The GTX 480, is it still relevant for today?

Waterblocking them takes care of the first two issues you mention. And they can handle a lot more than 1080p when it comes to performance. I'll grant that they are pigs when it comes to slurping the juice though. Maybe not relevant to you, but to me, very relevant.
 
ccityinstaller said:
Matthew,

If you are happy with their performance (who wouldn't be?!?) and the power draw is acceptable to you, them I would scour the forums/eBay etc for some used blocks, clean them up, and slap them on..You will think you are using an entirely different system!

PS, do you have enough storage in that one rig or what?:eek:
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Thanks, I'am quite happy with the performance these babies give out, I did have a 4th GTX480 in my rig for ded PhysX only but found it unnecessary and plus I needed a pci express slot for my sound card so I took it out. I was considering watercooling it but its out of the question as I would need to look into a pump (I do have a spare EK pump lying around not sure if that would be enough) and I would need to get a decent radiator, tubing and 3 blocks, hose clamps and a reservoir, this would be over $200 and ebay rarely has any 2nd parts. Although it would look damn cool :)

As for storage, it's a shame I can't fit any more hard drives into this system, I've maxed out all sata ports on my mobo + a raid controller, maxed out all the bays. I will probably upgrade to 4TB WD Blacks eventually or Constellation drives. And no I don't use my storage for pronz lol, mainly vhd virtual images, and most of my storage is music, games and anime series. But yeh my system is pretty much low-end now compared to some of the rigs people have these days on [H].

Supercharged_Z06 said:
Waterblocking them takes care of the first two issues you mention. And they can handle a lot more than 1080p when it comes to performance. I'll grant that they are pigs when it comes to slurping the juice though. Maybe not relevant to you, but to me, very relevant.
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+1
 
GTX 480's are still great cards but the power consumption/heat issue has to be taken into consideration. Also you need to get one for $160 or less.Anything over that and they are a bit overpriced given the compromises you have to make when owning one.
 
would anyone know where to find some 480 blocks in case the guy Im getting them from can't accept my form of payment?
 
At work I usually get the "old" workstations. Moving from a GTX 295 to a GTX 480 feels like a nice bump, every game I play @ 1200p still looks/feels great (Paired with i7-950). I'd say its perfectly good in 2012 for all games, unless you're considering 1600p or any sort of multi-display, you may be wanting more.
 
I rock a gtx 470 and still think its a great card. Haven't really had the urge to change.

I hope to get another year out of her.

But then again, I'm the kind of person who can play on high/med settings and be happy.
 
I still don't get the can heat your room up pretty quick comment... must have a small room. lol
FWIW I had a GTS 250 and a GTX 480 in my rig and didn't warm the room up. My room is pretty small btw :D
 
chimera996 said:
I still don't get the can heat your room up pretty quick comment... must have a small room. lol
FWIW I had a GTS 250 and a GTX 480 in my rig and didn't warm the room up. My room is pretty small btw :D
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My rig actually keeps my office a good 2C - 3C hotter than the rest of the house. My condo is about 1300 sq ft.
 
Yea developers do not really push visual as much as they used to. With one gtx 480 I can handle any current game at 1920x1200 with high frames for the most part. Though it is mostly because games have not graphically moved much forward. The usual setting that I always turn of is ssao. Which does not really do enough for me to really miss out on anything. Waiting for the 700 series before I say goodbye to my long time friend.
 
My GTX 480 is still doing great. All the talk about a 480 heating up a room is a little overboard. I play games all the time and dont have an "insane" amount of heat coming out or a "blowdryer" sound. In fact, when I am gaming, I don't even notice it.

Plays BF3, PS2 beta, MWO, etc.. just fine at 2560x1600 at max or near max settings. On my other monitor at 1920x1080 it just blows through games at max settings.
 
The GTX 480 has aged well , despite the huge power draw and heat output its actually a very good card. The only real problem is the fan noise can get pretty horrid if you are sensitive to that kind of thing. When I had my GTX 480's they were liquid cooled because I hated how loud they would get even in a well vented system.

However I would only recommend it to someone who could get it for a very cheap amount. $130 is an excellent price and well worth the downsides.
 
I had one, then I had two, then I bought a third. Why? Why not.

I have incredible performance for half the cost of GTX 680 SLI

Plus those pipes look sexy, pipes, man piiiipppees....(Bill Cosby)
 
I'm still running 480SLI in surround with 2xAA and getting excellent performance in almost every game still at 5760x1080 at max settings, even BF3. 2xAA is the limit in surround anyway as the driver limits it to that so anything beefier is just overkill anyway. I doubt I will be upgrading again unless something in this rig fails. No real point in it for me these days since BC2 is about all I play anymore anyway.
 
