Question GFX went out, need to upgrade old system, please help

Spitfire7

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Hey guys, I've been out of the computer game for 10 years or so. GFX just went out so I need to upgrade. I don't need anything spectacular.

I don't mind upgrading a little, but something close to what I have that is compatible will work great for me.

My Specs:
ASUS Z97-Pro
i7 4970k 4GHz OC to 4.2
8GB 2400DDR3 G.Skill (Trident X Series)
GTX 970 FTW GeForce Nvidia OC
OCZ 850 GamerXtreme PSU
1 TB HHD
1 TB HHD backup
Windows 7 64-Bit

Please spare the laughs of my old system. I really just need the same card, but if I am buying a new one, what would be a good card to get that will work for this mobo and system combo while I'm at it?

I want to stay with Nvidia and I don't want to spend more than $500.

Thanks.
 
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Aeacus

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Currently, best what you could get, is RTX 3070,
egg: https://www.newegg.com/msi-geforce-rtx-3070-rtx-3070-ventus-2x-8g-oc-lhr/p/N82E16814137671
comparison: https://gpu.userbenchmark.com/Compare/Nvidia-GTX-970-vs-Nvidia-RTX-3070/2577vs4083

However, GTX 1660 Ti, at ~300 bucks would do too and be better fit for the old-ish build,
pcpp: https://pcpartpicker.com/products/video-card/#sort=price&X=0,52593&c=438&page=1
comparison: https://gpu.userbenchmark.com/Compare/Nvidia-GTX-970-vs-Nvidia-GTX-1660-Ti/2577vs4037

GTX 1660 Ti is great for 1080p gaming. RTX 3070 can do easy 4K and overall, would last far longer, given that it doesn't die after warranty ends.
 
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Spitfire7

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Thank you so much. The GTX 1660 is more what I am looking for.

How would it do with XPlane11?

Also, I swapped over the gfx card to another PCIe slot and it works fine 🤦.
So apparently my PCIe slot on my mobo gave out. Is that normal?

Currently, best what you could get, is RTX 3070,
egg: https://www.newegg.com/msi-geforce-rtx-3070-rtx-3070-ventus-2x-8g-oc-lhr/p/N82E16814137671
comparison: https://gpu.userbenchmark.com/Compare/Nvidia-GTX-970-vs-Nvidia-RTX-3070/2577vs4083

However, GTX 1660 Ti, at ~300 bucks would do too and be better fit for the old-ish build,
pcpp: https://pcpartpicker.com/products/video-card/#sort=price&X=0,52593&c=438&page=1
comparison: https://gpu.userbenchmark.com/Compare/Nvidia-GTX-970-vs-Nvidia-GTX-1660-Ti/2577vs4037

GTX 1660 Ti is great for 1080p gaming. RTX 3070 can do easy 4K and overall, would last far longer, given that it doesn't die after warranty ends.
 
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ashwinpajankar

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Thank you so much. The GTX 1660 is more what I am looking for.

How would it do with XPlane11?

Also, I swapped over the gfx card to another PCIe slot and it works fine 🤦.
So apparently my PCIe slot on my mobo gave out. Is that normal?

Yes. That is pretty much normal if it is only one slot. Maybe you can check by adding some other card or pcie device to double check if it is the slot that went out.
 
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I know you wanted to go nvidia but it seems to me the best value out there right now is the and rx 6600. It gives you most of the power of the rtx 3060 but can be had for 250-300 which is closer to the price of the rtx 3050. The 1660 cards are ok but they aren’t spectacular. I had a 1660 super and I think it was about equivalent to the old gtx 1070.

Anyway, my two cents. My current card is an rx 6700xt and so far it’s been a positive experience. When I shopped for a gpu after the supply started coming back, I could just get a more powerful card going the amd route. I know you say you don’t need a more powerful card, but consider that you are sitting on a 4970k you said. Probably in the next year or two after the new sockets come out you’ll be looking to upgrade, so you may want a slightly more powerful card to carry over to the new platform.
 
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Aeacus

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Thank you so much. The GTX 1660 is more what I am looking for.

How would it do with XPlane11?

