GTX680 or Radeon 7970

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Deimos

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I'm having some trouble deciding between these two cards, perhaps someone can give me some input.

I have 3 24" monitors running off a Radeon 5870 which is really showing it's age now.

I'm not too concerned about the price, but I should probably factor it in, this is what I have so far:

Generally the GTX680 is $100 - $150 more than the Radeon

There is no Phys-x on AMD

The Radeon has a larger frame buffer but benchmarking shows very little difference between the GTX680 and the Radeon at multi screen resolutions + AA

The GTX680 has lower power usage (can I assume that it will be cooler and quieter too?)

Adaptive v-sync on the GTX680 (this is one feature I particularly want, I think it will make a big difference when the card is 2 + years old running future games). But I don't think this make much difference at all with current games...

The GTX680 can run 3 non displayport monitors at once (2 DVI +1 HDMI) this is a big plus for me, I find the displayport adapters to be very slow when changing resolutions or even just starting up the computer.

On the flip side though, there is a 7970 that can run 6 displays (2 DVI + 4 Displayport) that is still $150 cheaper than the GTX680

And finally, I have been loyal to ATI/AMD for almost a decade, I'm quite familiar with drivers and features, so the GTX680 will be somewhat unfamiliar to me, but I'm not overly concerned about it.

I'm still torn, please help.
 
I was in the same boat. I ended up going with the ASUS Directcu II top 7970. I was able to get it for 430 used while the ASUS Directcu II 680 was $100 higher (and out of stock). I wanted the Directcu II because it was so quiet. I have to say I love how quiet this card is. I can not here my fans untill they hit 30+% and with my OC my fans don't go higher than 50%. Noticeable, but not loud and easy to go unnoticed with sound on.

I am really impressed with the 7970. It does what I need it to do. It took a little while to get use the interface since I've been with nvidia for nearly 7 years.

From hearing your list if money is not of a concern go with the 680gtx. You game with three monitors and If you decided to go with 2 cards I think it will scale better and have less problems with drivers. But I dont think you can go wrong with either card.
 
Yeah, that is the one I was looking at that can do 6 displays.

TBH I can't see myself ever getting SLI (well not until I become a lawyer charging $500 per hour, or a multi-millionaire, whichever comes first).

I'm seriously considering that card now....
 
Are you joking about becoming a lawyer? If not, I'm in law school too! lol

Anyway,

Yeah I love mine. I did not max my oc b/c i'm trying to keep it quiet. At 1125/1600 my fans max at about 50% and stays under 70c. Nice and quiet.

I have heard of people having problems with them. I was lucky to get one off of someone on the forums in great shape.

And I also doubt that I will ever go sli.
 
PhysX is virtually unused... only a handful of games support it, and most of them are games people never even heard of.

If you're a big OC'er, you'll gain more bang out of your buck from the HD7970 than you would with the GTX680 since the GTX680 isn't too great of an overclocker, making the HD7970 the top single gpu, that is... if you know how to take advantage of it.



Also, AMD will be releasing a revised version of the HD7970 next week under the code name Tahiti XT2 that are better binned and higher clocks than any previous version.
 
The GTX 670 seems to match and even beat the 7970 so I would either go with the GTX 680 or I would save money and go with the GTX 670.
 
Simmonz said:
The GTX 670 seems to match and even beat the 7970 so I would either go with the GTX 680 or I would save money and go with the GTX 670.
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I would consider that to be highly debateable, I admit that I havn't done a whole lot of research on the topic, but from what I gather even if the 670 offers a similar gaming experience on a multi screen setup, it offers nothing extra in terms of savings (the price is pretty much the same here between the two) and the 7970 can be overclocked quite well.

Also the 7970 that I am looking at is eyefinity 6 for no extra money over the 670 so I would be more inclined to go for that just based on that feature alone.
 
If you are on Eyefinity I would go with AMD. It's better overall than Surround.

SLI also tends to have issues in games like GW2 on Surround.

I would go with Nvidia if I wasn't on 3 screens for drivers and price/performance (the 670/680 can be OCed too you know).
 
I suggest you go for the Sapphire HD 7950 950 Mhz edition. uses ref HD 7970 PCB. 8pin + 6 pin power. fantastic cooler. dual BIOS with the 2nd BIOS allowing for very aggressive overclocking. here is forum member sonda5 who has posted pics, OC speeds of the card. he hit 1200 Mhz at stock volts and is currently at 1300 Mhz with 1.2V.

http://hardforum.com/showthread.php?t=1695577

you can message the user and ask if you have want to know more about the card. clock for clock HD 7950 is close to HD 7970 performance, maybe 3% slower. But costs much lesser. this card is available for USD 390 at newegg.

