# Gpu + smps + ups upgrade



## NeedToKnow (Sep 2, 2014)

Dear all ,

I am in the process of a upgrade for the following 3 items 

1. ups
2. gpu
3. smps

But first things first - my present config :
i3 540
gigabyte h55m-s2 MB
seagate 1 tb 5400 rpm
trascend 1333mhz 4 gb ram
sapphire hd5450 2 gb gpu

i would like my upgrade in the following order
1. ups (my numeric 600 ex breathed its last ) 2. SMPS 3. GPU

ALL these purchases would be done in 2-3 months time frame keeping the GPU in mind
so the gpu - budget - 20k - 22 k - ideally looking at r9 280x or the gtx 760 - purpose would be gaming in mid to high level settings in new games like BF3/4 for the next 2-3 years... please suggest specific make .... and also any guidelines as to what should be my choice in this budget . Also pls let me know if there is any upcoming models that need to be waited for . I hear amd just released the 285 ... not sure of the performance though . Also Pls comment on any sort of bottlenecking issues i might face .

smps - the smps should be able to support the gpu - ideally looking at seasonic s12II 620w or the Seasonic M12II-750 EVO
PLS suggest - budget 8k max

ups - should provide voltage correction in the range 140-250v and work with the proposed load providing backup for atleast 30 mins - ideally looking at APC Back-UPS 1100(BR1100CI-IN) or the APC Power-Saving Back-UPS Pro 1000 with LCD(BR1000G-IN) or the Microteck twin guard plus - budget 8500 max

pls be kind enough to suggest any other models and make that might be better choice in my budget .


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## NeedToKnow (Sep 4, 2014)

NeedToKnow said:


> Dear all ,
> 
> I am in the process of a upgrade for the following 3 items
> 
> ...




oh and 1 more thing - i am currently running a 19" monitor - 1600x900 resolution

waiting for your replies


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## topgear (Sep 5, 2014)

2-3 months is a long time and by then you will see nvidia 9xx series gpus and rival amd gpus on the market so your decision of getting a R9 280x / GTX 760 might change.

Now about bottleneck : your cpu is not too suitable to get the most out of gpus in R9 280/ 285's league so better upgrade to i5 4xxx based config if you can. If you are not planning for multi gpu setup then 620w is more than enough ... even 520W will do just fine.

Go for APC ups without any second thought.


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## NeedToKnow (Sep 5, 2014)

topgear said:


> 2-3 months is a long time and by then you will see nvidia 9xx series gpus and rival amd gpus on the market so your decision of getting a R9 280x / GTX 760 might change.
> 
> Now about bottleneck : your cpu is not too suitable to get the most out of gpus in R9 280/ 285's league so better upgrade to i5 4xxx based config if you can. If you are not planning for multi gpu setup then 620w is more than enough ... even 520W will do just fine.
> 
> Go for APC ups without any second thought.



thanks for your valued comment : which apc were u speaking of APC Back-UPS 1100(BR1100CI-IN) or the APC Power-Saving Back-UPS Pro 1000 with LCD(BR1000G-IN) ... any way in future if i am to upgrade my cpu (because of bottlenecking issues) which might also include my mob(1156) .. would 620 watts still be enough ? 
and since the gpu comes third in the list of purchases ... i would not like to regret that if i had a smps x then i would be able to run that gpu .... guess i am able to fully express myself


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## topgear (Sep 6, 2014)

1000 or 1100VA either way you can't go wrong. I can understand your concern about the PSU and if you are not planning on a multi gpu setup or dual gpu card in the future then 620W ought to be enough.


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## NeedToKnow (Sep 7, 2014)

topgear said:


> 1000 or 1100VA either way you can't go wrong. I can understand your concern about the PSU and if you are not planning on a multi gpu setup or dual gpu card in the future then 620W ought to be enough.



thanks for your clarification 
i think i would go with the apc br1100ci-in ...... comes around 5300/- as per online sources ..... also about 2k cheaper than the backup pro 1000 option .... no need of an lcd display in providing battery backup ... right ? what's your opinion .

btw since u mentioned that my i3 540 might face some bottlenecking issues ...... it being a lga 1156 socket one i will have to also change my mob when i try to upgrade my cpu. .... on that thought ..... what should be the psu ratings for a sli system(2 gpu) ?


