Best res for 270X GPU?

[Ttaskmaster]

Heya,

Just a quick query...

My friend is running a single PowerColor Devil R9 270X GPU with an AMD 8350 and 850w PSU. I don't know aught about how this kit performs...


What's the maximum res/refresh rate on a 27" monitor, with which he could play Elite on decent settings without suffering notable loss of performance?
The website says HDMI/DP will do 2160, but I'm worried that real world results might not be so good? Other users have suggested it won't even cope with a standard 1440?


Ta,
Tasky.

[EndlessWaves]

It's entirely dependant on the game so if you're only interested in one game it's worth asking the experts on that game.

It's a fairly entry level card these days, so generally speaking there will be a few games that'll only run at entry level resolutions (1920x1080 and maybe 2560x1080). Other games will pump out 120fps+ so they'll easily run at 30fps when you quadruple the resolution to 3840x2160.

[scaryjim]

... Other games will pump out 120fps+ so they'll easily run at 30fps when you quadruple the resolution to 3840x2160.

Sadly GPUs don't exactly work like that - the stress on different aspects of the cards doesn't increase linearly and equally with pixel count, so it's not just a case of 4x the pixel = 1/4 the frame rate - there are almost certainly games where a 270X is very playable at 1080p but is a slide show, or even fails to run at all, at 4k. The only way to really know how a card will perform in the games you're interested in is to find reviews that test that game, or ask people who play the game.

The real issue is that people have different opinions on what constitutes acceptable image quality and frame rates: personally I'm usually happy with games on lowest IQ and with frame rates around 24fps, so a 270X might well do me for 4k gaming. Generally speaking though, in modern games with medium to high image quality settings, the 270X (which is hardware identical to the 7870, incidentally) is considered to be a sensible choice for 1080p at the highest.

Of course, as it happens, we've got a pretty lively Elite: Dangerous thread here on hexus - which you've even contributed to! - so you could always ask if anyone there is using a 270X and what res/settings they're running to get reasonable frame rates.

[Ttaskmaster]

Generally speaking though, in modern games with medium to high image quality settings, the 270X (which is hardware identical to the 7870, incidentally) is considered to be a sensible choice for 1080p at the highest.

Yeah, I think it will be a general thing, as the sort of titles he's intyerested in are quite wide-ranging. Fallout 4 will be on the list, along with The Division, yet he's also happy playing crappy graphics games.

Part of the problem is that I have to explain every term and acronym to him as I go, often with him being purposely difficult - You can't even show him a picture of HDMI vs DVI vs VGA and ask which he has, as to him it's "just a black cable between PC and monitor"...

He works in IT support for a VERY well known TV channel company though, so I suspect he's playing the Technophobic Old Man card and being difficult on purpose, taking the mindset that he usually encounters from his users, just to get on my proverbials!

Okies, I'll go deliver the bad news...

[abaxas]

ED runs with min settings at 30+ fps on a nvidie gt 730

I can't see a 270X not doing 1080p easy with most things switched on.

[Ttaskmaster]

ED runs with min settings at 30+ fps on a nvidie gt 730

Depends if he's gonna be happy with 30fps or not, I guess... He is my ED wingman, but he can also be a fussy bugger and often over the weirdest of things.

He's an ex-Mac user, so if it's not all decided for him by the computer, he huffs and throws a wobbly... despite having had a Mac so old, he was 2 generations behind the OS of the time and even the Apple Store wouldn't tech-support it... and despite being more paranoid about his online security than Saracen, yet also entrusting his Mac to take care of it without his intervention - He couldn't even tell me his own wifi password, because "the Mac always did that stuff for me"...!!!

So yeah, 270X, best performance with absolutely NO overclocking or fiddling.
I'm guessing 1080 on a 22-24" monitor, at best?

I can't see a 270X not doing 1080p easy with most things switched on.

So it depends on the min specs of whatever game he fancies, then?

[abaxas]

What I mean by 30fps+, 30 min, usually lurks about 50-60 at 1280x1024.

Unless of course you are supercruising around LHS 3447, when there isn't a computer out there that'll run more than 30fps

[cptwhite_uk]

I have plenty of experience playing Elite on 7970 (280X) @ 1440p

I'm confident the 270X (7870 which I used to own) will manage 1080p 60fps with high settings, or 1440p at medium settings with ~ 40-50 fps

[Ttaskmaster]

It's not just Elite though, else this'd be easy for me.
However, he's now talking about complete upgrades and all, so maybe this will all work out...

[deejayburnout]

I have plenty of experience playing Elite on 7970 (280X) @ 1440p

I'm confident the 270X (7870 which I used to own) will manage 1080p 60fps with high settings, or 1440p at medium settings with ~ 40-50 fps

I too similar with a 280x on a 34inch ultrawide and it got 60fps easy on Max settings.

[Ttaskmaster]

I too similar with a 280x on a 34inch ultrawide and it got 60fps easy on Max settings.

Is there not a big jump from the 270 to the 280, though?
Tom's has the latter at least 2 tiers higher...

Other games/series he's interested in include: Fallout, Bioshock, Thief, Tomb Raider, FarCry, Borderlands, Skyrim...

[cptwhite_uk]

Not at much as you might think. the 270X is basically a 7870 (upper mid range back in the day) and the 280X is an upgraded 7970 (top of the range back when released).

The 280X is about third faster than the 270X (so where the 270X would give you 60fps, the 280X would give you 80fps, roughly speaking)

If my old 7970/280X could drive Elite @ 1440p / 60fps / High...pretty sure the 270X would manage around 40-50 on the same settings and res, maybe 50+ if dropped down to medium.

[Ttaskmaster]

The 280X is about third faster than the 270X (so where the 270X would give you 60fps, the 280X would give you 80fps, roughly speaking)

I'd say that's quite a lot in the grand scheme of things... 40-50fps vs 60fps can be huge in some games. Even I have to cap mine at 60 because my monitor can't go higher!

Anyway, he's decided to save faffing and just drop £5,000 on a whole new rig, so there ya go... being old with numerous annuities clearly has it's benefits!!


Thanks for the assistance, everyone!

[scorch666]

Anyway, he's decided to save faffing and just drop £5,000 on a whole new rig, so there ya go... being old with numerous annuities clearly has it's benefits!!

Nice one! Ah if only i could drop 5 grand on a new rig. The posabilities! Have fun choosing and building it for him.

[ceejays88]

290 seems to best band for buck at the moment

[UKnoble]

All the talk of the 270X and then he's just like "boom" and smacks 5 grand down on the desk. XD