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6950 > 6970 help

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hi all:
i just sold my 5870 crossfire setup (because bfbc2 problems)
i was going to get a gtx 580 but really it benches lower then the 5870 crossfire setup i just got rid of

but it would be quieter if i got the 580 and probably not as many problems with the game itself since i would not be in cfx

anyhow here i am in the 6950 bios thread.

im thinking about buying (2) 6950`s for cfx again..i know i cant believe it either but the game i really want is BF3

anyhow i just want the CHEAPEST 6950`s that can be flashed to a 6970 and that cfx will still work good.

i would have two cards so i dont need a reference card with dual bios do i?

anyhow your thought would be appreciated.

thanks


btw i posted this same exact post in the bios mod "Article" i think i posted it in the wrong place.
 
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did bad company freez your pc? mine does now
 
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did bad company freez your pc? mine does now

nah i would just get that texture flickering and sometimes i would get the "feels like walking in mud" even when your fps never goes below 60

mostly in atacama desert and heavy metal
 
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you need to get reference pcb to flash it to 6970 or unlock the shadders and it must be a 2gb version.did u sell the 5870s because it wont worth it to switch you will waste money for the same perfomance

better wait till the end of the year and waist your money on 1 7970 which will be equal to 2x6950
just be patient with flickers because you may be disappointed in 6950 with flickers too,.
 
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you need to get reference pcb to flash it to 6970 or unlock the shadders and it must be a 2gb version.did u sell the 5870s because it wont worth it to switch you will waste money for the same perfomance

better wait till the end of the year and waist your money on 1 7970 which will be equal to 2x6950
just be patient with flickers because you may be disappointed in 6950 with flickers too,.

yea they are sold...they get sent off today.

maybe i should just get a single gtx 580 and add another later?

do i absolutely have to have a reference board with dual boot bios?

the non-reference boards with no dual bios are alot cheaper...
 

Syuzeren

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I am just saying that the gtx580 will handle everything at the moment and still be great in 5 years. So i don't understand why you want such a powerfull system.

Battlefield 3 wont need more then a single GTX580, and using 2 of them would only be a waste, just saying that energy bills will be higher with 2 of them.

So i would take a single 580 or a 590 if you want the extra horse power.

2x 580 = more expensive and power hungry then a single 590
and the performance of the 2x 580 is only slightly higher)
 
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I am just saying that the gtx580 will handle everything at the moment and still be great in 5 years. So i don't understand why you want such a powerfull system.

Battlefield 3 wont need more then a single GTX580, and using 2 of them would only be a waste, just saying that energy bills will be higher with 2 of them.

So i would take a single 580 or a 590 if you want the extra horse power.

2x 580 = more expensive and power hungry then a single 590
and the performance of the 2x 580 is only slightly higher)

gtx 580 in 1080P in bfbc2 is only doing "67 fps" as reported here:
http://www.guru3d.com/article/geforce-gtx-590-review/18

the 5970 right above it is what i just had (2x5870 = 5970) and it shows 74fps.
now what i need to know is (will i still feel like im walking in mud) like i was with the 8800gts 512 SLI setup i had and like the 5870`s CFX i just got rid of?

is the "walking in mud" a side effect from sli and cfx?
do you get that feeling of walking in mud with a "single" video card and for that matter a gtx 580?

i know the texture flickering will stop (right?)
how about when the fps is high (according to fraps) and then you get that feeling of walking in mud.
is that still there?
 
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anyone want to help me out with this?
 

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Yikes I didn't see this post until now: I got my reference design (not the PCS ++ version!) PowerColor 6950 from Circuit City for $253-ish. I think I ended up paying $280 because I overnighted it. It also came with a $15 mail in rebate. The reason why I went with CC is because Amazon had the card but it was shipping from CC; they would not overnight the card. When I went to CC directly, they would. My other option was TigerDirect, they had a awesome deal. Because their distribution center is in Texas, though, they wanted sales tax. That killed that.

Shop around for a good deal. I know FOR CERTAIN the PowerColor Radeon HD 6950 with the red robot holding a red sword on the box is a reference PCB card (he is also on the card itself holding a red sword), as I am using it and have unlocked the shaders. It also has the dual BIOS switch. If you want both cards to be flashable/unlockable to 6970 shaders/clocks it is highly recommended you get reference designed cards. Otherwise you'll have to use the AMD BIOS editor software and, from what I've read, it's risky business.

Please note I am no PowerColor fanboy, they just had the best deal at the time. There are several other companies that have reference design cards. To see, specifically, which card I got you can see the unboxing of it here by some random guy on the internet: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-MnjtKDhZ4M
 
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i really need to go cheaper.
i have seen some "non-reference" boards with no "dual bios" going for:

$209 after rebate
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814150523&cm_re=6950-_-14-150-523-_-Product

and

$223 after rebate
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814102921&cm_re=6950-_-14-102-921-_-Product

can cards like these be flashed.

i read the "feedback at newegg" and it seems like most the people said you can not do it but some say if you know what you are doing.

can someone tell me actually what is going on with "non-reference, non-dual-bios and 1GB" 6950`s as far as turning them into a 6970?
 

