Looking to upgrade to NVidia 670 possibly

[Pandarr]

I'm contemplating upgrading to a single NVidia 670 4GB.

Right now I am looking at the following card.

EVGA GeForce GTX670 FTW+ 4096MB GDDR5 256bit DVI HDMI DisplayPort 4-Way SLI Ready Graphics Card 04G-P4-3673-KR

Aside from owning pretty much every game worth owning on Steam (and then some), I also do 3D rendering as a hobby. I own various rendering products (like Octane Render) which utilize the graphics card for rendering.

For gaming I really only have interest in using the single BenQ monitor. No surround vision. I've tried it and it's not that interesting to me. I would like the card to support 3 monitors as my current card does not (which is why I own two of them). It's my understanding the 670 can support 4 monitors.

Would I be better off with another card/brand? I'd prefer to stick with NVidia. I'm including my current system specs below as I'd rather not get a card my computer can't send enough data to or even install also. The system will overclock stable to 4.5ghz, I just haven't had need for it so don't. The power supply is 750W.

My current computer specs:

[cpp]Operating System
Microsoft Windows 7 Professional 64-bit SP1
CPU
Intel Core i7 2600K @ 3.40GHz 33 °C
Sandy Bridge 32nm Technology
RAM
16.0 GB Dual-Channel DDR3 @ 805MHz (11-11-11-28)
Motherboard
ASUSTeK Computer INC. P8Z68-V PRO GEN3 (LGA1155) 33 °C
Graphics
BenQ XL2410T (1920x1080@60Hz)
DELL G2410 (1920x1080@60Hz)
DELL G2410 (1920x1080@60Hz)
1023MB GeForce GTX 560 Ti (ASUStek Computer Inc) 40 °C
1023MB GeForce GTX 560 Ti (ASUStek Computer Inc) 33 °C
ForceWare version 310.70
SLI Disabled
Hard Drives
112GB INTEL SSDSA2M120G2GC ATA Device (SSD)
932GB Western Digital WDC WD1002FAEX-00Z3A0 ATA Device (SATA) 44 °C
932GB Western Digital WDC WD1002FAEX-00Z3A0 ATA Device (SATA) 46 °C
932GB Western Digital WDC WD1002FAEX-00Z3A0 ATA Device (SATA) 45 °C
1863GB Western Digital WDC WD20EADS-00S2B0 ATA Device (SATA) 44 °C[/cpp]

 

[alvine]

if you like nvidia then go with 670, amd 7950 is another alternative

 

[ASHISH65]

Gtx 670 is best for your needs.you are good to go.

 

[Novuake]

http://www.amazon.com/Sapphire-DL-DVI-I-SL-DVI-D-PCI-Express-11197-03-40G/dp/B009B6Y01Y/ref=sr_1_2?s=pc&ie=UTF8&qid=1358955817&sr=1-2&keywords=HD+7970

Cheaper and faster and can OC to MUCH faster! The HD7970 is awesome.

 

[ajl2011shooter]

Sounds like the 670 will be perfect for you. Yes the 670 supports 4 monitors and if you only game on a single monitor the 670 matched with that processor will play the crap out of any game around.

 

[Pandarr]

http://www.amazon.com/Sapphire-DL-DVI-I-SL-DVI-D-PCI-Express-11197-03-40G/dp/B009B6Y01Y/ref=sr_1_2?s=pc&ie=UTF8&qid=1358955817&sr=1-2&keywords=HD+7970

Cheaper and faster and can OC to MUCH faster! The HD7970 is awesome.

But I'm addicted to Physx... 🙁

 

[Novuake]

But I'm addicted to Physx... 🙁

Hahah that is a shame as it is so rare in games these days.

GTX670 it is then... But not that version, its overpriced.

 

[geofelt]

I think your plan is reasonable.

