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I kinda hate to ask, but here goes. Running 1920x1080. Currently with an 8800gts 320. q9550 @ 3.4 with 6 gigs ddr800 in sync. I have been going to upgrade for months now. I am completely at an impass with myself. My MAX budget is $400. My card prior to this was a 9800pro. Nice card, but the drivers I hated and the CCC was a turd. I understand that is better, but it is something that eats at the back of my brain a bit. I find myself whirling and unable to pull the trigger on a card.
I have considered the 5850. It just doesn't feel like quite enough card. I realize you can OC the card to 5870 levels, but I am not keen on OC a video card for several reasons. First is you really don't know if your card will OC. Second a lot of issues can immediately be traced to an OC on a vid card. So for my purposes I want to stay away from OCing cards. I would still get a 5850 if the price was right, but I only upgrade every 2 years on the vid card so I need it to last.
I have considered a 5870. Frankly it is at the top of my budget and that never feels quite right. It seems a lot of money to spend on a card. Plus the value ratio is not there as it is just not that much faster than the 5850. But it is the fastest of the group. It is also quiet and cool which I like.
Finally is the gtx 470. This is the card that has pretty much paralyzed my decision making. First off it is slightly faster than a stock 5850, and slightly slower than a stock 5870. It is also priced just slightly above a 5850 and slightly below a 5870 (My research shows most 5850s now at $310 + ship, the 470 at $350 + ship, and the 5870 can be had for $390 free ship). My motherboard only supports a single gpu solution so this is my only option for physx. Not that I use it much now. However, the heat is scaring me off. I work hard to manage my thermals and even then my room ambient is almost always 32 to 35c and thus makes it a tad more challenging. The other thing scaring me off is the speed is just not $40 more than the 5850. Sometimes it falls behind. Some say that drivers will improve it's performance. They said the same thing about the 8800gts 320. It was a nice card out of the gate, but the performance never lept with new drivers. So I don't expect to see much more out of the 470. The just cause 2 comparison really threw a wrench in it when it showed the 470 significantly slower than the 5850, but then proceeded to say it was the best value for the game. Yargh.
So my head spins constantly. I cannot get myself to pull the trigger. I have gotten to where I refuse to game because at my current res most are just unplayable. I need a prod in the right direction.
I have considered the 5850. It just doesn't feel like quite enough card. I realize you can OC the card to 5870 levels, but I am not keen on OC a video card for several reasons. First is you really don't know if your card will OC. Second a lot of issues can immediately be traced to an OC on a vid card. So for my purposes I want to stay away from OCing cards. I would still get a 5850 if the price was right, but I only upgrade every 2 years on the vid card so I need it to last.
I have considered a 5870. Frankly it is at the top of my budget and that never feels quite right. It seems a lot of money to spend on a card. Plus the value ratio is not there as it is just not that much faster than the 5850. But it is the fastest of the group. It is also quiet and cool which I like.
Finally is the gtx 470. This is the card that has pretty much paralyzed my decision making. First off it is slightly faster than a stock 5850, and slightly slower than a stock 5870. It is also priced just slightly above a 5850 and slightly below a 5870 (My research shows most 5850s now at $310 + ship, the 470 at $350 + ship, and the 5870 can be had for $390 free ship). My motherboard only supports a single gpu solution so this is my only option for physx. Not that I use it much now. However, the heat is scaring me off. I work hard to manage my thermals and even then my room ambient is almost always 32 to 35c and thus makes it a tad more challenging. The other thing scaring me off is the speed is just not $40 more than the 5850. Sometimes it falls behind. Some say that drivers will improve it's performance. They said the same thing about the 8800gts 320. It was a nice card out of the gate, but the performance never lept with new drivers. So I don't expect to see much more out of the 470. The just cause 2 comparison really threw a wrench in it when it showed the 470 significantly slower than the 5850, but then proceeded to say it was the best value for the game. Yargh.
So my head spins constantly. I cannot get myself to pull the trigger. I have gotten to where I refuse to game because at my current res most are just unplayable. I need a prod in the right direction.
