What is the point of high end graphics cards?

[Kreij]

The point of a high end GC or a pair in SLI/XFire is that you have a need for it.
It could be a large monitor, multi-monitor setup or something like folding.

If you don't need that power, then no real need for a top-tier card.

EDIT : Unless you want a high-end, top-tier setup just because you can. Here at TPU, the word "overkill" doesn't really have much meening.

 

[Phusius]

Kreij, why are you still on Cat 12.3 and not 12.4?

 

[Frag_Maniac]

Here at TPU, the word "overkill" doesn't really have much meening.

Trust me, the lack of meaning to overkill isn't nearly as bad here as at XtremeSystems. I've never seen such decadence as there. A lot of them invest in triple or quad SLI and don't even have a clue about computers in general, let alone high end gaming rigs.

 

[Frizz]

I have owned a 7970, 680, and just went down to a 6950 and flashed it to a 6970 and OC'ed it 900/1400. Tera, MW3, and a bunch of other games I play max out just fine still.

Not entirely sure, guess if I owned 3 monitors or something it would be worth it? I am not the kind of guy who cares about playing on max settings, so even games like Arkham City or BF3 I turn down to medium high settings really is not an issue...

Is there anyone else like me out there, or are most of you here "settings must always be on ultra"? Just curious where I fit in the PC gaming community.

P.S. I didn't lose any money on the 7970 or 680 reselling.

Well I definitely wouldn't say you're an enthusiast. The reason for getting a high-end graphics card is simple, Ultra and 60FPS. The difference is in the games you play as well if all you play are MMOs and MW3, then you could get away even with a HD6870.

 

[Animalpak]

Trust me, the lack of meaning to overkill isn't nearly as bad here as at XtremeSystems. I've never seen such decadence as there. A lot of them invest in triple or quad SLI and don't even have a clue about computers in general, let alone high end gaming rigs.

They are fans, pretty crazy, everybody spends his money as he wishes ... Exceeding feeds their ego ...

 

[Kreij]

Kreij, why are you still on Cat 12.3 and not 12.4?

Everythings working fine for me at the moment. I'll update when I need to do so.

Your question is very much like the intent of this whole thread, "What's the point of updating our drivers if everything is fine?"

 

[Phusius]

lol Kreij, I don't know, I always like to have my drivers updated with the newest WHQL to be safe. but yeah, your right, it doesn't matter that much probably.

 

[Frag_Maniac]

Since I run an older GPU, I skip lot of updates, esp if they only mention performance increases for the latest gen cards. I mainly look for improvements I need, like when they upped overall performance in Skyrim, fixed problems in BF3, etc, which were Nvidia driver improvements that worked for a wide range of cards.

 

[Capitan Harlock]

I don't see anything in what you highlighted as being a joke, sarcasm or insult in any way toward those preferring higher end cards. This guy is merely relating his experiences and opinions based on what games he plays and the settings he's OK with.

Furthermore any enthusiasm he's shown is clearly in celebration of the $100 he saved, and in looking for those sharing the same opinion. Thus your implying he gift you with a lopsided exchange is rather nonsensical, and if anything, the more sarcastic between what he and you posted.

Let's not make this look like a hardcore anti elitism high end hardware boycott thread like some are making it sound. You should be glad that there are plenty of people preferring to buy midrange cards. It keeps pricing on the high end cards more reasonable, and availability more manageable.

you dont understand that out here,where i live and i think in other parts of the world , a guy like him with powerfull cpu and other good things bring monsters cards just for try without thinking i make a little upgrade for what i really need , him show us i have money and i play with it this is madness, go high end with new tecnologi and go back with highend old tecnology is no sense , i have tell in most thread go to a hd6950 to a 7870 is a good thing , go high end with price like 500$ and plus video cards when him dont need it is stupid for me , its my opinion not the right thing in the wolrd but have much more sense then what him tell to us

 

[Outback Bronze]

Topic: To live on the bleeding edge of technology.

 

[Frick]

you dont understand that out here,where i live and i think in other parts of the world , a guy like him with powerfull cpu and other good things bring monsters cards just for try without thinking i make a little upgrade for what i really need , him show us i have money and i play with it this is madness, go high end with new tecnologi and go back with highend old tecnology is no sense , i have tell in most thread go to a hd6950 to a 7870 is a good thing , go high end with price like 500$ and plus video cards when him dont need it is stupid for me , its my opinion not the right thing in the wolrd but have much more sense then what him tell to us

If he reaches the conclusion that he doesn't need that highend stuff it's very wise of him to cut back imo.

 

[eidairaman1]

considering he can always expand in future via crossfire/sli and save money too

 

[MatTheCat]

Kreij, why are you still on Cat 12.3 and not 12.4?

What is the point in Cat 12.4?

I am still on 11.12.

 

[Capitan Harlock]

If he reaches the conclusion that he doesn't need that highend stuff it's very wise of him to cut back imo.

i dont think so if you search benchmarks all aroud the web you see what performance give you a 2500k oc with a 7970 or a gtx 680 or a 7870 vs 6970

 

[FreedomEclipse]

The point of a high end GC or a pair in SLI/XFire is that you have a need for it.
It could be a large monitor, multi-monitor setup or something like folding.

If you don't need that power, then no real need for a top-tier card.

EDIT : Unless you want a high-end, top-tier setup just because you can. Here at TPU, the word "overkill" doesn't really have much meening.