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

Best price performance in the high end segment. And for multi monitor the extra VRAM and bandwidth do matter especially if you want to game with AA :)
 
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Deimos said:
I'm going to rule out the 7950, the mini DP connectors are a deal breaker for me.

I'm not concerned about the extra cost, which I said in my OP, I'm only considering the GTX680 vs the Radeon 7970, at the moment I'm leaning towards this:
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Is dual DVI with a single HDMI an option that will work for you ? Here is Sapphire HD 7950 Flex edition with that option. cost USD 420 at newegg.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814102995
 
It would but it isn't available here... all the links to NZ stores for the flex card are actually not flex cards.
 
Q1DM6 said:
Why? You can get a mini-dp to whatever cable easily.
I personally LOVE mini displayport.
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not down here, display port cables are very difficult to get unless you order from overseas, and not many places are willing to ship to NZ.
 
Deimos said:
It would but it isn't available here... all the links to NZ stores for the flex card are actually not flex cards.
Click to expand...

check out this site . it has the Sapphire HD 7950 Flex for $712

http://www.elive.co.nz/sapphire-radeon-hd7950-3gb-video-DV05769.php

I don't know if this Sapphire HD 7950 Flex has dual BIOS. But definitely with sapphire trixx the potential is there to hit 1100 Mhz and higher.

http://www.sapphiretech.com/presentation/media/?psn=0004&articleID=4476

http://www.sapphiretech.com/presentation/product/?cid=1&gid=3&sgid=1157&pid=1548&psn=&lid=1&leg=0


alternatively the ASUS HD 7970 DC II cards go for $854 and $879 (TOP version)

http://www.elive.co.nz/asus-hd7970-3gb-video-card-sy4683.php
http://www.elive.co.nz/asus-hd7970-3gb-video-card-sy4634.php
 
Just get a 7970 whatever edition and call it a day. Overclock to 1125/1575 since day 1 and create a profile so that it sticks. You will be running same as a stock GTX 680 in all your games.

Save the bucks. Alternatively you can go nVidia 680 but I didn't see the bang for buck with an nVidia card. 670 is a good option but I have been hearing deteriorating OC reports on those cards so personally stayed away.
 
You cant go wrong with a 680 or 7970.

Performance will end up the same. 7970 still holds the quad-gpu world record in benchmarks, while 680 performs consistently better in 1080P in all games.

7970 allows overvoltage of memory and gpu, 680 doesnt, but even so when you boost the 680's clock and overvolt and overclock the 7970 you get the same performance.

Some games are better on the 680 (bf3, skyrim, starcraft, warcraft) some are better on 7970 (crysis 1/2 warhead, metro)

I'd rather have nvidia's control panel, and if you ever want to get more than one gpu down the road, Nvidia might give you better gameplay and less trouble.
 
KickAssCop said:
Save the bucks. Alternatively you can go nVidia 680 but I didn't see the bang for buck with an nVidia card. 670 is a good option but I have been hearing deteriorating OC reports on those cards so personally stayed away.
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If the deteriorating OC problem was true, how can you recommend a 680. The 680 and 670 are the same chip off the same wafers.
 
Honestly I would get the GTX 670 FTW Edition. The 7970 is awesome overclocked but it is not a 2500k/2600k. Some people have a hard time breaking 1025. My first Sapphire was a huge bitch to deal with.
 
From what I've seen the 670 is ~5% or so slower than a 680. How people manage to justify a 680 or 7970 to themselves with the 670 out there is simply beyond me. The 670 is one incredibly efficient beast of a gpu.
 
I ended up going with the Asus HD7970-DC2T

Its a great card but I'm having slight buyers remorse because voltage control on the GPU doesn't function, I still get a reasonable OC on it though, 1125 core, 6600 mem.

One thing I have noticed, GTA IV is the worst console to PC port ever, seriously, I still can't run that came maxed even on this crazy beast of a card, actually, the game runs pretty shit regardless of what settings I use.

The other thing I'm pissed about is CCC is pretty unstable, get random displayport errors even though everything is functioning as expected.
 
Q1DM6 said:
From what I've seen the 670 is ~5% or so slower than a 680. How people manage to justify a 680 or 7970 to themselves with the 670 out there is simply beyond me. The 670 is one incredibly efficient beast of a gpu.
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Considering the 670 is about the same price as a 7970 how do u justify buying the 670 is beyond the rest of us :p
 
Deimos said:
I ended up going with the Asus HD7970-DC2T

Its a great card but I'm having slight buyers remorse because voltage control on the GPU doesn't function, I still get a reasonable OC on it though, 1125 core, 6600 mem.

One thing I have noticed, GTA IV is the worst console to PC port ever, seriously, I still can't run that came maxed even on this crazy beast of a card, actually, the game runs pretty shit regardless of what settings I use.