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## NeedToKnow (Sep 19, 2014)

NeedToKnow said:


> thanks for your clarification
> i think i would go with the apc br1100ci-in ...... comes around 5300/- as per online sources ..... also about 2k cheaper than the backup pro 1000 option .... no need of an lcd display in providing battery backup ... right ? what's your opinion .
> 
> btw since u mentioned that my i3 540 might face some bottlenecking issues ...... it being a lga 1156 socket one i will have to also change my mob when i try to upgrade my cpu. .... on that thought ..... what should be the psu ratings for a sli system(2 gpu) ?




answers please ......


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## topgear (Sep 19, 2014)

That LCD display shows some useful infos but you can live without it. If you want to build a SLI system do post what cpu and gpu you have in mind.


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## Tech_Wiz (Sep 19, 2014)

NeedToKnow said:


> thanks for your clarification
> 
> btw since u mentioned that my i3 540 might face some bottlenecking issues ...... it being a lga 1156 socket one i will have to also change my mob when i try to upgrade my cpu. .... on that thought ..... what should be the psu ratings for a sli system(2 gpu) ?



Welcome to Intel Club. Its frustrating 

For SLI/CF Thing better get 850W+ PSU minimum. Btw for a Single Monitor Setup SLI is useless. Better use a single good card than 2 puny ones in SLI.


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## NeedToKnow (Sep 24, 2014)

done with my shopping
apc br1100ci-in ---> 5250 + 5%vat
corsair rm 750 ---> 7900 + 5% vat

hope i made the correct choice


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## NeedToKnow (Oct 2, 2014)

NeedToKnow said:


> done with my shopping
> apc br1100ci-in ---> 5250 + 5%vat
> corsair rm 750 ---> 7900 + 5% vat
> 
> hope i made the correct choice



me and my dammed luck
3 days after running fine my h55m-s2 mob goes kaput .... warranty over going for paid rma ......


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## Nerevarine (Oct 2, 2014)

You spent too much on the PSU, Really 8k on PSU ?!
I hope you are going for R9 280X or GTX 770 or beyond

and bad luck on that mobo mate  how much did you spend for repair


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## saswat23 (Oct 2, 2014)

You should have saved some of your budget for upgrading your Processor and Motherboard as well.
Using such a powerful card with 3-4 gen. old i3 processor wont give you the desired performance.


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## NeedToKnow (Oct 3, 2014)

the idea is to go for a gpu in the next 2-3 months ... budget 20k(approx) ..... will go for processor and mobo upgrade when ddr4 come to mainstream arena(prices come down to sane levels ) ... i hear the E - series processors marks the advent of ddr4 ram and supporting mobos .... as for the rma they still inspecting ... yet to put a price tag ... they say a tag of 500-900 if at all .


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## amjath (Oct 3, 2014)

Any plans for Monitor upgrade? As far as GPU suggestion, R9 280x fits your budget and its VFM, 1080p performer for your budget


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## NeedToKnow (Oct 4, 2014)

amjath said:


> Any plans for Monitor upgrade? As far as GPU suggestion, R9 280x fits your budget and its VFM, 1080p performer for your budget



no plans for monitor upgrade unless my current one goes dead ..... wishing the 290 to fall below 25k mark in the mean time before end of year

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NeedToKnow said:


> no plans for monitor upgrade unless my current one goes dead ..... wishing the 290 to fall below 25k mark in the mean time before end of year



could u also mention comparable card from nvidia stable (same budget) worth looking out for ....


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## amjath (Oct 4, 2014)

NeedToKnow said:


> no plans for monitor upgrade unless my current one goes dead ..... wishing the 290 to fall below 25k mark in the mean time before end of year
> 
> - - - Updated - - -
> 
> ...



You gonna play with 1600 X 900 resolution with R9 290 or other cards?

