Downgrading From 4870X2 to...

[Possédé]

Hello all,
I am currently selling my 4870X2 because I don't use it enough to justify keeping it. I game at 1920x1200, and play games such as TF2, L4D, Counter-Strike Source, and the occasional Crysis. What do you recommend me downgrading to? I have under £200 to spend. I was looking at a 4850 and 4870. Will they be able to run the games I play?

Any input is much appreciated.

 

[trinibwoy]

4870 1GB. Yeah, you'll be fine. Except for Crysis

 

[TheBlueChanell]

4870 1GB or 4850x2 if you wish to stay with ATi if not GTX260 216

 

[Possédé]

Would 4870 512MB version be sufficient? Or will the 1024MB version be needed because of my higher resolution?

Thanks for chipping in.

 

[MrLoLeR]

Gtx 260 is a great card, if you like Nvidia.

 

[TheBlueChanell]

Would 4870 512MB version be sufficient? Or will the 1024MB version be needed because of my higher resolution?

Thanks for chipping in.

You are going to want the 4870 1GB for your resolution. It usually provides a small boost in frames regardless of the game but it gets a HUGE boost in games like FC2, Grid and Age of Conan.

 

[nissanztt90]

GTX 260 Core 216 for nVidia, 4870 1gb for ATI.

Yes you want more than 512mb of VRAM.

 

[figgie]

let me get this straight.

Regardless if you use the 4870x2 or it is a paper weight sitting on the table.

You are going to sell it, AT A PRETTY GOOD LOSS, to get something less powerful that will cost you more than what you sell the 4870 x2 at? Really????

You already purchased the card, why take a double hit money wise because it is "overkill"? THat is unless you have money burning a hole in your pocket.

Hell overkill is a good thing. Not having enough is a bad thing.

 

[Sirk1000]

I think a hd4850 would play well with all those games but crysis......

I just got a monitor with a res of 1920x1200 and i was really surprised that my sig rig plays
all the games i play really well TF2,L4d,Bf2142,(all maxed) Even fallout 3 plays really well with all high settings. Talking 45-50 avg

 

[trinibwoy]

You are going to sell it, AT A PRETTY GOOD LOSS, to get something less powerful that will cost you more than what you sell the 4870 x2 at? Really????

I agree that it doesn't make sense to sell it. But he's going to get cash out of the deal. He can probably get $400-425 for the X2 and pick up a 4870 1GB for ~250.

 

[cyclone3d]

Wanna trade me for my 4850?

 

[Possédé]

Haha, I understand I won't be getting much out of selling it.

I'm selling it for £300, (I paid just over £300 for it). And can get a used 4870 for just under £200, so I'm pocketing just over £100. I hardly game any more so I'd rather have the £100 and a graphics card that will be able to run the games I play. I want to sell it before Nvidia release their 295 GTX, because I can see the 4870 X2 losing it's value.

I hope it makes sense.

 

[crawlgsx]

Haha, I understand I won't be getting much out of selling it.

I'm selling it for £300, (I paid just over £300 for it). And can get a used 4870 for just under £200, so I'm pocketing just over £100. I hardly game any more so I'd rather have the £100 and a graphics card that will be able to run the games I play. I want to sell it before Nvidia release their 295 GTX, because I can see the 4870 X2 losing it's value.

I hope it makes sense.

Nope

I understand what you mean but at the same time in probably a year or less a game will come out that won't run how you like on 1 4870 and you will regret having sold that x2.

 

[figgie]

Nope

I understand what you mean but at the same time in probably a year or less a game will come out that won't run how you like on 1 4870 and you will regret having sold that x2.

Thank you!!

Someone else thinking of the future route not the here and now.....

 

[Agent Ironside]

You cannot beat a GTX 260 216 for the price, do it.

 

[UtopiA]

I agree with the others saying to keep the card.
It might be overkill for now, but the card will last longer than a current mid-range.

 

[MurderCityDevil]

fuck yeah man keep that card. It is the absolute top of the line and I for one have very serious doubts that nvidia isn't going to phail again with the 295...history repeats itself and I'd be very surprised if it's not another repeat of the 9800gx2. Even if they somehow fix microstutter and overheating while keeping the pcb-sandwich design, it's still going to be obsolete in a short while since it's 2 old cards smushed together. Keep the x2 and enjoy maxing out games for a long time.

 

[shansoft]

You cannot beat a GTX 260 216 for the price, do it.

You sure?

--------------------------------------

You should keep your 4870X2, not mention you going to lose some cash and performance after you downgrade...

so best choice of all is to keep it, unless you are waiting for next generation to come up...

if you do so, get 4870 1G will be a good choice, if you want to go for nVidia, XFX GTX 260 Black Edition will be your choice, other than that, dont bother to consider about it...

 

[ALL4AMD]

let me get this straight.

Regardless if you use the 4870x2 or it is a paper weight sitting on the table.

You are going to sell it, AT A PRETTY GOOD LOSS, to get something less powerful that will cost you more than what you sell the 4870 x2 at? Really????

You already purchased the card, why take a double hit money wise because it is "overkill"? THat is unless you have money burning a hole in your pocket.

Hell overkill is a good thing. Not having enough is a bad thing.

in accounting they tell us to not make desicions on sunk cost. keep the card and then it will be a really long time b4 u need to upgrade.

 

[figgie]

in accounting they tell us to not make desicions on sunk cost. keep the card and then it will be a really long time b4 u need to upgrade.

But you have to

Accounting is for corporations where they can write off sunk costs

Us single individuals can not.

