Upgrading card (old system specs), R9 270x vs GTX 760

[l30nc1t0]

Hi, guys long time no see!

I need your advice on upgrading my old graphics cards. I plan to do the purchase in following two weeks, and I live in Argentina (low stock, not many manufacturers/models, overpriced components, low chances of import). My budget is around 3500ARS, which considering taxes, import, currency change, and sly vendors, is about 220USD.

My current system specs are (I know it's old, but it runs fine for most of my needs):

Motherboard: ASUS P5Q-E.
CPU: Intel Core 2 Quad Q9400 (@2.66Ghz) + CoolerMaster Hyper 212+.
Memory: GSkill F2-8000CL5-2GBPI x 4 (8Gb DDR2 1000Mhz).
GPU: Sapphire ATI Radeon HD4670 1Gb DDR3.
PSU: PowerCooler Modular 550W.
Internal devices: 4 HDD's + 1 DVD-RW drive.
Case: Thermaltake Soprano RS (stock coolers).
Monitors: Samsung P2370MS DVI @1920x1080 + Philips 170C VGA (using DVI Adapter) @1280x1024.
OS (host): Windows Server 2012 R2.

This is a diversified PC, used by the whole family. Mostly for music/video playback, Internet browsing, developing and gaming. Some rendering and recoding. Usually one VM running the webserver.

I want to change the graphics card because is slowly dying (broken fan) and for some reason not compatible with any drivers anymore, and I'm getting BSOD on atikmpag.sys often.

And I want to change the manufacturer (Sapphire has let me down for the 3rd time). In Argentina I might choose from Sapphire (most cards), XFX (mid/high), Gigabyte (almost absent), MSI (high/extreme). Direct import is not an option since the situation is not great to do so, and I'm not willing to risk this amount of money.

So I was looking around, and I (sort of) narrowed it down to two: either the XFX R9 270x Double Dissipation Edition or the Zotac GTX 760 Amp! Edition.

What would you recommend? Is it wise to choose mid-range GPUs for my actual hardware? I'm honestly lost, but open to ideas.

Thanks in advance!

 

[millwright]

They will probably bottleneck with that CPU, but will run better than any lesser card

Bottle necking only holds a card back, some.

Those cards are pretty close, with the GTX760 has a slight edge.

A board that old I was worried it might Be PCI=e version 1.0a, or 1.1, which won't run those cards without a BIOS update, if Asus made one.

The p45 chipset is PCI-e 2.0

 

[millwright]

XFX has a lifetime Guarantee on dual fan models, and is also a top brand
Zotec while probably OK, as most electronics are dependable today, is the cheapest brand out there.

 

[l30nc1t0]

Thanks for you replies, millwright.

Those were my main concerns. I know my current hardware drags on the newer GPUs. I was even considering a SLI/CrossFire configuration with lower end cards (older models). But reading here and there, I realized that:

* is not preferable to make a dual configuration on lower end cards compared to a single medium/high end card;
* the PCI-e 2.0 vs 3.0 doesn't make a huge difference;
* I don't have a budget to build a new configuration from zero at the time; and
* I need to replace this card either way (I mean, the PC is working great even being it's almost 7 years old), just the GPU is being funky now and then.

That's why I'm puzzled on how to proceed. I mean I could go with a two ATI R7 260x (it would be almost the same amount of money), but I don't know if it would be wise because of the above reasons. Or I could go with a single R7 260x and I would be saving a lot of money and it would be less "drag" with my current hardware.

But I've never upgraded a card. I usually build from zero choosing a mid-ranged card, and if I'm not mistaken the R7 is a low-end card. That's why I originally chose the R9 270x or the GTX 760.