Based on XPlane11 sys req, GTX 1660 Ti fits snugly into recommended requirements,
sys req: https://www.x-plane.com/kb/x-plane-11-system-requirements/

For better understanding, put in your sys specs into the "Can i run X Plane 11" to here,
link: https://www.game-debate.com/games/index.php?g_id=34028&game=X-Plane 11

Your CPU is i7-4790K (there is no 4970K), for GPU put GTX 1660 Ti 6GB. Click Next, put in RAM amount, 8 GB, click Check Specs.
It displays the results for you, where you could play it on medium/high settings, where the bottleneck would be your small RAM amount.

You can play around with different GPUs, in that game-debate checker. E.g GTX 1660 would do too, but your RAM is the limiting factor.
 

Spitfire7

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Based on XPlane11 sys req, GTX 1660 Ti fits snugly into recommended requirements,
sys req: https://www.x-plane.com/kb/x-plane-11-system-requirements/

For better understanding, put in your sys specs into the "Can i run X Plane 11" to here,
link: https://www.game-debate.com/games/index.php?g_id=34028&game=X-Plane 11

Your CPU is i7-4790K (there is no 4970K), for GPU put GTX 1660 Ti 6GB. Click Next, put in RAM amount, 8 GB, click Check Specs.
It displays the results for you, where you could play it on medium/high settings, where the bottleneck would be your small RAM amount.

You can play around with different GPUs, in that game-debate checker. E.g GTX 1660 would do too, but your RAM is the limiting factor.

Thank you so much for all your help here. So, maybe I stick with the GTX 970 and over clock it like I have been and simply look into maybe 16GB of ram. Any ideas of a suitable 16 GB of ram for my system specs that would work on my mobo? I currently have 4 sticks of 2GB each. What would you recommend?

And I do over clock my GPU to 1470 Boost and 7020 memory as well as my CPU to 4.2GHz. Like I may have mentioned, I run GTA5 with tons of mods on Ultra with easily 40-60fps. X-Plane also runs around 30-40fps with my setup, but with an ultra detailed addon plane that I use, it can drop to 15-20fps unless I lower the visual and scenery settings.
 

Aeacus

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Any ideas of a suitable 16 GB of ram for my system specs that would work on my mobo?

Here, best to take out your MoBo memory QVL and look from there.

E.g, for 2x 8GB sets, there are several, at different speeds;
1866 Mhz
  • Corsair CMD16GX3M2A1866C9
  • Corsair CMD16GX3M4A1866C9
  • Corsair CMY16GX3M2A1866C9
  • Corsair CMZ16GX3M2A1866C10

1600 Mhz
  • A-data AX3U1600W8G9-DB
  • Corsair CMD16GX3M2A1600C9
  • Corsair CMZ16GX3M2A1600C10
  • Kingston KHX16C10B1K2/16X

And there are of course more. Download your MoBo memory QVL list from here for additional options,
link: https://www.asus.com/SupportOnly/Z97PRO/HelpDesk_QVL/

Frequency wise, your MoBo supports up to 3200 Mhz DDR3, but i'd won't go over 1866 Mhz, since you can run into compatibility issues and you also have diminishing returns, IF you can even find that specific 3200 Mhz DDR3 RAM on sale (often at very high prices).

I too have Intel 4th gen CPU build, Haswell (full specs with pics in my sig) and for my build, i went with 1866 Mhz RAM. It's above JEDEC standard speeds of 1333/1600 Mhz, making 1866 Mhz and above, RAM OC (usually via XMP).

What causes a PCIe slot to go out? Is it because I OverClock my GPU?

Most likely cause: age of your MoBo. Z97 chipset is 8 years old as of now and MoBo is usually the one that is starting to develop faults when aging (e.g RAM slots not working is most common).

I doubt that your GPU OC would've made a difference. PCI-E x16 slot, at max, can provide 75W, while the rest of the power comes from PCI-E 6/8-pin power cable, directly from PSU. So, additional power draw, due to the OC, isn't pressured on the MoBo PCI-E x16 slot.

Oh, GPU sag could be another reason. If you have heavy GPU and/or PCI-E x16 slot itself has fragile construction (plastic ages in years, comes more brittle), you can have heavy GPU to completely broke open the PCI-E x16 slot. On new builds, GPU sag is just an eyesore. But on older builds (like yours), it is more of an issue and could brake the PCI-E x16 slot.
 
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Spitfire7

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Here, best to take out your MoBo memory QVL and look from there.

