Good GPU for pairing with Intel i5 3470?

[pjwilkinson]

I was wondering if you guys have any good recommendations for a graphics card that will go well with my processor and not bottleneck it.
I was thinking a GTX 660, but I don't know for sure.

My current setup is:
Windows 7 Ultimate
8 GB RAM DDR3
Intel i5 3470 @ 3.2 GHz
ASRock Z77 Extreme 4
NVIDIA GTX 560 SE 1 GB

Also, if anyone could tell me what the effect of your graphics card having more memory is, that be great. Thanks!

 

[Daboydman]

I was about to suggest that exact card given that I have it and the 3470. They make a really good combo together. I don't think there are any cards that would necessarily bottleneck an i5. It's generally the graphics card which bottlenecks first.

 

[chriss000]

I dont think any single graphics card could bottleneck your quad core so buy whatever you can afford. More memory comes into play at higher resolutions, so if you use 1080p type resolution you would be better with a 2 gig card. If you use an ancient low def monitor like me its not so important.

 

[Roland Of Gilead]

I was wondering if you guys have any good recommendations for a graphics card that will go well with my processor and not bottleneck it.
I was thinking a GTX 660, but I don't know for sure.

My current setup is:
Windows 7 Ultimate
8 GB RAM DDR3
Intel i5 3470 @ 3.2 GHz
ASRock Z77 Extreme 4
NVIDIA GTX 560 SE 1 GB

Also, if anyone could tell me what the effect of your graphics card having more memory is, that be great. Thanks!

I'd agree with the first two posters. You have a nice system. The 3470 is a great chip, and will drive any single card GPU solution up to a Titan. It will even drive most dual GPU (SLI/CF) too! If it was an unlocked processor 3570k or such, you would simply have to overclock in the future for more longevity. As it stands your still good to go. Paired with something more substantial like a GTX760 you would be able to play most games at ultra settings at 1080p with decent frames , and some newer games like Crysis 3 and Far Cry 3 at high/very high settings with FPS in and around 40-60fps. If you can afford a GTX770 or 780 or 7950/7970 from AMD, then they would serve well for another year or two. I'm not knocking the GTX660/TI good cards, but the GTX760 costs less, and gives more performance than a 660ti, depending on the games you play. The 660ti is slightly behind the 760 in all but a few benchmarks, and the 760 is cheaper.

edit: most definitely get a 2gb + card, it will serve well at higher than 1080p resolutions, and allow for higher in game settings for AA and AF

 

[pjwilkinson]

Awesome, thanks guys. I think I'm going to look around to see if the games I'd be playing would be better paired with the 760 or 660 and then choose from there.

 

[Loh Yan Bin]

my spec gtx 760 msi twin frozr gaming oc 2gb i5 3470 3.2ghz 8gb of ram nothing happen except performance improvement >< actually my old spec gtx 650 ti asus 1 gb directCU II i3 2100 3.1ghz 8gb of ram <this spec will bottleneck be aware but my new spec are very well to combine together xD so it is not a problem for you .

 

[Skaterjay789]

I have a spot on identical setup to you, the gtx 660 2gb sc card does wonders for me. Im going through Farcry 4 right now at 50-60 fps at most times. I like the system and have had no bottlenecks from my experiences thus far. I do have more RAM though 16gbs but that shouldn't change much of anything if you have 8gbs as I see you do.