Hey all....

So I've installed Prepar3d, coming off years of FSX.    Current setup is below.  I'd love to run some add-ons, PMDG, OrbX, and do some basic flying.  I'm not looking to get 60 FPS.  Without OrbX and using Q8Pilot's display settings, I currently get about 15-20 on the ground, which isn't bad considering the old GPU.  Anyway, I have a friend who has a 1080Ti he's willing to sell me for $300 (yes he's a friend), but the card HAS been used for mining.  Or do I pay about $600 and go with a 2070?

• Intel i5-8600k
• Gigabyte Z370 Aorus Gaming 5
• GTX750 Ti
• 16 GB DDR4 3000 G. Skill
• Samsung 850 EVO 500 GB
• 3 TB Barracuda 7200RPM for backup

Unless you flying in 4k, the cpu is still going to be the limiting factor. I would save the $300 and go with the 1080ti even knowing that it was a mining card as I doubt you will see it hitting anywhere near 100% usage in sim unless the weather is terrible.

Edited March 11, 20197 yr by Garys

18 minutes ago, Garys said:

Unless you flying in 4k, the cpu is still going to be the limiting factor.

I strongly disagree.  The 8600K, if overclocked to 5GHz+, is a good match even for a top of the line 2080Ti, and based on his posts in other threads, the OP is running a triple monitor video setup, which presents a video matrix 75% as large as 4K, so the more GPU the better.

I think the real question here is whether there's significant risk in a 1080Ti that's been used for mining.  I don't think I can answer that...I'd certainly closely inspect it for signs of overheating and consider replacing fans and making sure the heatsinks were well cleaned of dust, but only the original owner knows how hard the GPU was run in terms of temps, overvoltage etc and for how long.  If the seller is a friend, I'd ask some specific questions about how the card was used before and go from there.  The 1080Ti is actually a stronger card than the 2070...more at par with the 2080, and with more VRAM as well.  $300 is a good deal if the card hasn't been run like Chernobyl Reactor #4.

Regards

Buy the 1080ti for $300. Then in two years sell the 1080ti for $300 and get a used GTX1680ti for about $600. Prepar3D will take advantage of ray tracing when pigs fly.

"The 1080Ti is actually a stronger card than the 2070...more at par with the 2080, and with more VRAM as well."

This. I run a 3 1080p projector setup 8086K @5gz and my 1080ti only hits 100% usage when I crank up the weather.  Even @ 5ghz the cpu is still the limiting factor 99% of the time. 

 

Edited March 11, 20197 yr by Garys
cpu

Thanks guys!  I think the 1080Ti makes sense, and my friend has kept it cool, and he's an honest guy, so I would expect for the $$$ I'd be doing pretty good.

I paid about CAD$700 (about US$550) for my used ASUS Strix 1080ti which was a very good price here in Toronto. US$300 is an absolutely fantastic price for used 1080ti. If you are in Canada and you are getting it for CAD$300 I hate you.

Edited March 11, 20197 yr by Guest

HAHA.  No need to hate me, I'm in Kansas..... 🙂 But thanks for the info as well.

9 hours ago, Garys said:

Unless you flying in 4k, the cpu is still going to be the limiting factor. I would save the $300 and go with the 1080ti even knowing that it was a mining card as I doubt you will see it hitting anywhere near 100% usage in sim unless the weather is terrible.

It took nothing to push my 1080ti to 100% usage.  And that was with a 2500K

9 hours ago, Avidean said:

I paid about CAD$700 (about US$550) for my used ASUS Strix 1080ti which was a very good price here in Toronto. US$300 is an absolutely fantastic price for used 1080ti. If you are in Canada and you are getting it for CAD$300 I hate you.

You are better off then him.

7 hours ago, mpw8679 said:

It took nothing to push my 1080ti to 100% usage.  And that was with a 2500K

A 2500K won the bottleneck shootout. That's a first!

19 hours ago, Avidean said:

Buy the 1080ti for $300. Then in two years sell the 1080ti for $300 and get a used GTX1680ti for about $600. Prepar3D will take advantage of ray tracing when pigs fly.

I didnt buy my 2080ti for ray tracing - I bought it for the VRAM and the increased no of cuda cores... If the rtx features get used as well then I'll consider that a bonus!

That's far enough but given the choice between a used 1080ti for $300 and anew 2080ti for around $2000, I'd definitely go with the 1080ti. $1700 buck would be a huge amount to pay for the difference in performance. Or in my case $1300. Still a huge amount for the performance difference. Also, I am willing to bet my hat that within a very short period of time there will be GTX 1680ti. And I'll hazard a guess that it will be equal to a 2080ti in all but ray tracing. I'll also hazard a guess that it will mark the end of gouging by Nvidia on GTX gpu's. I'll guess again that it will be in the $1200 range. Yes I know that's a lot of guessing. I think Nvidia need and want to get GPU prices normalized and save face without looking like they have been gouging for the last couple of years.

But hay I am sure the RTX 2080ti is the best GPU out there and if your comfortable spending that much on a flagship GPU go for it. The last new flagship GPU I bought cost me CAD $760.

3 hours ago, Garys said:

A 2500K won the bottleneck shootout. That's a first!

People fail to understand how GPU hungry V4 is.  Regardless of CPU used if u want the pretty visuals you need a lot of GPU to get there.

Yes very true. Even though my experience is different to yours in regards to the gpu usage with V4,  It will be interesting to see a follow up to this thread once the card is installed.