Top Video Cards – Introduction

Without question when you’re building a PC to play games, the single most important component you should be considering is your video card. Below we look at the top video cards at enthusiast and high-end level.

Integrated graphics have improved in the past few years but the performance offered by CPU-driven graphics is still miles and miles behind the performance a dedicated video card gives you.

A dedicated video card features a graphics processing unit that handles all of the detailed graphics commands and processes, leaving your CPU to handle everything else.

When you’re buying a video card make sure you read my guides and tables below before taking the plunge and spending your money.

The Pulsing Heart of Your Beast

When considering video cards you might think it’s an easy choice.

With only two main producers of GPU chips to choose from what could be easier?

Nvidia produces awesome cards under its GeForce consumer brand while AMD produces equally awesome cards under its Radeon brand.

Choosing which one of these brands will be powering your games should be simple, but each brand has a wide variety of cards aimed at different sections of the market, from entry-level to enthusiast-level video cards.

Some of them I would class as top video cards, others I wouldn’t.

Plus, Nvidia and AMD cards use slightly different technologies to process graphics.

For more detail on Nvidia’s CUDA cores and AMD’s stream processors keep reading.

What Do You Want?

So, ask yourself, are you building a budget gaming PC, or a custom gaming machine to dominate at 4K resolutions?

Once you know the answer to this you’ll be in a better position to decide on the card you should buy.

Contact me if you have any questions about the below tables of top video cards and the games they can handle.

Remember, installing a video card is easy, check the 20-second video below to see how:

Tables

In an effort to help cut through the jargon and simplify what can get complicated pretty quickly, I’ve designed two tables representing top tier or ‘Ultimate’ level video cards and next level ‘Optimum’ video cards.

This will be followed shortly with tables for mid-tier video cards and budget cards.

All of the cards in the tables below are VR-ready, and meet minimum requirements to enjoy the Oculus Rift or HTC Vive.

Check Out These Guides on Building an

Oculus-ready PC Vive-ready PC

Keep an eye on the site for more details or subscribe to the newsletter to be kept up to date with what we’re up to.

The two below tables of top video cards will answer the questions you should be asking when buying a video card.

For example:

How many power connectors does it need to run?

How long is the card and will it fit in my case?

What’s the video card’s recommended power supply?

For each card, remember you can hit the table’s ‘More Info’ button to get more details on the card and a short review.

Jump into the tables or keep reading for more tips on choosing which of these top video cards meets your requirements best.

Ultimate Video Cards

The cards in this table will handle games at 2560×1440 resolutions easily and will provide you with a fluid, beautiful gaming experience.

They will even handle games at 4K resolutions too (3840×2160) and look damn good doing it!

However, at 4K performance is likely to vary depending on what level of detail you set your games to.

The bottom line is that any one of these cards will future-proof you for the next few years.

Cards in this table start at around the $500 mark.

Graphics Card Core clock Video memory Power More info Buy Now! ASUS GTX TITAN X



1000MHz 12GB GDDR5 600W

More Info



However, builders should assess their budget and look at all the options. The performance the Titan X provides comes at a price.



What you get with the Titan X is a graphics card that should be future proof for the next 4-5 years. It’s true there’s not many games that utilise 12GB of video memory at the moment, but things are changing all the time and with 12GB of gaming power in your back pocket you can rest assured the Titan X will keep you gaming for the foreseeable future.

Chipset architecture Maxwell Length 10.5" CUDA cores 3072 Memory speed 7010MHz GPU power connectors 1 x 6-pin PCIe, 1 x 8-pin PCIe

This is an epic card. While it has a slower clock speed than the EVGA GTX 980 Ti it does have a massive 12GB of video memory. This means it can handle 4K gaming with ease and should easily be able to provide frame rates of 60 frames per second in the latest games at 4K resolutions.However, builders should assess their budget and look at all the options. The performance the Titan X provides comes at a price.What you get with the Titan X is a graphics card that should be future proof for the next 4-5 years. It’s true there’s not many games that utilise 12GB of video memory at the moment, but things are changing all the time and with 12GB of gaming power in your back pocket you can rest assured the Titan X will keep you gaming for the foreseeable future.

BUY EVGA GTX 980 Ti Super Clocked



1102MHz 6GB GDDR5 600W

More Info



It has a base clock speed of 1102MHz, but a boost speed of 1190MHz.



This card will be able to handle pretty much everything you throw at it at 60 frames per second or above on 2560×1440 resolutions, and will also get you decent frame rates at 4K resolutions too.

