New graphics card - memory for a few years life

[Oldjim]

Having just bought Deus Ex Mankind Divided my present graphics card is a disaster (was OK for Thief, Dishonored, etc) but I need to get a much better one for a 1920 x 1080 monitor (the CPU etc. is fine - running Windows 7 64 bit) but the bit I am unsure about is the graphics memory.
I think that 2GB isn't a really good idea so there are three basic options (3GB 1060, 4GB various - GTX 970 possible - and 6GB 1060) as I doubt that 8GB is really needed.
I know that this is really crystal ball stuff but to get a useful life until I change to Windows 10 - probably in 3 years time - which memory option would be sensible
I would prefer to stay with Nvidia to allow graphics card switching with ease if I hit a problem

[scaryjim]

What's the current card? What's the budget? What's in the rest of the PC - in particular what's the PSU like?

@ 1080p all of the cards you mentioned will do a grand job, and (although you said you'd prefer to stick to nvidia) I'd consider the AMD RX 470 - overclockers have a Sapphire card at £170 that is bit of a bargain. Be aware that the GTX 1060 3GB is a cut down card compared to the 6GB version (it has 10% less shaders), which accounts for the potentially larger than expected price difference (the 3GB version can be had for < £190, while the 6GB version starts at around £230). I wouldn't bother with the 970 if you're looking at keeping the card 3 years - nvidia's long term support (particularly in terms of driver-based performance optimisations) is pretty poor - could be why your existing card is starting to struggle....

[Oldjim]

My existing card is just inadequate - don't laugh it is a 650Ti
Power supply is more than adequate
I am aware that the 1060 3GB is rather cut down but that in itself isn't a major problem
Fair point about the 970 - I hadn't considered the lack of support
This is my starting point http://www.bit-tech.net/hardware/gra...-benchmarked/3
Budget isn't itself a problem but I am just mean so I don't want to spend more than is necessary
Regarding your suggestion - that is very valid and worth considering but the worry I have is whether 4GB memory is going to be a problem in the near future
If it isn't then the comparison between the full 1060 at about £240 and the RX470 at £190 is a real killer but so is the power demand comparison
Which leaves me with the cut down 1060 which is viable (the reduction in shaders etc. may not be a deal breaker) but the question is whether a 3GB memory limit is going to be a problem

[kalniel]

If it isn't then the comparison between the full 1060 at about £240 and the RX470 at £190 is a real killer but so is the power demand comparison

You won't make back the cost difference if you go for a 1060, the 470 isn't some power hungry card.

[Oldjim]

Power cost isn't a factor - it is the greater load on case cooling and on the noise at load

[kalniel]

Power cost isn't a factor - it is the greater load on case cooling and on the noise at load

Again the 470 is a very efficient card, there shouldn't be any negative consequences on noise or case cooling unless you were somehow on the limit with the 650ti already, in which case you'll need to avoid the 1060 as well.

http://www.kitguru.net/components/gr...-8g-review/27/

http://www.ebuyer.com/755197-msi-rad...Faoy0wodk7cAAg

[Oldjim]

Which brings me back to the original question - how much memory for about 3 years life - 3Gb, 4GB or 6GB
Or is that an impossible question

[kalniel]

Which brings me back to the original question - how much memory for about 3 years life - 3Gb, 4GB or 6GB
Or is that an impossible question

For 1080p I'd aim for 4GB. It's kind of impossible, but bearing in mind devs don't want to alienate people who game at 1080p on lesser cards I think that should be fine.

[Oldjim]

Thank you all for the advice - now all I have to do is get my finger out

[scaryjim]

Hmmm, deus ex loves AMD graphics by the look of it, despite being a DX11 game. I'd expect AMD to gain most from the DX12 patch that the bit-tech review says is imminent, which may propel the RX 470 even further ahead of GTX 1060. The fact that it already matches/beats the 6GB GTX 1060 is a bit of an eye-opener to be honest - the RX 470 should be further behind it in DX11.

