GTX 770 vs R9 290

[junilerick]

Hey guys,

I'm in the process of building my first entertainment/light gaming PC. While I would mostly be using it for general multitasking (web surfing with 20 tabs open, listening to music, watching TV shows), I would also like to be have the option to play the latest games reasonably well and last me a good 3 to 5 years with minimal upgrades.

This is my build so far:

**CPU** | [Intel Core i5-4690K 3.5GHz Quad-Core Processor](http://pcpartpicker.com/part/intel-cpu-bx80646i54690k) | $199.99 @ Micro Center
**Motherboard** | [ASRock Z97 EXTREME4 ATX LGA1150 Motherboard](http://pcpartpicker.com/part/asrock-motherboard-z97extreme4) | $85.00
**Memory** | [G.Skill Ripjaws X Series 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory](http://pcpartpicker.com/part/gskill-memory-f312800cl9d8gbxl) | $79.98 @ OutletPC
**Storage** | [Samsung 840 EVO 120GB 2.5" Solid State Drive](http://pcpartpicker.com/part/samsung-internal-hard-drive-mz7te120bw) | $86.86 @ Amazon
**Storage** | [Western Digital Caviar Blue 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive](http://pcpartpicker.com/part/western-digital-internal-hard-drive-wd10ezex) | $56.99 @ Micro Center
**Video Card** | [MSI Radeon R9 270 2GB TWIN FROZR Video Card](http://pcpartpicker.com/part/msi-video-card-r9270gaming2g) | $129.00
**Case** | [Phanteks Enthoo Pro ATX Full Tower Case](http://pcpartpicker.com/part/phanteks-case-phes614pbk) | $99.99 @ Newegg
**Power Supply** | [EVGA 600B 600W 80+ Bronze Certified ATX Power Supply](http://pcpartpicker.com/part/evga-power-supply-100b10600kr) | $59.99 @ Amazon

What I'm considering now is buying a slightly more high-end graphics card. I've narrowed down my choices to AMD's R9 290 or Nvidia's GTX 770. These cards are quite a bit more expensive so I'm hoping to check for deals periodically and get a better bargain. Anyhow, my main dilemma is while the R9 290 seems to perform better while at a cheaper price point, judging from the reviews on Newegg and Amazon (the 770 has all 5 stars, the R9 290 has all 4 stars), the 770, and Nvidia graphics cards in general, seem to much more reliable, quiet, cool, and have better support (especially EVGA).

My questions are:

1) Should I just stick with the R9 270 and save the rest for a couple rounds of sushi?

2) Is the lower price and higher performance really worth it? Anybody with personal experience dealing with these two graphics cards or just AMD vs Nvidia in general?

3) If when I adjust Window's appearance settings to 1920 x 1080 and it says "OUT OF RANGE" does it mean that resolution is not supported by my current monitor or graphics card?

4) Do any of the components have better price/performance options?

 

[morgilroka]

http://gpuboss.com/gpus/Radeon-R9-290-vs-GeForce-GTX-770 ... GTX 770 is the winner here... Although they are very similar in performance.

At this point it's about brand preference and pricing. I personally am switching back to Nvidia when it's time for an upgrade because i found their support more helpful and there is more options eg. PhysX etc.
"Out of range" is most likely referring to your monitor limiting lower, 1440x900? Check your Monitor specs and that will answer the question for you.

Edit: If you have a few extra dollars to throw around, i would recommend swapping out that PSU for this:
http://www.newegg.ca/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817151095
Overall better unit, comes with a 7 year warranty compared to EVGA's 3. Also very quite operation.

 

[Proofy]

gpuboss is very bias and leans tower nvidia... R9 290 destroys GTX770 in everything but PhysX.. If you will be using two monitors or playing on resolution that is higher than 1920x1080 definitelly go for R9 290 (recommend SAPPHIRE VAPOR-X R9 290 4GB GDDR5 TRI-X OC)

Agree with PSU change, seasonic is the best

 

[enamak]

Its true, r9 290 beats GTX 770 by 10-20%, tho 770 its better in some games.
IMO you should get gtx 770 2gb, or 4gb if you are going to have multimonitor or planing to sli later. Nvidia has better cards overall and much better drivers.
If you are going with any resolution higher than 1080P then yes, get the r9 290.

I already had AMD and NVIDIA, had to Rma 2 amd cards (but it was asus problem, and it was r9 280x, so dont worry about that r9 290). Still, i feel i have a much more stable card with nvidia But if you compare r9 290x to gtx 770, then r9 290x hands down.

