I want to make a final decision on GPU replacement

[EntropyZ]

Okay, if anyone wants to throw in their two cents I'm running GeForce GTX 1070 @ 2100MHz which I got for £310, of course now the street price is much lower. I've narrowed down my choices:

GTX 1080 Ti or RTX 2070.

A used 1080 Ti will set me back around ~50% provided I sell the 1070. I get no warranty, but it is faster than the RTX 2070 and doesn't have such a tight power limit, in older DX11 titles it does really well, I'm still going to play those for a long time as I have for the past few years. Stock vs Stock, the 1080 Ti is 47% faster on average according to TPU GPU database. That alone looks quite good.

There is another option of course, and that is being patient and see what Navi is all about. Which I can do since I still play at 2560x1080 mostly and even modded games aren't struggling, the GTX 1070 is still a beast of a card.

How many of you have made the upgrade recently even if it is just 1 generation apart? Personally it feels wrong getting the RTX 2070 since I am playing straight into getting ripped off from a small performance increase, paying more than the card's performance is really worth, especially considering when the gap is just 1 generation which doesn't add all that much IMO.

I feel like a 1080Ti would be a true upgrade, plus I might get a better monitor afterwards. It's just that having no warranty puts me off, especially when paying quite a bit. People on ebay don't give like some sort of aftermarket support like I used to after selling my used hardware to people (Some work on my part, but it puts buyers at ease considering the warranty isn't valid anymore).

Guys the itch. I have it. It's been a long time since Pascal launched. I think it is aging pretty well considering Turing didn't bring much in the performance department, and nerfed OC'ing.

 

[FordGT90Concept]

The only way Navi affects the GTX 1080 Ti/RTX 2070 pricing is if it performs about as well as Vega 64 for half of Vega 64's cost. It's theoretically possible, but not likely. When $200 cards are beating $400 cards, the entire price structure has to move down lest consumers will opt for two $200 cards over a single $400 card that's only marginally better.

Navi, performance wise, is unlikely to match nor surprass GTX 1080 Ti/RTX 2070. It's a mainstream chip, not a high end one. Best case scenario puts it at slightly faster than a GTX 1070.

Bare in mind that one of these days NVIDIA is going to announce their first 7nm cards (Ampere?). Navi isn't the only thing just over the horizon. Compare Vega 64 to Radeon VII...that's what 7nm brings to the table.

 

[EntropyZ]

The only way Navi affects the GTX 1080 Ti/RTX 2070 pricing is if it performs about as well as Vega 64 for half of Vega 64's cost. It's theoretically possible, but not likely. When $200 cards are beating $400 cards, the entire price structure has to move down lest consumers will opt for two $200 cards over a single $400 card that's only marginally better.

Navi, performance wise, is unlikely to match nor surprass GTX 1080 Ti/RTX 2070. It's a mainstream chip, not a high end one. Best case scenario puts it at slightly faster than a GTX 1070.

Yeah that is exactly what I was thinking, TBH. That is why my picks are mainly on what we have today, It is unlikely that Navi will have another high-end chip again, especially when HBM is costing them a lot. And GCN runs better with extra memory bandwidth. Putting GDDR on it would probably cripple Navi quite a bit, and bring the power consumption up again.

Ampere is going to have a launch probably only a year later, that is quite a bit of time, and there's no idea what they will do with the silicon. There aren't even any nice rumors floating about.

Patience is a virtue though, I've been pretty good at waiting so far. And the longer I wait, the more prices will go down with time, or I could snatch a good deal at some point. Well that seems to be a good choice, unless we're going to have another crypto boom, but then again it's too soon for that.

But the "want" to upgrade is getting the better of me. I am almost guaranteed getting a Zen 2 chip later this year, so I am planning on a GPU that would last as GPU performance increases generation-to-generation aren't as attractive as before with the price hike in the recent years and getting XX80 Ti kind of performance is a must to get more longevity out of the system, but the latest 2080Ti costs, well... you know. I wouldn't have this thread if I went with a 1070Ti instead, but the pricing didn't stabilize quite yet last summer when I was upgrading from a GTX 1060 6GB.

