Upgrade my GPU?

[Callum Rafferty]

Hi from Australia Tomshardware,

About a year ago I built a PC under the guidance of these forums and now i think it might be time for a GPU upgrade?! I'm not entirely sure.
My Build - HERE
My current GPU is a Sapphire R9 280. it does pretty good compared to others but not the best.
My friend just got a 970 and used Minecraft on max settings (as a benchmark) and got over 1000FPS (so he says)and with my GPU I get (on max settings) 150 FPS. If i was to get a 970, with my build, would I achieve this with a 970?

I won't really be playing Minecraft, but a mix of games such as CS:GO, AC: Unity, Rust and Skyrim. Is a GTX 970 a smart option?

I will be buying from PC Case Gear or Scorptec so if you have the time please have a look at what these offer is GPU's arround the $500 mark in GPU's

Thanks in advance,
Callum

 

[Tom Waller]

I don't understand the way MC works, I run a 980ti and I've never got 1000fps!

As for the 970, it's a great card for the $££$, only trailing behind the 980 a tiny bit. It will easily be able to play the games mentioned without a doubt, but what I'm thinking is maybe wait and see if the 980ti reduces in price... Especially if your current GPU is running everything without a problem, is there really any need in upgrading it if it works fine?

 

[thehutti]

Your system can of course handle the GTX970, but i don't think that Minecraft is a good benchmark to compare the cards. The difference between the cards is about 50% and not 600%. I just don't understand why you want to change, Is 150fps not enough? Even if you are not playing Minecraft, the card should be powerful enough to play CS:Go, Skyrim,Rust and even AC:Unity in high details.

 

[Callum Rafferty]

I don't understand the way MC works, I run a 980ti and I've never got 1000fps!

As for the 970, it's a great card for the $££$, only trailing behind the 980 a tiny bit. It will easily be able to play the games mentioned without a doubt, but what I'm thinking is maybe wait and see if the 980ti reduces in price... Especially if your current GPU is running everything without a problem, is there really any need in upgrading it if it works fine?

You make a good point. I'm not sure though. I would be buying in a couple of months so maybe prices will drop by then?
or do I go for a 144hz monitor and a new GPU around March?
Many Thanks

 

[Callum Rafferty]

Your system can of course handle the GTX970, but i don't think that Minecraft is a good benchmark to compare the cards. The difference between the cards is about 50% and not 600%. I just don't understand why you want to change, Is 150fps not enough? Even if you are not playing Minecraft, the card should be powerful enough to play CS:Go, Skyrim,Rust and even AC:Unity in high details.

You make a good point. Would there be any major benefits in me upgrading? If not i would be confused as to why people buy better gpu's in the first place? I do think my friend was exaggerating about the 1000FPS a little but I think my CPU effects my Minecraft aswell (so I was once told), I should be getting more, I thought...

 

[XiPH3R]

Yeah the gtx 970 is a great card for price.But If you have a good psu, going for the r9 390 will be a better option, and 8 gb of vram will help you in the future if you plan on 4k gaming with crossfire. Plus the cooler from sapphire does a pretty good job to keep the temps at bay

here is a comparison:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k9cKZiJw6Pk

 

[Mxhawthy]

You 100% do NOT need to upgrade a 280 yet. There is literally zero point, if you want to achieve higher fps than your current 150fps in minecraft. The human eye cannot see any benefits in anything over 60fps. So 150 is more than high enough already. A 280 can still play new AAA games, in 1080p at 60fps on high-ish settings, so any upgrade is honestly a waste of money. You should wait until you struggle to reach 60fps, and THEN consider upgrading.

 

[Compuser10165]

Your friend was definitely exagerating by quite lot. Not even with an older game you can get such fps, also there is no benefit in it. In terms of gpu upgrade I suggest you to wait until next year when HBM 2 AMD/Nvidia Gpu's launch and see what you can buy then. Your R9 280 is fine untill then. I generally don't recommend a gpu upgrade unless you get at least ~100% better theoretical performance.

 

[Callum Rafferty]

You 100% do NOT need to upgrade a 280 yet. There is literally zero point, if you want to achieve higher fps than your current 150fps in minecraft. The human eye cannot see any benefits in anything over 60fps. So 150 is more than high enough already. A 280 can still play new AAA games, in 1080p at 60fps on high-ish settings, so any upgrade is honestly a waste of money. You should wait until you struggle to reach 60fps, and THEN consider upgrading.

You 100% do NOT need to upgrade a 280 yet. There is literally zero point, if you want to achieve higher fps than your current 150fps in minecraft. The human eye cannot see any benefits in anything over 60fps. So 150 is more than high enough already. A 280 can still play new AAA games, in 1080p at 60fps on high-ish settings, so any upgrade is honestly a waste of money. You should wait until you struggle to reach 60fps, and THEN consider upgrading.

You both make very good points. I got the idea and I think I jumped the gun a little. Sounds like a good idea to wait a while. I'll continue with my 280 for now I think.

Thanks heaps all!