Chipset architecture Maxwell Length 10.5" CUDA cores 2816 Memory speed 7010MHz GPU power connectors 1 x 6-pin PCIe, 1 x 8-pin PCIe

This card offers buyers 4K gaming out of the box. The Super Clocked edition of EVGA’s GTX 980 Ti also features EVGA’s ‘ACX 2.0’ cooling technology which the firm claims allows the card to run cooler and quieter than the base card.It has a base clock speed of 1102MHz, but a boost speed of 1190MHz.This card will be able to handle pretty much everything you throw at it at 60 frames per second or above on 2560×1440 resolutions, and will also get you decent frame rates at 4K resolutions too.

BUY Sapphire R9 Fury X



1050MHz 4GB HBM 750W

More Info



Instead of GDDR5 memory the Fury X benefits from high bandwidth memory or HBM.



This works by increasing the memory’s throughput. So, while there is not as much physical video memory as the GTX 980 Ti and TITAN X, the memory it does have is processing a much higher volume of data at any given time. The memory bit rate of the GTX 980 Ti is 384 Bits, by comparison the Fury X memory bit rate is a colossal 4096 Bits.



The Fury X can easily handle 4K gaming and runs everything you throw at it at 2560×1440 resolution without any problems.

Chipset architecture Fiji Length 8.25" Stream processors 4096 Memory speed 1000MHz GPU power connectors 2 x 8-pin PCIe

The Fury X is AMD’s answer to the GTX 980 Ti and TITAN X. Much smaller than the Nvidia cards it includes its own ‘all-in-one’ water cooling unit, that helps keep the hardware cool no matter what your are playing.Instead of GDDR5 memory the Fury X benefits from high bandwidth memory or HBM.This works by increasing the memory’s throughput. So, while there is not as much physical video memory as the GTX 980 Ti and TITAN X, the memory it does have is processing a much higher volume of data at any given time. The memory bit rate of the GTX 980 Ti is 384 Bits, by comparison the Fury X memory bit rate is a colossal 4096 Bits.The Fury X can easily handle 4K gaming and runs everything you throw at it at 2560×1440 resolution without any problems.

BUY Sapphire Radeon R9 Fury



1050MHz 4GB HBM 750W

More Info



The card uses high bandwidth memory (HBM) instead of standard video memory. The benefit of this is that it is able to push through a much higher volume of data when processing graphics than the GTX 980 Ti or TITAN X, which have more physical memory on the card, but which operates at a slower speed.



As with the Fury X the Fury handles games at 2560×1440 resolutions with ease and is no slouch when it comes to 4K gaming either.

Chipset architecture Fiji Length 14.7"" Stream processors 3584 Memory speed 1000MHz GPU power connectors 2 x 8-pin PCIe

Compared to the R9 Fury X this is a much bigger card. It uses air cooling instead of the built-in water cooler that features on the Fury X, relying on 3 fans to keep things cool.The card uses high bandwidth memory (HBM) instead of standard video memory. The benefit of this is that it is able to push through a much higher volume of data when processing graphics than the GTX 980 Ti or TITAN X, which have more physical memory on the card, but which operates at a slower speed.As with the Fury X the Fury handles games at 2560×1440 resolutions with ease and is no slouch when it comes to 4K gaming either.

BUY Gigabyte AMD Radeon R9 NANO



1000MHz 4GB HBM 600W

More Info



The small form factor card also benefits from AMD’s high bandwidth memory (HBM) which allows it to process data much quicker than standard video memory.



While it can run games at 4K resolutions, this card is better suited to 2560×1440 resolution gaming.

Chipset architecture Fiji Length 6" Stream processors 4096 Memory speed 1000MHz GPU power connectors 1 x 8-pin PCIe

The R9 Nano was designed with compact PC builders in mind. Compared to the GTX 980 Ti, TITAN X and the Sapphire R9 Fury this card is tiny, and easily fits into micro ATX and mini-ITX style cases.The small form factor card also benefits from AMD’s high bandwidth memory (HBM) which allows it to process data much quicker than standard video memory.While it can run games at 4K resolutions, this card is better suited to 2560×1440 resolution gaming.

BUY

Optimum Video Cards

The cards in this table will all comfortably get you gaming at 1920×1080 resolution, and some of them will handle 2560×1440 exceptionally well too.

At a push some of them will even handle 4K, though you might need to dial the detail settings down a couple of notches.

Cards in this table start at around the $300 mark.

Graphics Card Core clock Video memory Power More info Buy Now! EVGA GTX 980 Gaming ACX2.0



1266MHz 4GB GDDR5 500W

More Info

This card benefits from EVGA’s custom cooling solution ACX2.0. The company claims this means the two custom fans help reduce temperatures and noise by 26% and 36% respectively.



