[Rack of Lamb]

I've currently got a XFX 8800GT 512mb Alpha Dog Edition and been looking at something like an ATI 5870 for an upgrade. Seems to hit a good price/performance point.

Thoughts on which make to get? http://www.newegg.ca...ti+5870&x=0&y=0

Thoughts on other cards in a similar price range?

[Ðravu]

The ATI 5870 is an amazing card. What are the rest of the basic specs for your computer though?

If you can wait it out, word is that nVidia is FINALLY going to release their new series in March I believe it was. Prices on ATI's stuff should drop a decent bit.

[Rack of Lamb]

[Ðravu]

Nice. You'll be fine with that 5870 (if you have a powerful enough PSU). Just realize if you use a 32bit OS, that card will use up a nice chunk of your memory space. If you can upgrade that X2 6000+ to a Phenom II 940, you'll be in GREAT shape. Even if you don't anytime soon though, you won't have any problems in games. :3

[Rack of Lamb]

I'm running Win7 64bit. Thanks for tip on CPU wasn't sure what to look at next there, that was one reason I got that mboard for cpu upgrade path. Just checked price, they're pretty cheap! Same ghz as mine, is it that much better (besides quad core)?

Current PSU is a 500W EarthWatts. Will I need to boost that to 600 or 650?

And what about make/model of 5870 to get?

[Ðravu]

Rack of Lamb, on 27 January 2010 - 08:05 PM, said:

I'm running Win7 64bit. Thanks for tip on CPU wasn't sure what to look at next there, that was one reason I got that mboard for cpu upgrade path. Just checked price, they're pretty cheap! Same ghz as mine, is it that much better (besides quad core)?

Current PSU is a 500W EarthWatts. Will I need to boost that to 600 or 650?

And what about make/model of 5870 to get?

nah. That 500w should do. And actually, your motherboard supports AM3 CPUs as well, so you'd be able to get the Phenom II X4 955 or 965 too, but those are really only overclocked 945s (the AM3 version of a 940). If you're going to upgrade, I'd go to the Phenom II X4 940 for the best bang/buck and a healthy upgrade. The Phenom II lineup is a bit more efficient clock-to-clock than your Athlon 64 X2 and you'll be getting an extra two cores. While most games aren't great at using more than two cores, you can still generally expect a slight FPS boost and a definite boost in multithreaded software.

[Oi(GN)]

Bang for buck 4890 is only 200 dollars.. same performance as the gtx 285 which is 370+ there ya go.

[Rack of Lamb]

Cool thanks for the info on the Phenom Dravu.

Oi the 4890 doesn't come anywhere near the 5870 for performance.

[Oi(GN)]

Rack of Lamb, on 27 January 2010 - 09:12 PM, said:

Cool thanks for the info on the Phenom Dravu.

Oi the 4890 doesn't come anywhere near the 5870 for performance.

Thats not what I posted.. I was just saving you some money.. for the nvidia card if it delivers as promised id hold out assuming it will be cheaper then the 5870.. but by all means if you need something that powerful right here right now type of deal go for it..

IMO theres no games that merit the 5870's massive pedestal performance. If future proofing is your goal.. wait of the nvidia.. I dont think anyone would disagree with that eh?

[Rack of Lamb]

I see what you're saying but I want performance and some future proofing.

What are the cards hitting in March? And will they hit in March? I've got the bug to upgrade soon.

[Oi(GN)]

Rack of Lamb, on 27 January 2010 - 09:50 PM, said:

I see what you're saying but I want performance and some future proofing.

What are the cards hitting in March? And will they hit in March? I've got the bug to upgrade soon.

Yes card lands in march.

Honestly.. even if you get that card your cpu/ram will probably bottleneck.. id take a look at the x3 720 smashes alot of more expensive processors at just pure gaming.. wolfdale is close in comparison but its also like 160 dollars..





For 100 dollar processor w/o a fan(can get 1 for $10) id say the 720 owns.

Im going to build a bfbc2 comp and it will be a 720 and 4890.. probably around 700 dollars..

[Rack of Lamb]

Thanks I'll look into that cpu too.

[Ðravu]

Whoops. Forgot you asked about which 5870 to get. Personally, I like XFX and Sapphire. I'd probably go with the XFX 5870 (not the XXX edition though).

[Rack of Lamb]

So Dravu what are your thoughts on Oi's comments re: bottlenecking and the 5870 being too powerful? Personally, for me, a grafx card can never be too powerful. And my system is pretty fast as is, I don't think bottlenecking will be a problem.

I may wait until March to see what happens but I've got the upgrade bug, L4D2 and TF2 performance are killing my vibe, man.

And where's Bacon?!

[Ðravu]

The 5870 is powerful, but not too much to not see great benefits over your 8800GT. You can wait until March for nVidia's stuff, but it's only going to be comparable to ATI's current stuff as far as I know and will suffer from "just released" pricing. If you want nVidias stuff, you're going to have to wait until past March to get a good deal. I'd definitely go for a quad-core CPU though if you've got the budget for it. The Phenom II 720 is great, especially for the price, but adding only one core onto your CPU for an extra $100 doesn't seem too worth it in my opinion.

[Rack of Lamb]

[Ðravu]

Rack of Lamb, on 08 February 2010 - 10:58 AM, said:

Was just checking prices and the 955 is about $20 cheaper than the 940 right now - worth going for the AM3?
http://products.amd....x?id=509&id=532

Also wondering about memory, I've got 4 gigs of DDR2 right now - worth moving up?

I think I'm going to hold off on video until the Nvidia's drop in March and see what happens to prices.

If you go AM3, you'll have to buy new DDR3 ram as well. AM3 CPUs can be used in some AM2+ motherboards if you want to do that instead.

[Rack of Lamb]

[Oi(GN)]

If ur going amd go with the x3 720.. its the only dominate worthy of money/performance ratio.. if you go the 9xx route go with the i5 intel.. because that extra 20-40 dollars over the 9xx series for the cpu will be your best bet. 940/955 have little performance difference over the 720.. and are 60-70 dollars more expensive.

[nocomputers]

by the way, not to contradict dravu, but if you were to do such an overhaul as to upgrade processor to quad core and a brand new graphics card, a 600 or 650 watt PSU really -couldn't- hurt. and if you wanted to make a one time long time investment, 750 would be optimal and last you forever.