As of now there are only two games that stress my 3 GTX480's with some lag. Metro 2033 maxed out at 1680x1050 will have some fps dips to high teens during fire fight moments sometimes. GTA IV with IceEnhancer 2.1 mod maxed out settings (in game GTA IV settings not enb) has some minor lag moments during night time. No other games I have played to date maxed out that will lag at any resolution my 22 and 24inch supports. Don't have a multiple monitor setup.
 
Xz CJ zX said:
Hello everybody, I have recently purchased two eVGA 480s brand new and they perform outstanding from my previous card (an HIS 6750) but I am curious, are they still relevant or was it a waste, I've done my research and I know they are powerhouses. I also know they are power guzzlers but I am going to water cool them eventually so heat wont be a problem :D The thing that makes me ask is because I was running Minecraft with the unbelievable shaders mod and I only get like 45 FPS XD who woulda thought a 480 couldn't run Minecraft on high?
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Heat will still be a problem. The only difference is instead of heat exiting the back of the cards it will now heat up your room from your radiator.

There is no loss of thermal energy that must be dissipated just because it is water cooled. You will however remove heat on a large scale from the cards by water cooling for sure.
 
tangoseal said:
Heat will still be a problem. The only difference is instead of heat exiting the back of the cards it will now heat up your room from your radiator.

There is no loss of thermal energy that must be dissipated just because it is water cooled. You will however remove heat on a large scale from the cards by water cooling for sure.
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Yup, the laws of thermodynamics must be obeyed.

Honestly, what does it feel like when you've had two of these bad boys running for a few hours at load? Do you sit in your shorts/underpants?
 
TheReproducer said:
Honestly, what does it feel like when you've had two of these bad boys running for a few hours at load?
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melting-earth-rl2.jpg


Just be glad those two GTX480's were underclocked. :eek:
 
Hey I have three of them in my system, and it's in a small room (5m by 6m) and I have a double layer carpet in the room. It's summer atm so imagine how I'd feel after a gaming session....:(
 
I play using a single gtx 460, 480 is easily relevant, the latest gen is overpowered, nvidia and amd too far ahead but they need to keep developing to stay in business so they do.
 
chrcoluk said:
I play using a single gtx 460, 480 is easily relevant, the latest gen is overpowered, nvidia and amd too far ahead but they need to keep developing to stay in business so they do.
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nonsense as a gtx680 and 7970 are not "overpowered" and cant even run every game with all settings cranked at 1920x1080 and maintain 60 fps. just think about the people with higher res monitors, 120hz screens, and multi monitor setups. if anything this gen was not a big enough upgrade over last gen.
 
cannondale06 said:
nonsense as a gtx680 and 7970 are not "overpowered" and cant even run every game with all settings cranked at 1920x1080 and maintain 60 fps. just think about the people with higher res monitors, 120hz screens, and multi monitor setups. if anything this gen was not a big enough upgrade over last gen.
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Yeah, thats sort of the way that I feel too.
 
cannondale06 said:
nonsense as a gtx680 and 7970 are not "overpowered" and cant even run every game with all settings cranked at 1920x1080 and maintain 60 fps. just think about the people with higher res monitors, 120hz screens, and multi monitor setups. if anything this gen was not a big enough upgrade over last gen.
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thats the thing, the mass market isnt multiple high res monitors. For mass market they overpowered.

my monitor is 1680x1050 and I can play all the games I have thrown at it.

for niche market yes they have a place, but it is a niche. Maybe things will change when the newer consoles come out as that will push up graphic demands on console ports as well.
 
Still plenty powerful :D Also..with it getting cooler..It will keep you warm in the wintertime!
 
chrcoluk said:
thats the thing, the mass market isnt multiple high res monitors. For mass market they overpowered.

my monitor is 1680x1050 and I can play all the games I have thrown at it.

for niche market yes they have a place, but it is a niche. Maybe things will change when the newer consoles come out as that will push up graphic demands on console ports as well.
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$500 video cards are a niche market too. Who is buying a GTX680 to game on a $120 1680x1050 display?
 
Xz CJ zX said:
would anyone know where to find some 480 blocks in case the guy Im getting them from can't accept my form of payment?
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Check around and see if you can find some of the Danger Den full cover blocks used for a decent price..The one I have does an excellent job keeping my 480 cool!:cool:
 
I think I'll just get a Zalman VF3000F to cool my 480 since it's so easy to install, I really don't wanna spend hours on end with an accelero.
 
TheReproducer said:
Yup, the laws of thermodynamics must be obeyed.

Honestly, what does it feel like when you've had two of these bad boys running for a few hours at load? Do you sit in your shorts/underpants?
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I have them in SLi and i must say, after a few BF3 maps, it´s like a tank engine down there.

The heat cook my feet :p
 
I need one too, for three of them :(. Summer is almost here, and my rig is seriously pumping more heat in my room which is almost 8'C hotter then the bedroom next door.
 
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