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What GPU should I buy? (New PC gamer/Lifetime Console owner)

mckmas8808

Mckmaster uses MasterCard to buy Slave drives
So I've been a console owner since 1991 (Super NES). Now I own a PS4 Pro. I love consoles and will always buy them. But since MS has decided to change the game and allow all their games on PC, I've decided to beef up my current PC that I use to edit videos and pictures in Adobe Lightroom and Premier Pro. Right now here is what my PC has.....

Box: Optiplex 7010
CPU: Intel Core i7-3770 @ 3.40 GHz, 4 Cores (8MB cache)
GPU: Some integrated piece of crap.
RAM: 16 GBs
HDD: 500 GB SATA drive
Basic Intergrated Power Supply
Monitors: I have two basic 1080p 22" HP monitors.

What do I want I of my PC for Gaming?

1. Constant 1080p resolution
2. Framerate that can hold 60 fps for most big games that look like The Witcher 3, Gears 4, Forza Horizon 2, etc.
3. Basic mods that make some games like The Witcher 3 look better.


What I don't care about.

1. 4K gaming on this PC.
2. VR on this PC.
3. Any framerate over 60.
4. V-Sync
 

BPoole

Member
You should absolutely care about VSync. Screen tearing when you're that close to the screen is awful. I think you should at least get a 1070 or Vega 56
 

iHaunter

Member
1070.

Buying anything from the 900 series is absolutely pointless when 1100 is around the corner. Why be two generations behind for a small price difference? I've seen 1070s go under $400 with rebates.
 

Speedwagon

Michelangelo painted the Sistine Chapel. Yabuki turned off voice chat in Mario Kart races. True artists of their time.
Sounds like all you need is a GTX 1060 6GB
 
Nothing less than a 1060. Ideally 1060 6GB. 1080p/60fps ultra or 1440-4k 30fps high-ultra sweet spot, best value for money. It is more powerful than the xbox one x gpu.
 
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B_Signal

Member
I'm playing Gears 4 on a 1080 at the minute and getting over 100fps at 1080p, so that will definitely be overkill for what you want. If you can find a deal on a 1070 get that to have a bit of headroom, otherwise a 1060 should be fine

You might need a larger (or 2nd) hard drive though. Gears is about 130 gig on pc, depends if you've got anything else on there atm I guess
 

PsyEd

Member
1060 with 6GB is food for VR and 1080p gaming with ultra/max setting on most gaming with 60fps+. And you're cpu is good enough anyway...just get a good AIO cooler to run it @ 4.5ghz comfortably. Stick to nvidia as drivers are better and some games with additional nvidia bells and whistles actually looks way better (i.e Batman Arkham Knight)

I prefer higher refresh rate/frame rate than 4k....1440p@165z on a gsync monitor, FPS/3p gaming is butter smooth with my MSI gaming X trio 1080ti card. StarWars Battle Front 2 looks amazing even though the game sucks.

Also while you at it get a good pair of headsets that even sound better with dolby atmos!
 

Codes 208

Member
1060 or 1070 are good intermediate mid/high-level cards. You can also probably find a 970/980/980Ti for cheap but as already mentioned: Theyre older (though my GTX 970 can still play most games, including gears 4, at max at 1080p/60fps)
 

_Justinian_

Member
If all you want is 60fps at 1080p, then an r9 390 should do the trick. It's pretty cheap and you can still upgrade in the future if you ever decide to.
 
The Optiplex is a dell machine, right? I'm a bit worried about the PSU. Often times these kind of PCs don't have a 6 pin connector to power a discrete GPU. We don't know the wattage either. Is it possible to replace it?

If not, the 1050 ti is probably the best you'll be able to fit in your box since it doesn't require additional power, it draws just from the PCIE slot.
 
Nothing less than a 1060. Ideally 1060 6GB. 1080p/60fps ultra or 1440-4k 30fps high-ultra sweet spot, best value for money. It is more powerful than the xbox one x gpu.

This is the correct answer. With your current setup anything less than a 10 series is pointless and anything more than a 1070 is overkill. And with prices what they are right now - coming down but still too high - you're better off with a 1060 now and then if, after a few month of PC gaming you find yourself getting into more and more, you'll likely want to upgrade to the 11 series after its out and prices have stabilized. You could jump up to an 1170 if you feel you're gaming enough on PC to justify it.

EDIT: As the previous poster noted u may be limited by the form-factor of your OptiPlex case/&/or PSU. If its a desktop unit u may have to go with a low profile GPU, of which there are really only a handful of decent to good options: The GTX 750 Ti/1030 or the 1050/1050 Ti. Personally, I'd go with the 1050 Ti and call it a day. But, just keep in mind you're paying more than you should for any GPU right now (the 1050 Ti low profile models are selling for about $50 more than MSRP/launch price right now at ~$200...when they should be $149 or less by now...this is a 2+ yr old architecture at this point).
 
