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Which Would You Pick?

J

Jshay

Limp Gawd
Joined
Mar 27, 2010
Messages
484
Right now I'm at a crossroad of what I should buy:

2 x 6850

2 x GTX 460

or

1 x GTX 470 for $175 dollars and money in my pocket

I play:
Bad Company 2
L4D2
Starcraft 2

At 1920x1080 resolution with max settings

What would you guys do?
 
What are your specs? Does your motherboard support SLi and crossfire, What exact model Power Supply do you have?

What kind of settings do you want to use on the games at 1920x12i80
 
can you do 2 x 6870 :) lol.

Like Lord Exodia said, answer the question then we can help more.
 
Yes my motherboard supports both SLi and Crossfire and I know I won't be bottle necked.
I run a HX750 which is fine for all of those too.

And I run 1920x1080 at highest settings for each game.

And sadly no I can't find it in myself to spend another 400+ dollars for a GPU after I sell my GTX 480.
 
Jshay said:
Yes my motherboard supports both SLi and Crossfire and I know I won't be bottle necked.
I run a HX750 which is fine for all of those too.

And I run 1920x1080 at highest settings for each game.

And sadly no I can't find it in myself to spend another 400+ dollars for a GPU after I sell my GTX 480.
Click to expand...

Final question for me, although ^^^ should be fine for most others to help,

Do you overclock your GPU's to the max stable possible OC?
 
2x GTX 460 1GB FTW

Check this out, all game tests were real world gaming measurements, Latest drivers for both cards(at the time of testing), both cards volt modded and oc'd to max stable settings.

http://www.hardwarecanucks.com/foru...d-6850-vs-gtx-460-1gb-overclocking-study.html

That is 1 GTX 460 there around 890 core, many people get theirs to 930+ with skilled overclocking. Imagine what 2 can do at that speed. ;)
 
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I'm sorry to say but these have to be sub $200 a card as I cannot imagine going over $400 dollars.
 
Jshay said:
Yes my motherboard supports both SLi and Crossfire and I know I won't be bottle necked.
I run a HX750 which is fine for all of those too.

And I run 1920x1080 at highest settings for each game.

And sadly no I can't find it in myself to spend another 400+ dollars for a GPU after I sell my GTX 480.
Click to expand...
what cpu and how much memory?
 
Jshay said:
I'm sorry to say but these have to be sub $200 a card as I cannot imagine going over $400 dollars.
Click to expand...

Doesn't need to be an overclocked model. Hell you can do the overclocking yourself

Here is a stock model Zotac
$189.99 Actually $169.99 after MIR
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produ...0169&cm_re=GTX_460_1gb-_-14-500-169-_-Product

Here is a factory overclocked Palit model with a good Aftermarket cooler
$189.99 Actually $169.99 after MIR
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produ...1075&cm_re=GTX_460_1gb-_-14-261-075-_-Product

Here is an even higher clocked Gigabyte one with an even better aftermarket cooler
$199.99 Actually $179.99 after MIR
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produ...5333&cm_re=GTX_460_1gb-_-14-125-333-_-Product

Here is the cheapest 6850
$179.99 Reference model
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814131374&cm_re=6850-_-14-131-374-_-Product

All Sub $200, now to be clear there are many models under $200.00 at this time, many include MIR. What you also should remember is usually there is only 1 rebate per household on most rebates so you need to check into that.

Personally I'd get the one with the best aftermarket cooler being that it will only raise the price around $10 for each card and the cooler would help you reach a further overclock than a reference cooled one. Good luck in whatever you choose.
 
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Jshay said:
I play:
Bad Company 2
L4D2
Starcraft 2

At 1920x1080 resolution with max settings

What would you guys do?
Click to expand...

Get one 6850. It will be more than capable of handling those games at max settings and 1920x1080. If you really are interested in overclocking I'd go with the Asus. However, if you want to play more taxing games such as Metro 2033 at "Very High" settings or future demanding games then two in CF would be better. The GTX 460 is also a very good card and the two are basically comparable so you can't go wrong with either. Final clock speeds are variable and depend on each individual card so it's hard to say which would technically be better overclocked. Personally I just ordered two Asus 6850s for CF and I'm coming from a MSI GeForce 8800GTS G92. I was originally going to SLI two GTX 460s but changed my mind once the 68XX series hit because of the amazing overclocks in the reviews, the low power draw, amazing CF scaling, and simply because it's a newer card. In the end it's up to you though and you will be happy either way.
 
heflys20 said:
Here's some crossfire results for the 6850 for comparison.

http://www.guru3d.com/article/radeon-hd-6850-6870-crossfirex-review/7
Click to expand...

