Easy "New card" question. I hope.

[Visa Declined]

Um....are the consumer cards even announced yet?

No, which is why I said they will be out soon. I suppose "soon" can mean different things to different people, but Computex starts May 31 and ends june 4, and people are expecting NVidia's consumer gpu's to be announced during that time period.

I have nothing against the GTX 970, I have one of the best models available crammed into my living room PC right now, I'm simply under the opinion that it's an extremely bad time to purchase one.

 

[bob4933]

I would not buy a 9xx series Geforce card right now. Pascal will be released soon, and nVidia is going to forget those 9xx cards even exist, it's what they always do to their previous gen.

nVidia prices their gear like Intel. They don't care if they have new stuff out, they stay at a stagnant price for a long long long long time. I don't see "Discount" gtx 970's happening for a long, long time. (took what, 4 years for 770's to go down in price?)

 

[wingman99]

I agree I usually don't see a price drop from the old model of GTX cards, it's like wishful thinking that you will purchase a new GTX 970 for a discounted price when the new cards come out.

 

[EarthDog]

Gtx 770 was released 5/30/2013. It hasn't been out 3 years yet.

There are drops.. but it depends on demand and when they stop making them, etc. When the 780ti came out, a few months after the 770, there was an across the board drop. Same thing with 980 amd 980ti. Not new gen, but drops nonetheless when something better comes out.

I do agree, but it's so hard to tell as there isn't an official msrp after new gen cards release. So it's supply and demand directing prices more so than nvidia or amd.

Also remember that amd cards came out much cheaper than nvidia, then the mining craze super saturated the market with used cards driving that market down as well.

EDIT: One more thought... AMD has had generational rebrands of their Hawaii based chips. The only 'new' cards were 290/290x and the fury/fury x/nano.

970 MSRP was $329 for the reference model. Cheapest out there on newegg is $280 (non reference). Its been out since 9/2014.

So tough to compare and pinpoint.

 

[caddi daddi]

you might be able to snag a used 970 as the new cards are released, but do try to buy from people you know.
I'll pay asked price if it's what I want and I KNOW the seller, I might pay a little more but it's more than worth it.

 

[wingman99]

I might be selling my EVGA SSC GTX 970 when the new cards come out if the price is right Iv only had it for five months.

 

[M@rk]

That's handy info , right there , CD! I'm juggling budget woes and trying not to get a 960. Not that they're bad cards but I really want a 970. LOL

Found this with that info. The FTW+ comes with a backplate. Geez. I can't afford this right now , but......

DO NOT EVER BUY AN 960! the 950 can be clocked to stock 960 and even a little better, I would not spend that extra 60$ (Here in israel its a 60$ difference.)

 

[Alaric]

#1) New (1xxx) vs. 9xxx. NVidia seems to have had AMD-like driver issues lately with the current cards. I have to wonder if they won't just bail on them completely when Pascal is released. That would suck and make my reason for switching null and void.

#2) New vs. used. EVGA's warranty would make used a viable option if purchased from someone

#3) 960 vs. OC 950. But I can OC the 960 , which keeps it on top of the 950 , right?

Buying a graphics card is such a hassle anymore. It seems that what's "hot" or the bang/buck king today is obsolete in a week. It's generally pointless to wait for the next Big Thing , because there is always a New Big Thing just around the corner , but point #1 makes me nervous. Apparently one of the recent Green driver releases is borking hardware??? That isn't good. If I have to play the driver lottery , with both choices being equal , I'm back to AMD for the performance:dollar ratio. Maybe I'll just buy a SSD until the dust settles.

 

[EarthDog]

DO NOT EVER BUY AN 960! the 950 can be clocked to stock 960 and even a little better, I would not spend that extra 60$ (Here in israel its a 60$ difference.)

Think of overclocking GPUs like fractions... do to one side what you do to the other...

The 960 can overclock too, taking its lead right back.

 

[Vellinious]

I can get a this card for $25 less (refurb) , but is there anything out there that will beat it out of the box in this price range? EVGA's customer service seems to be excellent , their cards have an excellent reputation , and this is a smokin' clock speed out of the box. So for $325 , is there any reason to keep looking?

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814487077

That version of the FTW is the ACX 2.0 version. It has a 170 / 187 watt power limit, which is WAY too low. If you're looking to throw a waterblock on it, and flash to a custom bios, they can be VERY good cards. If, however, you want to plug it in and play, there are better options.

