Amd GPU vs Nvidia GPU

[Cirocobama]

I know I get way better performance/price from R9 290x vs Gtx 780 but with unreal engine 4 being optimized for nvidia am I going to be kicking myself? Games I'll buy in the next year are as follows Arkham Knight, Evolve, The Witcher 3, The Division and games all similar to those. Basically if I get the r9 290x will those games still have all the particle effects and extra goodies my PS4 won't? I'm dropping 500$ on a graphic card id like it to last 3-4 years for 1080p 60hz on ultra/really high settings. Is that just being naive? Here's the system I've configured I've already purchased CPU and case. [PCPartPicker part list](http://pcpartpicker.com/p/GxF7vK) / [Price breakdown by merchant](http://pcpartpicker.com/p/GxF7vK/by_merchant/) / [Benchmarks](http://pcpartpicker.com/p/GxF7vK/benchmarks/)

Type|Item|Price
:----|:----|:----
**CPU** | [Intel Core i7-4770K 3.5GHz Quad-Core Processor](http://pcpartpicker.com/part/intel-cpu-bx80646i74770k) | $269.99 @ Micro Center
**CPU Cooler** | [Cooler Master Hyper 212 EVO 82.9 CFM Sleeve Bearing CPU Cooler](http://pcpartpicker.com/part/cooler-master-cpu-cooler-rr212e20pkr2) | $29.98 @ OutletPC
**Motherboard** | [Asus Z97-A ATX LGA1150 Motherboard](http://pcpartpicker.com/part/asus-motherboard-z97a) | $148.99 @ Mac Mall
**Memory** | [G.Skill Ripjaws Z Series 16GB (2 x 8GB) DDR3-2133 Memory](http://pcpartpicker.com/part/gskill-memory-f32133c11d16gzl) | $159.99 @ Newegg
**Storage** | [PNY XLR8 120GB 2.5" Solid State Drive](http://pcpartpicker.com/part/pny-internal-hard-drive-ssd9sc120gmdfrb) | $59.99 @ TigerDirect
**Storage** | [Seagate 2TB 3.5" 7200RPM Hybrid Internal Hard Drive](http://pcpartpicker.com/part/seagate-internal-hard-drive-st2000dx001) | $124.99 @ Newegg
**Video Card** | [PowerColor Radeon R9 290X 4GB PCS+ Video Card](http://pcpartpicker.com/part/powercolor-video-card-axr9290x4gbd5ppdhe) | $528.46 @ NCIX US
**Case** | [Rosewill CHALLENGER ATX Mid Tower Case](http://pcpartpicker.com/part/rosewill-case-challenger) | $48.65 @ Amazon
**Power Supply** | [Corsair CX 750W 80+ Bronze Certified Semi-Modular ATX Power Supply](http://pcpartpicker.com/part/corsair-power-supply-cx750m) | $77.99 @ Micro Center
**Optical Drive** | [Asus DRW-24B1ST/BLK/B/AS DVD/CD Writer](http://pcpartpicker.com/part/asus-optical-drive-drw24b1stblkbas) | $19.98 @ OutletPC
| | **Total**
| Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available. | $1469.01
| Generated by PCPartPicker 2014-05-31 18:33 EDT-0400 |

 

[JackNaylorPE]

In my experience, which mirrors Linus and other reviewers, I have gotten better results from the 290x "outta the box" with the 290x and better results overclocked "ballz to the wall" with the 780. So which route you are taking would change my recommendation.

If a gaming box, and budget is a concern, I'd be looking at a 4670k and pocketing the $100 price differential. The 4770k will get ya maybe 3% extra performance stock, 6 % overclocked.

If ya spending $500 ona GFX card and looking at a 4770k, the Hyper 212 is really outte place.... upgrade to a Phanteks PH-TC14-PE and get an extra 7-10C of cooling

With the $100 saved on the CPU, use $70 of it for the best rated card available at this time. Te MSI 780 Ti is not only the best rated amoung the bunch but it's a measly $600..... $100 cheaper than Asus, Giga, EVGA
http://www.techpowerup.com/reviews/MSI/GTX_780_Ti_Gaming/29.html

Again, those high end components need better support....the case is outta place and your OCs will be affected by the budget PSU. I would not consider a case under $100.

Recommended Cases:

Corsair 500R $99
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811139010

Enthoo Pro $99
http://www.phanteksusa.com/products/phanteks-enthoo-pro

NZXT H440 (no 5.25" bays)
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811146148&cm_re=nzxt-_-11-146-148-_-Product

Recommended SLI capable PSUs

$99 Seasonic M12
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817151108

$95 XFX Core Edition
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817207011

$109 EVGA SuperNova
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817438018

Finally, I'd look for a more gaming oriented board such as the Asus Hero or the MSI GD65 since this and the PSU substantially affect your GFX / CPU overclocks. The two boards are pretty much a feature for feature match up and down but there is a substantial price difference.

$220 - http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813132125
$180 - http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813130769

 

[geofelt]

So far as I can tell, the two cards are comparable in performance. It takes a synthetic benchmark to tell any difference. Either one would be good for gaming on a single monitor.

My sense is that most prefer the nvidia graphics drivers if that makes a difference.

Going to newegg, and filtering on the most popular R9-290X and GTX780 cards, user dissatisfaction with the R9-290X is worse, with 21% having zero eggs compared to nvidia with 2%
Here are the cards:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814121840
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814130918

 

[JackNaylorPE]

The relative performance at 1920 x 1080 according to my own experience and the reviews I have seen are as follows:

780 Ti Overclocked *
780 Overcloked
780 Ti
290x Overclocked
290x
780

The 290 is improving tho in more recent reviews which echoed my own limited experience

* "Ballz to the wall" .... I have gotten 12% and 16%** on two 290x builds .... usually get 23-25%** on 780 builds

** above "reference"

Thatz Afterburner like overclocking with no voltage mods or custom BIOS....as for who prefers what, this has been greatly affected by non performance related issues such as G-Sync, Shadowplay, and still to an extent PhysX. The analogy I liek to use if ya have a choice between two cars at the same price and one has 4 WD and AC and the other don't ..... even if ya only use them a few days a year, you sure do appreciate them when ya do.

I recently mentioned in another thread that the 780 Ti all by itself has achieved the same market penetration as all six R9 Series cards (270, 2790x, 2890, 280x, 190, 290x)

http://store.steampowered.com/hwsurvey/videocard/

Scroll down to DX11 cards and the look 7 or 8 lines above the bottom of the list

 

[Cirocobama]

I didn't really want to go over 1400$ that's why I picked a low end case and I also noticed Blackb0nd used the same case so I didn't think it was totally garbage. I will definitely heed the advice about the Psu, and motherboard. Yes Dayz "troll" you can read good job by you

 

[17seconds]

Arkham Knight and Witcher 3 use advanced PhysX. You will need an Nvidia card to enable those effects.

 

[JackNaylorPE]

I didn't really want to go over 1400$ that's why I picked a low end case and I also noticed Blackb0nd used the same case so I didn't think it was totally garbage. I will definitely heed the advice about the Psu, and motherboard. Yes Dayz "troll" you can read good job by you

Understood but remember a big air cooler can't do it's job if the case can't get the heat out.