I'm quoting just to say that these benchmarks are not all real world testing, and also that they used a reference (675mhz) clocked GTX 460 1gb in those tests. GTX 460s reference cards come clocked way too low, honestly and can be pushed past a 6850 even if it's overclocked to its max, as you saw in the Hardware Canucks review I linked you. Therefore more than likely overclocked the GTX 460 1gb pair will give you better performance than a overclocked to max stable setting 6850 and less heat also.

The review he linked is a good review though, but comparing stock speeds is hardly going to tell you what you will experience since you plan on overclocking to the max stable setting. If you can reach 890 core then your set beyond 6850 performance, even pushed to the max. Same should apply to the pair
 
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tenub said:
Get one 6850. It will be more than capable of handling those games at max settings and 1920x1080. If you really are interested in overclocking I'd go with the Asus. However, if you want to play more taxing games such as Metro 2033 at "Very High" settings or future demanding games then two in CF would be better. The GTX 460 is also a very good card and the two are basically comparable so you can't go wrong with either. Final clock speeds are variable and depend on each individual card so it's hard to say which would technically be better overclocked. Personally I just ordered two Asus 6850s for CF and I'm coming from a MSI GeForce 8800GTS G92. I was originally going to SLI two GTX 460s but changed my mind once the 68XX series hit because of the amazing overclocks in the reviews, the low power draw, amazing CF scaling, and simply because it's a newer card. In the end it's up to you though and you will be happy either way.
Click to expand...

1 6850 would perform alot worse than his current GTX 480 and would not make him as happy as 6850 crossfire or GTX 460 1gb SLi
 
Lord_Exodia said:
I'm quoting just to say that these benchmarks are not all real world testing, and also that they used a factory clocked GTX 460 1gb in those tests. GTX 460s come clocked way too low honestly and can be pushed past a 6850 as you saw in the Hardware Canucks review I linked you. Therefore more than likely overclocked the GTX 460 1gb pair will give you better performance. The review he linked is a good review though but comparing stock speeds is hardly going to tell you what you will experience since you plan on overclocking to the max stable setting. If you can reach 890 core then your set beyond 6850 performance, even pushed to the max. Same should apply to the pair
Click to expand...

There are people on here who have reached 1000mhz with their stock 68xx cards, and, as exemplified in the HC's review, a 6850 in that state beats an overclocked 460 in a number of cases (particularly at higher res. )Also, as more tools arrive, I'm certain a number of 6850' will be able to obtain higher OC measurements. This is even stated in the HC's article:

"You can also buy these NVIDIA cards right now while AMD's board partners aren't quite ready to release products sporting the clock speeds we saw in this article. However, AMD’s AIBs will soon have their own take on pre-overclocking so the market is surely in for some great competition between the $150 and $250 price points in the coming months."

However, I won't admit that the 6850 is the better product. In my eyes, the 6850 and 460 are about even.
 
heflys20 said:
However, I won't admit that the 6850 is the better product. In my eyes, the 6850 and 460 are about even.
Click to expand...

Agreed and even though I feel it is a faster solution for gaming albeit 5% or so faster the 6850 offers other good things that make up for that making them a draw. Actually both offer other good things besides just gaming.
 
If you're willing to spend 175 + 175 bucks for some form of 460 SLI or 6850 Xfire then just wait for the 6950 due out in mere weeks. It'll probably be around the $300-350 price point. It'd give you the option for a powerful single card setup thus avoiding some of the pitfalls of Xfire or SLI while still providing an excellent experience at 1920x1080.
 
Lord_Exodia said:
2x GTX 460 1GB FTW

Check this out, all game tests were real world gaming measurements, Latest drivers for both cards(at the time of testing), both cards volt modded and oc'd to max stable settings.
http://www.hardwarecanucks.com/foru...d-6850-vs-gtx-460-1gb-overclocking-study.html
That is 1 GTX 460 there around 890 core, many people get theirs to 930+ with skilled
overclocking. Imagine what 2 can do at that speed. ;)
Click to expand...
There's no such thing as "skillled" overclocking with a video card, it's luck of the draw with just getting a better clocking card. My cousin's $220 dollar Palit 460 1GB (and this was when 460 1GB's first came out, hence why that sounds high) clocked to 880/1760/2040 (Core/Shader/Memory). That card now costs like $170 or $180 while the FTW costs like $230....if you're going to get a 460 1GB, then get it to save money because that extra cost for a silly factory overclock will not be justified.


needmorecarnitine said:
whichever one you can get for $150
Click to expand...
+1

xristos said:
GTX 470 SuperClocked+
Click to expand...
No, no one should ever buy a 470.

