What GPU should i choose?

[veiron74]

Ok, so I was planning to build a new PC next year, but I have decided to push this forward to 2014-2015. But in the meantime I am wondering if buying a GPU would be beneficial.
This is my current rig, built in summer 2009 (but the two gpu´s, soundcard and SSD were put in at a later stage):

Antec Twelve Hundred Gaming Case
Corsair Powersupply 750W Black, ATX Bulk
Asus P6T Deluxe V2, X58, Socket-1366
ASUS Xonar Essence STX
Corsair XMS3 DDR3 1600MHz 10GB CL9
Intel Core i7 Quad Processor i7-920
Samsung DVD+RW burner
2 x Samsung SpinPoint F1 1TB SATA2 32MB 7200RPM
Corsair SSD Force Series GT 120GB
2 x Sapphire Radeon HD 6950 2GB (CFX)
Samsung 27" LED Monitor S27A950D

I guess I could live with this setup for another couple of years, I have good framerates in games like BF3 and Sleeping Dogs, with most of the eyecandy turned on in 1920 x 1080. But I find the two AMD cards to be very noisy. And sometimes I have som real issues with CFX drivers on new games. So preferably I would like only one GPU with lower noise values and better FPS outputs.
The overpriced Titan is too expensive for me. I could shell out up to £500, but i hope £350 will be sufficient.
Also, would overclocking the CPU be a good idea? Will it have any effects in games? And is my PSU good enough to do that? I am assuming one card will not draw more power than my two 6950´s.
Sorry for noob questions. I can put things inside the PC, but the technical issues concerning watt usage and overclocking makes my brain overload 😉

So there you have it guys. Any recommendations on good single GPU´s? Will it be worth it, or should i stick to my current setup untill I build a new from scratch?

Cheers from the frozen Norway! Thanks in advance.

-robert

 

[Kari]

the only cards that would give you about the same performance in games that have working crossfire profile would be gtx670/680 and the hd7970/7970GHz editon, and naturally these would be considerably faster when the crossfire isnt working properly. (estimated based on the performance of a single 6950)
Overclocking the cpu would definitely help in some more cpu heavy games, like BF3 multiplayer for example. The i7 920 is still quite good really, especially if you oc it. Your psu wont cause any problems, it has plenty of watts for some oc action as well.

Power draw might not change much when changing cards thou, the 6950 consumes like 130W when gaming (260W for 2 cards) and the 7970GHz manages to pull 240W on its own... (the rest use less)
Power consumption figures taken from here:
http://www.techpowerup.com/reviews/NVIDIA/GeForce_GTX_Titan/25.html
performance as well, check the following pages.

whether it is usefull all comes down to how much trouble the crossfire problems are giving you, but as a added extra the frame rates will be smoother with single card. (no microstuttering caused by 2 gpus, so lower frame rates might still feel smoother)

 

[th3_ory]

the 7970 is a good one.

 

[ubercake]

I would stick with what you have until you start again. Aside from the Titan, no single GPU card comes close to the framerates of your two 6950s.

 

[veiron74]

Thanks for your answers! I have checked out the range of HD7970 cards, and I think I have found the one I want, if I DO decide to make the switch right away. This card looks awesome! http://www.overclockersclub.com/reviews/asus_matrix_hd7970_platinum/

But I will think some more about it, because the Titan card is really making me drool. 😉
Do you guys think we will see a good price drop on it any time soon?

 

[Kari]

Do you guys think we will see a good price drop on it any time soon?

not likely, the graphics market seems to turn out pretty boring and static for 2013. Both camps have pushed the next gen cards into 2014 or very late 2013, and there hasn't been any news about new high end cards for the current gens, only some mid/lower tier cards from amd are being launched 'soon' and those won't have any effect on the top tier pricing. The way the cards are currently priced seems to fit well for everyones plans and market positioning so I don't expect them to change much at all before the next gen cards get a lot closer.

 

[veiron74]

Ok, thanks Kari!

...maybe I´ll have to brake my kids "saving pigs" then! 😉