The card supports 3 x DisplayPort connectors, 1 x HDMI 2.0 and 1 x DVI-I DL.



The GTX 980 is capable of handling 4K games but is better suited to gaming at 2560x1440p resolutions. Gaming at the lower resolution means you will see higher frame rates and be able to play at higher detail levels.

Chipset architecture Maxwell Length 10.5" CUDA cores 2048 Memory speed 7010MHz GPU power connectors 2 x 6-pin PCIe

This card benefits from EVGA’s custom cooling solution ACX2.0. The company claims this means the two custom fans help reduce temperatures and noise by 26% and 36% respectively.The card supports 3 x DisplayPort connectors, 1 x HDMI 2.0 and 1 x DVI-I DL.The GTX 980 is capable of handling 4K games but is better suited to gaming at 2560x1440p resolutions. Gaming at the lower resolution means you will see higher frame rates and be able to play at higher detail levels.

BUY EVGA GTX 970



1216MHz 4GB GDDR5 500W

More Info

This is more of a budget option compared to the GTX 980. You get less CUDA cores, which equates to less graphical processing power. The plus side is that you still get unbelievable performance at 1920x1080p resolutions and decent performance at 2560x1440p.



So, the question really is what resolution are you aiming to game at? If it’s 1920x1080p this card will help you dominate the latest titles, and should easily help you push games up to the 60 frames per second sweet spot.



If it’s higher choose something else.

Chipset architecture Maxwell Length 10.5" CUDA cores 1664 Memory speed 7010MHz GPU power connectors 2 x 6-pin PCIe

This is more of a budget option compared to the GTX 980. You get less CUDA cores, which equates to less graphical processing power. The plus side is that you still get unbelievable performance at 1920x1080p resolutions and decent performance at 2560x1440p.So, the question really is what resolution are you aiming to game at? If it’s 1920x1080p this card will help you dominate the latest titles, and should easily help you push games up to the 60 frames per second sweet spot.If it’s higher choose something else.

BUY MSI R9 390x



1050MHz 8GB GDDR5 750W

More Info

AMD’s cards in this category all have a slower memory clock compared to Nvidia’s offerings. However, what each of them lack in memory clock speed they MORE than make up for in video memory. MSI’s R9 390x is no exception, and comes with a massive 8GB of video ram.



This means gaming at 2560x1440p resolution becomes a fluid and beautiful experience, with 60 frames per second (and beyond) achievable in all of the latest games. The extra video memory also means this card is more than comfortable at handling 4K titles. Although its performance at this resolution is not as strong as a GTX 980 Ti or R9 Fury X, it definitely has the upper hand when compared against the GTX 980 when gaming at 4K.



This card should really be considered as an option for 2560x1440p gaming and above, gaming at 1920x1080p is easy and doesn’t really stretch this card at all. If you’re only planning on gaming at this lower resolution you might be better off looking at a slightly lower specced card.



Under normal PC operation the fans on the card remain off, and only start spinning up when you start gaming. Even then though they’re reasonably quiet.

Chipset architecture Grenada XT Length 10.5" Stream processors 2816 Memory speed 6100MHz GPU power connectors 1 x 8-pin PCIe, 1 x 6-pin PCIe

AMD’s cards in this category all have a slower memory clock compared to Nvidia’s offerings. However, what each of them lack in memory clock speed they MORE than make up for in video memory. MSI’s R9 390x is no exception, and comes with a massive 8GB of video ram.This means gaming at 2560x1440p resolution becomes a fluid and beautiful experience, with 60 frames per second (and beyond) achievable in all of the latest games. The extra video memory also means this card is more than comfortable at handling 4K titles. Although its performance at this resolution is not as strong as a GTX 980 Ti or R9 Fury X, it definitely has the upper hand when compared against the GTX 980 when gaming at 4K.This card should really be considered as an option for 2560x1440p gaming and above, gaming at 1920x1080p is easy and doesn’t really stretch this card at all. If you’re only planning on gaming at this lower resolution you might be better off looking at a slightly lower specced card.Under normal PC operation the fans on the card remain off, and only start spinning up when you start gaming. Even then though they’re reasonably quiet.

BUY Sapphire R9 390x



1080MHz 8GB GDDR5 750W

More Info

The second R9 390X in this table is no slouch in the performance stakes either. As with MSI’s version of the card, Sapphire’s version boasts a huge 8GB of video memory that makes running games at 2560x1440p resolutions easy, and 4K gaming achievable (although at lower frame rates).



