A step up dilemma

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Freezebyte

2[H]4U
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Sep 21, 2008
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Ahh man, im torn on what to do after todays launch of the GTX 295 and soon, the GTX 285. Purchased an eVGA GTX 260 192 in Nov and now im at a crossroads with what to do. I've got $275 invoice trade up "credit" I really dont' wanna waste waiting for the "Q2" cards, whatever they bring, so I need to do decide on one of the following options by Feb 4th:

A: "Step up" to a GTX 55nm 216 for an extra $5, gain a few FPS and a bit less heat and power, use my existing PSU, call it a draw performance wise and watch what happens with the next gen cards

B: "Step up" to the GTX 285 Which will cost me around $150 *until official launch/pricing* which requires me to upgrade my PSU to have 8pin socket support but have more FPS gain in my games. This is the middle road.

C: "Step up" to the almighty GTX 295. Its gonna cost me a pocket change of $225 not including the PSU upgrade to run this as well. I gain even more FPS but its the priciest option.

I'm gaming at 1680x1050 native monitor res. Mostly playing Fallout 3, Crysis, Far Cry 2 and WoW. Will very likely be playing FEAR 2 and whatever else comes this year. SLi is NOT an option as im running at mATX SFF system, so it has to be a "single" card solution.

What to do, what to do.
 
Go for the GTX 285.
It is likely that you won't have to upgrade your PSU; I'm fairly certain that the card comes with adapters for the 8pin power cable.
 
Sorry, don't quite follow. You have a credit of 275$ and it's still going to cost 225$ for the 295? Or the 192 GTX260 is worth 275? Never dealt with step up so don't know how it works.
Also, why the upgrade? Games not playing the way you want them to? Or hell, why not upgrade?
If anything, I'd wait closer to Feb 4th for the prices to go down a little, unless the Step-Up credit depreciates quickly as time passes.

PS. You have two B options...
PSS In b4 two b or not two b...
 
Cowboy420 said:
If your only using a 20" monitor, why do you need to upgrade?
Click to expand...

Uhh, more FPS is always good? Reduces FPS dips therebye enhancing gameplay? Enables you to run higher quality video options? Will run future games better? Need I go on?

Mnx4 said:
Sorry, don't quite follow. You have a credit of 275$ and it's still going to cost 225$ for the 295? Or the 192 GTX260 is worth 275? Never dealt with step up so don't know how it works.
Also, why the upgrade? Games not playing the way you want them to? Or hell, why not upgrade?
If anything, I'd wait closer to Feb 4th for the prices to go down a little, unless the Step-Up credit depreciates quickly as time passes.
Click to expand...

eVGA step up "credit" is bassed upon the "invoice price" that you paid for the card at a participating etailer along with invoice evidence. That "credit" can be applied to any available step up video card models. In this case, the GTX 295 is listing at $509 from eVGA, so the difference without shipping is that I need to pay is $234. The GTX 285 $150 difference is a "guess" as we won't know the official pricing until the 15th.

khanis said:
Go for the GTX 285.
It is likely that you won't have to upgrade your PSU; I'm fairly certain that the card comes with adapters for the 8pin power cable.
Click to expand...

True, but it might be pushing it on this 500watter
 
i was under the impression that reference GTX285 had 2x6pin and no more 8pin.......... this was a while ago i think though.
 
Sojuuk said:
i was under the impression that reference GTX285 had 2x6pin and no more 8pin.......... this was a while ago i think though.
Click to expand...

Negative, all GTX 280 series and above have 1x6pin and 1x8pin power requirements
 
Freezebyte said:
Negative, all GTX 280 series and above have 1x6pin and 1x8pin power requirements
Click to expand...

id put money on me being right about this. Assuming what i read last month is still right:
http://en.expreview.com/2008/12/11/55nm-gtx285-climbs-to-head-of-single-gpu-cards.html
We can regard GeForce GTX285 as GTX280 Overclocking Edition with less power consumption. GeForce GTX280’s Maximum Graphics Card Power is 236W, and it requires a 6-pin and a 8-pin PEG Power Connectors. However, GeForce GTX285’s power consumption has been reduced to 183W with only 2 6-pin PEG power connectors needed.
Click to expand...
 
Freezebyte said:
Uhh, more FPS is always good? Reduces FPS dips therebye enhancing gameplay? Enables you to run higher quality video options? Will run future games better? Need I go on?
Click to expand...

Is there any point going past minimum 60 FPS on an LCD monitor? I'd think the 260 would max out those games on a 60Hz monitor, at that res.
 
I am in the same boat as the OP......but I also wonder how many frames do I need? Does playing a game at 60 fps any worse than playing at 90 fps? I game at 1900x1200 but perhaps the step up from a gtx 260 (216) to a gtx 285 would help but would it be worth the extra cash?
 
Varmint said:
Is there any point going past minimum 60 FPS on an LCD monitor? I'd think the 260 would max out those games on a 60Hz monitor, at that res.
Click to expand...

Of course, reduce framerate dips and no, the 260 comes no where close to maxing out those games at that res.
 
Varmint said:
Is there any point going past minimum 60 FPS on an LCD monitor? I'd think the 260 would max out those games on a 60Hz monitor, at that res.
Click to expand...

No, there is no point..I think its just an E-PENIS thing...But then again some people have money to burn, so I guess why not.
 
Main question is: how much bang for your buck are you getting by upgrading to the GTX 295? And remember the beefy and pricey PS you need to get to run this powerhungry sucker. Of course, you want a futureproof PS, and not some cheap PS.

I'd venture to say you'd pay a lot of money for a little performance gain over more "common" and more affordable video cards. Anything over a GTX 285 is already overkill. As if the GTX 285 wasn't overkill already in most scenarios.

Sure, you'd have bragging rights, but that's about it.
Where did I see that review on the GTX 295 in quad-sli. It's so fast it's ridiculous. (Was that not a 3DFX marketing slogan??)
Not to mention the power it drew when at full power. Sssmoookin'!
Your electricity company will thank you for your patronage.:D

Oh, I forgot... a hole in your wallet too!

So, all in all. Go A.

N.B. Your 'mistake' was you got the GTX 260 (192) to begin with. I am sure you convinced yourself it was good enough back then, eh? ;)
 
Just go with the 55nm 216. Overclock it as much as you can. That should get you through at least a year at your res just fine. Then after that look to see whats on the horizon as far as the next gen (beyond the 212). Its hard to justify that $150 for the 280 on a 1680x1050 res as you wont see huge gains. Currently with my 216 gtx260 I run every game I have fine at 1680x1050, most with 4x+ AA res (No AA in crysis demo, dont have full game)
 
Probably go for the 285 as if I can get away with running my current PSU with it, I can justify it
 
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