Jalidi said:
If you're willing to spend 175 + 175 bucks for some form of 460 SLI or 6850 Xfire then just wait for the 6950 due out in mere weeks. It'll probably be around the $300-350 price point. It'd give you the option for a powerful single card setup thus avoiding some of the pitfalls of Xfire or SLI while still providing an excellent experience at 1920x1080.
Click to expand...
+1
6850 is cheaper before rebates and 460 1GB's are cheaper after rebates.
Neither is a bad choice, just get two and overclock them to the limit!
 
stick with your 480 man... i mean really you can just save up for another one next year and itll blow out any of the above cards you posted
 
dinlee23 said:
stick with your 480 man... i mean really you can just save up for another one next year and itll blow out any of the above cards you posted
Click to expand...

I don't have another 480, I sold it due to me not wanting to keep up my loop and the thing being too damn hot! Haha
 
iviyth0s said:
There's no such thing as "skillled" overclocking with a video card, it's luck of the draw with just getting a better clocking card.
Click to expand...

To a point I agree and to a point I disagree. It does have alot to do with luck but just because you get a good card means that you will be able to overclock it better than me. Hell I'm constantly going over my friends house to look at their overclocks and refine them. They at that time thinking it can go no further.

Case in point, I had a buddy who pushed his GTX 460 1gb card to 850core 2000 mem and left the shaders alone. He was using afterburner. I actually came in and scaled his voltage back .03 mv and was able to oc his core to 910mhz shader to 2090mhz and his ram to 2180mhz. This was 100% stable. I also took off his factory fan and replaced the ceramic stuff with AC5 after getting this stable overclock. After that settled about 10 hours of use, he was getting a 10c drop in load temps. I was willing to lap his gpu to go over 1000 core and I'm confident I could have gotten it there but he didn't want to void his warranty.

He couldn't believe I was able to get it much higher than what he thought was the limit. Skills are also a part of overclocking. 3d mark etc.. has been competitive for years and people take pride in their overclocking skills. So again if you get a shit over clocking card then your SOL but with the right skill even a moderately over clockable card can be pushed further.

I just ordered a HD6850 yesterday on my credit card for one of my best friends. I will be the one to overclock it, I'm sure I will get it VERY High (unless it's a shit overclocking card) however I know that I wont be able to tame the temperatures that will occur when it is set to the clocks required to beat a GTX 460 overclocked to the maximum by a overclocker who knows what he is doing.

Too many people use afterburner to overclock or precision and overclocking has come to the masses, that doesn't make people real over clockers, Anyone can move a slider and check things with apps running to see temp, artifacts etc.. Skill Does play a part in it.
 
dinlee23 said:
stick with your 480 man... i mean really you can just save up for another one next year and itll blow out any of the above cards you posted
Click to expand...

If you can wait 6950 Does sound like a good choice, and I do believe it will be around $350 or so. However a GTX 460 SLi or 6850 crossfire X (both overclocked to max stable) will beat a 6950 quite considerably. 6950 is supposed to perform like a GTX 480 and I would think that it would be boring for you to just move to another solution that is equally fast. bet hey I'm not you. I was proposing that you could

1. Save money with either 6850 crossfire or 460 1gb SLi
2. Gain an extra 60+% performance in the process. ;)
 
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Lord_Exodia said:
To a point I agree and to a point I disagree. It does have alot to do with luck but just because you get a good card means that you will be able to overclock it better than me. Hell I'm constantly going over my friends house to look at their overclocks and refine them. They at that time thinking it can go no further.

Case in point, I had a buddy who pushed his GTX 460 1gb card to 850core 2000 mem and left the shaders alone. He was using afterburner. I actually came in and scaled his voltage back .03 mv and was able to oc his core to 910mhz shader to 2090mhz and his ram to 2180mhz. This was 100% stable. I also took off his factory fan and replaced the ceramic stuff with AC5 after getting this stable overclock. After that settled about 10 hours of use, he was getting a 10c drop in load temps. I was willing to lap his gpu to go over 1000 core and I'm confident I could have gotten it there but he didn't want to void his warranty.