However, physically this is a very large card stretching to 12″ long and requiring a case with masses of space.



The extra length is down to Sapphire’s inclusion of a triple-fan cooling system that helps drive temperatures down. Despite having three fans, they all feature dual ball bearings in the spindles, which helps reduce fan noise and improve efficiency. Intelligent design means they only operate when needed.

Chipset architecture Grenada XT Length 12" Stream processors 2816 Memory speed 6000MHz GPU power connectors 2 x 8-pin PCIe

The second R9 390X in this table is no slouch in the performance stakes either. As with MSI’s version of the card, Sapphire’s version boasts a huge 8GB of video memory that makes running games at 2560x1440p resolutions easy, and 4K gaming achievable (although at lower frame rates).However, physically this is a very large card stretching to 12″ long and requiring a case with masses of space.The extra length is down to Sapphire’s inclusion of a triple-fan cooling system that helps drive temperatures down. Despite having three fans, they all feature dual ball bearings in the spindles, which helps reduce fan noise and improve efficiency. Intelligent design means they only operate when needed.

BUY XFX R9 390



1015MHz 8GB GDDR5 750W

More Info

XFX’s offering is the R9 390 ‘Double Dissipation’ video card. Slightly slower than the ‘X’ version of the card it still boasts 8GB of video memory.



Dropping the ‘X’ from the name has one clear benefit. Price. The R9 390 is generally much cheaper than the 390X. So, budget conscious builders will be able to invest the money they save on their video card into another element of their system.



Like most of the cards in this category the card benefits from dual fans. The Double Dissipation features of the card include 7 extended pipes to help remove heat from the GPU, with minimal noise, and what XFX calls the ‘Ghost’ open thermal design, which the company says helps keep things running at low temperatures.

Chipset architecture Grenada Length 10" Stream processors 2560 Memory speed 6000MHz GPU power connectors 1 x 8-pin PCIe, 1 x 6-pin PCIe

XFX’s offering is the R9 390 ‘Double Dissipation’ video card. Slightly slower than the ‘X’ version of the card it still boasts 8GB of video memory.Dropping the ‘X’ from the name has one clear benefit. Price. The R9 390 is generally much cheaper than the 390X. So, budget conscious builders will be able to invest the money they save on their video card into another element of their system.Like most of the cards in this category the card benefits from dual fans. The Double Dissipation features of the card include 7 extended pipes to help remove heat from the GPU, with minimal noise, and what XFX calls the ‘Ghost’ open thermal design, which the company says helps keep things running at low temperatures.

BUY Gigabyte GTX 980



1241MHz 4GB GDDR5 600W

More Info

Gigabyte’s GTX 980 benefits from solid build design with a strong backplate to help keep it firmly fixed into your system. It’s another long card, so builders should ensure their case has enough room to fit it.



It includes Gigabyte’s Windforce triple fan solution that keeps the card running very quietly even under full load.



This card will allow you to comfortable game at 2560x1440p resolutions and will even handle 4K resolutions. However, bear in mind frame rates will be a fair bit lower at 4K.

Chipset architecture Maxwell Length 11" CUDA cores 2048 Memory speed 7010MHz GPU power connectors 2 x 8-pin PCIe

Gigabyte’s GTX 980 benefits from solid build design with a strong backplate to help keep it firmly fixed into your system. It’s another long card, so builders should ensure their case has enough room to fit it.It includes Gigabyte’s Windforce triple fan solution that keeps the card running very quietly even under full load.This card will allow you to comfortable game at 2560x1440p resolutions and will even handle 4K resolutions. However, bear in mind frame rates will be a fair bit lower at 4K.

BUY

Deciding Factors

Despite research, the deciding factor for most of us when investing in a new piece of hardware is often price.

As such, to try and keep things as simple as possible, I’ve defined Ultimate cards as those that have a starting price of $500, while Optimum cards have a starting price of around $300.

Note, prices are changing all the time, and as new cards are released onto the market, they’ll change again and we’ll have a new series of top video cards to choose from.

Ask Yourself

Before buying there’s a few things you should ask yourself:

What’s my budget? What resolution do I want to game at? What types of games will I be playing? Do I want to max every game’s graphics out as much as possible?

Your answers to the above questions will help you choose the video card you should be looking at.

Let’s look at the above points in a little more detail to see what bearing they might have on the type of card you choose.

Budget

I’ve said it once and I’ll say it again, when looking at the different types of top video cards available on the market you need to consider price.

