Solved Finding all the specs of cards confusing in selecting a new card

[TanyaC]

Hi,

I want to buy my kids a new graphics card for Christmas. Something that will last a couple of years. They are currently running GTX460 OC 1GB. New games coming out say they need at least GTX 560 cards.

So I'm looking at a GTX 560 or 570, with a budget of around $350 each. I'm not interested in ATI cards, only nVidia.

Looking at the specs, no two GTX 560's are the same. There is shader, gpu, memory clocks and memory bus specifications.

The 560 Ti appears to be better than the plain 560, but then there's superclock, ultra durable and others, Then there is v1, v2, v3. I'm guessing I would always go for the latest version, though when looking at the specifications all versions were identical.

What is the most important specs for performance?

Brands I've been looking at are ASUS, Gigabyte, EVGA, and Gainward. We've always used Gigabyte, but I'm willing to change if I can get better performance/value for money.

I'm in Melbourne Australia. We all run dual 24" BenQ LED monitors; 1xHDMI and 1xDVI. They run at 1920x1080p, 50hz.

They want to run Battlefield 3, the latest call of Duty, NBA 2K12, and other new games.

thanks
Tanya

 

[Golden]

Hi Tanya,

No doubt some of the hardware guru's will be along to offer advice on what to look for in cards, but I thought I might share this with you.

The GTX560 is a magnificent card - I upgraded to the EVGA GTX560 last week. I haven't yet tried it with Battlefield 3, but with Battlefield 2 it is just top-notch. Be aware that it requires 2 x 6 pin power leads from the PSU. It has 2 x DVI connectors and 1 x mini-HDMI connector. Make sure your PSU has sufficient power to handle these cards. They take up 2 x backplates on the case (one for the connectors, and one for the exhaust). It retails for about AUS$240.

If you are intent on spending up to AUS$350, then the 560Ti goes for about $300, and the 570 goes for about $349. Both of those are just top-notch cards, and you cannot go wrong with that. EVGA is top-of-the-line.

Here is a reference for cost. Perhaps you have something locally that might be cheaper.

Nvidia

Regards,
Golden

 

[DustSailor]

Hi Tanya,

No doubt some of the hardware guru's will be along to offer advice on what to look for in cards, but I thought I might share this with you.

The GTX560 is a magnificent card - I upgraded to the EVGA GTX560 last week. I haven't yet tried it with Battlefield 3, but with Battlefield 2 it is just top-notch. Be aware that it requires 2 x 6 pin power leads from the PSU. It has 2 x DVI connectors and 1 x mini-HDMI connector. Make sure your PSU has sufficient power to handle these cards. They take up 2 x backplates on the case (one for the connectors, and one for the exhaust). It retails for about AUS$240.

If you are intent on spending up to AUS$350, then the 560Ti goes for about $300, and the 570 goes for about $349. Both of those are just top-notch cards, and you cannot go wrong with that. EVGA is top-of-the-line.

Here is a reference for cost. Perhaps you have something locally that might be cheaper.

Nvidia

Regards,
Golden

I would have to agree with golden. Very good cards, and I also recommend EVGA. EVGA "superclocks" some cards for you as well, so you might look into that. google it and see what is best for your price range. generally, higher is better, but the price tag increases as well. I had a 460 once that was a cool and quiet card that ran rather well. I think the 560 and 570 are similar, but with better graphics quality. from what i hear, they are really good cards.

 

[TanyaC]

Thanks for the replies guys.

An Example;

The EVGA is 732/1464/3800, 320bit, Around $390 - $420, single FAN
The gigabyte is 780/1560/3800, 320bit, Around $350 - $390, triple fan

Both have 1280mb DDR5.

So, if the EVGA has lower specs than the gigabyte why would I buy EVGA? Surely the lower specs translate into lower performance? Or have I got it all wrong?

Some of the EVGA are not HDTV capable. I guess that isn't a problem. I can't find much on the Gigabyte's HDTV status.

