Upgrade! Monitor or GPU first?

naraku · Nov 7, 2012

I finally saved up money for an upgrade but only enough for one. I'm planning on a 2560x1440 setup and a GPU that's powerful enough to get me decent fps.
My plan is at least one of them for now and then later for Christmas or tax season. :laugh:

I only have like around $400 so which one should i buy first? monitor or gpu?

Follow up question:
How to replace a GPU? Do i have to uninstall previous drivers? or a clean install of OS?
Is it the same procedure when changing from nvidia to amd?
Thanks a lot for the help. :rockout:

UbErN00b · Nov 7, 2012

naraku said:
I finally saved up money for an upgrade but only enough for one. I'm planning on a 2560x1440 setup and a GPU that's powerful enough to get me decent fps.
My plan is at least one of them for now and then later for Christmas or tax season.
I only have like around $400 so which one should i buy first? monitor or gpu?

Follow up question:
How to replace a GPU? Do i have to uninstall previous drivers? or a clean install of OS?
Is it the same procedure when changing from nvidia to amd?
Thanks a lot for the help.

I'd get the monitor first, you will absolutely love it compared to your 20" and your 460 will still allow you to play at it's native res albeit with reduced quality.

Anything along the lines of a GTX 670/HD 7950 or better would be fine, though you may still need to OC with some titles to run them maxxed out.

SaltyFish · Nov 7, 2012

Get the monitor first. Monitor technology has stagnated (and even regressed) so it won't be obsoleted when you finally get your new graphics card. GPUs, as we all know, age very rapidly. You can pick up a Radeon HD8### or GeForce GTX7## later since they're coming up soon... or at the very least get current generation cards at a lower price.

naraku · Nov 7, 2012

It will take me 2 to 3 months before i can buy a new gpu though. Would my gaming be affected? Can my 460 at least handle watching blue ray on 1440? thanks

Hayder_Master · Nov 8, 2012

GPU first, how u can high resolution games on your card ?

naraku · Nov 8, 2012

Well my monitor right now is only 1600x900 so maxing out isn't really a problem for my card.

adulaamin · Nov 8, 2012

naraku said:
It will take me 2 to 3 months before i can buy a new gpu though. Would my gaming be affected? Can my 460 at least handle watching blue ray on 1440? thanks

I'd also suggest you upgrade your monitor first just in time for the new video cards that will start to show up next year...

SaltyFish · Nov 8, 2012

naraku said:
It will take me 2 to 3 months before i can buy a new gpu though. Would my gaming be affected? Can my 460 at least handle watching blue ray on 1440? thanks

As mentioned before by UbErN00b, if you're running at the new higher resolution you may need to tone the eyecandy down a bit. You can also play at a lower resolution but the same aspect ratio (1920 x 1080, 1600 x 900, etc.) to keep things from stretching.

Blu-ray should not be affected. Its native resolution is 1920 x 1080. It just stretches or contracts to your computer's set resolution. The only more work your GPU would do is if your desktop is running at a higher resolution and that's insignificant since there isn't much happening on your desktop to tax it (1080 requires about 8MB VRAM and little GPU cycles for idle IIRC).

lossviva · Nov 8, 2012

obviously the monitor first
u can wait for the new HD8000 series next year

naraku · Nov 8, 2012

SaltyFish said:
As mentioned before by UbErN00b, if you're running at the new higher resolution you may need to tone the eyecandy down a bit. You can also play at a lower resolution but the same aspect ratio (1920 x 1080, 1600 x 900, etc.) to keep things from stretching.

Blu-ray should not be affected. Its native resolution is 1920 x 1080. It just stretches or contracts to your computer's set resolution. The only more work your GPU would do is if your desktop is running at a higher resolution and that's insignificant since there isn't much happening on your desktop to tax it (1080 requires about 8MB VRAM and little GPU cycles for idle IIRC).

Thanks a lot for the info man. Now can anyone recommend a good 1440 monitor for me? xD

Frag_Maniac · Nov 8, 2012

Get the GPU first, 1440p on a 460 is pushing it. Wait until you see some great holiday deals though.

The 7970 starting at $370 currently is best bang for buck. That said, if the 8870 really will be priced at $280 and perform in between a 670 and 680 as the 7970 does as rumors indicate, it will be a bit hard to take unless you get a really good deal on a 7970.

We might see some 7970s for under $350 over the holidays, but my guess is it will be reference models that most don't want. If I see another non ref 7970 at $350 like the Sapphire 950Ghz boost was recently, I just may jump on it.

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Upgrade! Monitor or GPU first?

naraku

UbErN00b

New Member

SaltyFish

naraku

Hayder_Master

naraku

adulaamin

SaltyFish

lossviva

New Member

naraku

Frag_Maniac

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