It’s normally the biggest deciding factor when most of us make a hardware purchase.

As such set yourself a target price and stick to it.

You should be planning to invest around 30% of your total PC building budget on the video card (though many people spend more).

I know it can be difficult, especially when looking at the sheer volume of video cards out there, but if you break your budget you can start down a slippery slope, and before you know it you could be making an impulse purchase on a video card you know nothing about.

Take a look at the budget gaming builds guide on this site and also the VR guide and custom gaming PC (high-end) guide.

These will give you some ideas of the types of system you can craft for a given dollar value.

I’ve got builds on the site that range from $250 budget build up to a $5,000 ‘Dominator’ build – so there’s plenty of choice.

Check these guides to see a variety of different priced builds:

Screen Resolution

This is massive, and is often overlooked by people building their first gaming PC.

Screen resolution is the number of pixels your monitor will display on its screen.

The most common resolution for PC gaming is 1920×1080, but more and more people are embracing 2560×1440 and 4K resolution monitors, that is 3840×2160.

The numbers represent the number of pixels horizontally and vertically that are displayed on your monitor.

A higher number of pixels requires a higher degree of processing power from your video card, in order to run smoothly and deliver an optimum gaming performance of 60 frames per second.

So, before buying your card ask yourself what resolution you want to game at.

All of the top video cards in the below tables will seamlessly handle 1920×1080 gaming, with most of them providing fantastic performance at 2560×1440 and the cards in the Ultimate table will comfortably handle 4K gaming.

There are other considerations to make when choosing a monitor, including whether you should invest in a FreeSync or G-Sync display.

These displays synchronize the framerate that is displayed and mean you can game at an unbroken 60 frames per second or above, leading to beautiful and fluid performance.

The Games

Are you a real-time strategy fan, or would you prefer a quick game of CS:GO? Do you like first-person adventure games or driving and racing simulators?

Do you play Minecraft most days but occasionally play newer titles like Doom and Rise of the Tomb Raider?

Before you choose a video card ask yourself: what am I going to play?

Chances are if it’s just going to be a quick blast on

Star Wars: Battlefront, your requirements are going to be very different to a video card that can handle Total War: Warhammer at full settings and high resolutions.

Check the links in the text above to see video cards that can handle these games.

This might give you some ideas about what it is that you need.

Maximum

If you’re looking to max out games at their highest detail settings, first decide what screen resolution you plan to game at then look at the tables on this page.

Any of the top video cards included in the ultimate table will be able to max games out at the highest level of detail and resolutions.

These cards also represent a solid future investment and will likely ensure you’re able to enjoy the latest games for the next couple of years.

Ultimate Video Cards

Remember to click the ‘More Info’ button for more details and a short review of the card.

Cards in this table start at around the $500 mark.

Graphics Card Core clock Video memory Power More info Buy Now! ASUS GTX TITAN X



1000MHz 12GB GDDR5 600W

More Info



However, builders should assess their budget and look at all the options. The performance the Titan X provides comes at a price.



What you get with the Titan X is a graphics card that should be future proof for the next 4-5 years. It’s true there’s not many games that utilise 12GB of video memory at the moment, but things are changing all the time and with 12GB of gaming power in your back pocket you can rest assured the Titan X will keep you gaming for the foreseeable future.

Chipset architecture Maxwell Length 10.5" CUDA cores 3072 Memory speed 7010MHz GPU power connectors 1 x 6-pin PCIe, 1 x 8-pin PCIe

This is an epic card. While it has a slower clock speed than the EVGA GTX 980 Ti it does have a massive 12GB of video memory. This means it can handle 4K gaming with ease and should easily be able to provide frame rates of 60 frames per second in the latest games at 4K resolutions.However, builders should assess their budget and look at all the options. The performance the Titan X provides comes at a price.What you get with the Titan X is a graphics card that should be future proof for the next 4-5 years. It’s true there’s not many games that utilise 12GB of video memory at the moment, but things are changing all the time and with 12GB of gaming power in your back pocket you can rest assured the Titan X will keep you gaming for the foreseeable future.

BUY EVGA GTX 980 Ti Super Clocked



1102MHz 6GB GDDR5 600W

More Info



It has a base clock speed of 1102MHz, but a boost speed of 1190MHz.



This card will be able to handle pretty much everything you throw at it at 60 frames per second or above on 2560×1440 resolutions, and will also get you decent frame rates at 4K resolutions too.

