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For gaming, is 395X worth it?

M

Melodeath

macrumors 6502a
Original poster
Dec 9, 2009
580
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I plan on getting an iMac for audio production, so I will be getting the i7 CPU, but the GPU is meaningless for audio. However, I also want to be able to play modern games at the best possible settings for as many years as possible. Using the iMac would be cheaper than building a separate gaming rig, assuming the iMac can handle it. How much of a difference will the 395X make over the 395 for gaming? My original thought was to go all out since the computer is so expensive anyway, but if I'm not going to be able to play modern games on high settings with over 30 FPS even with the 395X, I'd rather just save $250, take the standard 395 GPU, and build a gaming PC separate.

Any thoughts on this?
 
I maxed the GPU on the last release with the 295X for the 2014 model. I played DOTA 2 and FFXIV. Out of the two, FFXIV was the most GPU stressing so I can validate my claims on how it performed. I had to play on laptop-high settings to prevent FPS from getting unreasonable <30 FPS. Also, shadows and stuff had to be on low or off. The GPU did fine but after playing for an hour, it starts to heat up.... and it cant cool itself down. I live in California btw, where its hot almost the whole year. Anyways, the fan kicks in to max speed making a loud WHOOOOOOOSHHHH coming out of the imac thats definitely audible. Then, the game starts to lag because of FPS inconsistency. I thought to myself, what is the point of having the best GPU if heat is going to throttle my GPU?

So, if that GPU is for gaming like u stated, then no, dont waste a few extra hundreds for it because the eventual heat will throttle your GPU and it wont perform at its max capabilities.
 
azure247 said:
I maxed the GPU on the last release with the 295X for the 2014 model. I played DOTA 2 and FFXIV. Out of the two, FFXIV was the most GPU stressing so I can validate my claims on how it performed. I had to play on laptop-high settings to prevent FPS from getting unreasonable <30 FPS. Also, shadows and stuff had to be on low or off. The GPU did fine but after playing for an hour, it starts to heat up.... and it cant cool itself down. I live in California btw, where its hot almost the whole year. Anyways, the fan kicks in to max speed making a loud WHOOOOOOOSHHHH coming out of the imac thats definitely audible. Then, the game starts to lag because of FPS inconsistency. I thought to myself, what is the point of having the best GPU if heat is going to throttle my GPU?

So, if that GPU is for gaming like u stated, then no, dont waste a few extra hundreds for it because the eventual heat will throttle your GPU and it wont perform at its max capabilities.
Click to expand...
You didn't mention what resolution you played the games in
 
Melodeath said:
I plan on getting an iMac for audio production, so I will be getting the i7 CPU, but the GPU is meaningless for audio. However, I also want to be able to play modern games at the best possible settings for as many years as possible. Using the iMac would be cheaper than building a separate gaming rig, assuming the iMac can handle it. How much of a difference will the 395X make over the 395 for gaming? My original thought was to go all out since the computer is so expensive anyway, but if I'm not going to be able to play modern games on high settings with over 30 FPS even with the 395X, I'd rather just save $250, take the standard 395 GPU, and build a gaming PC separate.

Any thoughts on this?
Click to expand...

Modern games aren't necessarily GPU-intensive. Could you give us examples of what games you play?
 
It was over a year ago but I experimented with every resolution. Ultimately, 1920x1080 offers the best performance and without the fans going loud.
 
I play at 5K, nonsense to lower the resolution, if I'm not happy with the FPS I reduce the effects but the super sharp resolution for me is fundamental
 
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To be fair, every iMac I've ever had with the highest GPU available at the time has always been able to play games well on medium settings.

VRAM requirements have been creeping up though. The 395x is probably worth paying for just to the get the 4gig VRAM. In 5 years time I wouldn't be surprised to see 4gig as an absolute minimum for most games.
 
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Tanax said:
Read this:
Click to expand...
It really depends on the game. Heroes of the Storm isn't gpu intensive. It is a MOBA like LoL and DOTA 2 and HON. That's why I specifically mentioned FFXIV, an MMORPG.

