nVidia 460 vs 260 vs 8800GTS

ZLoth

ZLoth

Gawd
Joined
Apr 13, 2010
Messages
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I'm sorry if I sound a bit stupid, but sometimes, one has to ask stupid questions.

Currently, I have a 8800 GTS 320MB video card (aka the Space Heater). I think I am running into some limitations with that card because my monitor went from 1280x1024 to 1920x1200. Yes, I do play games, although I'm not a [H]ardGamer. When I purchased the card, it was like the 2nd best at the time.

I've been eyeing the nVidia 260 video card for a while now, and was almost tempted to purchase one on closeout. But, now, the 460 video cards have come out, and I'm looking at the 1GB model.

So, whats the difference in performance between the 460, 260, and the space heater?

Oh yeah, the operating systems that I use on the system is XP, WIn7-32, Win7-64, Ubuntu 10 LTS-32bit, and Ubuntu 10 LTS-64 bit. Gotta love removable drive caddies.
 
If you game at 1920x1200 then by all means go for the GTX460, you can save a few bucks going for the 768mb version but IMO the 1gb version is worth the extra pennies.
 
From what ive read and can extrapolate the 460 is around 40%, maybe 45% faster, on average, than the GTX 260. The The GTX260 is probably approaching twice as fast, if not more...than the 8800 GTS, especially at higher resolutions.

I wouldnt pay more than 125ish for a GTX 260 at this point, probably even less. The GTX 460 has far more performance per dollar and it is brand new tech...not over 2 years old.
 
There's no point of getting previous gen card unless you can get it for really cheap, plus the current gen is now way more affordable than before and if you're eyeing the GTX 460 then might as well go for it. As Anandtech says, the GTX 460 is king for a $200 video card.
Or you can always consider this GTX 470 for $234 at TigerDirect (deal end tomorrow)

TigerDirect has the EVGA GTX 470 for $350 - $30 instant savings - $30 coupon code UKG3685 - $45.60 BCB (15.2%) - $20 MIR = $234 shipped!


Rebate can be found here: http://evga.4myrebate.com/customer/default.aspx
Use rebate code: EGA-8790

Deal ends 7/16/10
 
If the 8800 gts 320mb was the 2nd fastest when you got it, then you picked it up in late 2006 early 2007?
And you paid 250++ for it. Since you keep your cards for a good while, it would be to your benefit to spring for a gtx460, if not a 470@234.
 
nissanztt90 said:
From what ive read and can extrapolate the 460 is around 40%, maybe 45% faster, on average, than the GTX 260.
Click to expand...

It's about half that, actually, but it also depends on which model. The 768mb is about ~15% faster than the GTX 260, and the 1GB is about ~20% faster at 1920x1200.
 
Not according to the Anandtech review that actually had direct comparisons. Care to substantiate that? The link above paints quite a different picture. It puts the GTX 460 at 50% faster in Crysis Warhead, and around 40% faster in most other games, if you figure that the GTX 260 falls somewhere in between the 5770 and 5750.
 
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460 is obviously the best of the lot, and better for the mid-term at least because of dx11. But if you're looking for best bang/buck be sure not to rule out ATI's current line of budget vid cards.
 
kllrnohj said:
It's about half that, actually, but it also depends on which model. The 768mb is about ~15% faster than the GTX 260, and the 1GB is about ~20% faster at 1920x1200.
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Exactly. 45% faster would put the 460 in 5850 territory, which it isn't quite as fast as.
 
nissanztt90 said:
Not according to the Anandtech review that actually had direct comparisons. Care to substantiate that? The link above paints quite a different picture. It puts the GTX 460 at 50% faster in Crysis Warhead, and around 40% faster in most other games, if you figure that the GTX 260 falls somewhere in between the 5770 and 5750.
Click to expand...

http://techpowerup.com/reviews/Zotac/GeForce_GTX_460_1_GB/31.html

Techpowerup not only has a direct comparison, but an average performance difference in terms of percentage. :)
 
RAM footprint means a lot where you are wanting to go. 320mb is not going to get you there at higher resolutions.
Posted via [H] Mobile Device
 
GTX 460. Its not that much more than a GTX 260 (if at all) and from what I've seen at all resolutions its about 20% faster than the GTX 260. Either version (768MB or 1GB) would much faster than the 8800 GTS 320. Given the probably age of your other components (I'm guessing the CPU is from the same time period as your GPU?) an ATI HD 5770 1GB might be a good fit and save you some money.
 