Chipset architecture Maxwell Length 10.5" CUDA cores 2816 Memory speed 7010MHz GPU power connectors 1 x 6-pin PCIe, 1 x 8-pin PCIe

This card offers buyers 4K gaming out of the box. The Super Clocked edition of EVGA’s GTX 980 Ti also features EVGA’s ‘ACX 2.0’ cooling technology which the firm claims allows the card to run cooler and quieter than the base card.It has a base clock speed of 1102MHz, but a boost speed of 1190MHz.This card will be able to handle pretty much everything you throw at it at 60 frames per second or above on 2560×1440 resolutions, and will also get you decent frame rates at 4K resolutions too.

BUY Sapphire R9 Fury X



1050MHz 4GB HBM 750W

More Info



Instead of GDDR5 memory the Fury X benefits from high bandwidth memory or HBM.



This works by increasing the memory’s throughput. So, while there is not as much physical video memory as the GTX 980 Ti and TITAN X, the memory it does have is processing a much higher volume of data at any given time. The memory bit rate of the GTX 980 Ti is 384 Bits, by comparison the Fury X memory bit rate is a colossal 4096 Bits.



The Fury X can easily handle 4K gaming and runs everything you throw at it at 2560×1440 resolution without any problems.

Chipset architecture Fiji Length 8.25" Stream processors 4096 Memory speed 1000MHz GPU power connectors 2 x 8-pin PCIe

The Fury X is AMD’s answer to the GTX 980 Ti and TITAN X. Much smaller than the Nvidia cards it includes its own ‘all-in-one’ water cooling unit, that helps keep the hardware cool no matter what your are playing.Instead of GDDR5 memory the Fury X benefits from high bandwidth memory or HBM.This works by increasing the memory’s throughput. So, while there is not as much physical video memory as the GTX 980 Ti and TITAN X, the memory it does have is processing a much higher volume of data at any given time. The memory bit rate of the GTX 980 Ti is 384 Bits, by comparison the Fury X memory bit rate is a colossal 4096 Bits.The Fury X can easily handle 4K gaming and runs everything you throw at it at 2560×1440 resolution without any problems.

BUY Sapphire Radeon R9 Fury



1050MHz 4GB HBM 750W

More Info



The card uses high bandwidth memory (HBM) instead of standard video memory. The benefit of this is that it is able to push through a much higher volume of data when processing graphics than the GTX 980 Ti or TITAN X, which have more physical memory on the card, but which operates at a slower speed.



As with the Fury X the Fury handles games at 2560×1440 resolutions with ease and is no slouch when it comes to 4K gaming either.

Chipset architecture Fiji Length 14.7"" Stream processors 3584 Memory speed 1000MHz GPU power connectors 2 x 8-pin PCIe

Compared to the R9 Fury X this is a much bigger card. It uses air cooling instead of the built-in water cooler that features on the Fury X, relying on 3 fans to keep things cool.The card uses high bandwidth memory (HBM) instead of standard video memory. The benefit of this is that it is able to push through a much higher volume of data when processing graphics than the GTX 980 Ti or TITAN X, which have more physical memory on the card, but which operates at a slower speed.As with the Fury X the Fury handles games at 2560×1440 resolutions with ease and is no slouch when it comes to 4K gaming either.

BUY Gigabyte AMD Radeon R9 NANO



1000MHz 4GB HBM 600W

More Info



The small form factor card also benefits from AMD’s high bandwidth memory (HBM) which allows it to process data much quicker than standard video memory.



While it can run games at 4K resolutions, this card is better suited to 2560×1440 resolution gaming.

Chipset architecture Fiji Length 6" Stream processors 4096 Memory speed 1000MHz GPU power connectors 1 x 8-pin PCIe

The R9 Nano was designed with compact PC builders in mind. Compared to the GTX 980 Ti, TITAN X and the Sapphire R9 Fury this card is tiny, and easily fits into micro ATX and mini-ITX style cases.The small form factor card also benefits from AMD’s high bandwidth memory (HBM) which allows it to process data much quicker than standard video memory.While it can run games at 4K resolutions, this card is better suited to 2560×1440 resolution gaming.

BUY

Optimum Video Cards

Remember to click the ‘More Info’ button for more details and a short review of the card.

Cards in this table start at around the $300 mark.

Graphics Card Core clock Video memory Power More info Buy Now! EVGA GTX 980 Gaming ACX2.0



1266MHz 4GB GDDR5 500W

More Info

This card benefits from EVGA’s custom cooling solution ACX2.0. The company claims this means the two custom fans help reduce temperatures and noise by 26% and 36% respectively.



The card supports 3 x DisplayPort connectors, 1 x HDMI 2.0 and 1 x DVI-I DL.



