staySICK Posted January 7, 2011 Report Share Posted January 7, 2011 The PC gaming version of console wars. Nvidia vs ATI. Green Team and Red Team. Which side are you on? Which brand (evga, asus, pny, diamond, xfx, sapphire, etc) do you prefer? What card do you own? Do you prefer multicard systems (SLi / Xfire) or single card rigs? Also serve as discussion for future upgrades; dream purchases. Many years ago I was hardcore ATI supporter. As of the last 5 or so years, I've been backing Nvidia. My first custom build had a 9600gt in it the week they came out, currently I have a GTX 260 core 216. These two cards have both been evga cards; the lifetime warranty and the step up program are great perks to buying evga products. I'm looking to upgrade this weekend; currently thinking of going for the nvidia gtx 570; with the hopes of adding a second 570 later down the line (going to have to upgrade the psu when that comes). Also waffling with going ahead and going with a pair of gtx 460 1gb cards, which about equal in power the 480/570, but come to about $400 flat pre-tax, while the 570 goes for about $50 cheaper, and is single card, giving me the option of upgrading through sli later. Speaking of upgrades, you can find a nice hierarchy chart of gpus courtesy of tomshardware. It suggests not going for an upgrade unless your target new card is three tiers higher, which is p sound advice imo. I also suggest looking into the related articles on that page: the best gpu for your money, the best gpus in XX - XX price range, etc. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Faiblesse Des Sens Posted January 7, 2011 Report Share Posted January 7, 2011 Red typically has better value. Green just has better AA. I'd rather save some cash. =) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mal Posted January 7, 2011 Report Share Posted January 7, 2011 (edited) My last tower had a Nvidia and my current one has ATI. I'm currently sporting the HD6870, from what I've read, its a 5850+ but not quite a 5870. I was eying the 5850 before the 6xxx series came out and when I saw the price... well, the 6870 and the 5850 was similarly priced when I was looking. Also, I heard the 6xxx series will Crossfire better than the 5xxx series so... in I went. Current plan is to Crossfire it up in a year or two. Most likely a year... :3~ And really... I have no preference. I go with whichever I think it is best at a price at the moment. Lastly, quick question... I can crossfire with any brand 6870, as long it is a 6870, correct? --- And Intel? What are you trying to pull here? Edited January 7, 2011 by MaliciousH Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Yantelope Posted January 7, 2011 Report Share Posted January 7, 2011 ATI's naming right now is about as confusing as it could possibly be. I also have a GTX 260+ and am looking at upgrading before too long. Let me know if you do because I'm interested to see if you'd really notice a difference in most of today's games. Also, the ATI's right now run a much smaller GPU so they require a lot less power and give off less heat. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TheForgetfulBrain Posted January 7, 2011 Report Share Posted January 7, 2011 I've had both, but I would do dirty things to my beloved Radeon 5870. Best (and most expensive/most up to date with the times) video card I've ever owned. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TheMightyEthan Posted January 7, 2011 Report Share Posted January 7, 2011 I'm currently on a GeForce 8800 GTX, which I'm very happy with. My new mobo though supports Crossfire rather than SLI, so when I eventually upgrade it will likely be to an ATI card(s). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Yantelope Posted January 7, 2011 Report Share Posted January 7, 2011 I bought the GTX 260+ because at the time ATI had nothing even close to it in terms of performance. It's been a great card and I really like the Physx in a few games. I just don't know if I can stand the new huge super high power GPU's from Nvidia. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TheForgetfulBrain Posted January 7, 2011 Report Share Posted January 7, 2011 Yeah, my mobo basically doesn't support dual GPUs (because even though it was advertised to, the second slot runs at 4x instead of 16x which, with what I've read on the internets, effectively cripples the speed and makes it useless) which totally blows. Luckily the card seems strong enough on its own right now. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TheMightyEthan Posted January 7, 2011 Report Share Posted January 7, 2011 Well, and there's a decent chance I won't do dual GPUs, in which case which brand I get will just be determined by me comparing price and performance. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Yantelope Posted January 7, 2011 Report Share Posted January 7, 2011 Is there much of a performance difference between the GTX 260+ and the 460? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
staySICK Posted January 7, 2011 Author Report Share Posted January 7, 2011 And really... I have no preference. I go with whichever I think it is best at a price at the moment. Lastly, quick question... I can crossfire with any brand 6870, as long it is a 6870, correct? --- And Intel? What are you trying to pull here? yea, brand doesn't matter, as long as they are the same gpu. As for the intel option, well... ATI's naming right now is about as confusing as it could possibly be. I also have a GTX 260+ and am looking at upgrading before too long. Let me know if you do because I'm interested to see if you'd really notice a difference in most of today's games. Yea, ATI is running into similar problems as Nvidia was with the 9XXX era, but truthfully the naming process in both companies is a bit deceptive, which is why I linked to the hierarchy chart from Tom's. It's really interesting to see where cards land, even the gtx 260 is only 6 tiers down, 5 just counting the nvidia side, sitting in the same grouping as the gtx 280, gtx 460 768mb and the ATI 5830. If I do upgrade, I'll be selling my gtx 260... Is there much of a performance difference between the GTX 260+ and the 460? Multiple factors go into that. There are two types of 460, the 768 mb version and the 1 gb version. And from what I understand in the reviews I read, they are actually each different gpus. the gtx 260 will be similar in performance to a 768mb 460, but there will be a bump in performance going with a 1 gb gtx 460. Something interesting of note: the evga gtx 460 FTW version is apparently capable of going toe to toe with the gtx 470, and is $20 cheaper, so there's some interesting bits of information there. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Yantelope Posted January 7, 2011 Report Share Posted January 7, 2011 Yeah, all that reminds me of the 8800GTS 640MB and the 8800GTS 512MB and the 512 was a much better card because it had a newer GPU. Arg. so confusing. Tom's Hierarchy charts are great though. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