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GTX 480 will outperform GTX 460 by thirty to forty percent.

SLI GTX 460 will reliably outperform GTX 480 by twenty-five percent.

8800 GTS with 320mb of ram should not even be in the running.
 
nissanztt90 said:
I wouldnt pay more than 125ish for a GTX 260 at this point, probably even less. The GTX 460 has far more performance per dollar and it is brand new tech...not over 2 years old.
Click to expand...

How do you figure? On a 1900x1200 monitor, a GTX 260 @ $125 would be a much better value than a 1GB 460 @ $230.



.
 
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kllrnohj said:
http://techpowerup.com/reviews/Zotac/GeForce_GTX_460_1_GB/31.html

Techpowerup not only has a direct comparison, but an average performance difference in terms of percentage. :)
Click to expand...

Not sure where you got 20% from, as that link still puts the GTX 460 at about 30% faster than the GTX 260. And you cant just discount the 40% faster from the anandtech review.


aldamon said:
How do you figure? On a 1900x1200 monitor, a GTX 260 @ $125 would be a much better value than a 1GB 460 @ $230.
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Frankly, im not sure what i was thinking when i said that.:D I think i kinda joined two separate thoughts...one being i wouldnt pay more than 125 for a 260, and the other being the excellent price/performance of the 460.
 
nissanztt90 said:
Not sure where you got 20% from, as that link still puts the GTX 460 at about 30% faster than the GTX 260. And you cant just discount the 40% faster from the anandtech review.
Click to expand...

100 - 78 = 22.

Where did you get 30 from?
 
kllrnohj said:
100 - 78 = 22.

Where did you get 30 from?
Click to expand...

The performance is relative percentwise to the GTX 460.

The GTX 260 has 78% of the performance of the GTX 460. That does not mean the 460 is 22% faster.

Perhaps an easier way to percieve this is to pretend that the percentages offered on that page are actually FPS numbers for any given benchmark.

Say the 460 scores 100FPS, and the 260 scores 78FPS. The 260 has 78% of the performance (78% of the frames of the 460). However, 100FPS is not 22% more than 78FPS, is it?

If we multiply 78 x 1.22 (to see what 22% more is) we only get 95.16....which is slower than the 100FPS the 460 scored.

You need to divide 100 FPS / 78FPS to see how much faster the 460 is. 100/78 = 1.282. Now this puts it relative to the GTX 260. So now we know that the GTX 460 has 1.282x the performance of a 260...thus is about 30% faster...ok...28% faster. :)

Lastly...22% slower than the 460 would be 100/1.22 = 82FPS.

Relative % can be a bit tricky.
 
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it depends on what review you look at. in the techreport review the gtx460 was barely and in some cases NO better than a gtx260.
 
I'm going to go for a 1GB 460 from NewEgg. I just want to see a few more models come out.
 
rUmX said:
Exactly. 45% faster would put the 460 in 5850 territory, which it isn't quite as fast as.
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The reviews ive seen put the 1GB 460 within 10% of the performance of a 5850. So its a contender. However, where i live the intro price for the new nVidia card is within 10% of what a 5850 goes for. So unless the price falls, the 5850 is a little more attractive.
 
Its a good thing that Frys is 8 minuets from my house and has a 15 day return policy.
Posted via [H] Mobile Device
 
nvidia 460 is my first upgrade in almost 3 years. pretty excited!

trusty ol 8800GTS 320mb has served me well :D
 
Trigger said:
nvidia 460 is my first upgrade in almost 3 years. pretty excited!

trusty ol 8800GTS 320mb has served me well :D
Click to expand...