E.g, for 2x 8GB sets, there are several, at different speeds;
1866 Mhz
  • Corsair CMD16GX3M2A1866C9
  • Corsair CMD16GX3M4A1866C9
  • Corsair CMY16GX3M2A1866C9
  • Corsair CMZ16GX3M2A1866C10
1600 Mhz
  • A-data AX3U1600W8G9-DB
  • Corsair CMD16GX3M2A1600C9
  • Corsair CMZ16GX3M2A1600C10
  • Kingston KHX16C10B1K2/16X
And there are of course more. Download your MoBo memory QVL list from here for additional options,
link: https://www.asus.com/SupportOnly/Z97PRO/HelpDesk_QVL/

Frequency wise, your MoBo supports up to 3200 Mhz DDR3, but i'd won't go over 1866 Mhz, since you can run into compatibility issues and you also have diminishing returns, IF you can even find that specific 3200 Mhz DDR3 RAM on sale (often at very high prices).

I too have Intel 4th gen CPU build, Haswell (full specs with pics in my sig) and for my build, i went with 1866 Mhz RAM. It's above JEDEC standard speeds of 1333/1600 Mhz, making 1866 Mhz and above, RAM OC (usually via XMP).



Most likely cause: age of your MoBo. Z97 chipset is 8 years old as of now and MoBo is usually the one that is starting to develop faults when aging (e.g RAM slots not working is most common).

I doubt that your GPU OC would've made a difference. PCI-E x16 slot, at max, can provide 75W, while the rest of the power comes from PCI-E 6/8-pin power cable, directly from PSU. So, additional power draw, due to the OC, isn't pressured on the MoBo PCI-E x16 slot.

Oh, GPU sag could be another reason. If you have heavy GPU and/or PCI-E x16 slot itself has fragile construction (plastic ages in years, comes more brittle), you can have heavy GPU to completely broke open the PCI-E x16 slot. On new builds, GPU sag is just an eyesore. But on older builds (like yours), it is more of an issue and could brake the PCI-E x16 slot.

That is so cool that you found the specs for my mobo. Thank you so much for that. Why would you not go over 1866 when I already have 2400?

Also, would it be better to go with 3200 16GB or 2400 32GB? Speed or capacity?
 

Aeacus

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That is so cool that you found the specs for my mobo. Thank you so much for that.

Well, it isn't hard when you have the unlimited power of information superhighway at your fingertips. :sol:
And you're welcome. :)

Why would you not go over 1866 when I already have 2400?

It's really up to you.

E.g i have DDR4 RAM in my Skylake build, and while my Z170 chipset MoBo can support up to 3600 Mhz RAM, i have 3000 Mhz running in my PC. Since for DDR4 RAM, 3000/3200 is the sweet spot. Any higher (frequency wise) and you'll get diminishing returns. Newest MoBos, with DDR4 support (e.g Z590 chipset) support RAM speeds up to 5600 Mhz (which is insane).

Also, do note that higher frequency isn't always the best, especially when you have high CAS Latency to go along with it. To know which frequency and CAS Latency combos are most beneficial, lets put the frequency and latency into nanoseconds, with a formula of:
(cas latency/ram frequency) x 2000 = latency in nanoseconds

Few examples:
(22/3200) x 2000 = 13.75 nanoseconds
(20/3000) x 2000 = 13.33 nanoseconds
(16/2667) x 2000 = 11.998 nanoseconds
(14/2400) x 2000 = 11.667 nanoseconds
(18/3200) x 2000 = 11.25 nanoseconds
(10/1866) x 2000 = 10.71 nanoseconds <- what i'm currently running in my Haswell build
(15/3000) x 2000 = 10 nanoseconds <- what i'm currently running in my Skylake build

With this, slower frequency (2400 Mhz) but also smaller CAS Latency (CL14) RAM, is overall quicker, than higher frequency (3200 Mhz) and bigger CAS Latency (CL22) RAM.

Also, would it be better to go with 3200 16GB or 2400 32GB? Speed or capacity?

An age old question, where answer relies on what do you use your PC for.

For gaming 16GB is enough. 32GB is viable when you use your PC as a workstation. E.g rendering 3D animations, CAD, virtual machines etc, which require quite a lot of RAM. 32 GB is actually a gray area, since for proper workstation build, 64 GB of RAM would be minimum.
 

ashwinpajankar

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What causes a PCIe slot to go out? Is it because I OverClock my GPU?
Well, while the manufacturing processes have improved over the years, we still face electronic component failures. I work with Arduinos and Raspberry Pis. Over the years, I have come across a lot of failed components and PCBs. Recently, my AIO from Corsair died. A few months ago, my favourite Raspberry Pi died. Overclocking does not seem to be the cause as most of the motherboards can handle overclocking well if we maintain the thermals.

