I have £300, what do you recommend?

[Leem123]

Hello as the title said I have around £300 to spend on a Graphics Card. I was looking around at the EVGA GTX 670 and HD 7950/7970 and I didn't really know which one to get. So that has brought me to here as I always get good responses from people on this site. I was wondering what would you recommend me getting? My Specs below.(Upgrading Too)

My SPECS:

-AMD Phenom ii x4 965 - I'm upgrading this to an Intel i5 3570k.
-Motherboard now is a M5A97 PRO. I'm upgrading to an Asus Sabertooth z77 Motherboard.
-Graphics card at the moment is a GTX 560. (Normal)
-Resolution is 1920x1080.
-4GB Ram.
-XFX 550w PSU.
-My Case. http://www.aerocool.com.tw/index.php/products/strike-x/40-strikexcase/84-strikexcaseb

 

[djangoringo]

Psu ?

You could get the gigabyte 670 gtx windforce 3x : http://www.scan.co.uk/products/2gb-gigabyte-gtx-670-windforce-3x-28nm-pcie-30-(x16)-6008mhz-gddr5-gpu-980mhz-boost-1058mhz-cores-13

 

[Leem123]

Psu ?

Get gigabyte 670 gtx windforce 3x : http://www.scan.co.uk/products/2gb-gigabyte-gtx-670-windforce-3x-28nm-pcie-30-(x16)-6008mhz-gddr5-gpu-980mhz-boost-1058mhz-cores-13

XFX 550. I will be upgrading it though.

 

[djangoringo]

XFX 550. I will be upgrading it though.

That's fine, you don't need to upgrade, it will do for the 670 gtx and for your current system and future upgrades.

 

[Leem123]

Psu ?

You could get the gigabyte 670 gtx windforce 3x : http://www.scan.co.uk/products/2gb-gigabyte-gtx-670-windforce-3x-28nm-pcie-30-(x16)-6008mhz-gddr5-gpu-980mhz-boost-1058mhz-cores-13

Is it better than any 7970's out there? Also will it work fine with my Intel i5 that I will be getting?

 

[Leem123]

That's fine, you don't need to upgrade, it will do for the 670 gtx and for your current system and future upgrades.

Will it fine in my case as well? Just want to be sure.

 

[djangoringo]

It will work just fine with the i5, the 670 gtx in terms of performance trades blows with the 7970, but in recent reviews the nvidia cards are known for more smoothness, better percentile fps vs raw fps benchmark numbers.
Also there are more games optimized for nvidia(cuda cores) than the amd counterpart.
Also they have better mature drivers and exclusive features like txaa, physx, adaptive vsync.

 

[Leem123]

It will work just fine with the i5, the 670 gtx in terms of performance trades blows with the 7970, but in recent reviews the nvidia cards are known for more smoothness, better percentile fps vs raw fps benchmark numbers.
Also there are more games optimized for nvidia(cuda cores) than the amd counterpart.
Also they have better mature drivers and exclusive features like txaa, physx, adaptive vsync.

Thanks. Will the GPU fit in my case with no problems? http://www.aerocool.com.tw/index.php/products/strike-x/40-strikexcase/84-strikexcaseb

 

[djangoringo]

Yes, you have a case with maximum length of 295mm for any pcie card, the gigabyte windforce 3x is 270mm long.

 

[Leem123]

Yes, you have a case with maximum length of 295mm for any pcie card, the gigabyte windforce 3x is 270mm long.

Thanks man!

 

[Leem123]

Yes, you have a case with maximum length of 295mm for any pcie card, the gigabyte windforce 3x is 270mm long.

what is this card like? http://www.ebuyer.com/407824-evga-gtx-670-ftw-2048mb-gddr5-dual-dvi-hdmi-displayport-pci-e-graphics-02g-p4-2678-kr

 

[DarkSable]

what is this card like? http://www.ebuyer.com/407824-evga-gtx-670-ftw-2048mb-gddr5-dual-dvi-hdmi-displayport-pci-e-graphics-02g-p4-2678-kr

If that's the REAL 'for the win' edition (there are about three versions), then it's the same as what I have.

