Any chance of upgrading to 27-inch 4k or 1440 and GPU for under $750?

[Riverhound777]

I have been itching for something bigger to game with lately than my current dual 24-inch 1080p setup. i'd probably keep one of the monitors and get a single larger display for a main along with a GPU to push it. Here is my current items i'd like to keep:

Gigabyte H93-D3H
i5-4690
16GB DDR3
Corsair CS450M

As for games I primarily play MMOs such as Eve, Guild Wars 2, SWTOR, maybe some World of Warships, LoL. No crazy FPS AAA Titles like BF4 or Crisis.

Is there any chance of getting a single GPU that will work with my current setup along with a new decent 27-inch+ monitor (Maybe Freesync?) for under $750? I'm guessing 4k is out of the question, but maybe 1440p? Note I would rather not have to get a new Mobo and PS just for this. If that means I need to wait a year or two for prices to drop that will be fine.

 

[3DVagabond]

Here's a couple of options.

1 cheapest:
Powercolor 290 Turbo Dou $235AR
Acer XG270HU $500

2 Best Value (IMO):
Powercolor 290 PCS+ $250AR
BenQ XL2730Z $550

The 290 PCS+ is a far better card with superior cooling and worth the extra $15, IMO
The BenQ from what I've seen has better QC and customer support. Plus it also has strobe type blur reduction that the Acer doesn't have. I think it's a better monitor and company and would pay the extra $50. YMMV.

If you wanted to compromise a bit the the 290 PCS+ with the Acer, which would be exactly $750 is the route I'd go. The 290 is about the minimum card I would go with at 1440 resolution. It should give you good performance overall and GCN cards have aged very gracefully.

 

[Riverhound777]

Great info, thank you! Do you think my current power supply will be ok with a 290??

 

[sam_816]

Great info, thank you! Do you think my current power supply will be ok with a 290??

I don't think your psu will be enough. I blv there should be some headroom when it comes to psu.. For one card 600-650 should be good. But if you are going for 4k then soon you will need second card and then even 650 will not be enough. :|

Pls plan carefully.

 

[3DVagabond]

This is total with an O/C'd 3770K @ 4.6GHz. I don't know how much I'd want to push O/C'ing.

 

[Riverhound777]

This is total with an O/C'd 3770K @ 4.6GHz. I don't know how much I'd want to push O/C'ing.

Oh, well with my i5 4690 stock it shouldn't draw very much really.

 

[Termie]

It will be fine as long as you don't overclock the R9 290. You may get advice from people telling you to increase the voltage and push it to 1200MHz for kicks, which will be the exact wrong advice for your PSU. You'll be near the limit at stock. Also, you'll need to hook up a molex-to-PCIe adapter to provide the needed power connections to the R9 290. Most, but not all, R9 290 models will come with them. See if it's included in the package before buying.

I'm just going to throw one other option out there for you. F/G-Sync monitors are absolutely fantastic for fast-paced games, but your budget only allows for TN models. An IPS model will be much better for typical PC use, and will look a bit better in slower-paced games as well, where color and off-angle viewing might be more important than in twitch gaming.

I'd suggest you consider either getting a standard 60Hz IPS model for $400-$500, or pushing the budget up a bit to get the $600 Asus MG279Q. It's truly superior to the BenQ and Acer models mentioned above. Don't get it at Newegg, though, which apparently has pulled out the gouge-hammer and has retroactively increased the retail price to $800. Nice...

 

[Riverhound777]

Thanks for all the info. I think I might wait a bit to see if prices drop some and if the QC issues on these monitors resolve themselves a little.

 

[ImpulsE69]

Watch the Hotdeals section and slickdeals page for Newegg sales.

I recently got a Sapphire 290x for $259 and Asus MG279Q for $550 (and it is flawless, very nice monitor). The 290x not so much, RMAing it at the moment, although I think ultimately it is driver issues.

You can probably get a 290 for cheaper.

 

[ahamling27]

Little late to the conversation, but I thought I'd share my thoughts anyway.

I'd second the recommendation of the Acer XG270HU. Getting 1440p and 144hz for about $500 is about as good as it gets now, but that would only leave you $250 for a decent graphics card.

I just went with a GTX 970 from EVGA (and trust me when I say that even though the Acer monitor is Freesync, 144hz without freesync on Nvidia is buttery smooth, and I haven't noticed any tearing, even if the game is only outputting ~60 fps) and its plenty for 1440p gaming, especially for any game made in the past 5 years or so. Should be good for the next couple years or so too, or at least I hope. >.>

I know that ~$500 doesn't leave much for a graphics card, but I could see this monitor coming down in price soon, as more 4k monitors/TVs get cheaper, especially since the holiday season is just around the corner.

Cheers!

 

[guskline]

Selling one of my Sapphire Tri-X OC R9 290s for $185 plus shipping!