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i really need to go cheaper.
i have seen some "non-reference" boards with no "dual bios" going for:

$209 after rebate
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814150523&cm_re=6950-_-14-150-523-_-Product

and

$223 after rebate
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814102921&cm_re=6950-_-14-102-921-_-Product

can cards like these be flashed.

i read the "feedback at newegg" and it seems like most the people said you can not do it but some say if you know what you are doing.

can someone tell me actually what is going on with "non-reference, non-dual-bios and 1GB" 6950`s as far as turning them into a 6970?

Ah see mine is the 2GB version. As far as the 1 GB ones I THINK it's possible, but none of them have dual BIOS. I'd think that it's even riskier with the 1 GB ones, though, because the 6970 by default in any form has 2 GB minimum. If you're trying to go cheaper you may want to look into the 68xx series because I've heard there's isn't that much of a FPS drop between them and a 6950. Out of the box there's very minimal performance difference between the 1 GB 6950 and the 2 GB, but more VRAM becomes necessary when you have multiple monitors. I do believe you can edit the BIOS on the 1 GB 6950 BUT I am no expert because I'm working with the 2 GB one.
 
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Ah see mine is the 2GB version. As far as the 1 GB ones I THINK it's possible, but none of them have dual BIOS. I'd think that it's even riskier with the 1 GB ones, though, because the 6970 by default in any form has 2 GB minimum. If you're trying to go cheaper you may want to look into the 68xx series because I've heard there's isn't that much of a FPS drop between them and a 6950. Out of the box there's very minimal performance difference between the 1 GB 6950 and the 2 GB, but more VRAM becomes necessary when you have multiple monitors. I do believe you can edit the BIOS on the 1 GB 6950 BUT I am no expert because I'm working with the 2 GB one.

thanks for quick response.
i have been doing a little reading.
i think the 1gb single bios can have the shaders unlocked (basically modded bio) not a 6970 bios
and then after the unlock you can use msiab for changing the clocks...might be able to change it with ccc i dont know.

i like the dual 6pin power as my psu has 2 6pin power cords and then the card comes with 2 molex to 6pin.
if i go for a 6970 each card has an 8pin so i not sure what i would do.
i dont want a 6970 as they are just to much.
 

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you wont get rid of the flickering in BC2 and it will most likely be present in BF3 as its a bug with the Frostbite engine and multi gpu setups at least with the AMD side of things

cranking AA + bloom causes this more often setting AA to off and turning bloom off in the INI might have fixed your issues with the 5870s as it has worked for others.

if your going to buy a 6900 series just get the damn 2gb version

i dont think i really need to point out that more and more games are using more then 1gb of vram and whats the point of 2x gpus if your hitting a vram wall that knocks your minimum FPS into the toilet.
 
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you wont get rid of the flickering in BC2 and it will most likely be present in BF3 as its a bug with the Frostbite engine and multi gpu setups at least with the AMD side of things

cranking AA + bloom causes this more often setting AA to off and turning bloom off in the INI might have fixed your issues with the 5870s as it has worked for others.

if your going to buy a 6900 series just get the damn 2gb version

i dont think i really need to point out that more and more games are using more then 1gb of vram and whats the point of 2x gpus if your hitting a vram wall that knocks your minimum FPS into the toilet.

you have some valid points.

first: thing why i dont get the 2GB version is of course money.
second: reason is wouldnt it be great to get "New" vcards for almost $200 each that can almost keep up with a GTX 580 SLI setup that costs over $800
i think that would be awesome.
third: the 1GB ram version i think would suit my needs as i only run 1080P and wouldnt use 32xAA just normal 8xAA and 16xAF would work for 1GB...i would think as that is what i used on my 5870`s or did i use 16xAA i forget...think it was 8xAA

anyhow if i can make a 6950 1GB work as a 6970 even if i have to use MSIAB that would be ok.
im trying to go the best bang for the buck.
all i need to do is backup my original bios and make sure nothing happens to it right?
as long as i can boot from another vcard i will always be able to flash and return my flashed vcard to stock?
 

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um Metro 2033 1920x1080 no AA max settings 55-60fps total vram usage 1300-1500mb

Shogun II DX11 mode 4xAA 1.2-1.8gb of Vram usage

Grand Theft Auto 4 needs about 1.8gb of vram to max the game

Oblivion Fallout 3 and New Vegas with mods and a few tweaks to the ini file can use 1.2-1.3gb of vram, Oblivion with shadow edits actually brought my old 5850 xfire setup down to 1fps -3 fps average.

it dosent take max AA it just takes DX11 features.