The other thing I'm pissed about is CCC is pretty unstable, get random displayport errors even though everything is functioning as expected.
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If you don't mind run some benches of the 7970 DCII. I had the same card and hit the same max OC (1125) and was unpressed also.

gokuz said:
Considering the 670 is about the same price as a 7970 how do u justify buying the 670 is beyond the rest of us :p
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My 670 ftw killed my 7970 and was less than a headache. Out the box it was faster than my 7970. One chip of course is not representative of all cards, but It is enough for me to be more than happy with my purchase.

benches I personally ran @2560x1440 (An area where the 7970 should win.)

Stock 7970 direct cu (1000mhz)
33c1b87.jpg

Stock 670 ftw (1189mhz factory boost)
2yzhczl.jpg

OC'ed 670ftw (1289mhz)
209r9l0.jpg


7970 OC (1125)
334r9lg.jpg

670 ftw OC (1289)
24zbxvl.jpg


7970OC (1125)
5ygnxe.jpg

670 ftw stock (1189 factory boost)
9livb6.jpg

670 ftw OC (1289)
11uc1ld.jpg


I was swayed originally by all the talk of the 7970 outperforming the 670 and how it was oc'able to 1200+ easily. Much happier now.
 
I was in the same boat and got a 7950 for $320 after MIR and plan to overclock the crap out of it. I actually put the order in for the 670 and cancelled it.
 
I too am running a 5870 and am in need of an upgrade. I'm going with a 7970 as it does better at higher resolutions that the 600 series. I think that's mostly to do with the castrated memory bandwidth on the 600 series. If you you are pushing more that 2560x1600 (4.1 MP), 5760x1080 is bigger than that, then go with a 7970.
 
doug_7506 said:
If you don't mind run some benches of the 7970 DCII. I had the same card and hit the same max OC (1125) and was unpressed also.



My 670 ftw killed my 7970 and was less than a headache. Out the box it was faster than my 7970. One chip of course is not representative of all cards, but It is enough for me to be more than happy with my purchase.

snip...
Click to expand...

My DCU2T actually breaks the 10k mark in 3dmark11 with a max OC of 1180 on the core, but I do have a GTX 670 FTW sitting in its box, just contemplating if I'm going to switch over, though things are vastly improved on the driver side with AMD.
 
doug_7506 said:
My 670 ftw killed my 7970 and was less than a headache. Out the box it was faster than my 7970. One chip of course is not representative of all cards, but It is enough for me to be more than happy with my purchase.

benches I personally ran @2560x1440 (An area where the 7970 should win.)

I was swayed originally by all the talk of the 7970 outperforming the 670 and how it was oc'able to 1200+ easily. Much happier now.
Click to expand...

If you are happy with your card thats fine. But turning this into a GTX 670 is better than HD 7970 argument is just silly.

The settings you ran at are not even maxing out Unigine Heaven 3.0 . You run at 4x anisotropy instead of 16x, 4x AA instead of 8X AA, normal instead of extreme. You might have chosen this to reduce the bandwidth requirements.

http://www.legitreviews.com/article/1962/12/

2560 x 1600 8XAA 16XAF Extreme tesselation

GTX 680 (1006/ 1058 - 1110) - 29.3
Sapphire HD 7970 (1000) - 30.9
MSI HD 7970 (1070) - 32.6

Here is how I see it. HD 7970 is faster than GTX 680 even at slower clocks in Heaven 3.0 maxed out at 1600p. With the latest drivers the HD 7970 wins over GTX 680 in wide range of games. check out reviews. Dirt 3, Skyrim, Deus Ex, Alan Wake, Batman AC (8X MSAA) , Anno 2070, Witcher 2, Witcher 2 EE, Dirt Showdown, Crysis Warhead, Metro 2033. Crysis 2 and BF3 are close enough to call a tie because depending on the particular review scenario any one of them can be called faster than the other.
 
Eluder79 said:
My DCU2T actually breaks the 10k mark in 3dmark11 with a max OC of 1180 on the core, but I do have a GTX 670 FTW sitting in its box, just contemplating if I'm going to switch over, though things are vastly improved on the driver side with AMD.
Click to expand...

At 1180 Mhz your ASUS HD 7970 will beat the GTX 670 in most of the games. there is no chance of a GTX 670 competing. You just need to look at the Radeon HD 7970 Ghz edition reviews to understand that. With the latest drivers AMD simply wins the majority of the games.
 
raghu78 said:
If you are happy with your card thats fine. But turning this into a GTX 670 is better than HD 7970 argument is just silly.