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Redshirt

Banned
The Optiplex is a dell machine, right? I'm a bit worried about the PSU. Often times these kind of PCs don't have a 6 pin connector to power a discrete GPU. We don't know the wattage either. Is it possible to replace it?

I think this is a good point. Whatever your budget is, I'd allow for a new PSU.
 

MoogleMan

Member
1070, but the 1070 ti is a better value. You'll be straight for years at 1080p60.

The 1080 mentioned for $450 doesn't sound bad either honestly.
 

Kenpachii

Member
1070 is useless for him at 1080p, he will be bottlenecked hard on its cpu. 1060 sounds like the better fit here. However if you want to future proof more go for a 8gb gddr5 card like 1070ti/1080 and upgrade your mobo/cpu later on
 
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If only 1920x1080 144-240 Hz gsync/freesync = I would just get used 970 or rx480 [same perf as madly overpriced gtx1060, rx580] if you're thinking 1060, then 1070 is a much better choice.

2560x1440 IPS/VA gsync = 1070

2560x1440 IPS/VA freesync = vega56

4K you really need 1080ti [i don't recommend 4k yet, hard to keep 60+ fps at all times] To me PC gaming is all about super smooth high variable refresh gaming, which consoles will never offer.
 
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Bolivar687

Banned
Agree with the 1060, RX 580 or 480 comments but also want to echo that you should research your Power Supply situation first. Really, if all you want is 1080p60 for AAA games, you don't need the 1070/Vega 56.

By the time you need more power down the road, you'll probably be looking to upgrade from the 3770 as well.
 

mckmas8808

Mckmaster uses MasterCard to buy Slave drives
Sounds like all you need is a GTX 1060 6GB

Nothing less than a 1060. Ideally 1060 6GB. 1080p/60fps ultra or 1440-4k 30fps high-ultra sweet spot, best value for money. It is more powerful than the xbox one x gpu.

The 1060 seems to be the consensus. But yes I do have the Optiplex 7010 box, so I'm not sure if the 1060 will fit or if it'll be too much power for my PSU. Is there anyway I can find out?

Also while you at it get a good pair of headsets that even sound better with dolby atmos!

I have the new Playstation GOLD headset. It doesn't have Dolby Atmos I don't think. I think I paid $80 for them. I usually never want to pay more than $100 for a good headset, because I don't game online much so I don't care about the quality of the mic.

The Optiplex is a dell machine, right? I'm a bit worried about the PSU. Often times these kind of PCs don't have a 6 pin connector to power a discrete GPU. We don't know the wattage either. Is it possible to replace it?

If not, the 1050 ti is probably the best you'll be able to fit in your box since it doesn't require additional power, it draws just from the PCIE slot.

Ah so this may be a problem. Compared to the1060 how close to performance is the 1050ti? And are they also close in price?
 
Look at prices. They seem to vary by country. I just purchased a 1070 pretty cheap as a demo-product. Usually it would be much closer to the 1070ti in pricing, but I got lucky finding it pretty cheap as a demo-product.

Considering your CPU GTX1060 3gb/6gb and 1070 seems to be in your range. In my country AMD is more expensive than Nvidia at least, making the AMD options bad for me. Altogether you'll have to consider how much you want to invest. 1060 3gb and 6gb have a large difference on the lower end in my country, meaning that the vram you need is a case for consideration as well.
 
The 1060 seems to be the consensus. But yes I do have the Optiplex 7010 box, so I'm not sure if the 1060 will fit or if it'll be too much power for my PSU. Is there anyway I can find out?

Is it the business desktop with the small casing or the normal one with the mid tower case? The mid tower case has more than enough room to swap out the PSU, most Dell oem PSU's aren't 80 plus rated iirc so you probably want to swap out the PSU anyways, especially if it's and older PSU to begin with. One way you can check is through the side of the PSU which should show it's model and wattage or you could just search online, physically inspecting the psu by removing the case to see what the model is. Either way I recommend replacing it if your gonna get a new video card.

PSU's are fairly priced these days and you can get a good one for around $40 easily, PSU's are pretty easy to swap out as well if you've never done it before.

edit: You also might want to upgrade from an HDD to an SDD, depending on what PC games you play an SSD is essential. Especially when it comes to load times.

Games like Total War: Warhammer or Subnautica have ridiculously long load times with an HDD where an SSD can drastically reduce them. I'm talking in some cases where with Total War: Warhammer takes like over 2-3 minutes with an HDD where an SSD might take 30 seconds or less.
 