It's a bloody awesome card, but it runs hot - I have the back of my case facing me, and on hot days I can use my case exhaust as hand-cooling, and on cold days I can use my GPU exhaust as a perfect hand-warmer... at idle.

It's a perfectly good card, and won't get hot enough to harm itself, but doesn't have much room to overclock past what it already comes with.

 

[Leem123]

If that's the REAL 'for the win' edition (there are about three versions), then it's the same as what I have.

It's a bloody awesome card, but it runs hot - I have the back of my case facing me, and on hot days I can use my case exhaust as hand-cooling, and on cold days I can use my GPU exhaust as a perfect hand-warmer... at idle.

It's a perfectly good card, and won't get hot enough to harm itself, but doesn't have much room to overclock past what it already comes with.

Is that card better than the card that other guy showed me? I won't be over clocking anything anyhow.

 

[DarkSable]

If you won't be overclocking, then yes.

Long and short of it is this: the gigabyte card has better cooling - that means that when you overclock it, it gets rid of more heat, meaning you can overclock it further.

The EVGA card has worse cooling, but comes with an overclock out of the box, so if you don't touch either card, it has better performance.

 

[Leem123]

If you won't be overclocking, then yes.

Long and short of it is this: the gigabyte card has better cooling - that means that when you overclock it, it gets rid of more heat, meaning you can overclock it further.

The EVGA card has worse cooling, but comes with an overclock out of the box, so if you don't touch either card, it has better performance.

I may go with the EVGA Card unless the cooling is really bad.

 

[coozie7]

Just butting in here.
@ Leem123: The Aerocoo case is a good one, plenty of ventilation and spacious, so you'll have no problems installing just about any card out there.
Check the powersupply has enough PCI-E connectors, of the right type, for the card you have in mind, it should be OK, but check carefully.
Me, I'd spend the extra few quid and go for the Gigabyte card, but then I value silence as well as power.
Do n't worry about any card dumping its heat to the case (like the Gigabyte), yours has plenty of ventilation and will handle it esily.
A few names to work with : Dabs, Ebuyer, Scan, Novatech, Overclockers, Aria, Misco and Pixmania.

 

[Leem123]

Just butting in here.
@ Leem123: The Aerocoo case is a good one, plenty of ventilation and spacious, so you'll have no problems installing just about any card out there.
Check the powersupply has enough PCI-E connectors, of the right type, for the card you have in mind, it should be OK, but check carefully.
Me, I'd spend the extra few quid and go for the Gigabyte card, but then I value silence as well as power.
Do n't worry about any card dumping its heat to the case (like the Gigabyte), yours has plenty of ventilation and will handle it esily.
A few names to work with : Dabs, Ebuyer, Scan, Novatech, Overclockers, Aria, Misco and Pixmania.

Is there any other Motherboards out there that's cheap £100 or less and will work with a intel i5 plus a Evga gtx 670

 

[djangoringo]

For z77 mobos under or about 100£ get :

http://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B007KZQFEI/?tag=pcp0f-21

or http://www.amazon.co.uk/Z77-Extreme4-Motherboard-Supports-CrossFireX/dp/B007KTY4A6/ (recommended)

Also the price of the gigabyte 670 gtx windforce 3x went up from 299.99£ to 316.70£.
So i recommend this ones for less price :

http://www.scan.co.uk/products/2gb-evga-gtx-670-ftw-28nm-pcie-30-(x16)-6208mhz-gddr5-gpu-1006mhz-boost-1084mhz-cores-1344-dp-dl-dvi

or http://www.scan.co.uk/products/2gb-evga-gtx-670-ftw-signature-ii-28nm-pcie-30-(x16)-6208mhz-gddr5-gpu-1006mhz-cores-1344-dp-dvi-hdm


There's also this one : http://www.scan.co.uk/products/2gb-msi-gtx-670-power-edition-oc-28nm-pcie-30-(x16)-6008mhz-gddr5-gpu-1019mhz-boost-1079mhz-plusfree

 

[DarkSable]

Me, I'd spend the extra few quid and go for the Gigabyte card, but then I value silence as well as power.
Do n't worry about any card dumping its heat to the case (like the Gigabyte), yours has plenty of ventilation and will handle it esily.