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Anyway GTX 970 is n the house for around 29k it *may* go down or wait for GTX 960 [no confirmation]


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## NeedToKnow (Oct 4, 2014)

NeedToKnow said:


> no plans for monitor upgrade unless my current one goes dead ..... wishing the 290 to fall below 25k mark in the mean time before end of year



could u also mention comparable card from nvidia stable (same budget) worth looking out for ....


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## topgear (Oct 6, 2014)

AMD has started to slash prices :



> The Radeon R9 290 has dropped from its $399 price to $299, while its more powerful brother, the R9 290X drops from $549 to $399, a drop of $150. The R9 285 has also dropped to $229 or so, while the 280X is down to around $269. The new price cuts are effective immediately, with Newegg and Amazon prices being adjusted already.



*www.digit.in/forum/graphic-cards/117078-gpu-news-channel-post2165638.html#post2165638


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## NeedToKnow (Nov 11, 2014)

been a week since i got the mob .... running fine except for this

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*s10.postimg.org/m49jf8xtl/111.jpg


someone please tell these temperatures are normal


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## topgear (Nov 15, 2014)

the cpu vcore and temp is high. When you installed the cpu did you use any sort of quality TiM ? Reduce cpu vcore from bios to 1.2v and try.


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## NeedToKnow (Nov 16, 2014)

got to bios 
got the following
****** motherboard voltage control ******
voltage types              normal             current
----------------------------------------------------------
>>>cpu
dynamic vcore(DVID)        +0.000V           AUTO
QPI/VH Voltage                  1.100v            AUTO
Graphics Core                     1.000V           AUTO
>>>MCH/ICH
PCH Core                          1.050v             AUTO
>>>DRAM
DRAM Voltage                     1.500v             AUTO




WHICH value has to be changed?


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## topgear (Nov 17, 2014)

I think you need to set the motherboard voltage control mode to manual instead of normal and then you will be able to change the vcore.


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## NeedToKnow (Aug 24, 2015)

Ok , sorry for the late posting ........ time for the last part of the upgrade ... thats the gpu 

i guess all sub-20k options are out now so 
1. What is the intended use for this graphic card ? Gaming or workstation work? (Name few Games or applications are you going to run)
Ans:gaming . gaming . gaming

2. Which Power Supply do you have? (Be EXACT while naming the company and model)
Ans:rm 750

3. What is your Max budget ?
Ans:20k ...... around 17-18k would be a sweet spot

4. Which Screen resolution will you game at (if applicable)?
Ans:currently 1600*900 .... would be upgrading to FHD in near future

5. What are your current computer specifications ?
all specs remain same except my mob has deceased ......... running on something called Spectrum h55 .... could not get a decent 1156 lga mb in kolkata..... so something tell me cpu+mb upgrade is imminent.... first things first ..... so what are my best options


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## bssunilreddy (Aug 24, 2015)

Go with this config:

Intel Core i5 4440 -11500,
Gigabyte B85M-D3H -5500,
Zotac GTX960 4GB -17500.
TOTAL -34,500.


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## NeedToKnow (Aug 24, 2015)

Dear bssunilreddy ,

I would be going for the gpu as of now ...  thanks for ur suggestion .... are these street prices .... what about the amp.. edition of the same model ... whats the extra cost .. is it worth it or simply a marketing gimmick .... also could u pls clarify zotac extended warranty . I dont know ... may be i have searched enough .... i cant find 5th gen intel processors anywhere online ..


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## topgear (Aug 25, 2015)

Zotac generally provides 2 years warranty on gpu. If you register your newly purchased graphic card within 10 days of purchase with Zotac then you're entitled for 3 years of additional warranty. After 2 years if you need to RMA then you need to take your card to the service center along with the print out copy of the e-mail that you got upon registering the card for extended warranty.


