Upgrade from 285SLI to eVGA GTX480 or XFX 5970 Black Edition?

[va4leo]

Hi guys.

It was late last night, so maybe i was using the wrong things to search.

Basically, I am contemplating an "upgrade" to either of the above two cards from BFG GTX285 OC2 in SLI.

IF, i were to get a GTX 480, i would get the eVGA as the warranty allows modding (as long as no physical damage occurs, so eVGA support says), I woudl wait for AC to release their cooler for the 480 and OC this card.

IF, i were to get the Black Edition 5970, I would be clocking it to 1GHz.

So, my questions are:

1. Is it worth the upgrade?
2. If yes, which card?
3. If 5970, is the cooling on the Black edition sufficient to OC it to 1GHz or should a 3rd Party Cooler be purchased as well?



THANK YOU!!

 

[Athlon2K15]

the 480 would be cheaper but the 5970 is a beast. i dont think the 480 would be much of an upgrade from the 285 SLi except for DX11 and supreme tesselation

 

[va4leo]

the 480 would be cheaper but the 5970 is a beast. i dont think the 480 would be much of an upgrade from the 285 SLi except for DX11 and supreme tesselation

Yeh, i was comparing the two, and 285s in SLI take the 480 easy in most games. Also, i play at 1680x1050 only but shooters. So, fps needs to be stable at either 91 or 125 depending on game.

 

[EarthDog]

Heh, I think any single card over dual (ati or nvidia) is worth it. When I pay 2x for 2 GPU's I want 2x performance 100% of the time and neither multi card setup can come close to delivering that goal.

With that said, I would just go with a single 5970 and call it a day. The 480's are hot (when left on auto, on 75% they are fine, but noisey) and power hungry.

 

[va4leo]

What about the cooling for the 5970 Black edition?

 

[wahdangun]

are us sure u want XFX HD 5970 2GB black edition ? coz it's really expensive ($1000, and limited), i think u should consider shapire HD 5970 2 GB instead

 

[Champ]

eVGA really has a warranty like that? Can someone back that up? I may have found a new company to roll with. I plan to run ASUS, but if they do that, I'll buy there stuff.

 

[trt740]

I would get the 5970

if you have the money, but if the 480gtx is significantly cheaper then get it. Also XFX and EVGA both allow for modding without voiding warranties.

 

[sttubs]

I've seen where people have clocked the Black to 1Ghz with the stock cooler without a problem. AC will be putting out a cooler like the 480's.

The black's aren't a $1000. This is the one you probably were thinking about: http://www.techpowerup.com/116632/X...tion_4GB_Eyefinity6_Graphics_Accelerator.html

 

[trt740]

I've seen where people have clocked the Black to 1Ghz with the stock cooler without a problem. AC will be putting out a cooler like the 480's.

I don't think even that cooler can handle the 480 gtx. I think A/C current cooler for the 5870 maxes at 300 watts . It might do it if A/c converts it to 480 gtx format but I think not. http://www.arctic-cooling.com/catalog/product_info.php?cPath=2_&mID=545

 

[sttubs]

This is the cooler that AC will be putting out:
http://i.tpucdn.com/img/10-03-02/16a_thm.jpg

It's from this news thread:
http://www.techpowerup.com/116529/Sapphire_HD_5970_OC_4_GB_Graphics_Card_Pictured.html

 

[Champ]

if you have the money, but if the 480gtx is significantly cheaper then get it. Also XFX and EVGA both allow for modding without voiding warranties.

Not thread jacking, but do you know of anybody else that has a warrant like this? I gotta get my ducks in a row.

 

[sttubs]

I went with an XFX 5970 due to it's lifetime warranty. I wanted the best protection since I shelled out that kind of money.
I'm not sure what they say about mods, like an aftermarket cooler.

 

[va4leo]

are us sure u want XFX HD 5970 2GB black edition ? coz it's really expensive ($1000, and limited), i think u should consider shapire HD 5970 2 GB instead

No. It is not the one that you are thinkign of. It is this http://xfxforce.com/en-gb/products/graphiccards/hd 5000series/5970.aspx.

I would have gone sapphire toxic, if i had the money, but GBP1000 is too much. Also, the warranty might not allow modding (but i would not anyway).

 

[va4leo]

Not thread jacking, but do you know of anybody else that has a warrant like this? I gotta get my ducks in a row.

Not atm. But this is part of what this thread is about. Cards that will let you OC the shizzle out of them and stil be covered

 

[newtekie1]

Honestly, I would have gone with two HD5850's in crossfire. It would have given almost identical performance to an HD5970, and been significantly cheaper.

eVGA really has a warranty like that? Can someone back that up? I may have found a new company to roll with. I plan to run ASUS, but if they do that, I'll buy there stuff.

Not thread jacking, but do you know of anybody else that has a warrant like this? I gotta get my ducks in a row.

Basically, everyone allows this. The basic rules, even if they are unwritten, are if you can return the card to how it was when you recieved it, with no physical damage anywhere, they will RMA it.

 

[va4leo]

Honestly, I would have gone with two HD5850's in crossfire. It would have given almost identical performance to an HD5970, and been significantly cheaper.

Its not just the 5970 though. Its about to be OCed.

The original quesion was, is it worth the upgrade (about £100), if it is worth which card, and if its the 5970, is the cooler enough xD.

 

[newtekie1]

Its not just the 5970 though. Its about to be OCed.

The original quesion was, is it worth the upgrade (about £100), if it is worth which card, and if its the 5970, is the cooler enough xD.

Yes, and the HD5850's can be overclocked as well.

The difference comes down to $100 extra for next to no performance difference(stock vs. stock or overclocked vs. overclocked). This is especially true at 1680x1050.

 

[trt740]

The 5970 is a great card you will love it. Congrats on the new card and XFX allows you to mod it aswell so you can add a new heatsink if you wish. These are great http://www.arctic-cooling.com/catalog/product_info.php?cPath=2_&mID=545