Direct Compute filters use vram
AA uses vram
Tessellation uses vram.

now if a simple stradegy game thats on the same game engine since 2007 can use nearly a full 2gb of vram what does that tell you of new up coming DX11 titles as developers are now moving toward DX11 and the PC platform as consoles are so long in the tooth

average difference in price on 6950s between a 1gb and a 2gb is like $20 well i take that back seems most of the cheaper 2gb models i checked on last week are gone that sucks

http://www.provantage.com/msi-r6950-2pm2d2gd5~7MST9141.htm
non unlockable but MIR = $ 244
XFX HD-695X-CNFC Radeon HD 6950 2GB 256-bit GDDR5 ...


as far as single 580 vs 2x 6950s or 2x 6970s ive noticed the 580 does manage to keep slightly higher minimum fps but not enough to matter in personal experience with all the games i own, crossfire has never dipped below 30fps in the games i play it really depends on the title, some games that suck with multi gpus well obviously the 580 will be a clear winner but i honestly cant think of many games out there that dont use multi gpus effectively and those that dont well they tend to run at a ridiculous frame rate so dosent matter lol.

GTX 580 is effectively $500
6950 2gb regardless of brand is around $550 with MIR there $500 1gb cards are cheaper but unless your gonna drop your gpus for 7000 series or gtx 600 series later in the year early next year id grab the 2gb cards.


if you really plan to just get 1gb cards then get GTX 560 Ti and sli them there around the same price as the 6950 run cooler and overclock far better to the point they can take on stock 570 SLI fairly easily. there also cheap as well depending on what your looking for
 
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you both have good points
2GB gaming probably is here and is going to be even more so in the future.

so it looks like $275 for a 6950 with 2GB * 2 = $550
single gtx 580 are going for about $440 or something

dang why is this so hard.

when i sold my 5870`s i sold them because of the cfx problems.
when i look at benchmarks for the 580 it seems like im taking a step backwards
i guess the benchmarks dont tell all of the real story.
some game dont like multi-gpu and one of my favs is in that catagory

i look at the 6950`s thinking (maybe they will be different in CFX then my 5870`s)
i know the benchmarks are outstanding
i wonder if BF3 will have it working like it should be (i mean cfx)

this is freaking giving me an aneurysm.
 

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well i have 6970s and i play Bad Company 2 over 300+ hours all of them with Xfire and ive had 0 issues, in fact running with a single gpu actually lowers my overall performance in that game in terms of score per round kills per round etc. Then again to be honest in Bad Company 2 a Phenom II chip just dosent push 2 gpus hard enough. which might be the reason for your issues, as im roughly 30% slower in BC2 then an Intel rig with the same 2x gpus.

if i remember right an overclocked Q9650 was 30fps slower then a 2500k, with the same gpus in BC2, 70fps vs 100fps and that was Q9650 overclocked vs 2500k/2600k stock. so CPU has alot to do with Bad Company 2s performance with multiple gpus.
 
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well i have 6970s and i play Bad Company 2 over 300+ hours all of them with Xfire and ive had 0 issues, in fact running with a single gpu actually lowers my overall performance in that game in terms of score per round kills per round etc. Then again to be honest in Bad Company 2 a Phenom II chip just dosent push 2 gpus hard enough. which might be the reason for your issues, as im roughly 30% slower in BC2 then an Intel rig with the same 2x gpus.

if i remember right an overclocked Q9650 was 30fps slower then a 2500k, with the same gpus in BC2, 70fps vs 100fps and that was Q9650 overclocked vs 2500k/2600k stock. so CPU has alot to do with Bad Company 2s performance with multiple gpus.

your right...even if i could hit 4.0ghz it would still limit my gpu`s i bet
i mean @ 3.7ghz my cores are about 85%-90% usage but the architecture itself is slower.
im hoping the bulldozer will fix that as my mboard supposibly will be able to take it with a bios update.

im thinking hard on the 6950 2GB models over the single gtx 580 (keeping the bulldozer in mind)
idk i just need to be ready for BF3 mostly
 

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you mobo will only work with bulldozer if the socket is black aka AM3b socket, if your socket is white its AM3 socket and it WONT work.
 
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you mobo will only work with bulldozer if the socket is black aka AM3b socket, if your socket is white its AM3 socket and it WONT work.

ohh thats a good tech tip.
thanks for the info.
got lucky i guess because mine is black
my last bios update says this:

- Update CPU AGESA code for AM3+ CPU.
 

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well of course,

those running $300 asus boards with the white socket and update the bios for the chip. but it dosent mean the socket itself will allow you to put a bulldozer chip in it, but since your is physically black then your fine.
 

mvx15n

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Don't worry so much about unlocking shaders it gets around only 5% better performance.

Get cards with good cooling and power system and overclock them to +900mhz and you'll get better performance... (and if you do not overclock they will make less noise)

good luck...
 
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you mobo will only work with bulldozer if the socket is black aka AM3b socket, if your socket is white its AM3 socket and it WONT work.

well of course,

those running $300 asus boards with the white socket and update the bios for the chip. but it dosent mean the socket itself will allow you to put a bulldozer chip in it, but since your is physically black then your fine.
http://c3.yousaytoo.com/rss_temp_image/pics/0/56/54/5549400/remote_image20110427-23094-zgdjw9-0.jpg

That is yet to be determined. Sure the socket is a bit different but we still haven't seen the backside of a Bulldozer CPU yet. Of course, if you're buying an AMD board right now you would want the black socket anyways.
 
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