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## NeedToKnow (Aug 25, 2015)

topgear said:


> Zotac generally provides 2 years warranty on gpu. If you register your newly purchased graphic card within 10 days of purchase with Zotac then you're entitled for 3 years of additional warranty. After 2 years if you need to RMA then you need to take your card to the service center along with the print out copy of the e-mail that you got upon registering the card for extended warranty.



ok that answers the warranty part .... what of the other factors ..... buildwise which is better .... zotac or asus ..... i hear the 4 gb version does not give much performance bump compared to the 2 gb version except for oc . is that true ?
also read in reviews that the reason 960 is the best bet is that it has much room for oc compared to the r9 380 which is just a rebranded 280


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## topgear (Aug 26, 2015)

quality wise both are good but Zotacs RMA is slow - takes around ~2 months. Asus's RMA is little better. But then again you are getting 2 years extra warranty with Zotac and it really works. You can go for 4Gb version if you are planning for gaming beyond 1080p.


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## NeedToKnow (Aug 26, 2015)

topgear said:


> quality wise both are good but Zotacs RMA is slow - takes around ~2 months. Asus's RMA is little better. But then again you are getting 2 years extra warranty with Zotac and it really works. You can go for 4Gb version if you are planning for gaming beyond 1080p.



i guess its the zotac one  then ..... is the amp version worth its premium or should i stick to the basic model?


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## NeedToKnow (Sep 1, 2015)

on second thoughts .... the r9 280 / 280x also comes at approx the same price of the 960 . The 128 bit bus of the 960 is really bothering me. So should i stay with the 960 or switch sides .... which would be better future proof ?


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## Hrishi (Sep 1, 2015)

R9 280x is better than gtx960.
GTX960 is in line of r9 280-285.
Either one of them are couple of frames ahead or back depending upon the game. However, the GTX960 will fall behind as the resolution starts increasing beyond 1080p.
The ASUS Strix 960 4gb is a nice card at that price point. Get the GTX970 , otherwise settle with gtx960.


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## NeedToKnow (Sep 2, 2015)

Hrishi said:


> R9 280x is better than gtx960.
> GTX960 is in line of r9 280-285.
> Either one of them are couple of frames ahead or back depending upon the game. However, the GTX960 will fall behind as the resolution starts increasing beyond 1080p.
> The ASUS Strix 960 4gb is a nice card at that price point. Get the GTX970 , otherwise settle with gtx960.


\
with a price tag of 26k (min) the 970 is definitely out of budget .... so whats the best option for 20k .... 280x u say ... could not decipher what u tried to say in your post . also it seems , i quote "the 960 will run out of juice before it actually uses 4 gb of ram " ... read it in some review . ur opinion pls .

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Common guys .. help me out .... is 960 the best sub-20k option right now ? if yes please suggest specific models ... irrespective of the memory ..... there are no of models ... some are saying gigabyte gaming g1 to be best ... while on the other hand the zotac one with extended warranty of 5yrs also heats up the most ... i am utterly confused to say the least .... or should i delay my purchase ... for a few days for the festive season to set in ?


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## bssunilreddy (Sep 2, 2015)

NeedToKnow said:


> \
> with a price tag of 26k (min) the 970 is definitely out of budget .... so whats the best option for 20k .... 280x u say ... could not decipher what u tried to say in your post . also it seems , i quote "the 960 will run out of juice before it actually uses 4 gb of ram " ... read it in some review . ur opinion pls .
> 
> - - - Updated - - -
> ...



Zotac GTX960 4GB @ 17k is best for the next 2-3 years at best...


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## NeedToKnow (Sep 2, 2015)

bssunilreddy said:


> Zotac GTX960 4GB @ 17k is best for the next 2-3 years at best...



did u mean the amp edition or the simple one ? thanks for ur answer .... i was also actively considering the 280 ... bit crossed over the 128-bit bus architecture and nvidia's claim of compression tech .
what of the reports of heating issues of zotac ... can they be brushed aside ?

also found an interesting read "*www.gamersnexus.net/guides/1888-evga-supersc-4gb-960-benchmark-vs-2gb"


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## bssunilreddy (Sep 2, 2015)

NeedToKnow said:


> did u mean the amp edition or the simple one ? thanks for ur answer .... i was also actively considering the 280 ... bit crossed over the 128-bit bus architecture and nvidia's claim of compression tech .
> what of the reports of heating issues of zotac ... can they be brushed aside ?
> 
> also found an interesting read "*www.gamersnexus.net/guides/1888-evga-supersc-4gb-960-benchmark-vs-2gb"



No heating issues for Zotac.
4GB can be used if the future games demand more than 2GB. Newer drivers are released from nvidia after the release of GTX950 which even promises to adequately use the 4GB.