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Kadayi

Banned
I'd say wait until the new cards hit as that will drive the price of the 10 series down. As others have said if you're happy with 1080P then a 1060 should suffice, however, if you've any inclination to get a bigger monitor and increased resolution down the road then you might want to look at something a bit beefier so you can have all the graphical bells and whistles going. I know people have said that a 1070/1070Ti/1080 might be a waste of time, but if there's not much in it in terms of cost, go for the more powerful card as it will mean you'll be able to run games with max graphical settings. I have a 27" monitor running 2560x1440 and a 1070Ti and I can't run TW3 with every graphical setting maxxed at that resolution for instance (though it's pretty close). However, if I run it in 1080P it's all good.
 
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Ah so this may be a problem. Compared to the1060 how close to performance is the 1050ti? And are they also close in price?
The 1050 ti is a fair bit less powerful than a 1060. It really is an entry-level GPU, meant for moderate gaming. It can run most modern games at 60fps by lowering some of the settings. You should expect to run The Witcher 3 at about 30fps (@ High settings) with a 1050 ti, so it doesn't quite suit your needs. The 1060 (or RX580) is a sweetspot for 1080p 60fps gaming. In terms of price, I believe the 1050 ti was, for a while anyway, the best bang for your buck GPU (as in, the highest fps per dollar value). I don't know where you live, so I can't say much about pricing as that differs greatly per region.

If possible, I would try to replace the PSU and go with a 1060 6GB, as that seems to fit your needs the best.
 

Housh

Member
I think a 1060 6GB is pretty much the PS4 Pro so I wouldn't go below that. That's what I have on my PC.
 

mckmas8808

Mckmaster uses MasterCard to buy Slave drives
The 1050 ti is a fair bit less powerful than a 1060. It really is an entry-level GPU, meant for moderate gaming. It can run most modern games at 60fps by lowering some of the settings. You should expect to run The Witcher 3 at about 30fps (@ High settings) with a 1050 ti, so it doesn't quite suit your needs. The 1060 (or RX580) is a sweetspot for 1080p 60fps gaming. In terms of price, I believe the 1050 ti was, for a while anyway, the best bang for your buck GPU (as in, the highest fps per dollar value). I don't know where you live, so I can't say much about pricing as that differs greatly per region.

If possible, I would try to replace the PSU and go with a 1060 6GB, as that seems to fit your needs the best.

When I get home I'm going to check out the PSU's wattage. I know the PC is 4 years old already. I think I have the business tower with the same casing so I'm not sure how much room I'm going to have if I replace the PSU.

I'm leaning towards getting a 1060ti 6GB and a PSU that can handle the power. But question! Should I check first and see if I have the 6 pins available in my setup first? Or does that come in all Dell Optiplex cases?
 
When I get home I'm going to check out the PSU's wattage. I know the PC is 4 years old already. I think I have the business tower with the same casing so I'm not sure how much room I'm going to have if I replace the PSU.

I'm leaning towards getting a 1060ti 6GB and a PSU that can handle the power. But question! Should I check first and see if I have the 6 pins available in my setup first? Or does that come in all Dell Optiplex cases?

I found this video on youtube that seems to depict the 7010. According to the person who made this video, these Optiplex 7010 boxes come with a 275 watt power supply. That's probably too little to power the entire system + GTX 1060. I don't see any loose connectors that could be hooked up to your GPU either, so I'm going to assume there's none. So you'll probably have to get a new PSU. On the upside, it looks like it's pretty easy to replace it, and any modern model would definitely give you the 6-pin connector you need to power the graphics card.

So in conclusion, it does look like a fairly simple upgrade here, if that PC in the video is similar to the one you have, that is. Just buy a new PSU and make sure it has enough wattage to run the graphics card (400 watts or more should do the trick, but you can also use an online PSU calculator to determine the exact wattage your system will use). You can then just install the GPU and use your new power supply's 6-pin connector to power it.

Edit: Make sure you get a graphics card that fits, too! You can measure the space you've got available in the case, and then check if the GPU's length will fit. You may have to go with a small model.
 
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But question! Should I check first and see if I have the 6 pins available in my setup first? Or does that come in all Dell Optiplex cases?

Optiplex 7010 comes in 4 variants, and the highest spec one comes with a 275W psu: http://www.physik.fu-berlin.de/service/it/dienste/hardware/docs/OptiPlex_7010_spec_sheet.pdf

The answer is no. Optiplex cases come with proprietary power supplies that are tailor made for that case and the original components within. You may not even fit the GPU in there. IN either case, 275W is not enough for a mid end gaming gpu.

Why not just get a cheap case/400W+ psu combo? Might be able to find brand name one like thermaltake for <$60. May be able to fit a standard PSU in that Optiplex of the 400-500W range that would come with ample connectors.

Ultimately your cpu will cpu limit anything beyond a 1060 6gb. That's your ceiling. Even a cheaper 1060 3Gb (not really a 1060-cheeky nvidian liars) would give new life to your pc, and a cheap 120gb SSD for your operating system would speed up day-day tasks massively. You'd be in ps4 pro/xbox one x territory gaming wise and have a speedy desktop for general computer use.