Regardless, an iMac is wonderful machinery and I like osx and the magic trackpad and keyboard. It's all about simplicity at the end of the day.
 
Tanax said:
Modern games aren't necessarily GPU-intensive. Could you give us examples of what games you play?
Click to expand...
I am hoping to play Fallout 4 (coming out next month), Metal Gear Solid V, Shadow of Mordor, Witcher 3.

For Fallout 4, Minimum system specs are listed as "NVIDIA GTX 550 Ti 2GB/AMD Radeon HD 7870 2GB or equivalent" and Recommended specs at "NVIDIA GTX 780 3GB/AMD Radeon R9 290X 4GB or equivalent"
 
Serban said:
the next generation imac 990M it is WORTHY upgrade
Click to expand...

MandiMac said:
You know that the GTX 980 for notebooks has a way higher TDP than the graphics now, do you, Serban?
Click to expand...


Also that there's no guarantee, or even a vague rumour, that apple are going to nvidia next year. Or ever. Their next big step is to add AMD CPU's instead of intel, so it's much more likely they are going to get a good (cheap) deal on going all in on CPU and GPU contracts.

A better thing to say might be to get this years model, because it'll be the last intel chip (unless you like AMD cpus)
 
Mine should be coming tomorrow. I currently have Late 2012 rMBP with nVidia m650GT 1GB RAM. Primarily I use it for lightweight stuff like surfing, mail and Word. I have a bootcamp partition and play CS:GO on it daily. I play other games occasionally like Metal Gear Solid, Assassins Creed and Witcher 3, none of which run on my current rMBP since the GFX Card is just too slow (except CS:GO).

I ordered:
3.3GHz i5 CPU
8GB RAM
256GB SSD
R9 M395X 4GB GDDR5

I hope to be able to play CS:GO on higher settings. My current setup with 1080p external monitor yields around 200FPS in CS:GO on 720p and everything on lowest settings. I hope to crank up the resolution and quality with the new iMac without sacrificing the FPS.

AC3 did start up, but I had 2 FPS, on lowest resolution possible, all settings on low, while looking at the ground and standing still.

I'll post my BootCamp findings with CS:GO since this is the game I can benchmark easily and have a reference to the old MacBook Pro.
 
Laai said:
Mine should be coming tomorrow. I currently have Late 2012 rMBP with nVidia m650GT 1GB RAM. Primarily I use it for lightweight stuff like surfing, mail and Word. I have a bootcamp partition and play CS:GO on it daily. I play other games occasionally like Metal Gear Solid, Assassins Creed and Witcher 3, none of which run on my current rMBP since the GFX Card is just too slow (except CS:GO).

I ordered:
3.3GHz i5 CPU
8GB RAM
256GB SSD
R9 M395X 4GB GDDR5

I hope to be able to play CS:GO on higher settings. My current setup with 1080p external monitor yields around 200FPS in CS:GO on 720p and everything on lowest settings. I hope to crank up the resolution and quality with the new iMac without sacrificing the FPS.

AC3 did start up, but I had 2 FPS, on lowest resolution possible, all settings on low, while looking at the ground and standing still.

I'll post my BootCamp findings with CS:GO since this is the game I can benchmark easily and have a reference to the old MacBook Pro.
Click to expand...

I think I can safely say that you won't get 200 FPS with the 395X, higher than 720p and higher than "low" settings. However, that's not to say you won't get a smooth playing-experience though. I think you can play on 1440p with all settings on high with above or stable around 60 FPS while playing CS:GO..
 
Tanax said:
I think I can safely say that you won't get 200 FPS with the 395X, higher than 720p and higher than "low" settings. However, that's not to say you won't get a smooth playing-experience though. I think you can play on 1440p with all settings on high with above or stable around 60 FPS while playing CS:GO..
Click to expand...
Well, we'll see. 60FPS is waaay too low. It needs to go above 150 for sure. As PlanB I can hook up my external 1080p Monitor and see how it goes from there. Like said, I'll post my findings...
 
