Gigabyte R9 380 2GB or Gigabyte GTX 960 2GB

[maremiha21]

Hi people! I'm upgrading my PC entirely and this will be my first independent build, and I still can't decide between the Gigabyte R9 380 2GB and the Gigabyte GTX 960 2GB. My build looks like this:

Motherboard: MSI 970A Sli Krait Edition OR MSI 970A-G46
CPU: AMD FX-6300 Black Edition
RAM: 16GB kit (2x8GB) Kingston HyperX Fury 1866MHz
PSU: Cooler Master G550M
Case: LC-Power 975B Air Wing

Now the only thing I currently have from all these parts are the PSU and the case. I'm pretty sure I'll buy all the parts listed above but I need a 2nd opinion from you guys on the GPUs. As always in these discussions/suggestions, please keep your arguments as objective as possible.

I did a lot of research into both graphics cards, they're pretty much the same in terms of performance (each card does better than it's counterpart in certain games), they both have similar heat output under load with the only difference being the GTX consuming less power and producing slightly less noise.
Also note that the R9 380 costs 10 euros more than the GTX 960 in my country, which means that these cards are (almost) priced the same, so I could buy either one.

Another question: would pairing up two R9 380s/GTX 960s bring me any benefit or future-proofing when new games come out , since I can only afford a 2GB model at this time?

Also note that my build is aimed at 1080p gaming on max settings.

Thank you in advance!

 

[RobCrezz]

1080p at max settings on new games is optimistic for either of them cards to be honest. The 380 is slightly better.

I would really suggest going for an intel i5 system instead of the FX 6300 if you can afford it.

 

[ak47jar3d]

380 is better. I would take a look at 380x as it will be better than the others and not cost much more. Pairing 2 of either card is a bad idea. I would sell the card and get a 390 or gtx 970 instead.

 

[NightAntilli]

I would go for the R9 380 4GB... If you're going to settle for 2GB, might as well go for the GTX 960.

 

[Dulith1118]

well what i recommend is an i3 over the 6300 cuz i does out perform the 6300 in single core performance...
and if u can get a i5 which u need to max out the settings in some games and if u wanna max out games in 1080p u need a 970 to have better fps...

 

[maremiha21]

First of all, thank you all for your quick replies! I didn't realize that my build won't be able to run games maxed out (of course, by that I meant max settings but below 60 FPS).

As for the Intel i5 processors, they're out of my price range, as they cost 100 euros more than the FX-6300. The only "upgrade" I can afford is the FX- 8300 or the FX-8320.

And as for the GPUs, the R9 380X 4GB costs 100 euros more than the duo I'm looking to buy. BUT, if you guys think that buying a R9 380X would enable me to have a future-proof GPU, I'm gonna blow the budget and go for it, but at a cost of buying my other PC components later (2-3 months to complete the build). As for the R9 390, I just can't afford it at 200 euros over my budget.

Edit: The R9 380 4GB costs 70 euros more than the 2GB version, putting it 30 euros cheaper than the 380X. If it comes down to these two, do you think that buying the 380X would be beneficial in terms of gaming performance?

 

[Dulith1118]

well going for a better cpu and a 380 will do u sometime actually the really hold back is ur cpu i suggest use the 100 euros for the intel cpu rather than getting a 380x

 

[maremiha21]

Thank you Dulith1118! Would the Intel Core i5 4460 do the job in case I go for the Intel CPU?

 

[Dulith1118]

yes 4460 is better in single core performance than the 8350.... and most games doesnt require more than 4 cores actually..... u can always get a better gpu later but when ur going to buy a better cpu u need to upgrade the mobo as well so why not go for the btter cpu in the first place...

 

[RobCrezz]

Yeah the FX series isnt great, and is showing its age now ( intel have replaced their core i series with about 3 generations since the FX 83/63/43 series came out).

I wouldnt spend any money on it personally at this stage.

 

[william p]

This might help.
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814202151