 

[morgilroka]

PhysX is worth the 770 alone, in my opinion.

 

[junilerick]

I've been researching monitors and I didn't realize how much it affects what graphics card you get - I'll probably be getting something between 22" to 24" at 1920 x 1080.

And while I would like the R9 290 performance, I really don't want want to have put up with its infamous noise and heat - anyone have personal experience with this? How much would it cost in additional cooling to bring it down to acceptable levels? And how long did it take to fix all the driver issues and such?

 

[enamak]

Physx its not that good.
Get the GTX 770 2GB if you get that 1080P monitor, you wont regret it

 

[T3PShooter]

If you're comparing these cards on just raw performance and horsepower alone the GTX 770 will never beat a Gigabyte R9 290 WF http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00HS84DFU. No way, no how...

If you're only gaming on a single 1080p monitor at 60Hz then an EVGA GTX 770 SC w/ ACX http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00CZIQXBA will be plenty. If anyone tells you that the GTX 770 is a faster or more powerful card than the R9 290 they don't have a clue what they're talking about.

Someone mentioned GPUBoss not being a reliable source and they are absolutely correct. It's a lazy website that just compares numbers on the back of the box and not actual benchmarks.

 

[Samsamproducts]

I agree, the r9 290 is significantly better in all games. As for heat and noise, those are only problems with the reference coolers. If you get one with an aftermarket cooler you will be set!

 

[enamak]

Gtx 770 is a better card overall for 1080p with stable drivers, and it beats r9 290 in SOME games.
So for 1080p i would go gtx 770 2gb, stable, solid, quiet and cool card

 

[Proofy]

Like I said, if you won't be using resolution higher than 1920x1080 get gtx770 because it will perform like r9 290 (in battlefield 4 it has 10-20fps less but I think that you can live with that 😀)

Also GTX770 will probably "live longer" than R9 290 because it has better cooling and quality.

Yes, monitor affect graphic card, after all they display the image on the monitor don't they ?

 

[enamak]

What this guy said above.
1080p = single gtx 770
1440p+ = r9 290, tho at 4k a single 290 wont do much

 

[T3PShooter]

What this guy said above.
1080p = single gtx 770
1440p+ = r9 290, tho at 4k a single 290 wont do much

I will only agree with this if you add 1080p at 60Hz. If you want to game at over 60Hz the 770 isn't the right choice. I game at 1080p at 144Hz with a GTX 780Ti and this is the only way to get consistent 100+ frames per second.

 

[enamak]

Even a r9 290 couldnt mantain 120 or 144 fps in most games at 1080p.
And you can get asus monitor with g-sync, wich is better if you cant have 120fds at 120hz or 144fps at 144hz

 

[dearupol]

r9 290 is far far better than 770 ..................compare the gtx 770 with r9 280x vaporx edition .....there is no chance in hell 770 is better than r9 290....

 

[enamak]

R9 290 is not far better than gtx 770, its only 15-20% better and im some cases 770 wins.
Gtx 770 outperforms any 280x anytime, its a much better card overall with better drivers

 

[T3PShooter]

I'm sensing a lot of nVidia fanboyism in here. I'm team whichever fits the situation. I currently own a 780Ti so you know I am unbiased when I say that the R9 290 will ALWAYS beat the 770.

Anyone who says otherwise has no factual basis to make their argument on. There is nothing about the GTX 770 that will allow it to perform better than the R9 290. Driver support from AMD is not bad. The only things nVidia offers over AMD that are worth noting are Shadowplay and G-sync and Shadowplay is nearly irrelevant now with Raptr's new GVR and unless you have a G-sync capable monitor it is also irrelevant.

 

[junilerick]

I think some of you are missing the point here. It's not ALL about performance, while that is of course very important. Noise, heat, driver support, and longevity (not just performance wise, but also that the card can actually function after months of intense heat and high clock rates) also needs to factored in.

I've also studied these comparison graphs extensively, but like I said, it doesn't paint the whole picture. Sure the 290X is capable of incredible performance for 5 minutes, but how long can it keep that up before having to be replaced? Price wise, The power consumption means I'll probably have to get a far more robust PSU, the noise heat means I'll probably have to invest in aftermarket cooling, the relatively poorer driver support means I'll probably have to waste additional time fiddling with it, which is going to be especially painful for someone like me. All this means more time and money which needs to be considered.

