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I'm Stuck On Which GPU To Get...

Overclocked? A 7970 - especially in AMD titles like BF4, Tomb Raider, Sleeping Dogs etc...
It also costs less.

Generally, there's not a lot between them.
 
Right now, these are the best value for money.
When OC'd to the same clocks, the 7970 will only be around 5% faster than the 7950, so bear that in mind.
The 7970 may well clock a bit higher though. Probably not enough to worry about.

YOUR BASKET
1 x Asus HD 7970 DirectCU II TOP 3072MB GDDR5 PCI-Express Graphics Card **FREE SHIPPING** £239.99
1 x HIS HD 7950 IceQ BOOST 3072MB GDDR5 PCI-Express Graphics Card (H795QC3G2M) **FREE SHIPPING** £199.99
Total : £439.98 (includes shipping : FREE).



Seeing as your budget extends to around £400, I'd still say to wait for the R9-290 before you decide on anything.
 
Thanks mate, I dont really understand what you mean there though, the 7970 is only 5% faster than the 7950 when overclocked? Or am I missing something there? Is the 7990 worth taking a look at?
 
It means that if both cards are overclocked to, say 1100mhz, the 7970 will only be about 5% faster than the 7950. Basically, the difference won't be very noticeable, if at all.

The 7990 is well worth looking at, but your cpu will be bottlenecking it slightly in BF4. It'll still be a beast though :)
Someone else will have to confirm if your PSU is up to it or not though.
 
In the BF4 Beta I average about 65fps with full ultra/4AA if that helps. OC'd to 1200mhz, and I don't think there'd be much difference if I was running at 100mhz less.
Runs everything else like a charm.

Crysis 3 runs at around 60fps average with everything on high/2xMSAA iirc. That game's a bugger for pretty much everyone :p

If your main game is going to be BF4, I'd stick with AMD unless you really want physx in Batman or something.
 
That sounds bloody brilliant if you ask me mate! As long as I get to play the upcoming games coming out on 60FPS.

Is it easy to over clock? I have never done it before and I do enjoy BF4 but it won't be my main game, I love DayZ for example and can't wait for Arkham Origins, I suppose I just enjoy all games, want to try everything!
 
Overclocking a 79xx is a piece of cake if you have a small amount of patience :)
There's a great guide on here and plenty of guys that can help with that.

Do take into account that the final version of BF4 may or may not be a little more demanding in some maps. If that's the case, then you may have to tone it down to 2xAA which isn't the end world tbh.

I can't speak for how it'll do with upcoming games really. Turning a couple of things down here and there shouldn't be a problem though.

Again, I have to say that since you have the budget, do wait for the 290 as that may well offer you a fair bit more longevity as well as good OC potential (hopefully) :)
 
dont mean to confuse this thread more but lol
if you going 7970 why wouldnt you go 280x instead, them being the same price here or really not much more

for the extra sound options later
i guess the asus one is 30pounds more or something
 
I dunno, I despise the whole 'boost' thing :p (despite recommending the HIS boost :o)

I thought the sound thing was only on the 290X and one of the low end cards?
 
That's good to know then, isn't the 7970 top version limited to what you can do with it? Heard the Matrix is better?

Yeah that won't be a problem, BF4 is meant to be better optimized once the game actually comes out though I heard so if you're getting a steady 60 FPS now it looks good!

Yeah I'm going to wait until it comes out, is it rumoured to be better than the GPU's out now or?
 
BeadyRoller said:
That's good to know then, isn't the 7970 top version limited to what you can do with it? Heard the Matrix is better?

Yeah that won't be a problem, BF4 is meant to be better optimized once the game actually comes out though I heard so if you're getting a steady 60 FPS now it looks good!

Yeah I'm going to wait until it comes out, is it rumoured to be better than the GPU's out now or?
Click to expand...

Actually, yes. I just had a brief look and it turns out that the TOP is voltage locked and may require a bios flash or something to get round it...

The Matrix is nice (and better than the TOP), but I don't think it offers anything special in terms of OC potential.

My personal pick of the bunch is the HIS IceQ x2. Comes on a reference board which helps should you ever decide to watercool (The Matrix has no options here) and isn't voltage locked afaik.

Trouble is, you're now pushing £300, so you might as well get a 280X.

Yes, the 290 is guessed to be around the performance of a 780 or thereabouts and may well OC to 290X levels..

@Mei
No worries mate. I might be wrong about that...
 
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What version of the 7970 do you have?

It's getting all confusing now haha, really don't know what to go for, isn't a 280x just a better version of the 7970?

As long as I get 60fps on all games on ultra I'll be very happy.
 
I have an MSI 7970 OC and you don't want one of those (even if you could find one) unless you're planning to use water or aftermarket aircooling ;) (the reference cooler sounds like a turbo hairdryer)

The IceQ x2 uses the exact same reference PCB fwiw, yet comes with a much better cooler as stock.
The 280X is about 2-4fps better, judging by the reviews I've seen. It's basically the same card and uses the same chip. Probably worth going for if you're willing to spend £290 on a 7970.

If 'all' games at ultra includes Crysis 3, you may want to invest in a couple of Titans or something :D
 
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Right I see, what's the 290 meant to be like? There are so many different cards it's easy to get lost with it all haha.

Haha obviously I'll cut Crysis a bit of slack mate.
 
It's mostly speculation and educated guesses based on leaked specs right now.

It's supposed to be competing with the 780, but it'll also have the advantage of Mantle when that's available (as will 79xx and up cards). Hopefully it should OC pretty well and compete with a Titan/290X if all goes well.

Can't be more specific than that at the moment.
 
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