staySICK Posted January 7, 2011 Author Report Share Posted January 7, 2011 yea they are. and since the 460 1gb is just one tier higher, you may not notice the jump in power. Since we basically own the same card, we're in the same situation for upgrading. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Yantelope Posted January 7, 2011 Report Share Posted January 7, 2011 yeah, if you upgrade let me know. I'm really in no hurry right now as I only have one or two games that are pushing my card too hard and the ones that do push it don't really run much better on the mid range cards now. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Faiblesse Des Sens Posted January 8, 2011 Report Share Posted January 8, 2011 I have a 4830 and I don't even feel like upgrading. Metro 2033 is the only game that really taxes my card so I just play it in DX9 and it still looks great and runs great. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mr. GOH! Posted January 8, 2011 Report Share Posted January 8, 2011 My desktops always have ATI/AMD cards. It just always makes financial sense in my sensible, mid-range builds. My laptops always have nVidia cards and I can't complain. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
staySICK Posted January 8, 2011 Author Report Share Posted January 8, 2011 yeah, if you upgrade let me know. I'm really in no hurry right now as I only have one or two games that are pushing my card too hard and the ones that do push it don't really run much better on the mid range cards now. I have a 4830 and I don't even feel like upgrading. Metro 2033 is the only game that really taxes my card so I just play it in DX9 and it still looks great and runs great. I'm mainly looking to upgrade because of games coming down the pipe, the biggest being RAGE. It's a highly anticipated release for me, and I just know idtech5 is going to put my computer through the paces, I want to be ready for it. And with the kid coming, I have the money now, so I might as well do the upgrade, it may be my last chance. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Faiblesse Des Sens Posted January 8, 2011 Report Share Posted January 8, 2011 There's really no point in upgrading early when it comes to computer tech. If you just wait until the end of the year you'll be able to get better tech for the same price you are paying now. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mal Posted January 8, 2011 Report Share Posted January 8, 2011 The problem with waiting is that you can literally wait forever, be it for the price and/or specs. I waited a year before I realized that I was about to wait another year. At some point, you just have to throw all reason out and just go for it. Also the end of the year is quite far from now and the kid will be here way before that. I would bite now or soon. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
deanb Posted January 8, 2011 Report Share Posted January 8, 2011 I've had Nvidia all the way (except when it's Intel GMA ). Only time I've gone Nvidia by choice is my 8800GTS. Which was a very nice card at the time. Currently on a 9600GT. Which is not a very nice card Going to upgrade to a new PC in Summer hopefully. I'll probs by Nvidia then. I like the driver support, the 3D, the Physx. And especially the CUDA stuff, really helps with my video n 3D work. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TheMightyEthan Posted January 8, 2011 Report Share Posted January 8, 2011 The problem with waiting is that you can literally wait forever, be it for the price and/or specs. I waited a year before I realized that I was about to wait another year. At some point, you just have to throw all reason out and just go for it. That's true, but if he wants it for upcoming games he can just wait until those upcoming games are out or almost out... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Faiblesse Des Sens Posted January 8, 2011 Report Share Posted January 8, 2011 The problem with waiting is that you can literally wait forever, be it for the price and/or specs. I waited a year before I realized that I was about to wait another year. At some point, you just have to throw all reason out and just go for it. That's true, but if he wants it for upcoming games he can just wait until those upcoming games are out or almost out... Yes, this is the point I was making. Given that a game was specifically mentioned, might as well wait until that game is out or right before it's out. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
staySICK Posted January 9, 2011 Author Report Share Posted January 9, 2011 That's true, but if he wants it for upcoming games he can just wait until those upcoming games are out or almost out... Yes, this is the point I was making. Given that a game was specifically mentioned, might as well wait until that game is out or right before it's out. Typically Faiblesse / not-nihil and Ethan would be correct. The problem is by that time I'm def not going to have the money to drop on a new gpu come winter 2011 - baby's first christmas, everyone's christmas, income situation may be completely different (like cut in half different), etc. I have the money now, I know the card I'm looking at will be sufficient for the games coming, etc. I'd rather get it now when I know its safe instead of taking the gamble on waiting. But anyway, discussing that is a moot point, got my gtx 570 today. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
staySICK Posted January 9, 2011 Author Report Share Posted January 9, 2011 playing with this thing is fun. Waiting for my code for 3dMark 11 to come in to bench it with that, but here's benchmarking from the just cause 2 demo. I'm lacking the power in ram and cpu that you have Yante. One of these in your system and it'd be a beast. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Yantelope Posted January 9, 2011 Report Share Posted January 9, 2011 Just Cause 2 is a performance hog though. You noticing a boost with the 570? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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