 

[DustSailor]

there are many different models of a same card. EVGA generally is the better brand, especially over Gigabyte. You sure you have the same card selected? which card is it?

I have a gigabyte triple fan card currently in my computer, you know what it does? blows all the heat back into my computer. EVGA's single fan blows the heat out the back of the computer. Wish I had gone EVGA, as my previous EVGA cards were all top notch.

 

[boogieboy]

Go for GTX 570

 

[stormy13]

Reference specs for both can be seen here,

Video Card Comparison - GPUReview.com

anything that is above the reference specs is factory overclocked by the card manufacturer. In a lot of cases it is better to buy the card that is at reference specs if the price difference is great enough, and then just manually overclock the card to the faster speeds (if so inclined).

 

[badger906]

My I ask why or not interested in ati cards?
Personally I chop and change between brands whenever a card pops up that offeres more performance for money.

I have a xfx hd 6950, cost about £220, has 2gb ddr5 and outperforms the similarly prices 560's.
Plays bf3 at 1080p will all settings on ultra and full AA.

I looked at the nvidia 560's when I was building my new rig, but when with the ati as all reviews pointed it out as a far better buy.

I personally have never had an issue chopping and changing cards, I've has ati x650, x850, geforce 8800gts, 8800gt, 9800gtx, hd6950 lol just my 2 pence or cents for you guys lol

Sent from my BlackBerry 9900 using Tapatalk

 

[ReviverSoft]

For a single card purchase, I'd suggest considering the EVGA GeForce GTX 570 Superclocked.

On par with the HD 6970 and close to the performance of a GeForce 580 card.

 

[boogieboy]

i agree with badger906 i also like to switch between brands and AMD has great performance on their cards on the 6xxx series

 

[pparks1]

My I ask why or not interested in ati cards?

I recently bought a new video card and my opinion was the same, I wanted an Nvidia card and not an AMD/ATI....but it took some thought to get there.

Reasons for my choice include:

1. Historically, Nvidia has had better Linux support and I do use Linux regularly.
2. My video rendering software uses CUDA, so I wanted to stay with a CUDA based card
3. The AMD/ATI Catalyst driver set just seems to be a bit messier overall to me than Nvidia drivers.

I've owned AMD cards in the past (Radeon 9700Pro and Radeon X800XT). Both cards worked well for me in their time. I've also owned numerous Nvidia cards (7600GT, 8600GT, 9800GTX+ and now a 570GTX+). These cards have also worked great for me. In particular, the 7600GT's have been fabulous in Linux boxes over the years.

I want to buy my kids a new graphics card for Christmas. Something that will last a couple of years. They are currently running GTX460 OC 1GB. New games coming out say they need at least GTX 560 cards.

I would be concerned that the upgrade from a GTX460 to anything less than the 570 (and even that is close) is going to be enough of an upgrade to keep them satisfied for a few years.. And the problem with going higher than a 570 becomes budget in a hurry as prices rise dramatically at that point. I'm not saying that an upgrade to a 570 would be unnoticeable, but i don't think it would really make them go, "Wow, this is incredible".

Remember, new games are now "recommending 560's", but they aren't the required minimum. It's a good guideline for somebody who might want to get the game and needs a new computer But I would say that your GTX 460 Overclocked is "close enough" to a 560...so I would expect it to play in the same league as the "recommended system config" So, I'm of the opinion that your current card is certainly in the "recommended realm still", and spending anything less than 350 is probably not going to move you up much.

 

[TanyaC]

Go for GTX 570

Ok, the best price I've seen for the EVGA Superclocked 570 is $413. It still has lower domain frequencies than the Gigabyte, but I will have to defer to peoples experience and expertise and accept that the lower frequencies do not translate into lower performance.

 

[TanyaC]

My I ask why or not interested in ati cards?

1. All of the other computers in the house (there are 9), are all nVidia and I prefer to keep to standards.
2. I use CUDA rendering software
3. The resource footprint on Nvidia seems better
4. Driver updates seem more frequent and less problems
5. Some games play better with nVidia.
6. I've had more success with support on Nvidia cards than I've had with ATI.