So that means the £200 4870 is really not £200 as you have to take into consideration the loss of buying the 4870 x2 and then selling it at a price lower than what you paid (in this case, £310 and the OP selling it for £300, HOPEFULLY!).

That means the new card did not cost £200, It really going to cost him £210 as we mere mortals can not write off the £10. It does not look too attractive from a price point now does it?

Math never makes the things that seem to us logical, logical

 

[MrWizard6600]

Haha, I understand I won't be getting much out of selling it.

I'm selling it for £300, (I paid just over £300 for it). And can get a used 4870 for just under £200, so I'm pocketing just over £100. I hardly game any more so I'd rather have the £100 and a graphics card that will be able to run the games I play. I want to sell it before Nvidia release their 295 GTX, because I can see the 4870 X2 losing it's value.

I hope it makes sense.

that sounds like a good plan to me...

But then I don't know an e-tailers, so I don't know the pricing. Actually If you could link me to a couple of the most popular ones for future reference I'd be much appreciative. Most HD4870 X2s go for twice the cost or more of a single HD4870, so how you got your HD4870X2 for 300£ and your getting an HD4870 used for 200£, I don't know.

And I've been doing this alot even though I'm known for looking at benchmarks with a rather red slant: go with an XFX GTX260, imho. The international support from sapphire, HIS, Diamond, and most ATI e-tailers is atrocious. XFX is very respectable especially outside of the US. Asus and Gigabyte (who sign with both amd and Nvidia) are recommendable, slow but they wont screw you out of your RMA.

People whine on and on about how 512mb isnt enough for the HD4870, and their right, but an additional 512mb of GDDR5 ant cheap, so ideally the HD4870 would have 1GB of GDDR5, but that gives you an additional 10-20% performance for an additional 20-40% cost.

Your call, and you cant really go wrong.

 

[zerodeefex]

let me get this straight.

Regardless if you use the 4870x2 or it is a paper weight sitting on the table.

You are going to sell it, AT A PRETTY GOOD LOSS, to get something less powerful that will cost you more than what you sell the 4870 x2 at? Really????

You already purchased the card, why take a double hit money wise because it is "overkill"? THat is unless you have money burning a hole in your pocket.

Hell overkill is a good thing. Not having enough is a bad thing.

I did something similar. I picked up a 4870x2 during the cashback time for $315 after cashback. Then I sold it locally for $420 recently when I realized it was overkill. I just picked up a 4850 on the forums for $109 shipped, so I don't think I did too bad. Maybe the OP did something similar?

 

[Possédé]

that sounds like a good plan to me...

But then I don't know an e-tailers, so I don't know the pricing. Actually If you could link me to a couple of the most popular ones for future reference I'd be much appreciative. Most HD4870 X2s go for twice the cost or more of a single HD4870, so how you got your HD4870X2 for 300£ and your getting an HD4870 used for 200£, I don't know.

And I've been doing this alot even though I'm known for looking at benchmarks with a rather red slant: go with an XFX GTX260, imho. The international support from sapphire, HIS, Diamond, and most ATI e-tailers is atrocious. XFX is very respectable especially outside of the US. Asus and Gigabyte (who sign with both amd and Nvidia) are recommendable, slow but they wont screw you out of your RMA.

People whine on and on about how 512mb isnt enough for the HD4870, and their right, but an additional 512mb of GDDR5 ant cheap, so ideally the HD4870 would have 1GB of GDDR5, but that gives you an additional 10-20% performance for an additional 20-40% cost.

Your call, and you cant really go wrong.

Thanks for everyone's input so far.

I purchased my 4870X2 through eBay at £303 including shipping, it was only being sold because the company's customer decided to go with a 280GTX instead of the 4870X2. And so I got a good deal on a mint 4870X2. I will be able to get a 4870 1GB on eBay for under £200, having a look.

Graphics cards are expensive in the UK, compared to the US. I suppose I could go with a used 260GTX on eBay, if I can find one for a good price. I never stated in my original post, that coming from a 8800GTX, ATIs drivers don't seem up to par. I have to fiddle around with Rivatuner settings before and after playing games, or else the 4870X2s fan goes on crazy high-speed bursts throughout playing a game. Nearly had a heart attack the first time it happened. So I suppose the move to a Nvidia card can't hurt too bad.

 

[crawlgsx]

Thanks for everyone's input so far.

I purchased my 4870X2 through eBay at £303 including shipping, it was only being sold because the company's customer decided to go with a 280GTX instead of the 4870X2. And so I got a good deal on a mint 4870X2. I will be able to get a 4870 1GB on eBay for under £200, having a look.

Graphics cards are expensive in the UK, compared to the US. I suppose I could go with a used 260GTX on eBay, if I can find one for a good price. I never stated in my original post, that coming from a 8800GTX, ATIs drivers don't seem up to par. I have to fiddle around with Rivatuner settings before and after playing games, or else the 4870X2s fan goes on crazy high-speed bursts throughout playing a game. Nearly had a heart attack the first time it happened. So I suppose the move to a Nvidia card can't hurt too bad.

Not to argue that ATI's drivers suck (I agree), but you could use ATI Catalyst to set the fan to 35-45% depending on your noise requirements and leave it at that. No playing with Rivatuner for fans.

And that "heart attack" saved your Video Cards life FWIW. The fan goes into that "heart attack mode" when the GPU reaches over 90c (It might be 95c, I dont know the exact temp).

 

[ChronoDetector]

I say keep the card, I don't see the point of downgrading. You'll probably regret it later because games these days require a lot of horsepower.