The settings you ran at are not even maxing out Unigine Heaven 3.0 . You run at 4x anisotropy instead of 16x, 4x AA instead of 8X AA, normal instead of extreme. You might have chosen this to reduce the bandwidth requirements.

http://www.legitreviews.com/article/1962/12/

2560 x 1600 8XAA 16XAF Extreme tesselation

GTX 680 (1006/ 1058 - 1110) - 29.3
Sapphire HD 7970 (1000) - 30.9
MSI HD 7970 (1070) - 32.6

Here is how I see it. HD 7970 is faster than GTX 680 even at slower clocks in Heaven 3.0 maxed out at 1600p. With the latest drivers the HD 7970 wins over GTX 680 in wide range of games. check out reviews. Dirt 3, Skyrim, Deus Ex, Alan Wake, Batman AC (8X MSAA) , Anno 2070, Witcher 2, Witcher 2 EE, Dirt Showdown, Crysis Warhead, Metro 2033. Crysis 2 and BF3 are close enough to call a tie because depending on the particular review scenario any one of them can be called faster than the other.
Click to expand...

ONCE AGAIN, here you are telling someone that has owned BOTH cards that they aren't allowed to give their opinion on which card is better. You haven't owned EITHER card yet you feel the need to jump into every 7950 or 7970 discussion and tell everyone about how superior those cards are when people are telling you that have owned BOTH cards that they prefer Nvidia this generation. Why can't you just accept that what you think you know on paper isn't really the case in the real world?
 
Blkout said:
ONCE AGAIN, here you are telling someone that has owned BOTH cards that they aren't allowed to give their opinion on which card is better. You haven't owned EITHER card yet you feel the need to jump into every 7950 or 7970 discussion and tell everyone about how superior those cards are when people are telling you that have owned BOTH cards that they prefer Nvidia this generation. Why can't you just accept that what you think you know on paper isn't really the case in the real world?
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You want me to believe somebody's words who might or might not have a preference for a certain vendor or is trying to justify his ownership of a certain card. not going to happen. i should disregard that legitreviews bench because of what reason. leave it blkout. Your preference for th GTX 670 is fine. for reasons like perf/watt and a cooler running card. but telling that the GTX 670 is better than HD 7970 when the latest HD 7970 Ghz edition reviews show otherwise is just a bit too much.
FYI I have seen you jump into any HD 7970 / HD 7950 discussion to talk down those cards. In the sapphire HD 7970 OC review thread you did just that.

http://hardforum.com/showthread.php?t=1702253

Your view is not the rest of world's view. There are people running HD 7900 cards at 1250 - 1300 Mhz on air and still you keep telling its not possible. If your particular card was not able to do 1250 Mhz does not mean others can't achieve it. you disregarded the review from hardocp. they had 45 min of game benchmarking time alone running the card at 1280 Mhz. yet you had to barge in and say not possible. so please don't advise others when you are more biased than me.
 
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raghu78 said:
At 1180 Mhz your ASUS HD 7970 will beat the GTX 670 in most of the games. there is no chance of a GTX 670 competing. You just need to look at the Radeon HD 7970 Ghz edition reviews to understand that. With the latest drivers AMD simply wins the majority of the games.
Click to expand...

Sorry to disagree with you once again but...

http://www.guru3d.com/article/radeon-hd-7970-ghz-edition-review/12

I just don't see it winning the majority of games, in the few that it does come out ahead of a 680, its usually 3-4fps which is close enough in my book.
 
raghu78 said:
You want me to believe somebody's words who might or might not have a preference for a certain vendor. not going to happen. i should disregard that legitreviews bench because of what reason. leave it blkout. Your preference for th GTX 670 is fine. for reasons like perf/watt and a cooler running card. but telling that the GTX 670 is better than HD 7970 when the latest HD 7970 Ghz edition reviews show otherwise is just a bit too much.
Click to expand...

He had no problem recommending the 7970 to the OP originally before he had actually owned a 670. Read the second post in this thread. Are you blind? That doesn't sound like someone who had a hidden Nvidia agenda.
 
Blkout said:
Sorry to disagree with you once again but...

http://www.guru3d.com/article/radeon-hd-7970-ghz-edition-review/12

I just don't see it winning the majority of games, in the few that it does come out ahead of a 680, its usually 3-4fps which is close enough in my book.
Click to expand...

try looking at the most popular games I mentioned. Showing one game does not mean anything.


Blkout said:
He had no problem recommending the 7970 to the OP originally before he had actually owned a 670. Read the second post in this thread. Are you blind? That doesn't sound like someone who had a hidden Nvidia agenda.
Click to expand...

you forgot that I just pointed out a discrepancy in the settings and showed him the legitreviews bench which showed even in heaven 3.0 maxed out the HD 7970 was faster. Whats your problem with that ?

Conveniently you did not respond to the comment I made about you posting wherever there is a discussion on the HD 7900 cards just to talk them down.
 
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