The Geforce 8800GT had a fantastic run, but 512MB of memory is no longer cutting it. I hit the first game I can't run. Well, technically I *can* run it, but just not acceptably. The Witcher 2.

Gentlefolk.. I realize we're on the precipice of a new generation of graphics cards. With the release of AMD's flagship products, the 7970 and 7950, the imminent release of the more reasonable cards from AMD, and the rumor and speculation about Nvidia's Kepler series, I'm faced with a dilemma.

I can buy a Geforce 560 Ti 448 cores this instant for what amounts to $180-$200. Coupon code + MIR + long-since purchased $40 credit from Newegg. It's a fantastic bargain for a pretty great, but admittedly stop-gap, graphics card.

I've seen many reports of what are supposed to be leaked slides from the Kepler series graphics cards. Most of them are still relatively far off, and my $40 credit expires at the end of February. I don't necessarily need to use it on a video card, but since I need one anyway, it couldn't hurt to save some money. I'm also not sold on the idea that Nvidia or AMD will be offering any price breaks this time around. Seems they're both set on inflating prices and profits, which means I'm not certain I'll be able to get a deal like this even when they do release.

All leaked info I could find puts the 650 Ti at the level of the current-day 560 Ti in many respects, including price, but it's still a ways off.

The next tier up is probably more than I'm willing to spend for what amounts to only slightly better specs. But on-paper specs from a sketchy document that is probably false to begin with doesn't give me any clear indication.

So here's the TL:DR and the real question here: should I bite on the 560 Ti 448 now at a fantastic price, or wait it out and hope there's a reasonable price-performance alternative in this upcoming generation?

Never buy the newest Gen of GPUs. Just wait for them to be released, then by the top tier of the previous generation. It's the most price efficient way of upgrading and staying up to date for the longest amount of time.

Just buy now. When the next rounds of cards come buy you'll just be like "Well I could wait a year so these guys are cheaper" But if you buy now you will have a good card for another 2-3 years or whatever.

Prices will always go down. If there's something better you want, like the 580 or 590, or 650, or whatever else there is, if you wait a year or so, the price will drop. It's inevitable. So really it's just a matter of how long you're willing to wait to run Witcher 2 on max.

Keep in mind, if your CPU isn't very good, or any other part of your PC is mediocre, your graphics card WILL be bottlenecked. I have to upgrade my CPU and motherboard to get a new GPU because right now, I'm not even getting the full power out of my GTX 260.

And never get any card that isn't NVIDIA. NVIDIA is the only company that really keeps up with their drivers.

@Rohok said:

Prices will always go down. If there's something better you want, like the 580 or 590, if you wait a year or so, the price will drop. It's inevitable. So really it's just a matter of how long you're willing to wait to run Witcher 2 on max.

Keep in mind, if your CPU isn't very good, or any other part of your PC is mediocre, your graphics card WILL be bottlenecked. I have to upgrade my CPU and motherboard to get a new GPU because right now, I'm not even getting the full power out of my GTX 260.

I know the inevitable full-system upgrade is imminent, but my goal right now is to see how much longer I can get by on a new GPU. I can continue to bump up the overclock on my RAM and CPU as necessary, but my graphics card is tapped out.

I should add that The Witcher 2 isn't the only problem. A lot of games can certainly benefit from an upgrade over a 4+ year old card. I've had to make minor compromises for a few months now in order to keep things working. Deus Ex: Human Revolution tells me to eff off if I try to run with AA enabled. Obviously I'm looking for a card that can keep up with future games, though, since I've been okay with everything I've thrown at the 8800GT up until The Witcher 2.

Also, the Skyrim high-res texture pack requires a gig of VRAM.

AndrewB, if your running a 8800gt, im gonna guess that your gonna be limited by your cpu heavily. DO NOT UNDERESTIMATE what a bottle-necked cpu can cause. My PC for example is a e6600 overclocked to 3.3ghz(as far as it will oc stable) paired with a gtx 560 sc. In Battlefield 3 my CPU is running 100% utilization, but my gpu is only 30-40%. Your GPU is not gonna provide a boost when your cpu is holding it back.

@Tag said:

AndrewB, if your running a 8800gt, im gonna guess that your gonna be limited by your cpu heavily. DO NOT UNDERESTIMATE what a bottle-necked cpu can cause. My PC for example is a e6600 overclocked to 3.3ghz(as far as it will oc stable) paired with a gtx 560 sc. In Battlefield 3 my CPU is running 100% utilization, but my gpu is only 30-40%. Your GPU is not gonna provide a boost when your cpu is holding it back.

I do appreciate the advice, and I fully intend to upgrade the rest of my system with the next Intel refresh coming soon, but right now I've never felt CPU-bound. I know upgrading the GPU will leave me with a severe CPU bottleneck, but it will get me by until I feel it's necessary to upgrade the rest. Though if you think I should wait until I can upgrade everything, I can appreciate that advice, as well.

For reference, I'm running a mere Core 2 Duo E8400, but it's overclocked to 3.6GHz, and I can easily push more if I feel like it. I've just never had to.

Also, I'm gaming at a modest 1680x1050. I'm an enthusiast on a severe PC budget.

Also important is the PSU you have.

Once choice would be to buy say a 570 and then when you do a new build SLI another one.