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Thread: So I have narrowed my choice of cards down to these...

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    So I have narrowed my choice of cards down to these...

    ...but I am pretty much at a loss now, despite having looked through some reviews. I would like to spend no more than 250£ on a GPU as that is already a quarter of my overall budget so here are the cards I am considering:

    KFA² GeForce GTX 570 1.25GB - About 240£
    PowerColor HD6970 2GB - About 245£
    Gainward GeForce GTX 570 1280MB "Golden Sample" - About 250£

    i am not sure whether I should really get a GTX 570 or a HD 6970 or just go for a GTX 560 Ti or a HD 6950 which would save me 20£ to 40£. The thing is, the GPU is probably the last thing I should cheap out on. The most demanding games I intend to play are probably The Witcher 2, Crysis 2, and StarCraft 2 at a resolution of 1920x1080p.

    Thanks in advance and if there is anything that I left out, please feel free to ask!

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    Re: So I have narrowed my choice of cards down to these...

    Well, According to the GPU Bench,

    The 6970 beats the 570 in Crysis 1
    The 570 beats the 6970 in Starcraft 2
    The 570 is quieter (Except when running OCCT)
    http://www.anandtech.com/bench/Product/509?vs=518

    So either would do. I'd be looking at the Specials pages at Scan and similar and take the best deal on either one.

    If it was my money - I wouldn't buy either right now with the 7*** series and kepler being released in the next few months.
    Society's to blame,
    Or possibly Atari.

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    Re: So I have narrowed my choice of cards down to these...

    Thanks for the quick response. Isn't Kepler still a few months off? And I've been waiting and waiting but there is little news on how much the 7870 will cost or when it will even be released. I also unfortunately don't have a clue as to what OCCT is!

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    Re: So I have narrowed my choice of cards down to these...

    Quote Originally Posted by Zeven View Post
    Thanks for the quick response. Isn't Kepler still a few months off? And I've been waiting and waiting but there is little news on how much the 7870 will cost or when it will even be released. I also unfortunately don't have a clue as to what OCCT is!
    Yes I'd wait as well. That way you can join in the Hexus community in the meantime and get free delivery at Scan as a contributing member without just posting to boost your post count.

    OCCT is an overclocking test tool - it helps graphics cards generate load so you can test how hot they run and what the cooling solutions are like.

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    Re: So I have narrowed my choice of cards down to these...

    I'd agree with Phage,

    Wait for the 7xxx equivalent or Kepler, you would not want to drop £250 on a card that is probably going to be pwned in a couple of months (april latest, by the looks) ,

    I could understand getting one now if there was no outlook for new cards for 6-12 months but, I for one am waiting, I have a gtx460 and usually go 2-3 gens before picking up new cards but, Diablo 3 will answer all my questions about wether to get a new card or not,

    BTW, what card are you rocking at the mo?

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    Re: So I have narrowed my choice of cards down to these...

    I would wait too.

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    Re: So I have narrowed my choice of cards down to these...

    Quote Originally Posted by kalniel View Post
    Yes I'd wait as well. That way you can join in the Hexus community in the meantime and get free delivery at Scan as a contributing member without just posting to boost your post count.

    OCCT is an overclocking test tool - it helps graphics cards generate load so you can test how hot they run and what the cooling solutions are like.
    Thanks for the explanation! And don't worry, I fully intend to stay. I don't (intentionally) spam either.
    Quote Originally Posted by rover214 View Post
    I'd agree with Phage,

    Wait for the 7xxx equivalent or Kepler, you would not want to drop £250 on a card that is probably going to be pwned in a couple of months (april latest, by the looks) ,

    I could understand getting one now if there was no outlook for new cards for 6-12 months but, I for one am waiting, I have a gtx460 and usually go 2-3 gens before picking up new cards but, Diablo 3 will answer all my questions about wether to get a new card or not,

    BTW, what card are you rocking at the mo?
    I currently have a Nvidia GeForce 8400M GS. Yes. I am on a laptop. From three years ago. I don't even have a proper, gaming capable rig at the moment to pass the time with, especially not three months! I have been waiting for a while and have finally decided to dedicate myself to PC gaming like I've always wanted but never had the guts to. What makes the waiting predicament even worse is that I have absolutely nothing to do at the moment to occupy myself with. That, plus a number of already bought PC games are waiting to be played. I couldn't resist some of the sales.