On that note, has anyone been using a 290 or 290X for a decent amount of time now without significant additional expenses and can recommend it based on the criteria above?

 

[dearupol]

this isnt true the reference version have this problem not the non ref version......

 

[maxalge]

I think some of you are missing the point here. It's not ALL about performance, while that is of course very important. Noise, heat, driver support, and longevity (not just performance wise, but also that the card can actually function after months of intense heat and high clock rates) also needs to factored in.

I've also studied these comparison graphs extensively, but like I said, it doesn't paint the whole picture. Sure the 290X is capable of incredible performance for 5 minutes, but how long can it keep that up before having to be replaced? Price wise, The power consumption means I'll probably have to get a far more robust PSU, the noise heat means I'll probably have to invest in aftermarket cooling, the relatively poorer driver support means I'll probably have to waste additional time fiddling with it, which is going to be especially painful for someone like me. All this means more time and money which needs to be considered.

On that note, has anyone been using a 290 or 290X for a decent amount of time now without significant additional expenses and can recommend it based on the criteria above?

You must have totally missed the fact that r9 290's with aftermarket coolers are made for whatever reason.

The 290 plays with the 780.

The 770 in no way should come up in relation, performance wise.

 

[junilerick]

I think some of you are missing the point here. It's not ALL about performance, while that is of course very important. Noise, heat, driver support, and longevity (not just performance wise, but also that the card can actually function after months of intense heat and high clock rates) also needs to factored in.

I've also studied these comparison graphs extensively, but like I said, it doesn't paint the whole picture. Sure the 290X is capable of incredible performance for 5 minutes, but how long can it keep that up before having to be replaced? Price wise, The power consumption means I'll probably have to get a far more robust PSU, the noise heat means I'll probably have to invest in aftermarket cooling, the relatively poorer driver support means I'll probably have to waste additional time fiddling with it, which is going to be especially painful for someone like me. All this means more time and money which needs to be considered.

On that note, has anyone been using a 290 or 290X for a decent amount of time now without significant additional expenses and can recommend it based on the criteria above?

You must have totally missed the fact that r9 290's with aftermarket coolers are made for whatever reason.

The 290 plays with the 780.

The 770 in no way should come up in relation, performance wise.

Yea the non reference cards are indeed a little cooler and quieter, but what about support and longevity? Going through the Newegg reviews, it seems there is one constant theme - "OMG dis card is da shiet11!!!! But.. My first card died immediately and I had to pay the shipping cost out of pocket and wait a week to get it a new one. Then there was artifacting, BSOD, system lockups, and black screens so I had to tinker with the BIOS and drivers for hours to finally get it to work. Then.. I had to RMA again a couple months later." or something similar.

That's why I think the 770, which has fantastic reviews (especially EVGA), IS comparable to the 290 if you consider other factors than just a 5 min benchmarking session.

Anyone here with the R9 290 that could shed some light either way?

 

[enamak]

Junilerick thats exactly what i think
And im not nVidia fanboy but we all know that nVidia makes the best solid and stable gpus, and my only two amds had problems, haha, and ive had 4 nVidia without problems.
I chose gtx 770 over r9 290 without blinking.
But if you are going to use multiple cards amd its better cause of the prices, tho you still can have more problems than wheb you sli.

 

[T3PShooter]

I've used both brands and still say R9 290 but it's up to the OP and what you're comfortable buying. Close your eyes, clear your mind, and whichever card comes to mind first just buy it.

 

[CooLWoLF]

R9 290, no question. Anyone suggesting a 770 over a 290 is likely just displaying fanboyism....

And when you consider the Mantle API enabled games, the performance margin becomes even bigger.

 

[Yous]

Are you kidding me? 770 compared to an R9 290? No, just no. Yes, Nvidia drivers are more stable, but still, no. You don't compare a GTX 770 to an R9 290 and if you tell someone it's better, you're really just lying to them. That's wrong. Yes, AMD does face issues with heat and such, but if you get a non-reference card such as the Sapphire Tri-X, I doubt you'll be facing heat issues at any time. I know for a fact I have the Sapphire Tri-X R9 290 and it hasn't exceeded 65 degrees under full load while playing BF4 on Ultra settings in a 64 player map. Considering I live in Egypt, and the temperature here is pretty hot, that's very good.

Bottom line: There's no comparison between the R9 290 and the GTX 770. Maybe the GTX 780 is better for comparison.