Well....

[Guitarrasdeamor]

I have the option of buying a 3850 for only $45. It is a Sapphire card.
Right now, I have a Diamond 3870 in my rig. I have looked up the performance increase, and for $45, I think it is worth it, plus I want to screw around with Crossfiring.

Questions:
1. Will the 2 brands work together?
2. My board has a 16x and a 4x....if I CF, will this hinder performance? My board is here: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813127019

Thanks.

 

[Frostex]

I dont think thats worth the hastle, sell your old card and get a single 4850.

Different brand crossfire will work, but you will only get crossfire speeds as if you're running 2 3850's which makes it a waste of a 3870, and 4x PCI-e slot is going to bottleneck the video card, it's been proven that a 8x slot hampers the 48xx range so a 4x slot will definately kill the frame rate with a 38xx card.

SLi/Crossfire is something that needs to be well planned for, a decent mobo which can handle 16x on all PCI-e slots designed, a power supply that can handle everything and a matching CPU so your system isn't going to be bottlenecked.

 

[Dangman]

1) Yes. But the HD3870 will be downclocked to HD3850 speeds. Try to find reviews of HD3850 Crossfire against a single HD3870
2) Yes:
http://www.legionhardware.com/document.php?id=761

And the answer to the probable question 3) Yes I would like a HD3850 for $45 please

 

[Guitarrasdeamor]

I dont think thats worth the hassle, sell your old card and get a single 4850.

Different brand crossfire will work, but you will only get crossfire speeds as if you're running 2 3850's which makes it a waste of a 3870, and 4x PCI-e slot is going to bottleneck the video card, it's been proven that a 8x slot hampers the 48xx range so a 4x slot will definately kill the frame rate with a 38xx card.

SLi/Crossfire is something that needs to be well planned for, a decent mobo which can handle 16x on all PCI-e slots designed, a power supply that can handle everything and a matching CPU so your system isn't going to be bottlenecked.

Can anyone confirm this?

1) Yes. But the HD3870 will be downclocked to HD3850 speeds. Try to find reviews of HD3850 Crossfire against a single HD3870
2) Yes:
http://www.legionhardware.com/document.php?id=761

And the answer to the probable question 3) Yes I would like a HD3850 for $45 please

Thanks.

 

[xBanzai89]

I dont think thats worth the hastle, sell your old card and get a single 4850.

Different brand crossfire will work, but you will only get crossfire speeds as if you're running 2 3850's which makes it a waste of a 3870, and 4x PCI-e slot is going to bottleneck the video card, it's been proven that a 8x slot hampers the 48xx range so a 4x slot will definately kill the frame rate with a 38xx card.

SLi/Crossfire is something that needs to be well planned for, a decent mobo which can handle 16x on all PCI-e slots designed, a power supply that can handle everything and a matching CPU so your system isn't going to be bottlenecked.

This is what I have heard on this forum and others. Do you need a performance boost? If not wait out and save up for the 4850. Trust me its worth the wait.

 

[Guitarrasdeamor]

If I do anything I'll be waiting for a 4870.

Would it be worth picking the card up and re-selling it? Or should I just leave it?

 

[screwballl]

Unless you play your games at 1900 resolution or higher, there is no need for Crossfire/SLI... it is a waste. You are better off with a single faster card if you want to increase your game performance.

 

[xBanzai89]

If I do anything I'll be waiting for a 4870.

Would it be worth picking the card up and re-selling it? Or should I just leave it?

You maybe able to resell it for more, but the trouble of reselling it for maybe 40-50 bucks profit may not be worth it. Its your call though.

 

[Guitarrasdeamor]

Unless you play your games at 1900 resolution or higher, there is no need for Crossfire/SLI... it is a waste. You are better off with a single faster card if you want to increase your game performance.

I game at 1920x1200.

You maybe able to resell it for more, but the trouble of reselling it for maybe 40-50 bucks profit may not be worth it. Its your call though.

Well, thats a bit of profit for me, and not much trouble.....if I can get $100 for it I would do it...but could I?

 

[Dangman]

Well, thats a bit of profit for me, and not much trouble.....if I can get $100 for it I would do it...but could I?

You probably won't get $100 for that card if you sold it here on the forums. The 9600GT, which is faster than the HD3850, can be had for $95 with a decent cooler.