hey guys, you've been really helpful in the past so hoping if you can hope again. Looking currently at a new build ( http://forums.bit-tech.net/showthread.php?t=253328 ) and have got nearly all other components chosen now onto the GPU After my research I've been recommended to spend more on the GPU therefore am looking to spend between £170 and £220 (no more). I'm looking to play a few games but not huge amounts, looking to run the detail levels high but not ultra fine, just wondering what my options are? Have looked at the GTX 660, 660Ti and the 7950 but am not too sure as to how they preform. Just interested what people would recommend, nvidia vs AMD or if its worth spending that bit extra on the Ti version. I'm also stuck on what brand to opt for, MSI vs EVGA for example, whether one is better than the other or is it a case of bigger numbers=better performance? If anyone can point me in the right direction or simply link me to some info that would be fantastic. Cheers.
7950 crushes the 660, and goes back and forth with the 660 ti I'd get the 7950 XFX has the best warranty, Asus has the best cooler (DC2 models anyway), rest are very similar
Hey man, This article has a very interesting say on the 660 ti performance http://techreport.com/review/23981/radeon-hd-7950-vs-geforce-gtx-660-ti-revisited It's quite controversial though, tech report has an interesting new benchmarking methodology that exposes issues with the 7950 that the 660 ti doesn't suffer from. I personally have a reference design evga 660ti and I'm really happy with it!
The 7950 is basically on par with the 660Ti. Funnily enough, if there were driver improvements across the board, the 7950 might actually have performed better..
crushes it where it's worth the £50 extra or not? £220 seems a lot for a GPU to me, trying to keep my build around £800. i know it comes with free games but I've already got borderlands 2.
If it was my budget I'd buy the 660ti its quieter and more power frugal, its not as quick as a 7950 in certain games. 7950 7970 + ghz editon are all brute force cards heavy power usage and very noisy to boot.( stock models can't tell you about other models) Wether the card is £50 better is your choice to make. If your building a gaming pc then the Gpu should be as powerful as you can afford if its not primary for games then you could look at cheaper gpus. Always the second hand market, 580s are getting cheaper and are only slightly slower than the 660ti or 7950. ( can buy a refurb for £200 second hand is around £130-160)
I have literally just installed a XFX7950 in to my machine, it really is awesome. I know you mention you don't really play on high, but im a full time gamer. MMORPG i play medium graphics just eliminate any graphics lag (none seen yet). But i have been playing FarCry 3, sleeping dogs and hitman Absolution on Ulta/ highest setting the games allow. not been let down yet, the card doesn't even struggle. It does run warm maxes out about 74 - 76c after playing on full graphics for over 2 - 3 hours, it is twin fan but i have asked on these forums and also but a ticket into xfx they say there safe working temps. And the 3 games i mentioned you get free with the card. Never used GTX card so can't comment on those. As already mentioned XFX have a lifetime warranty but you must register the card with XFX within 30 days of purchase. I have always used XFX never let me down. hope that helps Swanny edit = Here is the link to the 7950, XFX7950 Also note there is a review about how long the card is, and some one says you need a full tower. i have a NZXT M59 tower, its a midi tower it fits just fine. might be worth measuring first. XFX7950 = 10.25 inches GTX660 = 7 inches
Have a look at the new Tahiti LE-based cards such as the Club 3D HD 7870 jokerCard, the PowerColor PCS+ HD7870 Myst or the VTX3D HD7870 Black. Despite the name these cards use a cut-down version of the GPU used in the 79xx series and they perform close to the HD7950 while costing not much more than a HD7870. And you get some free games with them as well, among them Sleeping Dogs and Far Cry 3.
