Need Replacement GPU-Any Suggestions?

Skill · 04-13-2014

So my old radeon 7870 is starting to die on me. I've been getting weird graphical bugs, however today i came back to a pretty bad problem.

I get back home, and my fan is sounding really weird-i can't really explain how. It just sounded choppy, and no, there isn't wire stuck in it or anything.

I check my gpu temperature, and its at 90 degrees celcius-much higher than it should be. I quickly shut off of the program running.

So I can't really rely on it to stay properly cooled under load anymore. I figure its only a matter of time before it dies on me.

So, whats a good replacement for it? I was thinking of either a R9 270x or an R9 280x.

Also, I hear you can only change so many components in your PC before windows starts to act up and void your licence. If I use my old video card that I used before upgrading to the 7870(a radeon 6750) as a spare should this one die, will I have less changes available for when i get my new view card?(likely a 270x or 280x)

The Doctor · 04-13-2014

I was going to recommend the 7870 until I read the thread. I use it currently.

Skill · 04-13-2014

Posted by The Doctor

I was going to recommend the 7870 until I read the thread. I use it currently.

yea its a nice card, unforutunately it died on me. It was pretty much running under load for 5 months straight, can't really blame it dieing on me.

I wont be mining on the new card-only for gaming.

Crono · 04-13-2014

How much are you willing to spend? What's your CPU and PSU?

Skill · 04-13-2014

PSU is 700 watts-power consumption is not an issue.

CPU is an AMD FX 6350. 6 Cores @3.9 GHZ

Talon · 04-13-2014

R9 290x is really solid. Haven't checked benchmarks recently but IIRC they're good in their tier.

Skill · 04-13-2014

Posted by Talon

R9 290x is really solid. Haven't checked benchmarks recently but IIRC they're good in their tier.

Great card, but a bit too expensive for me. Plus its overkill for my CPU.

fp4 · 04-13-2014

270X is mostly just a 7870 GHz but clocked a bit higher. If you were going to go for a 270X I wouldn't spend more than $210-220 for it, otherwise I would consider a GTX 760 2 GB.

280X is a 7970 GHz. If you're willing to spring with a 280X I would go with one of those or grab a GTX 770 2 GB in the same price range.

> Also, I hear you can only change so many components in your PC before windows starts to act up and void your licence.

That pretty much only happens if you change motherboards, and it only forces you to re-activate which often works without a hitch.

Skill · 04-13-2014

Posted by fp4

270X is mostly just a 7870 GHz but clocked a bit higher. If you were going to go for a 270X I wouldn't spend more than $210-220 for it, otherwise I would consider a GTX 760 2 GB.

280X is a 7970 GHz. If you're willing to spring with a 280X I would go with one of those or grab a GTX 770 2 GB in the same price range.

> Also, I hear you can only change so many components in your PC before windows starts to act up and void your licence.

That pretty much only happens if you change motherboards, and it only forces you to re-activate which often works without a hitch.

Yea, I knew the new R9/R7 series are basically rebranded versions of the last series. But I don't really mind though, I need a replacement-it isn't just an upgrade for the sake of upgrading.

Do you think the 4GB version of the 270x would have better performance than the 2GB version for gaming?

There's plenty of 270x cards available for $200, and plenty of 280x cards available for $300. Now that the profitability of cryptocurrency mining isn't ridiculously high like it was before, and actually mostly unprofitable due to ASICs coming, people aren't buying up GPUs by the dozen anymore-so prices are coming back down. In fact, there's a bit of a surplus since people are attempting to sell their used ones, so prices on new ones are actually going down now due to a surplus.

It looks like the 280x card recommends a 750W PSU, and mine is 700W, so I guess I'll have to settle for the 270x- don't want to risk the system not being able to power both my 125W cpu and the GPU which takes over 300 watts of power.

I suppose I could go with NVIDIA, but I'm kinda lazy to deal with drivers, plus my father kinda wants me to support AMD so that there's competition in the computer hardware industry.

Skill · 04-14-2014

Might be purchasing this:

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16814127741

Lower budget alternative #1:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16814130933

Lower budget alternative #2:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16814550027

fp4 · 04-14-2014

Double the stock VRAM doesn't do anything for performance in most cases except for 1 -> 2 GB at the mid-range (7850~). My specific suggestions would be either the 270X or 280X.

270X:

http://pcpartpicker.com/part/powerco...70x2gbd5tdheoc

280X:

http://pcpartpicker.com/part/msi-vid...r9280xgaming3g

Based on your other listed specs a 550W would be all you really need out of your PSU at max.

