Is a Radeon 4890 overkill?

Ricedaddy

[H]ard|Gawd
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I'm planning on getting a 4890 soon, but am considering picking up a 4870 because they are just so damn inexpensive with pretty respectable performance. I want to know if the 4890 will simply be overkill with my other components:

Phenom II 720 BE
4gb OCZ reaper PC3 12800
Samsung 22" LCD 1680x1050

This is an entirely new computer, going to be used for standard stuff like web browsing, media, gaming. I want this to play Diablo 3, Starcraft 2, Dragon Age: Origins, Dawn of War 2, stuff like that. I'm not much of a FPS gamer so it doesn't have to be bleeding edge. Honestly, I think part of the reason I want it is because when I was building pcs years ago, I couldn't afford more quality parts. Consider it delayed gratification :p
 
With that resolution, and those games I think you would definitely be happy with the 4870. The 4890 would not be worth the money for your needs.
 
+1 vote for 4870. And look out for decent cooling solutions, so maybe you can overclock a little ;)
 
You could definately get by with the 4870, I have a gtx260 and play most games maxed or almost maxed at the same resolution. However since you can get the 4890 for under $200 now why not go for it, it'll probably make it so you can max out every game.

Basically, if you want the "better"(In all honesty, you probably won't notice a difference in any of the games you listed) graphics go with the 4890, however the 4870 1GB is no slouch.

Personally, I'd go with the 4890.
 
yeah, they are pretty inexpensive now, hence the hiatus in my order. I'm still piecing the pc together, and the gpu is going to be the last thing I get, most likely in about a month and a half, two months tops. By then I really think they will probably go down even more.
 
I say get the 4890. I have one and love it.

Heck in 1.5 to 2 months, the ATI DX11 cards very well could be out. Dropping the price of 4890 even lower one presumes, of course, then you may be tempted by the Dx11 cards :p
 
Im a firm believer that you should buy as much muscle as you can afford. If the 4890 fits in your budget Id say get it. For now, it may be more than you need for the resolutions youre playing at and the games youre playing but you might stumble upon a nice 24" monitor dirt cheap and youll need a little extra video muscle. Also, it will future proof your rig more. As graphics get better and better, buying more than you need now means it will be a lot longer before youll need to upgrade.
 
What power supply do you have?
If your PSU can power it and you have the cash, a 4890 is a very good choice for a graphics card right now.
If you want to wait to upgrade, the next gen of ATI cards will be here in 1-2 months. But they will be expensive when first released.
 
I have a OCZ modxstream 650w psu.

hell, if people are saying in two months the new cards will come out, I might try to hold and pick up a 4870 x2. that would be sick.
 
Wait! Wait for the DX11 40nm cards due out! They may be a tad more expensive than the 4870 but will be extremely powerful and energy efficient.
 
I'm not looking to even consider the new cards coming out. It looks like the 4890 will drop even more, and with my system, even getting that thing will blow my games out of the water. I'm looking at getting something rockin, but new stuff for the sake of it being new is not for me. There would have to be some serious benefits to the new cards for me to even consider dropping cash on them.

A sub-$200 4890 in a month and a half would be much more palatable to me.
 
I'm not looking to even consider the new cards coming out. It looks like the 4890 will drop even more, and with my system, even getting that thing will blow my games out of the water. I'm looking at getting something rockin, but new stuff for the sake of it being new is not for me. There would have to be some serious benefits to the new cards for me to even consider dropping cash on them.

A sub-$200 4890 in a month and a half would be much more palatable to me.

wat....

so do you want one or not?

It seems like you've answered your own question .. or ... not ...

hmm..

"I'm not looking to even consider the new cards coming out." Do Want
"t looks like the 4890 will drop even more, and with my system, even getting that thing will blow my games out of the water." Do Want
"I'm looking at getting something rockin, but new stuff for the sake of it being new is not for me." Do Not Want
"There would have to be some serious benefits to the new cards for me to even consider dropping cash on them." Do Not Want

"A sub-$200 4890 in a month and a half would be much more palatable to me." i THINK this is a Want, but I don't know what palatable means. Sounds like something you would like to eat.

So, is the 4890 an overkill?
Well, if you don't plan to buy another video cards in 1-2 more years, then no. It should last you for a looong time.(hopefully)

EDIT:

Aahh, nm, you were refering to the people who wants you to wait for the new cards.

Hey, they might release something, with the same performance or a wee bit better with DX11, less power consumption for the same price of the 4890, and that's when you'll want to kick yourself.
 
I'm not looking to even consider the new cards coming out. It looks like the 4890 will drop even more, and with my system, even getting that thing will blow my games out of the water. I'm looking at getting something rockin, but new stuff for the sake of it being new is not for me. There would have to be some serious benefits to the new cards for me to even consider dropping cash on them.

A sub-$200 4890 in a month and a half would be much more palatable to me.

Perhaps if you don't want to wait but want something that is quite powerful you could see if you can get your hands on 2 4770s and do a serious overclock on both of em.

Tho at the very least you ought to wait a few weeks to see what new info comes out about the next generation. It was only in the last few days that we learned that there will be an X2 version out around the same time as the first. That will be SCREAMING fast.
 
Hey, they might release something, with the same performance or a wee bit better with DX11, less power consumption for the same price of the 4890, and that's when you'll want to kick yourself.

That is true, but if I go with that mentality, I'll never get a video card lol. I'm pretty much sold on the 4890 so far, but there is still a little bit of time before I actually put the order in.
 
Perhaps if you don't want to wait but want something that is quite powerful you could see if you can get your hands on 2 4770s and do a serious overclock on both of em.

Tho at the very least you ought to wait a few weeks to see what new info comes out about the next generation. It was only in the last few days that we learned that there will be an X2 version out around the same time as the first. That will be SCREAMING fast.

A crossfire setup is out of the question because my motherboard only has one pci-e slot, which I'm okay with.

So there is going to be a 4890 X2? Wow. Have a link to any information about that?
 
PULL THE TRIGGER,

was there a big diff with dx9 and dx10? Nope

less power consumption? Like you're going to notice that.
 
No an X2 version of the next generation. And seeing that the next card already requires a great deal of power it will likely be one of the most powerful cards in the world. 40nm gives you great bang for the buck and with DX11..

BTW 11 is quite different from 9. Even 10.1 gave great improvements in speed.
 
ah, i see. I plan on buying the graphics card dead last in the order of my components, because by the time I end up getting one, I'll be getting the best price of this generation. It's looking like I'm going to be a part of the 4890 club.
 
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