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## NeedToKnow (Sep 2, 2015)

bssunilreddy said:


> No heating issues for Zotac.
> 4GB can be used if the future games demand more than 2GB. Newer drivers are released from nvidia after the release of GTX950 which even promises to adequately use the 4GB.



thanks for the reply ... now only left to enquire about warranty service of zotac in kolkata ... besides has the amp model of 4gb 960 not been released in india ? also came across a model with a single fan in their website .. but it does not contain a backplate ... 
on a side note .. there is also something called inno3d ... know something about it ... their cards seemd to be pretty robust .

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my own compilation so far


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## Hrishi (Sep 3, 2015)

NeedToKnow said:


> \
> with a price tag of 26k (min) the 970 is definitely out of budget .... so whats the best option for 20k .... 280x u say ... could not decipher what u tried to say in your post . also it seems , i quote "the 960 will run out of juice before it actually uses 4 gb of ram " ... read it in some review . ur opinion pls .
> 
> - - - Updated - - -
> ...



If you can't get the GTX970 then try for R9 280x , if that is also out of your budget then look for GTX960.
GTX970>R9 280x>GTX960~R9 280.

The only problem with AMD cards is that they are power hog. You need to spend on a good PSU to run a beastly AMD Card.

Keep in mind that R9 280x and R9 280 are different cards.


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## NeedToKnow (Sep 3, 2015)

Hrishi said:


> If you can't get the GTX970 then try for R9 280x , if that is also out of your budget then look for GTX960.
> GTX970>R9 280x>GTX960~R9 280.
> 
> The only problem with AMD cards is that they are power hog. You need to spend on a good PSU to run a beastly AMD Card.
> ...




i have already invested in an exxxpensive psu .... follow the post backwards and u would know . Its a RM750 which i guess has juice to run any single gpu system. As for the gpu i doubt i can bargain a 280x below 20k ... the lowest i can see is SAPPHIRE GRAPHICS CARD R9 280X 3GB DDR5 VAPOR-X comming at 21,683 ... as for the 960 which vendor (4 GB) would u suggest ... specific model pls .


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## bssunilreddy (Sep 3, 2015)

NeedToKnow said:


> i have already invested in an exxxpensive psu .... follow the post backwards and u would know . Its a RM750 which i guess has juice to run any single gpu system. As for the gpu i doubt i can bargain a 280x below 20k ... the lowest i can see is SAPPHIRE GRAPHICS CARD R9 280X 3GB DDR5 VAPOR-X comming at 21,683 ... as for the 960 which vendor (4 GB) would u suggest ... specific model pls .



Zotac GTX960 4GB @ 17k


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## NeedToKnow (Sep 3, 2015)

could anybody pls come up with the street prices of Zotac GTX960 4GB in kolkata - MD/Vedant/supreme .. also any reports of their rma performance .


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## NeedToKnow (Sep 19, 2015)

would visit shops on 21st sep ... found that zotac 4gb amp is priced at 17983 and zotac 4gb at 17850 on md computers site ... not much of a diff in price ... should i go for the 4 gb amp version?


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## NeedToKnow (Sep 22, 2015)

ok .. photoshoot comming up




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what should be the idle temp for 960 ?


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## NeedToKnow (Sep 23, 2015)




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## NeedToKnow (Sep 23, 2015)

Thank you guys for all the help ....

could anyone mention the idle temp for 960 pls ....


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## The Incinerator (Dec 30, 2015)

NeedToKnow said:


> View attachment 15792
> View attachment 15793
> View attachment 15794
> View attachment 15795
> ...



Whats your idle and load temps now?


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