But first you must upgrade that power supply, and of course make sure that dell case can fit a standard atx psu and standard length 1060 graphics card in there. If it can't fit them you know what to do, new case. Your cpu, motherboard, ram and exiting hdd's are absolutely fine. They deserve a happy gpu roommate and a cozy new home in a new case with reliable power. You'd get another 3 years of mid-high end 1080p gaming life out of that.
 
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It's not. It's all plug and play these days. A step by step guide will get you through any custom build.

What's really complex and intimidating is fixing a broken console. I still fix people's Saturns and Dreamcasts.
 
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Speedwagon

Michelangelo painted the Sistine Chapel. Yabuki turned off voice chat in Mario Kart races. True artists of their time.
If you can't upgrade the PSU a 1050ti might work for you, but you won't get 60fps on The Witcher 3. Maybe wait for next gen 1150(?) might be the perfect fit
 
if you can wait two months, i would suggest you to wait two months. if nvidia launches the 1180 end of july, prices of pascal cards (10xx) should collapse.
 

AndrewRyan

Member
If you're considering the 1070 you'll get a 15-25% increase from the 1070ti for only $50 more. So if you're going Nvidia I'd either get the 1060 6gb or the 1070ti.

Something else to consider is GSync (Nvidia) and FreeSync (AMD) which match your monitors framerate to the game. GSync monitors cost a lot more than FreeSync so factor that in if you think you'll use this.
 
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JimboJones

Member
It's not. It's all plug and play these days. A step by step guide will get you through any custom build.

What's really complex and intimidating is fixing a broken console. I still fix people's Saturns and Dreamcasts.

It's still a little intimidating, I found CPU and GPU naming conventions alone kinda stupid confusing when jumping in for the the first time lol.
That initial learning learning curve can be a little steep but once your over that it kinda all falls into place and you do wonder what you where so scared of in the first place.
 

Armorian

Banned
if you can wait two months, i would suggest you to wait two months. if nvidia launches the 1180 end of july, prices of pascal cards (10xx) should collapse.

No, only 1180 and 1170 will launch and both cards will most likely be more expensive than 1070/1080 in 2016. Maybe high end cards will drop some price but mid cards won't until 1160/1150.
 
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mckmas8808

Mckmaster uses MasterCard to buy Slave drives
As a console gamer thinking on jumping into PC gaming... all this shit is intimidating. God damn lol

It is a little intimidating, but these post are making things easier.

if you can wait two months, i would suggest you to wait two months. if nvidia launches the 1180 end of july, prices of pascal cards (10xx) should collapse.

When do those Xbox exclusives like Forza Horizon 4 and The Last Light release? That would determine when I'll be looking to purchase this GPU and PSU.
 
The Optiplex is a dell machine, right? I'm a bit worried about the PSU. Often times these kind of PCs don't have a 6 pin connector to power a discrete GPU. We don't know the wattage either. Is it possible to replace it?

If not, the 1050 ti is probably the best you'll be able to fit in your box since it doesn't require additional power, it draws just from the PCIE slot.
https://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814487387&cm_re=1070ti-_-14-487-387-_-Product comes with a free psu that would definitely better than the dells psu
 

//DEVIL//

Member
You should wait 2 months.

Any other answer is wrong. Because the 1080/1070 ( I would go 1080 over 1070 without thinking twice because I own the card and it's a beast ) will drop the price even further with the new gpu announcement

All the big games coming are not before late Sept and after . The new cards will be out by then and the stock cards will be cheaper. Hell many will sell these cards on eBay to cut the costs down of the new card. You will find them much cheaper . Save your money
 
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You should wait 2 months.

Any other answer is wrong. Because the 1080/1070 ( I would go 1080 over 1070 without thinking twice because I own the card and it's a beast ) will drop the price even further with the new gpu announcement

All the big games coming are not before late Sept and after . The new cards will be out by then and the stock cards will be cheaper. Hell many will sell these cards on eBay to cut the costs down of the new card. You will find them much cheaper . Save your money

His cpu will bottleneck a 1070+
 

B_Signal

Member
As a console gamer thinking on jumping into PC gaming... all this shit is intimidating. God damn lol

years ago, when I started to game on pc more, I was playing on some half-sized Dell. It could run Half-Life, Max Payne, Football Manager, stuff that I'd liked in the past but were a few years old. I ended up buying a graphics card to put in it... then I had to walk to the computer shop to buy a case because it wouldn't fit in mine.

I learnt a lot doing that tbf, eventually completely rebuilt my machine on my own a few years later
 

Silvawuff

Member
I'm using a 1050 Ti and it's been awesome, though if you can find better for around the same price range, go for that. I think GPUs are in a transitional period so it might be best to avoid top of the top right now.
 
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