EVGA 780 SC ACX, MSI Gaming R9 290 or SAPPHIRE TRI-X OC R9 290?

[Zero Cool]

EVGA GTX 780 SC ACX w/Backplate $512.99

MSI Gaming R9 290 $469.99

SAPPHIRE TRI-X OC R9 290 $494.98

Need to buy one for my wife's PC. At these prices, which would you choose?

 

[okcnaline]

EVGA's nVidia GTX 780. It is the top 6 performing for graphics cards. The GTX Titan is the best, and GTX 780TI is second. This is third.

 

[photonboy]

Hi,
First, the cards are all about IDENTICAL for performance. I needed TWO benchmarks to show this. They are a SUMMARY of many games so it's accurate.

Reference the TITAN performance and you'll note the EVGA 780 SC, and Sapphire R9-290 Tri-X are both just slightly above it:

#1: http://www.techpowerup.com/reviews/Sapphire/R9_290X_Tri-X_OC/24.html

#2: http://www.techpowerup.com/reviews/EVGA/GTX_780_SC_ACX_Cooler/26.html

With performance being equal, and both coolers being fairly quiet, it comes down to Features:

NVidia:
- PhysX
- Shadowplay (record gameplay with minimal performance hit)
- G-Sync support (new G-Sync monitors coming soon. It's a big deal though you likely wouldn't buy one right away).
http://www.hardwarecanucks.com/forum/hardware-canucks-reviews/64586-week-nvidias-g-sync-monitor.html

"Right now, you may think that your current 60Hz or 120Hz panel provides a great experience. I know I did. My tune changed from the moment I started playing Battlefield 4 multiplayer with G-SYNC enabled. "

AMD:
- Mantle
- 4GB VRAM (780 has 3GB)
*More than 3GB is not needed yet. No idea when/if. Lots of articles online.

I don't consider Mantle a big deal since only BF4 currently supports it. I consider G-Sync a far bigger deal.

Both are great cards and you'll be happy but my advice is go with the EVGA 780 unless you can come up with a solid reason to go with the AMD solution.