Some games do not do well with sli, and there is always the possible issue of microstutter.
Read more about that here:
http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/radeon-geforce-stutter-crossfire,2995.html

I do not think the 4gb version is likely to do you much good, compared to the price premium over the standard 2gb.
Here is one study comparing 2gb with 4gb using a GTX680:
http://www.pugetsystems.com/labs/articles/Video-Card-Performance-2GB-vs-4GB-Memory-154

Is the reason sli is disabled simply to attach the extra monitor?
You should be able to attach the two non gaming monitors to the integrated monitor adapters on your motherboard.
Or, a inexpensive add in graphics card will do the job too.
That said, I have had no issues with attaching two 2560 x 1600 monitors to a single GTX680.

I do like the double slot direct exhaust coolers that EVGA makes. They get heat out of your case directly.

To save $60, consider a GTX670 superclock with 2gb.
Or... spend $40 more on a GTX680 superclock.

 

[ajl2011shooter]

geofelt is correct a 4gb is overkill for 1 monitor. save the cash and get a 2gb 670 or spend a bit more and get this.
http://www.amazon.com/EVGA-SIGNATURE-DisplayPort-Graphics-02G-P4-2683-KR/dp/B007VBFDUS/ref=sr_1_97?s=pc&ie=UTF8&qid=1358956650&sr=1-97

 

[Pandarr]

Hahah that is a shame as it is so rare in games these days.

GTX670 it is then... But not that version, its overpriced.

Yeah I know it's not frequent... but when it's there I want to hug it. It's really the only thing keeping me on NVidia. I also have their 3D vision kit but never use it except for 3D blu-ray.

I think your plan is reasonable.

Some games do not do well with sli, and there is always the possible issue of microstutter.
Read more about that here:
http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/radeon-geforce-stutter-crossfire,2995.html

I do not think the 4gb version is likely to do you much good, compared to the price premium over the standard 2gb.
Here is one study comparing 2gb with 4gb using a GTX680:
http://www.pugetsystems.com/labs/articles/Video-Card-Performance-2GB-vs-4GB-Memory-154

Is the reason sli is disabled simply to attach the extra monitor?
You should be able to attach the two non gaming monitors to the integrated monitor adapters on your motherboard.
Or, a inexpensive add in graphics card will do the job too.
That said, I have had no issues with attaching two 2560 x 1600 monitors to a single GTX680.

I do like the double slot direct exhaust coolers that EVGA makes. They get heat out of your case directly.

To save $60, consider a GTX670 superclock with 2gb.
Or... spend $40 more on a GTX680 superclock.

I don't keep them in SLI because of the 3rd monitor. During game I don't need 3 monitors of course but then it turns one off and then all my windows get junked around and basically it annoys me more than the extra FPS I might get.

The main reason of going to 4GB over 2GB was for 3D rendering. That will likely eat up the extra RAM. When I'm doing pure CPU rendering the apps easily hit 8GB+ of my system RAM. I'll look into the 2GBv4GB article you linked though along with the recommendations you made at the end of your message. Thanks!

 

[Novuake]

I think your plan is reasonable.

Some games do not do well with sli, and there is always the possible issue of microstutter.
Read more about that here:
http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/radeon-geforce-stutter-crossfire,2995.html

I do not think the 4gb version is likely to do you much good, compared to the price premium over the standard 2gb.
Here is one study comparing 2gb with 4gb using a GTX680:
http://www.pugetsystems.com/labs/articles/Video-Card-Performance-2GB-vs-4GB-Memory-154

Is the reason sli is disabled simply to attach the extra monitor?
You should be able to attach the two non gaming monitors to the integrated monitor adapters on your motherboard.
Or, a inexpensive add in graphics card will do the job too.
That said, I have had no issues with attaching two 2560 x 1600 monitors to a single GTX680.

I do like the double slot direct exhaust coolers that EVGA makes. They get heat out of your case directly.

To save $60, consider a GTX670 superclock with 2gb.
Or... spend $40 more on a GTX680 superclock.

+1

Sounds good if OP insists on having PhysX

 

[geofelt]

Why not keep one GTX560ti for Physx?

I am no expert on rendering. Is the amount of video ram on the graphics card important?

 

[Novuake]

Why not keep one GTX560ti for Physx?

I am no expert on rendering. Is the amount of video ram on the graphics card important?

PhysX cards are pointless at the price range he is looking at. The GTX670 and GTX680 will barely get a hit from PhysX.