TBH, even the RX 460 would be a significant step up from your current GPU (can't believe it beats out the GTX 670 at most settings!), but if you're looking for several years of good performance at 1080p, don't want to spend any more than is necessary, and Deus Ex is going to be one ofyour main gaming drivers for the next few months, I don't think you can beat: https://www.overclockers.co.uk/sapph...gx-37g-sp.html

RX 470 4GB for £169.99, with mildly overclocked core and - more importantly, IMNSHO - overclocked memory. By the looks of the bit-tech testing, it'll match a reference spec 1060 in Deus Ex, and it should play most of your other games at 1080p without batting an eyelid. I have to admit, I'm getting a bit of a soft spot for that Sapphire card. Only issue is that blower coolers can be on the louder end of the scale, if noise is important to you. But then there's plenty of other RX 470 options at ~£190 if you're willing to spend another £20 for a quiet cooler...

EDIT:

Just finished reading the bit-tech Deus Ex test, and the bang-for-buck chart at 1080p is really worth reviewing: http://www.bit-tech.net/hardware/gra...-benchmarked/6

Basically, if you want value for money in that game buy Polaris 10. The RX 480 4GB they tested is in stock at overclockers for £209, and should certainly be on your shortlist: https://www.overclockers.co.uk/sapph...gx-37d-sp.html

[Oldjim]

Regarding Sapphire - there are two problems
The cheap one has rubbish cooling by comparison with the two fan version as well as only a two year warranty and Sapphire warranty support isn't very good http://forums.hexus.net/graphics-car...ally-look.html
I will probably go for the Gigabyte version

Edit - the RX 480 4GB is very interesting at that price and may well change my decision - will hold off for a few days to see what comes out of the woodwork

[Jasp]

Might be worth waiting for the DX12 patch for the game on September 5th, shame really as it should have been at launch for a game advertised as built ground up for DX12.

[CAT-THE-FIFTH]

Which brings me back to the original question - how much memory for about 3 years life - 3Gb, 4GB or 6GB
Or is that an impossible question

Don't touch the 3GB GTX1060 with a bargepole.

It will look good in reviews and as time progresses,will look more and more fail than the 6GB version. I point to the 8800GTS 320MB,8800GT 512MB,HD3850 256MB,GTX460 768MB,etc when compared to their higher VRAM versions.

Also,I had a GTX660 and currently have a GTX960. The HD7870 which competed against the GTX660 lasted longer and the R9 380 seems to be doing better than the GTX960. Then when you look at the GTX660TI and GTX760 against the HD7950 and its rebadged versions you see exactly the same thing.

The GTX1060 could buck the trend against the RX480 8GB,but history is more on the side of the AMD card,plus the PS4 Neo uses the RX480 GPU configuration too,ie,2304 GCN1.4 shaders.

I do like certain characteristics of the GTX1060 though - but I think if you intend to keep the cards longer,AMD midrange cards seem to do better in the longterm,even if Nvidia does win in the short term.

[Noxvayl]

What CAT said really... Those are the very same reasons I used to justify my purchase of the RX 480 8GB over the GTX 1060 6GB.

I tend to keep my cards for 2-3 years, and right now the GTX 1060 seems better but not in the games I play and not for DX12/Vulkan as far as I could tell from all the reviews. Plus I got myself a Freesync monitor at the same time, saving me at least £50 over a G-sync alternative

My expectation is that the RX 480 will be the first card I use as a secondary card in Crossfire. I've never done dual cards before, and I expect a cheap second hand R9 Nano/Fury and the RX 480 will do well together in future DX 12 titles. Just a hunch.

[Oldjim]

DX12 is of no interest as I have no intention of moving to Windows 10 because a number of things won't work

[DanceswithUnix]

DX12 is of no interest as I have no intention of moving to Windows 10 because a number of things won't work

That still leaves you with Vulkan

I sort of agree with Cat, though I think the bargepole treatment is a little strong. Still, even though I think not being able to fit a game onto a 3GB video card is sloppy, the sad bit is there are plenty of sloppy written games out there and always will be.

But from what you have said, I would honestly aim high. We have just had a switch from 28nm to 14/16nm silicon, the step change has happened. The value for money won't significantly change until 10nm graphics cards come out, and that might not have the advantage of the current 1060/480 price war.

You did well with the 650ti, the 750ti is only about 30% faster and still being sold to this day so not surprising it is still going. If you want that sort of longevity again I think your best options are either "stuff if" and splash out £380 on a 1070, or if you want to feel you got good value then go for an 8GB RX480.

For me that means the RX480. The 4GB version of the card should be enough, but that is 4GB of slower ram than on the 8GB and there will always be that worry that at some point you will want to play something that struggles to fit into 4GB.