They would be the main reasons.

Thanks for your help guys.

I am going to go for a EVGA Superclock, and once I get some experience I will tweak it a little. I'll stick with a 460 for myself so I can cut the cost, and just upgrade the two boys' systems.

I can also sell the 460's to help offset the extra cost a little.

Actually, here's one for $409AUD.. Look ok?

Buy Cheap EVGA GeForce GTX 570 HD Superclocked Video Card - GDDR5 1280

 

[Golden]

~$400 seems to be in the right ball-park : looks good to me.

 

[smarteyeball]

I'm in Melbourne Australia.

Pc Case Gear/PCCG is a great online store. If you are within driving distance of Dingley Village , they also have a store front pick up.


ASUS GeForce GTX 570 DirectCU II 1280MB [ENGTX570-DCII-1280D5] - $399.00 : PC Case Gear

EVGA GeForce GTX 570 HD SuperClocked [012-P3-1573-KR] - $409.00 : PC Case Gear

Gigabyte Geforce GTX 570 Super Overclock 1280MB [GV-N570SO-13I] - $409.00 : PC Case Gear

Gainward is still a little so-so in quality terms apparently.

Don't get too caught up between the normal and 'superclocked' versions and the numbers attached etc. Superclocked versions are just factory applied overclocks. Something that can be done by the kids themselves with software. All the 570's have the same number of cores,shaders etc

The biggest difference between the cards is the cooling. Stock, like evga, or after-market like the Asus and Gigabyte. Aftermarket coolers offer superior thermal and auditory performance.

Whichever brand you opt for, they shan't be disappointed .

 

[TanyaC]

Dingley Village is an 80km round trip. About $14 in juice. Delivery by courier is $19, so for the extra $5 I think I'll opt for courier.

If the aftermarket cooling is better (The gigabyte has three fans and evga has one), I'd go for that since the price is the same as the evga.

However, DustSailor suggested the three fan cards tend to blow heat back into the system, which I definately don't want to do.

Temps and quietness are important. I've got the systems pretty quiet and they run around 25c with the I5's in the Antec 900 two cases. So if the Gigabyte card is going to keep the temp and noise below the EVGA then I'd have to opt for the Gigabyte.

It's all so confusing

 

[pparks1]

I bought a reference design eVGA 570GTX and it's got a single fan. It's very quiet and hasn't raised my case temps at all. My video card gets to around 80C when playing BF3.

 

[DustSailor]

However, DustSailor suggested the three fan cards tend to blow heat back into the system, which I definately don't want to do.

If the card is cool enough, and you have proper airflow in your case, it shouldn't be a problem. I don't have too much of either, and yes, gigabyte does indeed blow ALL that hot air back into the case.

Temps and quietness are important. I've got the systems pretty quiet and they run around 25c with the I5's in the Antec 900 two cases. So if the Gigabyte card is going to keep the temp and noise below the EVGA then I'd have to opt for the Gigabyte.

It's all so confusing

In the end, you have to make the choice yourself anyway, we can only suggest, and you make the best educated decision (or guess lol). All on you kid

ps. most cards don't really make that much noise anyway, and the cpu fan usually makes a far more heavy racket than anything else in your case, no matter if your GPU is EVGA or Gigabyte.

EVGA is for the cards, Gigabyte is for the boards, in my opinion. But every once in a while both companies do something to make me think ASUS

 

[smarteyeball]

If the card is cool enough, and you have proper airflow in your case, it shouldn't be a problem.

Exactly.

 

[TanyaC]

I'm in Melbourne Australia.

Pc Case Gear/PCCG is a great online store. If you are within driving distance of Dingley Village , they also have a store front pick up.

Found a better deal...

Scorpion Technology: Purchase Computers: Computer Hardware & Software Systems in Australia from Scorpion Technology - Scorpion Technology

So I'll go for this one..