5870 upgrade advice

[Saki630]

I play at 2560x1440 and want to upgrade my 5870 for some better BF3 action.

I wanted a GTX 670 with a custom cooler around $350-400 because from my knowledge It performs equally as good as a 7970 after slight OC.

I could pick up a 7950 for cheaper but am hesitant because I cannot find how well a 670 competes with a Sapphire 7950 950mhz oc model.

 

[biggles]

Overclocked you will likely find 670=7950<7970. Although, I am pretty sure Nvidia has the edge in bf3.

IMO Radeons give a better bang for the buck. On the other hand I think Nvidia is a little better with drivers, and they have physx if you care about that.

 

[fightingfi]

I to had a Sapphire 5870 almost since day one. Just upgraded myself to a MSI nvidia 670 which is faster than amd card has out and was 399 where as teh 7970's are more expensive and slower. In some benchmarks teh 670 out pwns teh 680 LULZ. 670 for meh !

 

[MacLeod]

Im in the same boat as you with my 5870 but Im looking at the 7970 for my upgrade. Its $40 more than a GTX670 and it is a little faster. Might not be $40 worth faster but still faster. If you cant swing the $40, a GTX670 is still a very nice upgrade from out trusty 5870's.

 

[Saki630]

$330 950mhz 7950 vs $410 gtx 670 --- both with a game and after rebates. Tough choice for me and am keeping my options open.

 

[risqu3]

i went from 5870 e6 to 7970 at launch to 7970 x-fire. I haven't had many problems.

The only problem i did encounter was when I fiddled with ICEMANs catalyst uninstaller(cant remember the right name) and it caused system instability and caused my 5870 to start crashing no matter what. and then my 7970 to start crashing as well

 

[TimothWinter]

I to had a Sapphire 5870 almost since day one

 

[raghu78]

People who think a GTX 670 is faster than HD 7950 especially at 1440p when overclocked just need a reality check. clock for clock HD 7950 is 3 - 5% slower than HD 7970 as is the GTX 670 behind GTX 680. At 1440p / 1600p HD 7970 OC > HD 7950 OC > GTX 680 OC > GTX 670 OC . this is not a comparison across a single game but a wide range of games. In BF3 too GTX 680 has the edge at 1080p but not at 1440p / 1600p. again i am talking about a good clocking HD 7950 / HD 7970 card at around 1200 Mhz against a good clocking GTX 670 / 680 card at 1300 Mhz.

http://www.hardocp.com/article/2012/08/23/galaxy_gtx_660_ti_gc_oc_vs_670_hd_7950/2

http://www.techpowerup.com/reviews/Sapphire/HD_7970_Toxic_6_GB/28.html

2560 X 1600

HD 7970 (925) - 88
GTX 680 - 89
HD 7970 Ghz (1050) - 97
HD 7970 Ghz (1100) - 100
HD 7970 Ghz (1200) - 106

HD 7950 / HD 7970 perf scaling at 1440p with overclocking is also better than GTX 670 / 680.

 

[Saki630]

Thank you Raghu78 for your advice which would be an OCed 7970 for less than 680 retail?

 

[raghu78]

Thank you Raghu78 for your advice which would be an OCed 7970 for less than 680 retail?

For best bang for buck get the HD 7950 OC. with voltage overclocking getting these cards to 1150 - 1200 Mhz is very much possible. The best HD 7950 cards are gigabyte HD 7950 windforce, Sapphire HD 7950 950 Mhz edition, HIS Iceq HD 7950 Boost. gigabyte has better warranty and probably the best cooler. His iceq also has a very efficient heatsink with heatpipes and a blower style cooler which vents hot air outside. its a good option if you are thinking of CF down the road. the sapphire dual x cooler is also very good. pick what you like.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814125414
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814102991
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814161420

 

[Rauelius]

I went from a 5850 in CFX to a single GTX670, it felt like a fantastic move. Going from a single 5870 to a single GTX670 will melt your brain.