I've been searching for another 8GB 290X.....if ANYONE finds one for $225, I'll kiss your pearly white buttocks. $225 my a33 lol

 

[Alaric]

Don't plan on submerging the card , and honestly , not having to OC it is a selling point ATM. Until I get a much better case I can't afford to make more heat than necessary. That's what would make a mild OC on a 960 better than beating on a 950 for me. A stock 970 would be even better but that leaves me at the very outer limits of my budget. A little extra for a 970 with a backplate would be worth it , though.

Think of overclocking GPUs like fractions... do to one side what you do to the other...

The 960 can overclock too, taking its lead right back.

What he said^.

I've been searching for another 8GB 290X.....if ANYONE finds one for $225, I'll kiss your pearly white buttocks. $225 my a33 lol

From what I've seen , your Chap Stick is safe.

 

[EarthDog]

Ive seen them around that price when the mining craze was winding down... but not sure lately... check our sold section...



..... and Velly, get some sun on that thing.

 

[M@rk]

Think of overclocking GPUs like fractions... do to one side what you do to the other...

The 960 can overclock too, taking its lead right back.

Yes but its not worth the money spent if you can get a card that cost much less and it has the same performance, And overclocking the 960 wouldnt give it more than 10 fps in all the games you play (Unless its not graphics intensive or just old)

 

[wingman99]

#1) New (1xxx) vs. 9xxx. NVidia seems to have had AMD-like driver issues lately with the current cards. I have to wonder if they won't just bail on them completely when Pascal is released. That would suck and make my reason for switching null and void.

#2) New vs. used. EVGA's warranty would make used a viable option if purchased from someone

#3) 960 vs. OC 950. But I can OC the 960 , which keeps it on top of the 950 , right?

Buying a graphics card is such a hassle anymore. It seems that what's "hot" or the bang/buck king today is obsolete in a week. It's generally pointless to wait for the next Big Thing , because there is always a New Big Thing just around the corner , but point #1 makes me nervous. Apparently one of the recent Green driver releases is borking hardware??? That isn't good. If I have to play the driver lottery , with both choices being equal , I'm back to AMD for the performance:dollar ratio. Maybe I'll just buy a SSD until the dust settles.

I have not had a driver issue from Nvidia. The release of the GTX 970 was September 18, 2014 that was a long time ago and we still have not seen the new Graphic cards, maybe in June almost 2 years.

 

[EarthDog]

And overclocking the 960 wouldnt give it more than 10 fps in all the games you play (Unless its not graphics intensive or just old)

Wouldnt the same hold true for the 950? (yes).

The difference is only in the cost. Its up to the OP to determine if he wants a maxed out card for $60 less, or one that performs the same and has more headroom for the future for $60 more. Both viable choices. It just depends on the OPs preference.

I have not had a driver issue from Nvidia. The release of the GTX 970 was September 18, 2014 that was a long time ago and we still have not seen the new Graphic cards, maybe in June almost 2 years.

I haven't seen many... but there was a big hullabaloo about a couple of releases killing cards (twice) VERY recently. That said, I still prefer NVIDIA drivers and its stability over AMD's at this point. Though I can't say AMD's are bad either.

 

[M@rk]

Wouldnt the same hold true for the 950? (yes).

The difference is only in the cost. Its up to the OP to determine if he wants a maxed out card for $60 less, or one that performs the same and has more headroom for the future for $60 more. Both viable choices. It just depends on the OPs preference.

Yeah, You are right.

 

[EarthDog]

Yeah, You are right.

Also, there is likely no way it will increase 10 FPS on modern intensive titles... The 950 can only manage 30 FPS on say BF4. You aren't getting 33% more performance out of it... that is why I like to mention increases by percentage as it is FPS agnostic.

 

[Alaric]

Well , my games are War Thunder , World of Warships , World of Tanks , World of Warplanes (see a theme developing here? LOL) and MS Flight. I prefer flight simulators , but my games don't seem to put too much stress on the GPU. My current card handles them on fairly high settings. My reasons for upgrading are mostly driver related and improved visuals.

 

[Vellinious]

Yes but its not worth the money spent if you can get a card that cost much less and it has the same performance, And overclocking the 960 wouldnt give it more than 10 fps in all the games you play (Unless its not graphics intensive or just old)

One could make the same argument for skipping the 960 to 970, and then the 970 to the 980, et al. That never ends....until the 980 ti to Titan jump, then it's mute. The % of increase in prices are all relatively similar. Personally, I'd NEVER buy a gaming GPU with less than 4GB of VRAM any more. They're pointless, and can barely be considered "gaming".

 

[wingman99]

I was using a GTX 570 4 months ago with 1.28GB GDDR5 and only experienced a little hitching in BF4, you can still use 2.0G cards fine.