Graphics Card Advice?

[Shegokigo]

Thinking of upgrading, should I:

Add a second XXX HD RADEON 5870OC to my already existing one in a CF

Just go nuts and get a GTX590 or RADEON 6990?

Would my CF set-up be comparable? Would it last? Any other recommendations instead?

Danke to all who reply!

 

[strawman]

Go nuts and get a 6990.

Then send me the 5870OC...

 

[Shegokigo]

Somehow I don't think you're looking out for my best interest

Basically I'm wondering if it's worth my time to add a second one (if it'll benchmark around the same as newer cards) or if I should sell off my current card for 200-250$ and put that towards a dual GPU current card.

 

[Frank]

Current advice, be careful with ATI, it may be technically the cheaper and bigger bang for your buck choice, but as was shown with Rage, Nvidia is much better at fostering developer relations to the point where the developer won't even test their fucking game with ATI cards.

Fucking disgrace.

 

[Shegokigo]

So scrap the 5870 and put it toward a GTX590?

 

[Frank]

I would definitely turn back to Nvidia at this point.

 

[DarkAudit]

The latest best cards for the money list is now up at Tom's Hardware.

 

[Shegokigo]

Read through that, however it doesn't list how well my 5870 would do in a CF vs the newer cards. Thanks for the link though.

 

[DarkAudit]

In that case I'd look at the system builder marathon articles. They'll swap out components from quarter to quarter and do a head-to-head comparison to see if they got a performance boost as a result. That's what prompted me to go with twin 6850s in my machine.

 

[Shakey]

Here's a couple reviews for both cards. They have similiar set ups, cpu is a bit different, and it looks like the 590 is the way to go for the best performance.
5870
590

 

[GasBandit]

Count me in with the "too burned by ATI in the past" crowd - my 8800 GTX has been nothin' but good to me.

 

[Shegokigo]

I guess I should head in that direction then. Part with my current card for $200-250 and put it toward the 590.

I guess the next question becomes, is my i7 940 (OCed to 3.5ghz) still fine or have processors done anything "crazy" in the last two years?

 

[GasBandit]

Shit, I'm still running on a Kentsfield C2Q 6600 with no problems - an I7 is still pretty top shelf in my opinion.

Stay the hell away from the Bulldozer chips, is what I hear through the grapevine, as far as late breaking CPU news goes.

There's been a big to-do about moving from the 45 to 32 nm chips, but in my opinion you get more bang for your buck out of a GPU upgrade, rather than riding the cutting edge of the CPU trends.

 

[strawman]

Processors haven't taken any significant leaps recently, no. I suppose some might comment on the newer 6, 8 and 12 core processors, but as a gamer I doubt you're going to get much out of them.

Wait another while before worrying about the processor.

 

[Shegokigo]

Good cause my MB is fine and so is my RAM so I was worried about having to switch out the processor.

Hmm... so now to find a buyer for this 5870....

 

[strawman]

I'll start the bidding at $5!

 

[Shakey]

5.01!

 

[PatrThom]

Sandy Bridge (2xxxk CPUs) are a big step up, but their biggest advantage over the 9xx series is in their noticeably lower power requirements. I would say the next big CPU leap for you should be to wait to see what Ivy Bridge can do (won't find out until mid-2012, but early reports suggest 25-30% faster than Sandy Bridge!).

Will investigate GPU as soon as I get set up in a few days. I'm on vacation right now and my only forum access is via iPod Touch (which makes any serious web research a slow and painful process). There's a specific article I want to reference, but I think it really deserves its own thread.

--Patrick

 

[Shegokigo]

Hm, I'm guessing you also agree with ditching the idea to CF the 5870s and go with the GTX590?

Also, if I change my CPU, is the increase worth having to possibly change my MB and RAM as well?

 

[strawman]

I no longer buy a motherboard with the intention of upgrading the processor. By the time a new processor comes out that's worth upgrading to, newer chipsets are out that make them a worthwhile upgrade too.

So yeah, plan on replacing the mobo and CPU together, and probably the memory.

 

[PatrThom]

Yeah, I see it more likely that your next major "upgrade" will be a new build.

As far as agreeing with ditching the 5870 in favor of a GTX590? I do not. And I will explain why in that thread I intend to post once I'm not handicramped by this iPod.

--Patrick

 

[Shegokigo]

Looking forward to it.

Kind of hoping to delay a "full" rebuild for at least another year, so was hoping to do a >$300-500 hold-over.

 

[PatrThom]

The thread I promised is up.

For your specific situation, Shego, the reviews/numbers say you have a choice between trading your card in for a single GTX 580, or else rustling up a 5970 and then un-OC'ing your 5870OC down to match the 5970's internal speed (thereby creating a 3-way XFire setup that only takes 2 slots). The second solution will be noticeably faster than the single GTX580, but it will also be noticeably more expensive, hotter, and noticeably more taxing on your PSU. There is also the chance that it will be noticeably less stable, too.

--Patrick