He couldn't believe I was able to get it much higher than what he thought was the limit. Skills are also a part of overclocking. 3d mark etc.. has been competitive for years and people take pride in their overclocking skills. So again if you get a shit over clocking card then your SOL but with the right skill even a moderately over clockable card can be pushed further.

I just ordered a HD6850 yesterday on my credit card for one of my best friends. I will be the one to overclock it, I'm sure I will get it VERY High (unless it's a shit overclocking card) however I know that I wont be able to tame the temperatures that will occur when it is set to the clocks required to beat a GTX 460 overclocked to the maximum by a overclocker who knows what he is doing.

Too many people use afterburner to overclock or precision and overclocking has come to the masses, that doesn't make people real over clockers, Anyone can move a slider and check things with apps running to see temp, artifacts etc.. Skill Does play a part in it.
Click to expand...
Yeah but see you're tampering with how the hardware is ;), my whole point is video cards require alot less thought and skill than a overclocking a CPU and memory.

I also have trouble believing that AS5 dropped the temps 10C, I remember changing my 260's TIM from the factory paste to AS5 (which actually is one of the worse TIM's on the block these days, as far as performance and cure time go). Truth be told I didn't see ANY difference in temps.

You could be onto something with the less voltage for it could be a *very good overclocker* and didn't need more voltage but the lessened voltage lowered the temps a tad and allowed for the extra bump.

What ways do you test your graphics card stability??

you pretty much agreed with me right here too :p
I'm sure I will get it VERY High (unless it's a shit overclocking card)
Click to expand...
I'm not saying that having overclocking skill doesn't help but it's far less helpful than just the hardware just being OC friendly.

Also how did you unlink the shaders and core?? Do Palit's not allow you to do that?? (my old BFG cards could)
 
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814130568

I ordered this one. Halfway between the stock clocks and "FTW" and it's $200 with free shipping (with the promo code), $190 after MIR. (No free game coupon, but I'm not interested in HAWX2)

It would cost almost the full $400 to SLI them but I imagine the performance would be pretty amazing. Probably a bit overkill for most games at 1080p though. You could probably "get by" with slightly cheaper GTX260s for SLI, as long as it's 1GB.
 
Given the issues with SLI and Crossfire performance, is there any chance of you waiting to see 6950 and 6970 performance? I'm sure that at least the 6950 will be well within your budget.

Edit, Just read the other posts, I second waiting.
 
Nightbird said:
Given the issues with SLI and Crossfire performance, is there any chance of you waiting to see 6950 and 6970 performance? I'm sure that at least the 6950 will be well within your budget.

Edit, Just read the other posts, I second waiting.
Click to expand...

Yeah I rarely recommend waiting since there's always something new coming, but the 6900 cards are less than a month away. Single GPU performance is guaranteed, while SLI/CF can be spotty at times (although it's MUCH better than it used to be). Not to mention the extra power/noise/heat/etc.
 
I love my GTX280 but like your 480 it's a big, hot, power hungry gpu. I tried a 4870x2 and found it to be a downgrade. Most games that aren't the top tier games that get benched in reviews don't as well as you see in reviews.

I would never, ever take a dual gpu solution over a single gpu solution. Even at the same framerate the dual gpu solution doesn't feel as smooth.

I think that you're crazy. Wait for Cayman if anything.
 
iviyth0s said:
Did you ever enable vsync in CCC, if you didn't than you'd have microstutters, if you did enable it, you'd be just as happy as I am. (aka smooth gameplay) The 4870x2 is an amazing card for the money!!
Click to expand...

Vsync works in the control panel now with directx? It's been a while. I have a 6870 on the way and that would be a big plus tbh.

Anyways, what happens when the x2 doesn't scale? One of the big ones for me was Morrowind with a ton of mods. It was running great on my 280. I installed the x2 and my framerate was in the crapper. Oblivion wasn't much better. I didn't have much luck with a modded Stalker install either. Darkplaces, same deal. I play other demanding games than just the top games on the review sites and that seemed to be where crossfire just blows.

Crysis was a good example of a game where I had higher framerates than my GTX280 but it almost felt like the x2 was running slower. I never noticed a "microstutter" but the larger framerate swings than you'll see on a single gpu setup are what I think irritated me.

I would never recommend a multi-gpu setup when you can get performance in the ballpark from a single gpu.
 
imo the 460 is a joke and a big laugh in sli. i recommend the gtx 470.
 
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