Specs I need in a GPU

[ChAIn3D]

Hi guys,

I've been searching through numerous threads, trying to have a basic understanding what I should be looking for when purchasing a graphics card and to be frankly honest, I'm more confused than ever!

My budget is around £400 (but am flexible). I have looked at various cards; Nvidia 780, AMD R9 280/290 and AMD HD 7970/7990, what am I exactly looking for in a graphics card? Am I paying more attention to the core and shader clock rather the memory size and speed? I have been told EVGA and Gigabyte are good cards?

I know many people have their own opinions but if someone pointed out a few options to consider then it may help me purchasing the right graphic card for me.

Also, I have an Enermax Infiniti 720W EIN720AWT ATX2.2 Modular SLI Compliant PSU, if I purchase any of the above cards, would I need to upgrade this and if so, which one is recommended?

Cheers guys!

 

[fowler002]

If you can wait a bit then a non-reference 290(non x) is prob the best bet for your budget.

The psu should be fine for a single card.

 

[ChAIn3D]

I'm willing to stretch the budget if it's worth the money. If it's like £50ish difference in performance and it's noticable then I'm willing to pay the extra.

So the latest games the AMD edges it over the Nvidia?

If you look at the specs the Nvidia cards look faster but AMD seem to have more ram, does this matter with the performance between the 2 cards?

I was hoping that the PSU was suitable for at least 1 good card. I'll consider changing the PSU when I decide to change the cpu, memory and motherboard.

 

[varkanoid]

Need to say what resolution you game at.

AMD or NVIDIA it depends what features you want. I dont think either really edges it in games. It depends on what you want to play.

Either go get a GTX 780
http://www.overclockers.co.uk/showproduct.php?prodid=GX-114-GI&groupid=701&catid=1914&subcat=1341

and be rest assured it will do you for quite a few years to come or as said above the AMD R290 with non-reference coolers that are to appear soon will suffice as the AMD alternative. Mainly because the AMD R290's that are out now use the reference cooler, the one with the circular fan at one end and if you read the threads on here they do not cool the cards too well. Hence wait till manufacturers produce the R290 with custom coolers.

So simple choice. GTX 780 or AMD R290.

For me a GTX 780 (currently have a GTX 770) because I prefer Nvidia.

 

[ChAIn3D]

I currently own a nasty old Nvidia GTX 8800 so anything will out do my graphics card.

I'm definitely edging towards the 780, especially hearing the heating issue with the AMD - I don't need all the fuss of replacing fans.

What do you mean by it depends on what features I want, does it make much of a difference?

 

[Grassy]

I currently own a nasty old Nvidia GTX 8800 so anything will out do my graphics card.

I'm definitely edging towards the 780, especially hearing the heating issue with the AMD - I don't need all the fuss of replacing fans.

What do you mean by it depends on what features I want, does it make much of a difference?

Yes, Nvidia has things such as Physx, Shadowplay and G-Sync and AMD has Mantle.
Personally I prefer the features Nvidia offers especially shadowplay and g-sync although Mantle hasn't been shown yet so we don't know what it's like yet.

 

[drunkenmaster]

You prefer g-sync, even though it's not yet available and since it's debut in other games its been seen doing fairly little to combat low FPS, and shadowplay doesn't offer something unique basically?

I'd say wait for BF4 and Mantle, see what Mantle is doing in the early stakes. With AMD's tie in to SO many AAA titles via consoles next year, if Mantle is 20% faster I can see a very fast adoption/addition to dx for many AAA titles pushing the boat, more so on PC exclusive or lead development titles.

If you wait for that, third party cooled versions will also be available. As boomstick's thread shows, a bit of better cooling makes the card quiet/low temp easily. It's just hard to fit that level of cooling into a two slot solution. Again don't forget people, OEM's want blower fans in 2 slot max, nothing else. For the 99% of people who have a atx board, case and one gpu..... a 6 slot cooler would be fine, however a three slot cooler will every single time offer vastly better cooling.

So answer would be, hold on till xmas, pricing leading up to xmas is rarely good, the xmas buying season generally isn't. Unless you can find a black friday deal which is possible, I would wait till Jan.