So many choices?!?!

L

Legendaryk4

New Member
First off, I do apologize if this is already been covered.

So I am just looking around for a new GPU and I have only built 1 computer so I still have a lot to learn. I was looking at AMD such as the R9 series. I get there are alot of choices due to brands such as Sapphire and MSI, but why are there so many choices for each brand. For example, the R9 290x from Sapphire has like 10 different choices. I get the memory amount is different on some and fan count but why are there so many choices. It makes it very confusing for someone like myself to shop for one because I dont know which one to get. Also, the price range is ALL over the place.

The other thing I dont get is the different series of GPUs. AMD has the R9, R7, R5, HD7000, HD6000 and HD5000. How am I supposed to know what is better and worse. Is a cheap R7 better than an expensive HD7000? IDK!

I just dont know how to shop to upgrade my GPU.

Thank You!
 
You want an R9 series or R7 series. These are renamed versions of the 7000 series.

Ideally, an 280X or 290X is a good option, but it depends on what your budget it.

What version of the card doesn't really matter, just buy from a good company like Asus, MSI, Sapphire, XFX, etc
 
You listed the cards from highest to lowest! :)

With brands, it's all about features. Personally I chose my 280X because of 1) The price. 2) The cooling. 3) The benchmarks. 4) The appearance.
 
There are different prices and different models because there are different needs and, more accurately, more money to be made.

They will all have the same GPU, the difference is the cooling, the components used on the PCB and sometimes simply that there is a factory overclock.

For the most part the only difference is cooling and overclockability. Is that worth the sometimes hundreds of dollar difference? Absolutely not. You can get a similar overclock yourself on the lower priced and model for no extra cost if you so choose.

So, how to choose which graphics card is right for you.

1. What power supply do you have? If it is from an el cheapo brand, or is a decent unit but not sufficient for the cards you are considering, it would be advisable to upgrade this first. Yours in your signature is fine.

2. With your PSU sorted what is your budget?

3. With this in mind shop around for an idea of the different cards available in your price range. Work out the highest model available from both Nvidia and AMD within your price range, and then...

4. Check benchmarks. You can do a quick Google search of, for example "290x review" and it will come up with a load of sites that have tested the 290x against other cards. This will give you a feel for what you are getting for your money, and if the 50 bucks difference from one card to another is actually worth it.

5. Finally now you have a pretty clear picture of what you want, final shop around. You want to look for the cheapest available card you are after from a reputable vendor,but also to be on the lookout for deals on either the card you are after, or better yet if the next model up from it is brought within your price range.

Don't be afraid of b-grade deals either, 99% of the time it is just someone has returned it because they don't want it, so it will just be an open box and maybe missing the manual, but the card itself is brand new. The warranty will be shorter, which is really the only trade off, though generally cards don't fail within the years that they are still relevant for gaming. I did this with my current card when 7970's were still £300+ and got it for £160. All accessories were with it and all still in their sealed bags, and still going strong
 
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4. Check benchmarks. You can do a quick Google search of, for example "290x review" and it will come up with a load of sites that have tested the 290x against other cards. This will give you a feel for what you are getting for your money, and if the 50 bucks difference from one card to another is actually worth it.
Click to expand...

http://www.anandtech.com/show/7503/the-amd-radeon-r9-270x-270-review-feat-asus-his/5

http://www.techpowerup.com/reviews/MSI/R9_270X_Gaming/6.html

7970 is better than a 270X. A 280X is pretty much just a renamed 7970 GHz edition, so with that knowledge alone you would be able to work it out. The price difference between a 7970 GHz (or 280X) is worth it for the performance gain over a 270X, if you can afford it.

When you are comparing one generation/product line to another, there is no easy way to say "this is better" without looking at benchmarks.
 
That 7970 has more memory but a slightly less clock. 925mhz compared to 1030mhz. Dedends on the games you play and if they need more memory.
 
So, If I wanted to upgrade to a HD 7970, which I am assuming is a upgrade that would last a couple years at least, would I need to upgrade my CPU to not have to worry about bottlenecking? What would be a cost effective upgrade for my CPU? And is there really a way to tell if a CPU and GPU mix will bottleneck?

Thanks!
 
I would suggest not upgrading at all just yet.

A 7850 is still plenty of card, you would be better off settling for a few months, when the next generation of AMD cards should be out, which would provide more longevity than a 7970, which is now last generation, soon to be two generations ago
 
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