Dual GPU or just one powerful one

Hey everyone, I am planing to build a PC in the near future and I am stumped on whether to get a single GPU like a Nvidea GTX 770 or if I should get 2 less powerful and expensive GPUs. I am planning on a build that will be around 1,300 US dollars but I will appreciate spending less than anticipated. I would like to hear opinions on this matter and I thank you in advance. (if possible, could the the recommended option that is posted include the other parts to accommodate it in terms of size and power consumption)

 

You may not need a high end card. What games do you plan on playing?

Do you own a 120 Hz 1080P monitor , a 60 Hz 2560 x 1440 monitor ,etc. ?

If you give us more details (like the rest of your planned set up) , it would be easier to help you.

Generally one high end card is better than two slower cards. The two slower cards (in SLI or CrossFire) may be faster after lots of software optimizations but you still have to worry about power consumption , noise , and heat more overall.

The 290 and 290x from AMD just came out so those might provide a good bang for the buck.

 

Getting one powerfull card is better. All games will support it, no scaling, stutter or other concerns

 

When do you plan on purchasing this? If it is in the near future (~a month) then get the AMD 290x. You could always add another one if you aren't at any point in the future unsatisfied with the single card's performance (unlikely).

If you absolutely have to go nVidia, you really should wait until they release Maxwell but if you cannot, the GTX 780 just dropped price and is available for around $500-550. Get that.

 

The Radeon R9 290 is far-and-away the best bang-for-your-buck high-end GPU at the moment. It smokes GTX 770 and ties or beats GTX 780 depending on the game. And because it nips right at the heels of 290X but costs significantly less, it's pretty much made it redundant in the same way that GTX 780 made Titan redundant for gamers when it came out. With your budget you could potentially get two of them and be ready for the 4K future today.

 

Definitely one powerful card.

 

One good card gets my vote unless you need two cards.

Dual GPU solutions are VASTLY better now than they used to be easily over 2x more scaling, and a lot less issues. Even the micro stutter issue has been almost completely fixed. So the bad vibe/memories of dual card issues are not as relevant. That said one card though is less power drain, less worry and you can add a 2nd one later to upgrade if you wish rather than settle for 2 lesser GPU now that will have no value later.

 

Euhm, I thought this was a laptop forum? Anyway, if you don't plan to pay alot of money for a GPU, get an EVGA GTX760. Good and cheap card.

 

I'm not sure on the date but the wait will be long, I will defiantly look into the next release of newer cards because in the time it takes to get the funds for the build will be long; maybe even almost a year long. In that time ill be waiting on new releases on GPUs and other components.

 

Yeah way too early to be asking these questions if your build is gonna be a year away.