Viper · 04-15-2014

If you have a CrossFireX enabled motherboard then two cheaper cards might be a better value than one expensive card. I currently use two HD7770 cards running in CrossFireX http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16814121642 though you might want to look around as there is probably a better value card for $100 to $150 each. You could also try two nvidia paired cards with SLI. Of course you will need a good power supply. I am using the Ultra LSP750 Power supply.

Skill · 04-15-2014

Posted by Viper

If you have a CrossFireX enabled motherboard then two cheaper cards might be a better value than one expensive card. I currently use two HD7770 cards running in CrossFireX http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16814121642 though you might want to look around as there is probably a better value card for $100 to $150 each. You could also try two nvidia paired cards with SLI. Of course you will need a good power supply. I am using the Ultra LSP750 Power supply.

A lot of games don't utilize Crossfirex/SLI very well, so it isn't very ideal for every game. Generally, 1 high end card is better than 2 mediocre cards.

Crono · 04-15-2014

Posted by fp4

Double the stock VRAM doesn't do anything for performance in most cases except for 1 -> 2 GB at the mid-range (7850~). My specific suggestions would be either the 270X or 280X.

+1. I would just go for the 280X, good value.

fp4 · 04-15-2014

Posted by Viper

If you have a CrossFireX enabled motherboard then two cheaper cards might be a better value than one expensive card. I currently use two HD7770 cards running in CrossFireX http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16814121642 though you might want to look around as there is probably a better value card for $100 to $150 each. You could also try two nvidia paired cards with SLI. Of course you will need a good power supply. I am using the Ultra LSP750 Power supply.

The LSP750 while it works for your build I wouldn't recommend it since it's not good, it only has 42A (550W) of power on it's 12V rail. Good 750W PSUs actually put out 62A (744W) on their 12V rail. It wouldn't be able to handle a setup that actually demands 750W like CrossFire 280X.

Your PSU: http://www.tigerdirect.ca/applicatio...?EdpNo=3276567

Good PSU: http://pcpartpicker.com/part/xfx-pow...ply-p1750snlb9

04-13-2014	1
Skill The Unwanted Critic Join Date: Sep 2011 Posts: 3,639	Need Replacement GPU-Any Suggestions? So my old radeon 7870 is starting to die on me. I've been getting weird graphical bugs, however today i came back to a pretty bad problem. I get back home, and my fan is sounding really weird-i can't really explain how. It just sounded choppy, and no, there isn't wire stuck in it or anything. I check my gpu temperature, and its at 90 degrees celcius-much higher than it should be. I quickly shut off of the program running. So I can't really rely on it to stay properly cooled under load anymore. I figure its only a matter of time before it dies on me. So, whats a good replacement for it? I was thinking of either a R9 270x or an R9 280x. Also, I hear you can only change so many components in your PC before windows starts to act up and void your licence. If I use my old video card that I used before upgrading to the 7870(a radeon 6750) as a spare should this one die, will I have less changes available for when i get my new view card?(likely a 270x or 280x)

04-13-2014	2
The Doctor Registered User Join Date: Dec 2011 Location: Blacksburg, Virginia Posts: 5,459	I was going to recommend the 7870 until I read the thread. I use it currently.

04-13-2014	4
Crono :pluffy: Join Date: Aug 2011 Location: Sweden Posts: 5,944	How much are you willing to spend? What's your CPU and PSU?

04-13-2014	6
Talon don't call it a comeback Join Date: Sep 2011 Posts: 8,268	R9 290x is really solid. Haven't checked benchmarks recently but IIRC they're good in their tier.

04-13-2014	8
fp4 maymay ambassador Join Date: Aug 2011 Posts: 1,508	270X is mostly just a 7870 GHz but clocked a bit higher. If you were going to go for a 270X I wouldn't spend more than $210-220 for it, otherwise I would consider a GTX 760 2 GB. 280X is a 7970 GHz. If you're willing to spring with a 280X I would go with one of those or grab a GTX 770 2 GB in the same price range. > Also, I hear you can only change so many components in your PC before windows starts to act up and void your licence. That pretty much only happens if you change motherboards, and it only forces you to re-activate which often works without a hitch.

04-14-2014	10
Skill The Unwanted Critic Join Date: Sep 2011 Posts: 3,639	Might be purchasing this: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16814127741 Lower budget alternative #1: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16814130933 Lower budget alternative #2: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16814550027

04-15-2014	12
Viper Banned Join Date: Dec 2013 Posts: 33	If you have a CrossFireX enabled motherboard then two cheaper cards might be a better value than one expensive card. I currently use two HD7770 cards running in CrossFireX http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16814121642 though you might want to look around as there is probably a better value card for $100 to $150 each. You could also try two nvidia paired cards with SLI. Of course you will need a good power supply. I am using the Ultra LSP750 Power supply.