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    Re: So I have narrowed my choice of cards down to these...

    So you have time in hand !
    There's nothing to plug it into yet. So, a more useful question would be, what's your budget for the whole thing ? We can then spec a box that includes everything bar the GPU, and we'll cross that bridge when we come to it.
    Society's to blame,
    Or possibly Atari.

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    Re: So I have narrowed my choice of cards down to these...

    I know it's easier said than done 'well it is for me' but another vote to hold out until the Nvidia refresh and look around for what's best for your money then.

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    Re: So I have narrowed my choice of cards down to these...

    Quote Originally Posted by Phage View Post
    So you have time in hand !
    There's nothing to plug it into yet. So, a more useful question would be, what's your budget for the whole thing ? We can then spec a box that includes everything bar the GPU, and we'll cross that bridge when we come to it.
    Too much time in my opinion. My overall budget is 1000£. I already have everything else written down and priced up nicely, except for the GPU and the case as they are doing my head in from the sheer amount of choice. I planned on doing one last thread on the whole thing once I managed to make a decision on those two in the Review My Build section before I finally place an order.

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    Re: So I have narrowed my choice of cards down to these...

    I know that feeling. I was looking at cases as well.
    http://forums.hexus.net/chassis-mods...case-test.html
    Society's to blame,
    Or possibly Atari.

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    Re: So I have narrowed my choice of cards down to these...

    Is it possible to just build the desktop and buy the GPU later since all of you are recommending that I wait? I mean, the i5 2500K has integrated graphics, right? Should be fine.

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    Re: So I have narrowed my choice of cards down to these...

    I know the feeling - I just bit the bullet on a i5 2500K build I've been postponing for months. Pretty pleased with the results so far (see my System on the left) but I've held off getting a new GPU until the 78xx series is released, at the very least. I can live with my 9800GT for now, just about. However I did pick up Skyrim at 33% off on Steam last night so we'll see how long my patience can last

    OT, but the Thermalright HR-02 Macho cooler is HUGE! I was worried it wouldn't fit in the Define R3 case (official cooler height is 162.5mm, and the Define R3 CPU Cooler clearance is officially 165mm so it should have) - however it did fit fine, and it's a fantastic, quiet cooler. I pushed the 2500K to 4.3GHz last night, at 67C (Prime95 across all 4 cores, FurMark on the GPU, lowest chassis fan speed on the Define R3 fan controller). It idles at 26C. I'll see if it can go any higher over the next few days.

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    Re: So I have narrowed my choice of cards down to these...

    Quote Originally Posted by timread View Post
    I know the feeling - I just bit the bullet on a i5 2500K build I've been postponing for months. Pretty pleased with the results so far (see my System on the left) but I've held off getting a new GPU until the 78xx series is released, at the very least. I can live with my 9800GT for now, just about. However I did pick up Skyrim at 33% off on Steam last night so we'll see how long my patience can last
    So can I go ahead and buy everything except for the GPU and assemble as well as use it? I mean, I doubt the 7870 will even be sold for 250£ or less but maybe some other cards will see a significant decrease in price. I also hope the 600 series won't be released in chunks like the 7000 series because then I might as well just buy a GPU now. :[

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    Re: So I have narrowed my choice of cards down to these...

    Quote Originally Posted by Zeven View Post
    Is it possible to just build the desktop and buy the GPU later since all of you are recommending that I wait? I mean, the i5 2500K has integrated graphics, right? Should be fine.
    If you can tolerate the HD3000 graphics, that would probably be a good option!

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    Re: So I have narrowed my choice of cards down to these...

    the 7970 beat anything out there even up to the nvidia 590 dual core ..
    but wait ..get a 7950 overclock it and it still gets up to 570/590 speeds ..

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