The GTX 980 is capable of handling 4K games but is better suited to gaming at 2560x1440p resolutions. Gaming at the lower resolution means you will see higher frame rates and be able to play at higher detail levels.

Chipset architecture Maxwell Length 10.5" CUDA cores 2048 Memory speed 7010MHz GPU power connectors 2 x 6-pin PCIe

This card benefits from EVGA’s custom cooling solution ACX2.0. The company claims this means the two custom fans help reduce temperatures and noise by 26% and 36% respectively.The card supports 3 x DisplayPort connectors, 1 x HDMI 2.0 and 1 x DVI-I DL.The GTX 980 is capable of handling 4K games but is better suited to gaming at 2560x1440p resolutions. Gaming at the lower resolution means you will see higher frame rates and be able to play at higher detail levels.

BUY EVGA GTX 970



1216MHz 4GB GDDR5 500W

More Info

This is more of a budget option compared to the GTX 980. You get less CUDA cores, which equates to less graphical processing power. The plus side is that you still get unbelievable performance at 1920x1080p resolutions and decent performance at 2560x1440p.



So, the question really is what resolution are you aiming to game at? If it’s 1920x1080p this card will help you dominate the latest titles, and should easily help you push games up to the 60 frames per second sweet spot.



If it’s higher choose something else.

Chipset architecture Maxwell Length 10.5" CUDA cores 1664 Memory speed 7010MHz GPU power connectors 2 x 6-pin PCIe

This is more of a budget option compared to the GTX 980. You get less CUDA cores, which equates to less graphical processing power. The plus side is that you still get unbelievable performance at 1920x1080p resolutions and decent performance at 2560x1440p.So, the question really is what resolution are you aiming to game at? If it’s 1920x1080p this card will help you dominate the latest titles, and should easily help you push games up to the 60 frames per second sweet spot.If it’s higher choose something else.

BUY MSI R9 390x



1050MHz 8GB GDDR5 750W

More Info

AMD’s cards in this category all have a slower memory clock compared to Nvidia’s offerings. However, what each of them lack in memory clock speed they MORE than make up for in video memory. MSI’s R9 390x is no exception, and comes with a massive 8GB of video ram.



This means gaming at 2560x1440p resolution becomes a fluid and beautiful experience, with 60 frames per second (and beyond) achievable in all of the latest games. The extra video memory also means this card is more than comfortable at handling 4K titles. Although its performance at this resolution is not as strong as a GTX 980 Ti or R9 Fury X, it definitely has the upper hand when compared against the GTX 980 when gaming at 4K.



This card should really be considered as an option for 2560x1440p gaming and above, gaming at 1920x1080p is easy and doesn’t really stretch this card at all. If you’re only planning on gaming at this lower resolution you might be better off looking at a slightly lower specced card.



Under normal PC operation the fans on the card remain off, and only start spinning up when you start gaming. Even then though they’re reasonably quiet.

Chipset architecture Grenada XT Length 10.5" Stream processors 2816 Memory speed 6100MHz GPU power connectors 1 x 8-pin PCIe, 1 x 6-pin PCIe

AMD’s cards in this category all have a slower memory clock compared to Nvidia’s offerings. However, what each of them lack in memory clock speed they MORE than make up for in video memory. MSI’s R9 390x is no exception, and comes with a massive 8GB of video ram.This means gaming at 2560x1440p resolution becomes a fluid and beautiful experience, with 60 frames per second (and beyond) achievable in all of the latest games. The extra video memory also means this card is more than comfortable at handling 4K titles. Although its performance at this resolution is not as strong as a GTX 980 Ti or R9 Fury X, it definitely has the upper hand when compared against the GTX 980 when gaming at 4K.This card should really be considered as an option for 2560x1440p gaming and above, gaming at 1920x1080p is easy and doesn’t really stretch this card at all. If you’re only planning on gaming at this lower resolution you might be better off looking at a slightly lower specced card.Under normal PC operation the fans on the card remain off, and only start spinning up when you start gaming. Even then though they’re reasonably quiet.

BUY Sapphire R9 390x



1080MHz 8GB GDDR5 750W

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The second R9 390X in this table is no slouch in the performance stakes either. As with MSI’s version of the card, Sapphire’s version boasts a huge 8GB of video memory that makes running games at 2560x1440p resolutions easy, and 4K gaming achievable (although at lower frame rates).



However, physically this is a very large card stretching to 12″ long and requiring a case with masses of space.



