Upgrading Graphics card.

[Necrosis]

I currently have a Nvidia GTX 275 but I'm looking to upgrade.

I've narrowed it down to a GTX 560 Ti and a GTX 570 since I like to remain with Nvidia and the other cards from Nvidia cost a bit too much at this moment.

However I'm unsure which of the two I should get.

The 560 only costs 250 so that's a plus while the 570 costs 350, but my question: Is the 570 really worth the extra 100?

Also, for how much would my GTX 275 still sell? Tried looking on google but it seems the card became extinct or something, lol.

Thx in advance.

 

[linnemeyerhere]

Necrosis,
Welcome to SF. As the proud owner of a GTX260OC and having upgraded to a Radeon 5770 Hawk on the cheap. I may not be the guy to help. But in my humble opinion I would grab the 470 and save the money or spend the difference on a SSD and really up the ante! Either way it will be an improvement over the GTX270 which isn't a slouch of a card, ever thought of picking up another GTX 270 on the real cheap and SLI'g ?

 

[Necrosis]

By SSD you mean a Solid State Drive? Does it really make that much of a difference?

I haven't thought about buying another 275 and using SLI, it would definitely be a lot cheaper but how high is the performance increase?

Also one of the reasons why I'm upgrading is because I want a dx11 card, which the 275 unfortunately isn't.

 

[Tepid]

By SSD you mean a Solid State Drive? Does it really make that much of a difference?

This depends on what you are doing, as for gaming, not really, to my knowledge.
You might see faster load times, but that is about it, it loads to the video card and plays from there.
However, maybe on some swapping (if there is any) you will see an increase.

Overall best gaming performance increase on a system like yours will be the video card upgrade only.

I can not recommend any video cards at this time as I have not researched them in a very long time.

 

[linnemeyerhere]

Necrosis,
A Solid State Drive will be the single most revolutionary change you can make. Gaming aside I hope that system is used for other computing purposes and when it is you won't believe the difference. Personally I would get the GTX 470 and a great 64-128gb SSD drive and don't look back. When you clean install the OS and Apps only to it and then configure your spinner for just data you will thank me for this advice! "Man can't live by games alone"

 

[smarteyeball]

This depends on what you are doing, as for gaming, not really, to my knowledge.
You might see faster load times, but that is about it, it loads to the video card and plays from there.
However, maybe on some swapping (if there is any) you will see an increase.

Yep. Levels load quicker, texture streaming on a few games is smoother, but overall it has virtually no impact on framerate.

One game in particular I have noticed a marked yet still marginal performance increase is in GTAIV which loads a lot of textures from the HDD > video card. It doesn't actually increase the framerate per se, but it does make the overall game feel smoother.

Overall best gaming performance increase on a system like yours will be the video card upgrade only.

If budget is a concern, then a new video card is definitely more important.

An SSD would certainly be a noticeable and welcome improvement all round, but a new card should be the priority.


As for the card itself, what resolution is your LG TV?

If it's 1366x768 (720P) then the 560ti is a good little card.

If it's a 1920x1080(1080P) then the 570 may just justify the extra cost.

Personally I would get the GTX 470

Personally I'd be inclined to stick with the 570 - runs cooler and quieter, uses a tad less power and has arguably more focus for driver support.

 

[stevepoolstock]

Don't get the 470. It has great power, but it gets very hot, uses a lot of power and has lots of driver problems. Returned mine for a 580.

 

[TVeblen]

Quick check on Ebay:

x

 

[Necrosis]

If budget is a concern, then a new video card is definitely more important.

An SSD would certainly be a noticeable and welcome improvement all round, but a new card should be the priority.


As for the card itself, what resolution is your LG TV?

If it's 1366x768 (720P) then the 560ti is a good little card.

If it's a 1920x1080(1080P) then the 570 may just justify the extra cost.

It's a FullHD TV so 1920x1080.

I've been thinking about getting a 3D TV as well, don't know if that would impact the choice in graphics card?

@TVeblen:

Thx for that, didn't think about checking ebay. Seems like I could sell it for around 100 if I'm lucky.

 

[smarteyeball]

The higher res would benefit from more grunt.


EDIT:

3D TV

http://www.nvidia.com/object/3dtv-play-requirements.html

 

[Necrosis]

I see the LG 42LX6500 is supported which is good since that's the one I was thinking about buying.

So I'll have to buy the 3DTV Play from Nvidia as well? Guess that's not too bad, only costs 40.

 

[smarteyeball]

I haven't had a chance to test this yet on my 3D TV (my 580 is coming this week) but from all reports, 3D does have quite an impact on performance. Even those with SLI configs struggle with 3D on some titles.

So I'd definitely give the 3D Play trial a go first.

 

[Necrosis]

Alright I'll keep that in mind once I get my 3D TV.

Thanks for the help.

 

[smarteyeball]

You're welcome.

And enjoy both your new card (when decided) and your new TV