Graphics card that will max out any game at 1080p 60fps, while not being overkill?

[Yazooman]

What would be the best graphics card that can max out (nearly) any game at 1080p while getting at least 60fps, while not being overkill and a waste of money?

E.g a GTX 780 would be overkill for 1080p gaming, and money spent on that could have been put elsewhere in the build.

 

[Lemar Bonquiqui]

Would a GTX 960 with a bad processor (Intel Core i5-650[I know that the CPU can affect the FPS in different occasions]) be able to get the job done, of, say, Crysis 3, at 1080p 50FPS≥?
Thanks to those who respond.

 

[schaft]

ah geez, he pick the choice already.

I would recomended a 290 4Gb that only cost $220 ($200 if he can claim the rebate)
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814202043

Surely a $220 290 with that price will humiliate $300 970.

Its a pity they already pick the best answer

 

[What is not up is down]

I have the same question as the OP. I have a Sandy Bridge quad core i5, with 8 GB RAM, and a 1080p monitor, and it seems like getting a GTX 970 GPU would be a waste. What card is ideal for high(not necessarily ultra) details 1080p gaming?

Thats not a waste for real. You would deal fine with the all most GPU intensive games which will come in near future. For the price it's a deal breaker. Also you can upgrade your monitor some time later when 4k monitor become cheaper.

If you still think that this is a waste go with R9 280X/GTX 770. Both are good cards for 1080p gaming. I've tested both ot them and they are fine (GTX 770 better). And dont forget that those 2 cards would NOT give you constant 60 fps at any modern game (ultra settings). Be ready!

Have a nice day

A GTX 950 or 960 is enough for years of gaming without problems.

 

[Guest]

I have the same question as the OP. I have a Sandy Bridge quad core i5, with 8 GB RAM, and a 1080p monitor, and it seems like getting a GTX 970 GPU would be a waste. What card is ideal for high(not necessarily ultra) details 1080p gaming?

GTX 960 4GB video card. They come in 2 GB versions, too, for a bit less, but some games will use the extra 2GB of RAM when available. But I think they are the best high end but relatively inexpensive NVidia based video card that will do 1080p gaming on very high or max settings, depending on game, of course.

 

[Guest]

Would a GTX 960 with a bad processor (Intel Core i5-650[I know that the CPU can affect the FPS in different occasions]) be able to get the job done, of, say, Crysis 3, at 1080p 50FPS≥?
Thanks to those who respond.

Not sure about Crysis 3 at 1080p - what fps you would get, but a GTX 960 would be a great video card for the processor you have to prolong it's life and make gaming easier. I would get the 4GB version, however, as some demanding games will use the extra RAM.

Your processor has 2 cores, 4 threads, so it should not be a bottleneck for you. If you where running just a 2 core cpu, then it could affect game play for some games.

 

[010TheMaster010]

Can we have a definitive price range?

 

[VillageIdiot219]

Is it even necessary to "max" out games? Surely you would just tinker with the settings and bring a few down here and there, thus putting far less stress on your gpu and yielding much higher fps, I've seen many benchmarks on youtube that show how "maxing" out games just ruins performance and often isn't even noticable

 

[muxmer]

I think an amd r9 380 or 380x would be the sweet spot here as it is not more expensive than the gtx 960 and if you do a bit of research you will see that is performs better, and im talking about the 4GB version which can actually use the 4GB, since it has 256bit bus rather than the 960 that has a 128 bit bus. This is my opinion, so please do not start attacking me about amd and all the crap i will get, for sure. I know, physX and freaking hairworks for some games, but whatever. Just don't attack me.

 

[rcolvin1]

I have the same question as the OP. I have a Sandy Bridge quad core i5, with 8 GB RAM, and a 1080p monitor, and it seems like getting a GTX 970 GPU would be a waste. What card is ideal for high(not necessarily ultra) details 1080p gaming?

I have the same question.

 

[madmatt30]

& the answer would be the same mate , 970 or 390 if youwant a locked 60fps minimum.

A 960 or a 380 if your happy with High settings & don't mind a few drops to the mid 40's here or there (which is still perfectly playable )

 

[praxis22]

Depends on the game. I have R9 390 and I don't get a solid 60fps out of modded Skyrim (a game from 2011) at 1080p I know people who run Titan X's that have the same problem. For normal games at 1080p most decent cards will work, I have no problems with Witcher3 at max details for instance, but again, depends on the game.