 

[andiedee]

PhysX cards are pointless at the price range he is looking at. The GTX670 and GTX680 will barely get a hit from PhysX.

Agreed, to be honest gtx 670 - 680 is a massive price gap but still only 4-7 fps higher between both...
so to be honest in my opinion i would get the 670 and save some $$

 

[Novuake]

Agreed, to be honest gtx 670 - 680 is a massive price gap but still only 4-7 fps higher between both...
so to be honest in my opinion i would get the 670 and save some $$

Agreed, but that FTW version he was looking at is not worth it either.

 

[andiedee]

Agreed, but that FTW version he was looking at is not worth it either.

I would get the MSI 670 PE which can defeat the 680 when overclocked.. easily. Also its super good looking and runs perfect under heavy loads...

 

[Novuake]

I would get the MSI 670 PE which can defeat the 680 when overclocked.. easily. Also its super good looking and runs perfect under heavy loads...

I do not trust MSI anymore. LOL after that whole overvoltage issue.

 

[andiedee]

I do not trust MSI anymore. LOL after that whole overvoltage issue.

really ? what happened?

 

[Rockdpm]

they cheated with over volting their 670's. So the FTW card performs better than the stock 680's. So FTW's are good. Galaxy's OC 670 is a winner as well with 4Gb of vram it will help you in the multi display environment.

 

[Novuake]

http://www.tomshardware.com/news/MSI-GTX-660-670-overvolting-PowerEdition,18013.html

That is what happened.
After that Nvidia has given MSI troubles, they had to rectify newer versions being shipped but never recalled the old ones. Many of these failed, at least they were still covered by the warranty.

 

[iceclock]

so whats ur max budget for a videocard? and do u prefer nvidia to amd.

 

[Novuake]

they cheated with over volting their 670's. So the FTW card performs better than the stock 680's. So FTW's are good. Galaxy's OC 670 is a winner as well with 4Gb of vram it will help you in the multi display environment.

When OCd further the FTW+ version will beat a GTX680, but pay $30 more and you can OC a GTX680 even more.

Compare apples with apples.

 

[Novuake]

so whats ur max budget for a videocard? and do u prefer nvidia to amd.

he has stated he loves PhysX, so Nvidia ofcors...

 

[Pandarr]

so whats ur max budget for a videocard? and do u prefer nvidia to amd.

I won't go over $500 but would prefer to keep it closer to $400. I do like Physx quite a bit but if there's a drastic difference between an AMD and NVidia card at similar price points, I could be swayed I suppose. It has to run at least 3 monitors for normal desktop stuff though.

 

[iceclock]

ok,

ud have more performance with 2x660ti than 1 gtx 670 4gig tbh.

PCPartPicker part list: http://pcpartpicker.com/p/z94q
Price breakdown by merchant: http://pcpartpicker.com/p/z94q/by_merchant/
Benchmarks: http://pcpartpicker.com/p/z94q/benchmarks/

Video Card: Galaxy GeForce GTX 660 Ti 2GB Video Card (2-Way SLI) ($244.99 @ Newegg)
Video Card: Galaxy GeForce GTX 660 Ti 2GB Video Card (2-Way SLI) ($244.99 @ Newegg)
Total: $489.98
(Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available.)
(Generated by PCPartPicker 2013-01-23 12:13 EST-0500)

Base Total: $539.98
Mail-in Rebates: -$50.00
Total: $489.98

or 1 7970 will level a 680 and overclock beat it.

PCPartPicker part list: http://pcpartpicker.com/p/4GiN
Price breakdown by merchant: http://pcpartpicker.com/p/4GiN/by_merchant/
Benchmarks: http://pcpartpicker.com/p/4GiN/benchmarks/

Video Card: XFX Radeon HD 7970 3GB Video Card ($379.99 @ Newegg)
Total: $379.99
(Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available.)
(Generated by PCPartPicker 2013-01-23 12:14 EST-0500)

Base Total: $409.99
Mail-in Rebates: -$30.00
Total: $379.99

would be the best bang for bucks, unless u can afford the sli 660 tis