GTX 960 vs R9 280 vs R9 280X

[HardcoreNerd]

Hi guys, I'm new to the PC community. So far I've bought my mobo (asus m5a78l-m/usb3), PSU (EVGA 500W 80+), CPU (AMD FX6300) and now I'm looking to buy a graphics card. Which of the three (Gtx 960, r9 280, or r9 280x) should I buy. (Im not going to buy another PSU) I'm worried about bottle necking and the PSU. Which do you guys recommend I get? Any help is appreciated.
Thanks guys 🙂

Update: http://pcpartpicker.com/p/gy3TRB the parts list; also, could you kindly let me know which brand is best for the selected card (fx, gigabyte, msi, etc)

 

[clutchc]

I've had both the GTX 960 and the R9-280. But not the R9-280X. My 960 was slightly faster than the 280 in the games I was able to benchmark. naturally, the 280X will be the fastest of any in that selection.

 

[HardcoreNerd]

I've had both the GTX 960 and the R9-280. But not the R9-280X. My 960 was slightly faster than the 280 in the games I was able to benchmark. naturally, the 280X will be the fastest of any in that selection.

Thanks, so you recommend the 960?

 

[clutchc]

I've had both the GTX 960 and the R9-280. But not the R9-280X. My 960 was slightly faster than the 280 in the games I was able to benchmark. naturally, the 280X will be the fastest of any in that selection.

Thanks, so you recommend the 960?

Yes. Even if for no other reason than the performance to watts ratio. But I should also say that my 280 was a stock clocked card http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814202112&cm_re=sapphire_r9-280_dual-x-_-14-202-112-_-Product
...while the GTX 960 was a heavily OC card: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814487100

If you are gaming at 1080p, the extra GB of VRAM in the 280 might make a difference in some VRAM hungry settings like A-A, textures, and AF. I'm only comparing the fps performance.

 

[HardcoreNerd]

I've had both the GTX 960 and the R9-280. But not the R9-280X. My 960 was slightly faster than the 280 in the games I was able to benchmark. naturally, the 280X will be the fastest of any in that selection.

Thanks, so you recommend the 960?

Yes. Even if for no other reason than the performance to watts ratio. But I should also say that my 280 was a stock clocked card http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814202112&cm_re=sapphire_r9-280_dual-x-_-14-202-112-_-Product
...while the GTX 960 was a heavily OC card: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814487100

If you are gaming at 1080p, the extra GB of VRAM in the 280 might make a difference in some VRAM hungry settings like A-A, textures, and AF. I'm only comparing the fps performance.

Thanks mate. I'm planning on playing/buying bf4, gta v, the division, etc. hoping to run @ 1080p. So which do you recommend then? Sorry

 

[clutchc]

That's why I explained it like I did above. If pure frame rate is more important, go for an OC'ed GTX 960 like mine. If some higher in-game settings are more important, go for the 280. But if you want the best of both, go for the 280X.

 

[HardcoreNerd]

That's why I explained it like I did above. If pure frame rate is more important, go for an OC'ed GTX 960 like mine. If some higher in-game settings are more important, go for the 280. But if you want the best of both, go for the 280X.

Alright, thanks mate 🙂