The extra length is down to Sapphire’s inclusion of a triple-fan cooling system that helps drive temperatures down. Despite having three fans, they all feature dual ball bearings in the spindles, which helps reduce fan noise and improve efficiency. Intelligent design means they only operate when needed.

Chipset architecture Grenada XT Length 12" Stream processors 2816 Memory speed 6000MHz GPU power connectors 2 x 8-pin PCIe

The second R9 390X in this table is no slouch in the performance stakes either. As with MSI’s version of the card, Sapphire’s version boasts a huge 8GB of video memory that makes running games at 2560x1440p resolutions easy, and 4K gaming achievable (although at lower frame rates).However, physically this is a very large card stretching to 12″ long and requiring a case with masses of space.The extra length is down to Sapphire’s inclusion of a triple-fan cooling system that helps drive temperatures down. Despite having three fans, they all feature dual ball bearings in the spindles, which helps reduce fan noise and improve efficiency. Intelligent design means they only operate when needed.

BUY XFX R9 390



1015MHz 8GB GDDR5 750W

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XFX’s offering is the R9 390 ‘Double Dissipation’ video card. Slightly slower than the ‘X’ version of the card it still boasts 8GB of video memory.



Dropping the ‘X’ from the name has one clear benefit. Price. The R9 390 is generally much cheaper than the 390X. So, budget conscious builders will be able to invest the money they save on their video card into another element of their system.



Like most of the cards in this category the card benefits from dual fans. The Double Dissipation features of the card include 7 extended pipes to help remove heat from the GPU, with minimal noise, and what XFX calls the ‘Ghost’ open thermal design, which the company says helps keep things running at low temperatures.

Chipset architecture Grenada Length 10" Stream processors 2560 Memory speed 6000MHz GPU power connectors 1 x 8-pin PCIe, 1 x 6-pin PCIe

XFX’s offering is the R9 390 ‘Double Dissipation’ video card. Slightly slower than the ‘X’ version of the card it still boasts 8GB of video memory.Dropping the ‘X’ from the name has one clear benefit. Price. The R9 390 is generally much cheaper than the 390X. So, budget conscious builders will be able to invest the money they save on their video card into another element of their system.Like most of the cards in this category the card benefits from dual fans. The Double Dissipation features of the card include 7 extended pipes to help remove heat from the GPU, with minimal noise, and what XFX calls the ‘Ghost’ open thermal design, which the company says helps keep things running at low temperatures.

BUY Gigabyte GTX 980



1241MHz 4GB GDDR5 600W

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Gigabyte’s GTX 980 benefits from solid build design with a strong backplate to help keep it firmly fixed into your system. It’s another long card, so builders should ensure their case has enough room to fit it.



It includes Gigabyte’s Windforce triple fan solution that keeps the card running very quietly even under full load.



This card will allow you to comfortable game at 2560x1440p resolutions and will even handle 4K resolutions. However, bear in mind frame rates will be a fair bit lower at 4K.

Chipset architecture Maxwell Length 11" CUDA cores 2048 Memory speed 7010MHz GPU power connectors 2 x 8-pin PCIe

Gigabyte’s GTX 980 benefits from solid build design with a strong backplate to help keep it firmly fixed into your system. It’s another long card, so builders should ensure their case has enough room to fit it.It includes Gigabyte’s Windforce triple fan solution that keeps the card running very quietly even under full load.This card will allow you to comfortable game at 2560x1440p resolutions and will even handle 4K resolutions. However, bear in mind frame rates will be a fair bit lower at 4K.

BUY

What are CUDA cores? Nvidia technology explained (as simply as possible!)

A CUDA core is essentially a very focused processor that solely works to convert graphical instructions it receives into video output. CUDA cores are designed to perform calculations as a group, so the more CUDA cores your video card has the better its video performance.

The number of CUDA cores on a video card can vary greatly. Generally speaking though the more CUDA cores the card contains the better its video performance.

CUDA stands for Compute Unified Device Architecture. It is a programming interface developed by Nvidia and lets developers code graphics for Nvidia video cards, and accelerates GPU processing power.

What are stream processors? AMD technology explained (as simply as possible!)

Like CUDA cores, stream processors excel at performing calculations as a group. So, generally speaking as with CUDA cores the more stream processors a card has the better its performance.

The big difference is the stream processors are simpler than their CUDA counterparts, and run on a lower frequency.

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Further Reading

If you’re interested in top video cards and other custom gaming PC systems and components, please check out my other guides, or for the latest news and reviews head to the blog.

If you have any questions about any of these top video cards, or would like recommendations on other components or hardware you could use, drop me a line on Twitter, send me a picture on Instagram, or join my community on Facebook.

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