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sGoose

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Joined
Nov 23, 2011
Messages
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I have almost completed my build over the last few weeks and am loving the performance of the new system. (i5 2500k, SSD, 16GB ram) However I plan to do Eyefinity / SLI, (already have the 3x24"monitors mounted and cabled) and am currently using a GTX 260 Superclocked Edition. http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814130433 So now I am trying to decide what card to get that will eventually go to my friend to be an upgrade for his 2x8800s

I was thinking of purchasing 2 580 3GB and being done with it, but being so close to 2012 and the new cards, i figured I would see about waiting and Purchase a single card Mid Range card and wait 5-6 months to see what comes and give my friend the card i buy now since I game a lot more than he does.

So what kind of options are out there? I was looking at a gtx560it 448 and just skipping using my 3rd monitor until the new cards come out, but then I could get an AMD and try it, but I feel the games would play like crap with only 1 AMD card in eyefinity.
If there is any way to make eyefinity work now without blowing the bank now and next year, id be up to that, or a single decent card to use for a few months with 2 monitors then give to my friend would be awesome.
 
I think two (2) HD6950s would be cheaper or about the same price as one (1) GTX 580 which will provide you with eyefinity and at decent to good performance gaming-wise ...
 
What games are you playing? That will determine more what would be the best option.
 
Currently I am play WOW, SWTOR, Skyrim, SC2, Dragon Age II. I plan to eventually play, BF3, and then Diablo 3 and FarCry 3, and Doom 4 when released, as far as i can tell. I dang near play everything, however most of them not as soon as they release.

I also own this power supply http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817153042
which just hit its 5 year old mark, so I may need a new power supply to power the video cards with some extra juice left in case the next release of video cards go nuts on power requirements, especially those 2 6950s.

If needed here is a link to the first post that got my system up and running. I went with the Asus P8Z68-V and i5 2500k. http://hardforum.com/showthread.php?t=1653864
 
6950 is a solid choice for its Price. I have already noticed a price drop in the last week, as I'm looking at a second TFII.
 
sGoose said:
Currently I am play WOW, SWTOR, Skyrim, SC2, Dragon Age II. I plan to eventually play, BF3, and then Diablo 3 and FarCry 3, and Doom 4 when released, as far as i can tell. I dang near play everything, however most of them not as soon as they release.

I also own this power supply http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817153042
which just hit its 5 year old mark, so I may need a new power supply to power the video cards with some extra juice left in case the next release of video cards go nuts on power requirements, especially those 2 6950s.

If needed here is a link to the first post that got my system up and running. I went with the Asus P8Z68-V and i5 2500k. http://hardforum.com/showthread.php?t=1653864
Click to expand...

Heh, I wouldn't call myself a display "guru", but I do have a lot of experience with them, mostly with SLI, but more recently with CFX. And I do happen to check the general hardware forums. But anyway, that PSU might be a bit dated. The total wattage isn't bad, but I can't tell from the info there what the total Amps on the combined 12V rails are. If you want to upgrade the PSU, I would get something in the 650-750W range if you are going to CFX/SLI and overclock. I would recommend the Corsair AX or HX lines or Seasonic.

As far as wanting to do surround or eyefinity, I am leaning more to going with SLI/surround rather than eyefinity and CFX. Mostly because the driver and compatibility for CFX/eyefinity has been more lacking than for the SLI/surround, especially for some of the games you mentioned there. That being said, you aren't buying the games at release, so it may be less of an issue for you.

As for my system, I am still pretty happy with my 6950 CFX eyefinity setup. Both of my cards are unlocked and overclocked and run great. If you want to do a surround setup, I would highly recommend either 6950 CFX or 560Ti SLI. The most important thing for surround setups would be to maximize your VRAM. So with either setup, I would get cards with 2GB of VRAM. There are tons of options for the 6950 with 2GB, but only a few 560Tis that have 2GB. The 6950s will have the performance advantage, but the 560s might work better in surround in certain games.
 
if you need 1080p Eyefinity for sure and it's a temporary solution, you can get 2x 6950 2gb used for $400 shipped or less. That's a good start.
 
Well I don't "need" my 1080p Surround / Infinity but it would be a plus. It seems like if I can get it decently for around 400$ that is worth it, i Just didn't want to drop 1k on 2x580 or similar, only for the next gen cards that cost 500$ to be out in a few months.
Im really only going this route since they are supposedly releasing their enthusiast line first, which is odd...

I figured my PSU might be dated, 5 years on a good power supply seems great imho. I'll see if i can find a decent deal on a 2+gb vram card pending what you guys think.
 
Well, I browsed around Websites and the FS forums and nothing seemed to really appeal to me.
2 Used 2GB cards are constantly going for 225 each or so on the FS forum and I can get new ones for the same price from New Egg, so might as well get new.

I looked at these 2 cards, and wondered if anyone has had experience with the 2? I know one hasa 2nd fan, is it much louder /quieter, vastly cooler?
Ill be putting it in my system with a CPU overclocked, but i don't plan to overclock the cards unless the shaders can easily be unlocked, otherwise they are staying stock.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814150549 VS.
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814150530
 
i don't know about those particular cards, all of my experience with the 6950s is between MSI and Sapphire. And most of the OC version of the cards offered by those companies can be unlocked. As for noise, anytime you have 2 fans, you are probably going to have more noise. I have 2 of the Sapphire Toxic cards which only have one fan and they are practically silent compared to the other fans in my system.
 
I am not sure if your aware, however AMD is releasing the 6930, supposedly very soon.

From the review I've read, it's said to have 1280 stream processors, versus the 1408 stream processors the 6950 has. Which should put it just a few FPS less (or about 1% to 7% performance difference, according to the review) than a 6950, and should be about $40+ less (new), per card. And if you can get a card with a rebate attached, you can save even more.


I know most of the time, folks need things now, but this card should be released very soon. I'm not certain if a 2GB model will be available, but if they do, I'd consider a 2GB 6930.



Just something to consider... :)
 
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