I am looking for a good future proof graphics within a $400 budget. It needs to be able to do these things:
1) Runs solidworks and autodesk well.
2) Good performance in Adobe Photoshop.
3) Good performanced in games like Arma 3, dolphin, minecraft (gonna try a making redstone computer), and possibly BF4.
I got it down to two options but feel free to add your own suggestions:
AMD option
Nvidia option
I feel I get better value with the amd but nvidia offers physx support. Amd offers 3GB 384-bit GDDR5 while Nvidia offers 2GB 256-bit GDDR5. Any sugestions?
Computer Specs:
Processor: Intel Core i5 4670k
Motherboard: Asus Maximus Vl Hero
Ram: 16gb mushkin redline
Graphics: Nvidia gtx 550 ti
Case: A good one
Power: Antec Earthwatts 650
Either one of those will be great cards, but a tough choice. The 7970 will do better in Photoshop because of its great OpenCL support and the GTX 770 will be better for gaming because of the better drivers and PhysX support. Personally I would choose the GTX 770, though.
If you use a lot of Premiere and Photoshop, go with the Nvidia card. Adobe loves Cuda.
(Twin Frozr is a great solution but I heard from many people over at tomshardware that EVGA's ACX has better quality fans)
http://goo.gl/WxOd0Q
If you're planning on playing all your games on 1440p ultra or have a multi monitor setup, wait for the Radeon 8970. If you can't wait, I'd go with the 7970 GHz from XFX.
http://goo.gl/n7wPht
Nvidia it is. If i run into problems with Autodesk (Unlikly) I can easily opt for a cheap Firepro card. It would probrobly cost less than the textbook. -__-