I have the 8800GTS 640mb and i adore it. Seriously. This card has lasted me longer than any card i've ever had and as a bonus keeps the room nice and toasty in winter:p (seriously 67c idle:eek:). Finding it really difficult to press the 'buy' button on the 460 1gb.

When i get something i use it till its worn out and needs replacing.

My ex can vouch for that ;)
 
The 460 is around 40% faster at stock clocks than a 260 according to Anand, and since they overclock so well your looking at a nice performance delta.
 
Cali3350 said:
The 460 is around 40% faster at stock clocks than a 260 according to Anand, and since they overclock so well your looking at a nice performance delta.
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well thats one review. in the techreport review the gtx460 was little to NO faster than the gtx260 in some games. sure the gtx460 can oc by another 20-25% but the gtx260 can oc by about 20% too you know.
 
cannondale06 said:
well thats one review. in the techreport review the gtx460 was little to NO faster than the gtx260 in some games.
Click to expand...

But when I look at the few instances where TheTechReport actually puts forth meaningful numbers, it shows the 460 providing smoother gameplay than the 260, therein the 260's ave numbers are equivalent to the 460's lowest numbers.
 
nissanztt90 said:
The performance is relative percentwise to the GTX 460.

The GTX 260 has 78% of the performance of the GTX 460. That does not mean the 460 is 22% faster.

Perhaps an easier way to percieve this is to pretend that the percentages offered on that page are actually FPS numbers for any given benchmark.

Say the 460 scores 100FPS, and the 260 scores 78FPS. The 260 has 78% of the performance (78% of the frames of the 460). However, 100FPS is not 22% more than 78FPS, is it?

If we multiply 78 x 1.22 (to see what 22% more is) we only get 95.16....which is slower than the 100FPS the 460 scored.

You need to divide 100 FPS / 78FPS to see how much faster the 460 is. 100/78 = 1.282. Now this puts it relative to the GTX 260. So now we know that the GTX 460 has 1.282x the performance of a 260...thus is about 30% faster...ok...28% faster. :)

Lastly...22% slower than the 460 would be 100/1.22 = 82FPS.

Relative % can be a bit tricky.
Click to expand...

Wow that's a long explanation of it :p Simply put, percentage is a ratio which is multiplied by 100 (ratio = one number divided by another). So the 460 has a 22fps gain over the 78fps of the 260. The ratio is then 22/78 = 0.28 = 28% increase in speed. You could also say that the GTX260 is 78% the speed of the GTX460 (78/100)
 
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kuyaglen said:
But when I look at the few instances where TheTechReport actually puts forth meaningful numbers, it shows the 460 providing smoother gameplay than the 260, therein the 260's ave numbers are equivalent to the 460's lowest numbers.
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well I just spent over 60 hours playing Borderlands and according to that review a gtx460 1gb would have done only 4 fps better than a gtx260 at 1920. heck it only ties the gtx260 if you play at 2560. Just Cause 2 is a very popular game and the gtx460 would provide no better framerate than a gtx260. so basically the gtx460 1gb is no better in some cases than a card I paid $50 less for over 18 months ago.
 
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Though TechReport's numbers with Borderlands & JC2 does not use [H]'s methodology for getting a true representation of a video cards gameplay ability. I'm all for a game for having its own benchmark but TechReport's review is somewhat lazy in not using the same method for all the games they used.
 
kuyaglen said:
Though TechReport's numbers with Borderlands & JC2 does not use [H]'s methodology for getting a true representation of a video cards gameplay ability. I'm all for a game for having its own benchmark but TechReport's review is somewhat lazy in not using the same method for all the games they used.
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Compared to Anandtech which previously did benchmarks with a fucking cutscene? Don't know if they still do it, don't care.
 
