I'm just about done with my reference RX480. Constant overheating despite me undervolting, increasing fan speed, replacing thermal paste and cleaning out the fan has made me tired of this card. Not to mention it's so loud that I have to turn my headphones up twice as much just to play games.
What do I buy?
Should I just get an RX580? or spend more for Vega?
Realistically I don't need the power of Vega. What I need is my hearing back.
What GPU to Buy? (AMD) Replacement for RX480 8GB
Ostrk on 22/11/2018 - 22:02
Comments
You should look into getting noise cancelling headphone. Not kidding by the way — I have a pair of Sony noise cancelling (not the flagship one but a much cheaper $150 pair) and it cancels out the coil whine from my Vega 64.
Noise cancelling is bliss when you're trying to concentrate on work too :)
That wouldn't fix the thermal throttling issue sadly. It's mainly a noise issue but also a heat issue too. I feel like the most easiest and efficient way is to simply buy a different graphics card. Looking at a 1070, is $350 an ok price for one?
For $350 it's an absolute steal, normally GTX 1070 is priced pretty high @ $579.00. Cheapest I've seen it is in the low $400's and that's crappy reference design.
Options :
RX580 8GB $280 (Good deal, considering getting this one)
RX590 $400 (No deals yet)
56 : $550 (No deals on it atm sadly)Where's the $280 deal for the RX 580 8Gb?
Local PLE has it but might be a store sale and not a sitewide sale. Is it a good deal though?
Thinking of buying it + selling the codes online + selling my RX480 and the final price for the card would be pretty low. I also would probably OC it so I could actually see a performance difference because with stock I'm not so sure I would lol.Oh yes I see here: https://www.ple.com.au/Products/628571/Gigabyte-Radeon-RX580…
Hadn't seen that price posted around anywhere else. Personally, I'm looking at some of the OC RX580 models but that looks like a good deal.@bgnhtr: Yeah it is
I've actually decided to buy a used 1070 as the guy below suggested and give up freesync. I don't want to go through all the hassle for a card where I won't get a performance gain. An OC'd 1070 should get me quite a bit compared to my reference RX480.
If freesync really does hit me hard enough I'll trade the 1070 for a vega in the future. I think it's my best option with my budget.
its usually best to match your gfx card to the "generation" of your pc. If you PC is old-ish, maybe a new top of the line gfx card isnt the best idea.
Maybe get a used previous gen AMD card for cheap off gumtree?
THis is what i did when my 780ti died the other week (5yr old card, 5yr old pc). Replaced it with a used 1060 (2 yrs old).
When it's time for a brand new pc (soooon) i'll get all new shiny thingsI have a Ryzen 5 1600 which is a unit with two extra cores unlocked so it's basically a 1700. I know for a fact that I can at least push up to a 1070/Vega 56 with it.
buy a second hand 1070 for less $ then all 3 options?
runs faster, uses less power, outputs less heat
I have a freesync monitor though. If I can get a 1070 around $350 is it a good enough deal to give up freesync? The 1070 is my best option because Vega cards are still rare used and if I buy anything else I won't get a performance boost. It's just a matter of freesync vs not.
Ah i see. What is your monitor and refresh rate?
This review might help you form an opinion
https://www.anandtech.com/show/9097/the-amd-freesync-review/…
for example, this excerpt
"One final topic to address is something that has become more noticeable to me over the past few months. While G-SYNC/FreeSync can make a big difference when frame rates are in the 40~75 FPS range, as you go beyond that point the benefits are a lot less clear. Take the 144Hz ASUS ROG Swift as an example. Even with G-SYNC disabled, the 144Hz refresh rate makes tearing rather difficult to spot, at least in my experience. Considering pixel response times for LCDs are not instantaneous and combine that with the way our human eyes and brain process the world and for all the hype I still think having high refresh rates with VSYNC disabled gets you 98% of the way to the goal of smooth gaming with no noticeable visual artifacts (at least for those of us without superhuman eyesight)."
40~75 FPS range, as you go beyond that point the benefits are a lot less clear.
I'm surprised to see that on Anandtech because I think G-sync is required at 100FPS. At 144Hz the benefits are less clear, but 75 - 100 it makes a massive difference IME unless I just notice tearing more than others or something.
@Diji1: I think I don't notice it as much as others. When I first got the monitor I didn't notice anything and I keep double checking everytime I install new drivers that it's actually turned on.
Here is my monitor :
https://www.jw.com.au/samsung-g73-24-curved-1ms-gaming-monit…
So high fps = less tearing correct? so the 1070 should not show as much tearing as if I went for a 1060 for example. I'm almost locked on the 1070 by now and if screen tearing is a problem I think I'll trade it for a vega. Seems like the best option to get the maximum performance for the least amount of money.@Ostrk: Well, the tearing is happening still but it's on the screen for too little time for you to see it at high FPS like 144.
This video explains tearing and all the ways to minimise it or avoid it
If you have two quiet, effective 120mm static pressure fans you could use them instead.
See if it's possible to remove the card shroud and fans, it's usually possible though it can be easy or difficult. Search Google and Youtube for your card or similar cards (same brand) to find out how.
If so, remove them and attach two quiet, effective 120 static pressure fans directly to the heatsink using zipties or wire and plug the fans into the card fan headers. Now you will have much more airflow with quieter fans.
Noctua make the best ones but they're not cheap and spending 100 bucks on fans is probably not worth it compared to selling and buying another card but if you have some spare ones or can find something else cheaper it might be.
I do not have any fans except the one that came with my case which I'm using for exhaust. I did consider buying an aftermarket GPU cooler from arctic cooling but it just seemed like such a hassle (every method I've seen does) and the most simplest and easiest thing to do is just to buy a new graphics card.
make sure the heat sink is seat properly on the chip, also replace the thermal pad on the vram.
vega is going to make you lose hearing in both ears if you use reference cards. I would recommend buying a morpheus cooler and sticking that on the RX480, it'll make it extremely quiet.
Yeah I'm never touching AMD reference cards again. I just live in the wrong place to own one. This morpheous cooler costs 1/3 of the price of a graphics card :/
I was thinking of buying a used 1070. Performance wise that's the best option because RX580/590 will make no difference and I don't want the heat and power draw of vega + they are impossible to find USED (can find new but not used). I found a seller who has seemed to kept his in stunning condition - no warranty but I'm really tempted to pay a high price like $350 for it.
580 or 56. Depends on what you feel you need better.
For the love of god avoid reference cards. Something like ASUS's STRIX card would be ideal. Just give a bit of research to make sure the card isn't loud/coolers work well.
Edit - Assuming you have/want freesync. If not, go for Nvidia. I'd assume lower power draw would result in less fan power needed most of the time anyway.
Hi thanks.
A few days ago I bought a 1070 used. For 325 which idk if it was a good price or not. I don't know how quiet it really is because I can barely even hear it over my CPU cooler which is fantastic. It's silent on idle because the fan doesn't spin and on load it stays at a cool 75c which may seem high but keep in mind my case has no airflow.
I do have freesync, however, I have yet to notice any tearing whatsoever even though I have played games in under 60fps. It's an MSI ITX card. It's small, takes little power and is quiet! very impressed.Nice to hear it worked out :)
Sort of yeah I may buy a new CPU cooler though just because the stock AM4 cooler is pretty noisy.
I'm a bit of a noise freak btw, definitely not a normal human. So I am over-exaggerating it heavily but it has gone to the point where it annoys me enough that I don't enjoy any of my games.