysis 3 1080p
Shadow Of Mordor Min FPS 1080p
Dragon Age Inquisition 1080p
Total War Attila 1440p
Total War Atilla 1080p
Grid 1440p
Grid 1080p
GTAV 1440p
GTAV 99th percentile 1440p

The 390 wins on;

Shadow of Mordor 1440p
Shadow of mordor 1080p
Shadow of Mordor Min 1440p
Dragon Age Inquisition 1440p
Talos Principle 1440p
Talos Principle 1080p
GTAV 1440p

Factor in this is with much lower power use and I really struggle to see why the 390 is considered "better".
 
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