One of the reviews summed it up best by saying this gen of cards was mostly about introducing the DX11 features, but in terms of raw performance compared to last gen we're looking at only modest gains. The next sets of cards from either camp, prob 6 series Ati and 5 series Nvidia will take those DX11 features and add more horsepower to the mix.

I'm paraphrasing, and too lazy to get actual quotes...so there.
 
brinjin said:
One of the reviews summed it up best by saying this gen of cards was mostly about introducing the DX11 features, but in terms of raw performance compared to last gen we're looking at only modest gains. The next sets of cards from either camp, prob 6 series Ati and 5 series Nvidia will take those DX11 features and add more horsepower to the mix.

I'm paraphrasing, and too lazy to get actual quotes...so there.
Click to expand...

This gen == 2 of last gen in SLI/CF

Hardly "modest" gains - rather, same gains as the last half dozen generations.
 
kllrnohj said:
This gen == 2 of last gen in SLI/CF

Hardly "modest" gains - rather, same gains as the last half dozen generations.
Click to expand...

Really?!? everyone in my other thread keeps saying there is only a small performance difference between 260 and 460, and that 2x 260 in SLI would be way faster than a 460 alone, you just lose the DX11. Now i dunno what to think, lol.
 
brinjin said:
Really?!? everyone in my other thread keeps saying there is only a small performance difference between 260 and 460, and that 2x 260 in SLI would be way faster than a 460 alone, you just lose the DX11. Now i dunno what to think, lol.
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he was referring to the whole generation of cards from both companies in which cases some cards are much faster. for example a 5870 is almost as fast as 4870 crossfire. as for as the gtx460 to gtx260 goes that just isnt the case though.
 
kllrnohj said:
This gen == 2 of last gen in SLI/CF

Hardly "modest" gains - rather, same gains as the last half dozen generations.
Click to expand...

They are decently good gains.

I guess people were expecting the 480 = 2x 285 SLI, and 5870 = 2x 4890 CF.
 
rUmX said:
They are decently good gains.

I guess people were expecting the 480 = 2x 285 SLI, and 5870 = 2x 4890 CF.
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Well, expecting AMD to release a chip twice as fast (including overhead) in less than six months is ridiculous. The GTX 480 might have been 285's in SLI but then reality kicked their design's ass.
 
rUmX said:
They are decently good gains.

I guess people were expecting the 480 = 2x 285 SLI, and 5870 = 2x 4890 CF.
Click to expand...

Those people are unrealistic and have very, *very* short memories.

Even the mighty 8800GTX didn't beat two of it's previous gen refreshed, top end cards in CF/SLI. x1950 crossfire, for example, was faster than the 8800GTX in almost everything, Oblivion being the big exception.

cannondale06 said:
he was referring to the whole generation of cards from both companies in which cases some cards are much faster. for example a 5870 is almost as fast as 4870 crossfire. as for as the gtx460 to gtx260 goes that just isnt the case though.
Click to expand...

Bingo.

GTX 480 == GTX 295
5870 == 4870x2

etc...

And the GTX 260's place in last gen's lineup would be more comparable to the GTX 470's place this gen (relative performance compared to the top card)
 
I am in this exact same boat.. Decisions decisions decisions.. I currently have (2) XFX Black Edition GTX 260's in SLI. The Black Edition cards if you recall, at the time, were the fastest GTX 260's and often approached the GTX 280's in terms of FPS in many games. So, here I sit today.. $450 dollars in hand. I am pretty darn happy with my GTX 260's in SLI. While I understand there are better cards out there, it still makes it a little difficult to drop the hammer on two more cards that will basically "upgrade" (relative term) to DX11. I know I will see a little improvement going from a GTX 260 SLI setup to a GTX 460 SLI but in the end, is it "worth" $450 bucks for that "upgrade", considering that I game at 1920x1080.
 
From everything I have read, and the fact that i'm not rich, SLI 460 is not a place I would go if I had SLI 260. GTX 480? Maybe. I think i'll wait for ATI's 6xxx series refresh.
 
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