Need to Upgrade my Graphics Card and Possibly Ram?

[Hezzy]

I bought a system from Scan 2 years ago, though its still powerful, like all those who have power, I want more. It's starting to show signs of age, but that's simply due to the ammount of use it gets and what not. I'm more than happy with the basis of the rig, the mobo (p6t), processor (i7920) and everything else is sound.

What I'm getting a bit fed up with is having a wide selection of games, that I can't run in DirextX11, simply because my GTX 295 doesn't support it.

So that needs to change.

I'm also wondering if I should go for some more Ram? I'm currently sporting some DDR3 tripple channel Ram at 6 gig (2x3).

I'm looking to spend anything up to but no further than £250 on a graphics card and at least £120 on RAM.

much appreciated ;0

[CAT-THE-FIFTH]

What PSU do you have ATM?? 6GB is enough RAM BTW.

If you are looking at a single card I would look at a GTX570 or HD6970. A GTX580 is probably also worth considering for around £350.

For around £400 you can get a pair of HD6950 2GB cards.

[krazy_olie]

RAM upgrade would be a waste unless you are doing some very select applications.

I think the above selections are suitable!

[planet436]

The amount of ram you have is fine. What resolution do you play at also? Do you have a SSD in your system?

[Jasp]

As mentioned no reason to change the ram and personally given the 295 is still a fairly powerful card I wouldn't be changing that either just for the sake of DX11.

An equal card would be a 570 or a 580 as suggested by cat.

[kalniel]

What I'm getting a bit fed up with is having a wide selection of games, that I can't run in DirextX11, simply because my GTX 295 doesn't support it.

What is this wide selection of games that use DX11? There are hardly any decent games that use it, and most of those aren't improved to a point you'd actually notice. There are some, certainly, but given the power of the 295 it's not really worth changing just for them.

[Hezzy]

Currently playing at 1920 x 1080.

Not sue what SSD is.

I have an 850w psu (cant remember make)

[kalniel]

SSD - solid state disk, a replacement for the hard disk drive (HDD) and the single most noticeable increase in computer 'speed' you can probably make

Basically stuff loads quicker, especially background windows stuff, which makes using a computer feel much quicker.

[Tattysnuc]

The GTX 295 isn't that much slower than the GTX 580, certainly not enough to warrant the upgrade.

As for there being a lot of Direct X 11 games out there, which ones specifically are DX11 only?

I've got twin GTX 480's and the do me nicely @ 1920 x 1080. Bit of overkill really. If you are hell bent on upgrading then either a 480/570 will do for that kinda money. If you sell the GTX 295 you could use that to fund part of the upgrade. I'd recommend you go for the fastest single card, that way you're not bound by SLI/Crossfire drivers.

If you're going for all out speed, I'd recommend the GTX 580 over the Radeon, simply because I've been told that the 6950's and 6970 have noisier fans. I don;t know what the custom cooled ones are like, so if considering a radeon, one with bespoke cooling is advised.

The comments about SSD are absolutely bob on - nothing will make your system feel more responsive than this.

Regarding RAM, unless you see your RAM usage nearing 6gb then I shouldn't worry. Most games don't use more than 4....

[Hezzy]

Im really preparing for Battlefield 3. I want to enjoy it at full win and maximum awesome.

[ehhhhhhh]

I would buy 1 or 2 6950s or 6970s and mine with them while im afk

This way you can get back the money in the near future and play everything on maxed out for completely free

For money saving purposes I would also consider 2 6870, though I'm not completely familiar with their performance

[Jasp]

The devs have already stated their is not a PC currently built that will be able to max BF3

I bet dual 590s would give it a run for its money.

[dean n91]

GTX580 will be sweet. You definitely gotta think if DX11 is worth the cost of the new upgrades because the 295's are amazing.

[CivilDrone]

bought my gtx 580 for 260 delivered, also 9 years warranty left, not new of course but thats your budget, ram-wise. triple chan memory is intel i think, had amd all my life, corsair vengeance if anything

[EvanJackPenn]

You definitely wouldn't need a RAM upgrade. Anything over 6 doesn't really give much of a noticable increase unless you're like a super power photoshop user.

As for graphics cards for Battlefield 3 ultra, see this PC gamer article. I would personally recommend getting a £200 card every two years rather than a £400 one every 4. If I needed to buy for BF3, I daresay I would wait for the Radeon 7000s and get a £200 one of them (i.e., 7870/7950 depending on pricing).