I was going to use my new iMac with the 395X for gaming but after reading actual experiences, I decided to just get a dedicated PC tower with a overclocked GeForce GTX 980 TI card for gaming in 4k. I'll use my Mac for video editing and work related tasks. I wish I didn't get the GPU upgrade on the Mac.
 
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Laai said:
Well, we'll see. 60FPS is waaay too low. It needs to go above 150 for sure. As PlanB I can hook up my external 1080p Monitor and see how it goes from there. Like said, I'll post my findings...
Click to expand...

Then you'll most likely either have to lower the resolution down to 1080p and/or lower the graphic settings to medium/low.
Why do you need more than 60 FPS?
 
Tanax said:
Then you'll most likely either have to lower the resolution down to 1080p and/or lower the graphic settings to medium/low.
Why do you need more than 60 FPS?
Click to expand...
Long story, but generally speaking its the smoothnes of the game and reaction time. Since the iMac 5K is not FreeSync or VSync monitor, I need as many frames as possible rendered by the GFX Card so that when the monitor's 60Hz refresh rate ticks, it has the newest frame possible.

Anyway, just saw the shipping date slipped to 27th :(
 
BornAgainMac said:
I was going to use my new iMac with the 395X for gaming but after reading actual experiences, I decided to just get a dedicated PC tower with a overclocked GeForce GTX 980 TI card for gaming in 4k. I'll use my Mac for video editing and work related tasks. I wish I didn't get the GPU upgrade on the Mac.
Click to expand...
Why don't you actually try the iMac before buying the PC tower? If you were deciding whether to buy the iMac, that'd be one thing, but it sounds like you already ordered one with the upgraded graphics.
 
azure247 said:
I maxed the GPU on the last release with the 295X for the 2014 model. I played DOTA 2 and FFXIV. Out of the two, FFXIV was the most GPU stressing so I can validate my claims on how it performed. I had to play on laptop-high settings to prevent FPS from getting unreasonable <30 FPS. Also, shadows and stuff had to be on low or off. The GPU did fine but after playing for an hour, it starts to heat up.... and it cant cool itself down. I live in California btw, where its hot almost the whole year. Anyways, the fan kicks in to max speed making a loud WHOOOOOOOSHHHH coming out of the imac thats definitely audible. Then, the game starts to lag because of FPS inconsistency. I thought to myself, what is the point of having the best GPU if heat is going to throttle my GPU?

So, if that GPU is for gaming like u stated, then no, dont waste a few extra hundreds for it because the eventual heat will throttle your GPU and it wont perform at its max capabilities.
Click to expand...

Melodeath, I would recommend waiting for more 'gaming' focused reviews of the new iMac to make an informed decision. The issues faced by owners of the 2014 iMac w/ 295X may not be as pronounced with the newer model (fingers crossed).

Secondly, it depends on the games you intend to play. For example, most Blizzard games can play on just about any Mac on decent settings with no issues. I can confirm that FFXIV is highly graphics intensive.

Lastly, for my experience, any program run on Windows through bootcamp will run at much higher temps from my experience on multiple Macs. I used to play WOW on the same iMac (2012), both natively and in bootcamp. On the same settings, the iMac was always running hotter in Windows and thus the fans were louder.
 
AlexisV said:
To be fair, every iMac I've ever had with the highest GPU available at the time has always been able to play games well on medium settings.

VRAM requirements have been creeping up though. The 395x is probably worth paying for just to the get the 4gig VRAM. In 5 years time I wouldn't be surprised to see 4gig as an absolute minimum for most games.
Click to expand...

Good point. Completely agree here.
 
Melodeath said:
Why don't you actually try the iMac before buying the PC tower? If you were deciding whether to buy the iMac, that'd be one thing, but it sounds like you already ordered one with the upgraded graphics.
Click to expand...

I also considered to hassle of bootcamp, the downgrade of 5x to 4x in Bootcamp, how good Ultra with 4k with good frame rates and extreme frame rates at lower settings with a desktop GPU, limited SSD disk space for both Windows and Mac, and the ability to have my Mac encoding video while I am gaming.
 
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