With me pulling extra time at work, I want to see the fruits of my labor, I guess. It's been a year since I finally got an upgrade to mid-to-high range in terms of components among other things.

 

[Outback Bronze]

But the "want" to upgrade is getting the better of me

How much more for a Brand New 2080? You get roughly the same performance as the 1080 Ti or out of the question?

That could satisfy the itch no?

 

[EntropyZ]

How much more for a Brand New 2080? You get roughly the same performance as the 1080 Ti or out of the question?

That could satisfy the itch no?

A used 1080Ti goes for around £470-530 depending on the model. An RTX 2080 is about £700-ish for a decently cooled model. So that is quite a big gap in price.

 

[Vya Domus]

1080ti is much faster, there is no contest here.

Fastest Navi chip will probably be at best around 200$ and 1080 performance. Although I am pulling these figures out of my ass as much as everyone else, who the hell knows.

So that is quite a big gap in price.

And one that wouldn't bring you much in terms of extras, you are looking at the same performance tier.

 

[Outback Bronze]

1080ti is much faster, there is no contest here.

Um.. in what res?

Also the difference in price down under for a new 2080 and a used 1080 Ti is about $100-$150. I think the price is justified here but I suppose it depends where you live.

Edit: sry you must have been talking about the 2070 which I agree!

 

[FreedomEclipse]

Basically it falls down to how much you want/need/desire DLSS/RTX. Obviously you know that not many games currently support it and there are teething issues with it since it's new tech.

If none of that matters then get a 1080ti and wait out the next gen. 1080ti should last another 2years at the most before it starts to struggle

::EDIT::

Id avoid going retail because of the price for old gen hardware. Since 1080Ti's themselves havent been in production in a while, they are scarce in the retail channel and thus that bumps up the price. Pre-owned is the only way to go with a 1080Ti providing you can find one that hasnt been mined to death.

There is no shame in going with a 1080Ti. I went from a 1070 Gaming X to a pre-owned 1080Ti last year and ive been pretty happy with the move. Though i only game a 1440p@60hz. A monitor upgrade is in the books when i can afford it.

 

[Vya Domus]

Edit: sry you must have been talking about the 2070 which I agree!

Indeed.

 

[EntropyZ]

Basically it falls down to how much you want/need/desire DLSS/RTX. Obviously you know that not many games currently support it and there are teething issues with it since it's new tech.

If none of that matters then get a 1080ti and wait out the next gen. 1080ti should last another 2years at the most before it starts to struggle

::EDIT::

Id avoid going retail because of the price for old gen hardware. Since 1080Ti's themselves havent been in production in a while, they are scarce in the retail channel and thus that bumps up the price. Pre-owned is the only way to go with a 1080Ti providing you can find one that hasnt been mined to death.

There is no shame in going with a 1080Ti. I went from a 1070 Gaming X to a pre-owned 1080Ti last year and ive been pretty happy with the move. Though i only game a 1440p@60hz. A monitor upgrade is in the books when i can afford it.

There seems to be guys selling 2x of the same card, is it more likely they've been mined on? Since SLI just "doesn't work" most of the time, a single card runs better in most games.

 

[FreedomEclipse]

There seems to be guys selling 2x of the same card, is it more likely they've been mined on? Since SLI just "doesn't work" most of the time, a single card runs better in most games.

2x is probably okay. its when they have 4+ then that its suspicious. though, he might have more and sold them 2 at a time. Check his feedback on what he's sold in the past if youre using ebay

 

[ne6togadno]

you can sidegrade to vega 64 for about 400, make use of freesync on your monitor and save for future (HDR monitor, RTX gen 2 or whaever is relevant)
or better get yourself a pinte and dont upgrade at all. looking at performance of 1070 in "latest and grates" metro and dmc5 i dont see reason for you to upgrade.
i've kept my 290x for 4 years and i didnt have problems to play my games maxed out even thou pascal was wiping the floore with it in the tests.