EVGA doesn't quite use a reference design for their 'FTW' models - that's what I like about them. Yes, they use blower models, but they're designed for efficiency and silence - my 140mm exhaust makes more noise than my graphics card does.

As for heat, both models will keep the card well within safe temperatures.

 

[Leem123]

For z77 mobos under or about 100£ get :

http://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B007KZQFEI/?tag=pcp0f-21

or http://www.amazon.co.uk/Z77-Extreme4-Motherboard-Supports-CrossFireX/dp/B007KTY4A6/ (recommended)

Also the price of the gigabyte 670 gtx windforce 3x went up from 299.99£ to 316.70£.
So i recommend this ones for less price :

http://www.scan.co.uk/products/2gb-evga-gtx-670-ftw-28nm-pcie-30-(x16)-6208mhz-gddr5-gpu-1006mhz-boost-1084mhz-cores-1344-dp-dl-dvi

or http://www.scan.co.uk/products/2gb-evga-gtx-670-ftw-signature-ii-28nm-pcie-30-(x16)-6208mhz-gddr5-gpu-1006mhz-cores-1344-dp-dvi-hdm


There's also this one : http://www.scan.co.uk/products/2gb-msi-gtx-670-power-edition-oc-28nm-pcie-30-(x16)-6008mhz-gddr5-gpu-1019mhz-boost-1079mhz-plusfree

Thanks I'll get the one you recommended. I will be upgrading before March next year.

 

[Leem123]

For z77 mobos under or about 100£ get :

http://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B007KZQFEI/?tag=pcp0f-21

or http://www.amazon.co.uk/Z77-Extreme4-Motherboard-Supports-CrossFireX/dp/B007KTY4A6/ (recommended)

Also the price of the gigabyte 670 gtx windforce 3x went up from 299.99£ to 316.70£.
So i recommend this ones for less price :

http://www.scan.co.uk/products/2gb-evga-gtx-670-ftw-28nm-pcie-30-(x16)-6208mhz-gddr5-gpu-1006mhz-boost-1084mhz-cores-1344-dp-dl-dvi

or http://www.scan.co.uk/products/2gb-evga-gtx-670-ftw-signature-ii-28nm-pcie-30-(x16)-6208mhz-gddr5-gpu-1006mhz-cores-1344-dp-dvi-hdm


There's also this one : http://www.scan.co.uk/products/2gb-msi-gtx-670-power-edition-oc-28nm-pcie-30-(x16)-6008mhz-gddr5-gpu-1019mhz-boost-1079mhz-plusfree

Also could I get a new motherboard and that EVGA GTX 670 now and install it with my Phenom 965 untill I get an Intel i5? And would I need to buy new a Windows 7 with the motherboard?

 

[DarkSable]

Also could I get a new motherboard and that EVGA GTX 670 now and install it with my Phenom 965 untill I get an Intel i5? And would I need to buy new a Windows 7 with the motherboard?

Nope. They're different brands (The Phenom is an AMD chip while the i5 is an Intel chip) - not only that, but even within the same brand, the sockets aren't universal. (An i5 from a year ago won't fit a motherboard designed for an i5 now.)

As for windows 7, it depends on if you have the home premium retail or the home premium OEM. If it's the OEM version, you'll have to call microsoft and see if they'll let you activate it again - pleading that the computer broke might help with that.