Now, you are looking at a decent Graphics card. I request you to wait till November if you have not already purchased any card. Prices are expected to fall in the west due to Crypto related developments and announcement of new GPUs by Nvidia and AMD.
 

Spitfire7

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Hey guys, I'm not so sure it was my PCIe slot going out as much as it was my graphics card. I moved it over and had it working for maybe 2 or so weeks, but then now the computer wouldn't even start. It would do a quick on/off thing. I plugged into onboard HDMI and it worked and started right up. I plugged a really old DVI GPU in (I don't have an adapter for that, so I can't see the screen), but it also started right up. I put the current newer GPU in and same thing, no start, on/off. So it sounds like to me it is a dead GPU right?
 

Spitfire7

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I just bought this one.
GIGABYTE GeForce RTX 3070 Gaming OC 8G (REV2.0) Graphics Card

I hope it works and it was just an old faulty GPU that went out instead of the motherboard. I will update you guys on my findings. This is a pretty good card right? I got the one that is overclocked and has the faster clock speed and memory. Should be a pretty big upgrade from my GTX 970. We shall see. I mean, I was already on Ultra settings for GTAV, Battlefield, and medium to high settings with X-plane. Hoping this fixes X-Plane.
 

Aeacus

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This is a pretty good card right? I got the one that is overclocked and has the faster clock speed and memory.

Well, it's RTX 3070.

Though, out of all aftermarket RTX 3070 GPUs out there, yours falls into middle, in terms of Boost Clocks (1815 Mhz).
I, personally, prefer MSI. Due to the looks, cooling and high boost clocks. E.g Gaming X Trio boost clocks are 1830 Mhz while Suprim X boost clocks are 1905 Mhz. Now, latter (Suprim X) is pretty good.

Full list of all aftermarket RTX 3070 GPUs here (scroll down past specs),
link: https://www.techpowerup.com/gpu-specs/geforce-rtx-3070.c3674
 

Spitfire7

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Well, it's RTX 3070.

Though, out of all aftermarket RTX 3070 GPUs out there, yours falls into middle, in terms of Boost Clocks (1815 Mhz).
I, personally, prefer MSI. Due to the looks, cooling and high boost clocks. E.g Gaming X Trio boost clocks are 1830 Mhz while Suprim X boost clocks are 1905 Mhz. Now, latter (Suprim X) is pretty good.

Full list of all aftermarket RTX 3070 GPUs here (scroll down past specs),
link: https://www.techpowerup.com/gpu-specs/geforce-rtx-3070.c3674

Keep in mind the one I got was $540 through Amazon with free return and the others I saw were starting at $600 for anything better clock speeds. Remember, I didn't want to buy a new card and I also didn't want to spend over $500, but my PCIe slot or GPU went out. So I settled for this as the best option. I'm not building super gaming computer or anything like that, I just need a quick replacement for my GTX970. So if it fits in my case and the PCIe slots are working, then I think I should be quite happy with this one. Thoughts?
 

Tac 25

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you're welcome. From what I remember, the reason he upgraded is because his 970 was overheating. And the 3060 at that time, was the cheapest RTX he could get. Told me he intend to keep his 3060 for 3 years before upgrading again.
 

Spitfire7

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you're welcome. From what I remember, the reason he upgraded is because his 970 was overheating. And the 3060 at that time, was the cheapest RTX he could get. Told me he intend to keep his 3060 for 3 years before upgrading again.

Nice. Did he get the 3 fan version? I had the 970 and would over clock it a good amount and was still okay and not overheating.

Out of curiosity, when it was going out for your friend, what was happening? Was it like mine where the computer would do a quick on/off and wouldn't post?

That is what is happening to mine. Putting a older card in the pcie slot started right up and using oboars started right up, but putting the 970 back in and on/off won't post. I'm crossing my fingers it's the card and not the mobo.
 

Tac 25

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not much more details unfortunately, had that talk with my friend more than 2 years ago. Cheapest 30 series that time is the 3060, because the 3050 was not released yet. Prices were rather high, because the gpu crisis was still going on during those years.