 

[coozie7]

Have to say I've never heard of the power supply maker, so I'm going to be very cautious and suggest you look lower, at cards that use far less power.
Also, are you sure you need something as strong as either of those? Sounds as if your were fairly happy with a far weaker card: http://www.tomshardware.co.uk/gaming-graphics-card-review,review-32899-7.html the HD4670 is about halfway down, right hand side.
Assuming a single 1080 display personally I think you would be better with either the HD7750/R7 250 class of card, or, as you have already mentioned the R7 260X/GTX750 for a little more zip in the gaming.

 

[millwright]

Agree
That was going to be my next point.
Power supply.

Also 2 cards is never a good idea, unless there is no single card as fast as the 2.
Or if you already have one of them, and the price has dropped.

I know about waste of money updates, when you have to.
I ran my Barton for 11 years.

 

[l30nc1t0]

Great! Thanks coozie7 and thanks again millwright. Sorry it took me a while to reply but I was looking for availability of the cards you mentioned and skimming through some reviews.

PowerCooler is a local brand. I don't know if it's "good" since it hasn't failed me yet and I didn't open it to check voltages, PCB quality, etc. The only thing I can say is that it has been running with no issues since I built the PC back on 2008, running 24x7, and even withstanding several power outages, and a lousy unstable main power line. So, I can't complain (yet).

It seems both of you agree on a single lower end card as the best approach. On my local market I have the R7 260x from XFX core editions (single cooler, might overheat as I read), and Sapphire (which I dislike but if I must, I'll deal with it) also with single cooler. I also have the GTX 750 Ti OC from Zotac (1Gb o 2Gb) and MSI (2Gb) both with dual coolers, or EVGA (1Gb) single cooler. For what I gather, the R7 260x has "higher" values (memory, clock, tesselation, pixel rate, etc) than the GTX 750 Ti, but the latter performs "better". I also have the R7 265 but the other two are cheaper (way cheaper).

I'm feeling inclined to choose the MSI GTX 750 Ti OC 2Gb Twin Frozr, it looks really nice and seems to be an good upgrade from what I have.

 

[coozie7]

^ And I'm inclined to agree: Low power consumption, cool and it should be almost silent. Yes, it's a bit lower down the food chain than a R9 270X or GTX760 but still a great little card and a BIG upgrade to the HD4670, not so much for general uses but gaming and DVD/Blu-ray playback should be immensely improved.
It can be a little confusing when an 'inferior' card outperforms a 'superior' one, but the GTX750Ti uses a new architecture, making it more efficient than the older AMD 'R' cards BTW.

 

[nikoli707]

the r9-280 is more comparable in price and performance to the gtx760. you can find the 280 cheaper than the 760 also, at least here in usa.

 

[l30nc1t0]

Sorry, guys it took me so long to update on the issue.

I finally went for the GTX 750 Ti OC from MSI, and I ran into some bumps along the road. First the seller paused the sale before I could buy it. When I finally received it and I was about to install it I realized it didn't fit on my case (had to move two of the HDDs to the upper bays -will have to upgrade a cooler soon-). Then the motherboard wouldn't boot (it seems I have an issue with RAM that wasn't apparent before -they underclock at 800Mhz, but should be running at 1000Mhz, and if I set them like that the motherboard won't boot-).

But in the end, after 6hs of plugging, unplugging, moving cables, moving HHDs and RAM modules, reconfiguring the BIOS numerous times, checking POST sounds from bare to full, a desperate attempt to flash the BIOS (luckily I didn't) and almost wiping two of my HDDs (using ASUS Drive Xpert' SATA ports at the motherboard without reading the manual beforehand): everything is working again. Yay!

The system is really stable and running smoothly. I don't miss the old clacking sound from the dying fan from the previous GPU neither the "The driver has stopped responding" issues (atikmpag.sys related). The NVidia drivers seem a lot more compatible than the AMD ones, and stable. I couldn't be happier with the upgrade.

Here are the 3DMark tests results: Fire Strike, Sky Diver, Cloud Gate, and Ice Storm. Physics scores are killing me, which I presume is because of the CPU, but I knew that would happen, so I can't complain.

Thanks again for all your help and support!