 

[las]

1080 Ti is not "much faster" than 2070. It's like 5% faster on average. Going forward, I bet 2070 will perform better and better and 1080 Ti will fall slightly behind.

I got a 1080 Ti. I'll upgrade when RTX 3080 hits.

 

[EntropyZ]

Currently leaning towards getting a 1080 Ti, I have to consider one very specific game though. And that is the unreleased Elder Scrolls VI. I have no idea how that will turn out, so probably it is better holding off, as a GTX 1070 with an OC seems to do well for now, the new titles that I am interested in such as DMC5 and RE2 remake run just fine.

Yeah, the only reason I went GTX 1060 -> 1070 route was trying to keep stable FPS in modded Skyrim (4800+ hours played) and Fallout 4 (around 1100 hours played), the GTX 1070 gained me around 15-20 FPS (which was a godsend because a GTX 1060 6GB would dip into low 40s a lot in outside areas), but going forward in benchmarks apparently anything faster than a 1070 doesn't get a lot of improvement, but that is running the games vanilla, I have absolutely no idea how much better does it get when you simply throw more TMUs and SMs at the problem when trying for higher framerates or at least stable frame-times in that particular engine, it's just so messed up.

Edit: Finally found a video... On a 1080 Ti @ 3440x1440 is very possible to have Skyrim and FO4 running with a stable framerate with loads and loads of messing around.

 

[Valantar]

IMO, you've answered your own question in the first post here. Your current GPU performs entirely adequately at your resolution, meaning any upgrade would be paying for purely theoretical performance that you won't actually see any benefit from. Why bother, especially for a single-generation upgrade in the generation when GPU prices went crazy? That makes extremely little sense.

I truly understand the upgrade bug and just how powerful that urge can be, but this really seems like an obvious "step back and count to ten" type of situation. At the very least, wait until you see what Navi can bring to the table (either in pure performance or effects on GPU prices), and after that, make a decision whether you upgrade then or wait for GeForce 3000-series cards.

 

[EntropyZ]

I know, and yet I still wanted to know your opinions, maybe there's something you know that I don't. Even though I've done the research, it feels like I'm running in circles, or something like that.

And I appreciate you guys taking the time to help me with my choice.

 

[64K]

I know all about the upgrade itch. I'm going through that right now but only because I want to go 4k AND MY 980 Ti just isn't going to be enough.

Your 1070 is a bit faster than my 980 Ti and I game on a 1440p monitor and don't have any problems except for a small handful of really demanding games. I plan to wait for Navi and see what it brings or maybe next year to see what Intel and Nvidia brings.

If I give in to the upgrade itch then it will be for a 2080 (non Ti) because that's what I would consider good for 4K right now.

 

[las]

I know all about the upgrade itch. I'm going through that right now but only because I want to go 4k AND MY 980 Ti just isn't going to be enough.

Your 1070 is a bit faster than my 980 Ti and I game on a 1440p monitor and don't have any problems except for a small handful of really demanding games. I plan to wait for Navi and see what it brings or maybe next year to see what Intel and Nvidia brings.

If I give in to the upgrade itch then it will be for a 2080 (non Ti) because that's what I would consider good for 4K right now.

You sure about that? 2080 Ti is much faster at 4K than 2080.

I have tried my 1080 Ti for 4K and it was not impressive, 2080 is not that much faster.

 

[EntropyZ]

Ok, I think I'll stay with a 1070. Unless I find a good deal, I won't be moving. It seems to be the right thing to do. I just gotta resist the teachings of the leather jacket man.

Sorry to cut it short, I didn't think I'd get the replies I did in a short time-span. So thanks a lot, without you TPU wouldn't be the same.

Maybe I should actually take a rest from playing games. I did mean to re-watch the "Evil Dead" movies for some time now. I have to find something to fill the void of boredom.

