Upgradin' Da Computah
- Thread starter FireData
- Start date
I am running a very similar computer but OC to 4 Ghz CPU. You didnt say how fast your memory was but mine is 2133. I don't think thats a big deal as long as you are 1600+. Arena Commander takes around 5 GB so as long as you are not running a bunch of other crap you should be fine.
What I do have is a reasonably nice R9 280x and I can run Star Citizen very nicely. Others have mentioned it.. I think the one thing you could look at is to upgrade the GPU. Yours is a bit under powered, especially if you are running in HD+.
I don't think its a great idea to do much hardware upgrading before windows 10 come out then you can fold all that work together. A GPU will get you going right now with just a card swap. So, I agree with everyone here that you could use a new GPU but will go further and say with my experience that the rest of your rig should be sufficient in the short term.
E
ps - I upgraded from a (I think) an HD 6870 series radeon which only had 1GB of memory. Rome Total War II was really boning that card so I wanted a min of 3GB video memory for modern titles running in 1920x1200. Higher resolutions consume more video memory to do things like AA.
What I do have is a reasonably nice R9 280x and I can run Star Citizen very nicely. Others have mentioned it.. I think the one thing you could look at is to upgrade the GPU. Yours is a bit under powered, especially if you are running in HD+.
I don't think its a great idea to do much hardware upgrading before windows 10 come out then you can fold all that work together. A GPU will get you going right now with just a card swap. So, I agree with everyone here that you could use a new GPU but will go further and say with my experience that the rest of your rig should be sufficient in the short term.
E
ps - I upgraded from a (I think) an HD 6870 series radeon which only had 1GB of memory. Rome Total War II was really boning that card so I wanted a min of 3GB video memory for modern titles running in 1920x1200. Higher resolutions consume more video memory to do things like AA.
A 570 is a fair chunk slower than a 7970/280x. With him having 1.25(?)gb of ram if I recall, that is quite a bottleneck now. The rest is being pushed to physical ram. If that runs out, memory overlap runs to storage device.
Aka, don't do it.
For under 200, a a 7970/280x can be had. And if you bargain shop, even a used 290 for around 200. That will last quite some time.
Aka, don't do it.
For under 200, a a 7970/280x can be had. And if you bargain shop, even a used 290 for around 200. That will last quite some time.
Shar Treuse
Captain
I may have an EVGA GTX 670 SC+ 4GB available used in a day or two. This was $400 a year ago and I'd probably let it go for a quarter of that. MSI afterburner is showing 40-50 fps at max settings in 2560x1440 resolution, so with your monitor at maximum res you should easily get a solid 60fps.
Probably going to just upgrade my GPU for now.
Looking at one of these:
http://www.videocardbenchmark.net/gpu.php?gpu=GeForce+GTX+970&id=2954#price
http://www.videocardbenchmark.net/gpu.php?gpu=GeForce+GTX+760&id=2561#price
I'll probably end up with the 760, unless there's a significant reason I should get the 970 (such as "It will actually run if you get the 970").
Looking at one of these:
http://www.videocardbenchmark.net/gpu.php?gpu=GeForce+GTX+970&id=2954#price
http://www.videocardbenchmark.net/gpu.php?gpu=GeForce+GTX+760&id=2561#price
I'll probably end up with the 760, unless there's a significant reason I should get the 970 (such as "It will actually run if you get the 970").
I would not buy anything without checking Tom's Hardware's Best Cards for the Money for November.
http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/gaming-graphics-card-review,3107.html
http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/gaming-graphics-card-review,3107.html
Shar Treuse
Captain
I'm expecting to use my new GTX 970 SC (SC = supercharged, a misnomer for factory overclocked) at least until the game releases, whether or not it will be useful at that time (at 2560x1440).
Shar Treuse
Captain
I recommend consulting multiple websites, both to avoid reviewer bias and because any given tst is going to be done with different parts. Not every GTX 970 is perfectly identical, nor is every 280x.
I would recommend the 970 over the 760 every day of the week. Low power draw on the 970, much faster, low heat. Easier to sli in the future.
Plus the higher speed vram helps in CryEngine games.
As far as who mentioned the 670. Avoid it. Not enough vram, not nearly as efficient. A 7970 can be had for the same price and will run a fair bit faster. With more vram too
Plus the higher speed vram helps in CryEngine games.
As far as who mentioned the 670. Avoid it. Not enough vram, not nearly as efficient. A 7970 can be had for the same price and will run a fair bit faster. With more vram too
Shar Treuse
Captain
GTX 670 SC+ 4GB has exactly the same VRAM as the GTX 970 SC, 4GB of GDDR5, and 1/3 more than the 7970 which only has 3GB of GDDR5. It was also cheaper than the 7970 at the time I bought it by $36 ($435 vs 399), and as I said, it's used so I will be selling it for $100.
The thing is (as I keep saying, because it's a significant problem), I have very little money. So I have to be kinda cheap.
CrashMan054
Commander
You can't be cheap and run SC. It just won't work. My dad always said: "you get what you pay for"; and that saying is still true today. Better to wait until you have the money for high quality parts than by cheap stuff now and have to gut your system in the future. I'm not saying you shouldn't look for deals, I'm saying to get high quality parts.
What I appreciate about Tom's Hardware reviews is they break out performance stats by game. So I can judge a card / system by its performance on Far Cry 3 (Crysis engine), and to hell with the others.
Don't care about other games, I just wanna fly in the PU
Don't care about other games, I just wanna fly in the PU
Yea, it's unfortunate. Hoping Christmas provides me with some spare money and/or parts.
Brother, I feel your pain. When my second kid finally got done with full time day care I bought the 280X.
What I would suggest is to use the chart at the end of the Tom's guide which gives the order of magnitude of "power" of cards. A rule of thumb is you need a shift of three levels to feel a difference, a shift of five levels for a significant difference from what you have.
Use the guide I recommended before. Find what you can afford. Can't afford anything? Then its moot. Then look that card up and compare it to what you have now. If it is three or more levels of magnitude better then what you have now then consider the purchase. Otherwise wait until you can afford more or the cheap stuff is better.
http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/gaming-graphics-card-review,3107-7.html
Given you appear to be GPU limited right now, if you can't buy a card then switch to a lower resolution so you get reasonable performance.
Good luck!
-E
ps - another strat would be to find what cards are listed five levels above what you have and try to find a deal on ebay.
CrashMan054
Commander
What did I tell you about trying to copy too much porn at once?