 

[sighlentz]

Just get a GTX 980 and foogetaboutit, never settle for just enough on PC gaming. be set for next level monitor, 2560 x 1440 res @ 144hz refresh, and next level games while playing your current games with every setting maxed. it's an investment, not an expense

 

[OnkelCannabia]

What would be the best graphics card that can max out (nearly) any game at 1080p while getting at least 60fps, while not being overkill and a waste of money?

E.g a GTX 780 would be overkill for 1080p gaming, and money spent on that could have been put elsewhere in the build.

There isn't really any overkill with a single GPU. Todays console ports are pretty terribly optimized. You also want to be future proof and be ready for upcoming techology. What if you go for VR or 144hz/fps or 1440p once there is a good deal?

If you are thinking about upgrading, I would wait for Nvidias new line of GPUs (Pascal). They are finally moving to a new manufacturing process (14nm instead of 28nm IIRC) and to HBM2 (High Bandwidth 3D Memory). It's probably coming out this summer or fall.

 

[010TheMaster010]

What would be the best graphics card that can max out (nearly) any game at 1080p while getting at least 60fps, while not being overkill and a waste of money?

E.g a GTX 780 would be overkill for 1080p gaming, and money spent on that could have been put elsewhere in the build.

There isn't really any overkill with a single GPU. Todays console ports are pretty terribly optimized. You also want to be future proof and be ready for upcoming techology. What if you go for VR or 144hz/fps or 1440p once there is a good deal?

If you are thinking about upgrading, I would wait for Nvidias new line of GPUs (Pascal). They are finally moving to a new manufacturing process (14nm instead of 28nm IIRC) and to HBM2 (High Bandwidth 3D Memory). It's probably coming out this summer or fall.

Don't leave Polaris out. AMDs new line of GPUs, also on the same (14nm) manufacturing process and coming around the same time.

 

[OnkelCannabia]

What would be the best graphics card that can max out (nearly) any game at 1080p while getting at least 60fps, while not being overkill and a waste of money?

E.g a GTX 780 would be overkill for 1080p gaming, and money spent on that could have been put elsewhere in the build.

There isn't really any overkill with a single GPU. Todays console ports are pretty terribly optimized. You also want to be future proof and be ready for upcoming techology. What if you go for VR or 144hz/fps or 1440p once there is a good deal?

If you are thinking about upgrading, I would wait for Nvidias new line of GPUs (Pascal). They are finally moving to a new manufacturing process (14nm instead of 28nm IIRC) and to HBM2 (High Bandwidth 3D Memory). It's probably coming out this summer or fall.

Don't leave Polaris out. AMDs new line of GPUs, also on the same (14nm) manufacturing process and coming around the same time.

True. The last two generations from AMD have been pretty disappointing, but hopefully they will catch up with Polaris.

 

[uglyduckling81]

True. The last two generations from AMD have been pretty disappointing, but hopefully they will catch up with Polaris.

That's not really fair. They created cards just as good as anything Nvidia has out perhaps not including power usage. Even that isn't that far behind the 980ti. The 290x was a pretty amazing card for it's day. The 295x2 is still the most powerful single card (dual GPU) available.

I personally own a GTX 970 which I'm happy with but there is nothing wrong with AMD's offerings.

I will be interested like everyone else as to what 14nm will bring to the table.

 

[everit]

True. The last two generations from AMD have been pretty disappointing, but hopefully they will catch up with Polaris.

That's not really fair. They created cards just as good as anything Nvidia has out perhaps not including power usage. Even that isn't that far behind the 980ti. The 290x was a pretty amazing card for it's day. The 295x2 is still the most powerful single card (dual GPU) available.

I personally own a GTX 970 which I'm happy with but there is nothing wrong with AMD's offerings.

I will be interested like everyone else as to what 14nm will bring to the table.

AMD may have some powerful cards out right now at lower prices, but their lack of driver updates and support is what is infuriating to me. Even though most Nvidia cards are a higher price - the fact that they proactively update their drivers is worth the extra penny. It's like buying a car and taking it to the shop for maintenance and not seeing it for 3 months.