 

[64K]

Well, yes the 2080 Ti would be better but the cheapest one I have found is $1,200 on the Nvidia store and the non reference ones are even more. I won't pay that much. Thanks for the heads up about the 1080 Ti and 4K. I guess I need to shelve the 4K idea for a while.

 

[las]

Yeah 1200 bucks is alot for a GPU. I expect "RTX 3070" to have 2080 Ti perf

1080 Ti can do 4K but only with medium-ish settings unless you can accept dips below 50 in the more demanding games

It's just that 2080 Ti really shines in 2160p compared to every other card (non Titan etc).

 

[Vayra86]

Honestly the upper end of GPUs really is not interesting. If you have a 980ti then perhaps a 2070 would be OK-ish but still is a horrible deal at this point in time (perf/dollar compared to a faster and OLD 1080ti is virtually the same or sometimes worse, while the 2080 is notably worse perf/dollar in every way for a very minor increase), but beyond that and for anyone rocking a 1080 or faster I'd say its totally not worth it at all. Too little performance to gain, and if you do want a noticeable boost, the price is completely bonkers.

Bottom line, scratch that itch a bit longer, sit on it for a while and wait for 7nm to pick up steam. Turing offers nothing for us. Its also about sending a message, and that message is really starting to come across: we won't pay premium on worthless features and baby steps in performance. Nvidia's already feeling that sentiment right about now, keep it that way. Chances are it results in a nice discount on your next 7nm purchase.

 

[cucker tarlson]

1080p- 2070,it's the only res that will run rt features smoothly

Otherwise get a 1080Ti.It's faster hands down.

 

[Valantar]

Honestly the upper end of GPUs really is not interesting. If you have a 980ti then perhaps a 2070 would be OK-ish but still is a horrible deal at this point in time (perf/dollar compared to a faster and OLD 1080ti is virtually the same or sometimes worse, while the 2080 is notably worse perf/dollar in every way for a very minor increase), but beyond that and for anyone rocking a 1080 or faster I'd say its totally not worth it at all. Too little performance to gain, and if you do want a noticeable boost, the price is completely bonkers.

Bottom line, scratch that itch a bit longer, sit on it for a while and wait for 7nm to pick up steam. Turing offers nothing for us. Its also about sending a message, and that message is really starting to come across: we won't pay premium on worthless features and baby steps in performance. Nvidia's already feeling that sentiment right about now, keep it that way. Chances are it results in a nice discount on your next 7nm purchase.

Entirely agree. High-end GPUs have always been poor value, but this generation really brought that home. While I did pay NOK 7000 (around $800, including VAT) for my Fury X back in 2015, that was with the expectation that I'd keep it for at least 3-4 years and that I was paying a premium for the privilege of not upgrading for a while. It's still going strong (and getting close to the 4-year mark!), doing just fine at 1440p high-ish. Also, it was the flagship at the time. Now, Nvidia's flagships are >$1200, but don't really offer any more value for that added price - even if the gargantuan chips do excuse some of the price hike, users don't really gain much from that die size increase. But getting back to my point, high-end GPU purchases make sense only within certain frames: either you have the money to burn and don't care about the value, you sell your GPU early to recoup as much as possible to afford the next upgrade, or you make a conscious decision to "invest" in not having to upgrade for a while. Other than that, buying a high-end card doesn't make any sense to me. The old practice of upgrading to the same tier every 2 generations or so is a very sensible one IMO.

 

[FordGT90Concept]

Currently leaning towards getting a 1080 Ti, I have to consider one very specific game though. And that is the unreleased Elder Scrolls VI. I have no idea how that will turn out, so probably it is better holding off, as a GTX 1070 with an OC seems to do well for now, the new titles that I am interested in such as DMC5 and RE2 remake run just fine.

Like all of the Elder Scrolls games before it, don't expect it to be ground breaking in terms of graphics. That said, Vault 76 did steal netcode from idTech engine. If Elder Scrolls VI does go full retard and implements idTech in its entirety, anything is possible in terms of graphics; however, I'm not aware of idTech supporting DXR or its equivalent on Vulkan.