I dont need that kind of power, but i admit that 2x6970s does boost my fps, Im probably not getting 'the best' out of it though as im not using a larger screen like a 27"


Purely for bragging rights in my case. and thats the same case with most people.

My old man is coming to his 60's but yet he wants a few WD raptors in his PC and a GC with 4GB dedicated memory when the closest thing he comes to 3d gaming is Aero on his desktop....

Obviously Ive explained to him that SSDs will always be faster and a lot cheaper then a WD Raptor Hard drive and that a Graphic cards dedicated memory means very little if he doesnt game or use a 50" monitor (the man uses a 19" Asus and AMD 4350 that I bought for him when my old X1800XT he was previously using died randomly overnight for no reason at all)

Purely for bragging rights.

Obviously he knows not to waste money on tech as his current pc that i built pretty much does everything he needs.

SSDs are getting cheaper so i might get him one at someone as he complains now and then that the pc loads slow. Id get him one now but i got a 240GB SSD lined up for my laptop (and i need to service myself first before others being the selfish bastard i am )

 

[Phusius]

I dont need that kind of power, but i admit that 2x6970s does boost my fps, Im probably not getting 'the best' out of it though as im not using a larger screen like a 27"

Large screen size has nothing to do with it. A 55 inch 1080p is just as demanding as a 22inch 1080p on a graphics card. It is the resolution that matters, 1440, 1600, and the future 4k series. Or eyefinity resolution, which is like 5760x1080 or something like that.

 

[ShiBDiB]

if you dont care about max settings, then you dont care about high end cards. simple.

This

Ontop of the fact that you would be better off spending money on a monitor, its no surprise you can max out games on a 21"

 

[TheoneandonlyMrK]

jebus man ,did ya not play crisis ,back in the day,, thats why we buy uber cards ,because some games run shit without em, and cod does not count and is laughable in terms of tech.

Gta4 ,another example , shit even with a then top end 5870 ,luckily that games too rubbish for me to care enough to get a 7970,, xfired 5xxx still dont net 60fps on that with max IQ ,distance ,and detail on 1080p, and the stuff most of us bar the OP buy today have to last and play all on ultra for a few years, well thats me, OP can clearly afford to just buy whatever comes out then moan that he nearly got ripped(yet sold em for same doe and still moanin) ,


OP ,off the crack man this is TPU and a question like that or why do you need quad Sli is silly,

as the answer BECAUSE I WANTED TO SEE HOW WELL IT WORKS, should or could be the only reply, yet still a valid answer.

EDIT : Unless you want a high-end, top-tier setup just because you can. Here at TPU, the word "overkill" doesn't really have much meaning.

exactly, if id have seen this post sooner id have typed less.

 

[Uninvited]

Sounds like something of a personal choice to me, not something to be questioned. I have 2 refridgerators in my house, should someone question the point much less care?

 

[LifeOnMars]

jebus man ,did ya not play crisis ,back in the day,, thats why we buy uber cards ,because some games run shit without em, and cod does not count and is laughable in terms of tech.

Gta4 ,another example , shit even with a then top end 5870 ,luckily that games too rubbish for me to care enough to get a 7970,, xfired 5xxx still dont net 60fps on that with max IQ ,distance ,and detail on 1080p, and the stuff most of us bar the OP buy today have to last and play all on ultra for a few years, well thats me, OP can clearly afford to just buy whatever comes out then moan that he nearly got ripped(yet sold em for same doe and still moanin) ,


OP ,off the crack man this is TPU and a question like that or why do you need quad Sli is silly,

as the answer BECAUSE I WANTED TO SEE HOW WELL IT WORKS, should or could be the only reply, yet still a valid answer.



exactly, if id have seen this post sooner id have typed less.

GTA IV has played super smooth with every Nvidia card I have owned, with my AMD cards.....stutterfest!!

 

[TheoneandonlyMrK]

GTA IV has played super smooth with every Nvidia card I have owned, with my AMD cards.....stutterfest!!

Oh right well in that case then ill switch to nvidia next time, added bonus will be trolls like you wont try to wind me up. by the way get on topic, in fact balls to this topic

 

[FreedomEclipse]

Sounds like something of a personal choice to me, not something to be questioned. I have 2 refridgerators in my house, should someone question the point much less care?

why should anyone care??? Its quite obvious that one is used to store and keep certain man made beverages cool



Either that or you are a axe weilding serial murderer who has the extra fridge to hide the bodies of your victims.....

 

[ensabrenoir]

BECAUSE I WANTED TO SEE HOW WELL IT WORKS[/SIZE], should or could be the only reply, yet still a valid answer.

+1

and my favorite......

SEEMED LIKE A GOOD IDEA AT THE TIME

Sounds like something of a personal choice to me, not something to be questioned. I have 2 refridgerators in my house, should someone question the point much less care?

I too have two full sized refrigerators in my house.... why you might ask? My wife went shopping for a new sink or something and the frig was on sale for a great price. Needless to say my tech purchases no longer get that "how much did that cost"

 

[Xaser04]

The point of high end Graphics cards is for people who want to max out every setting possible and/or push resolution boundaries as much as possible.

 

[Irony]

You buy a high end card if you want your game to look better than Supermario SNES. I hate to break it to you, but some people actually hold the opinion that crysis graphics are superior to Supermario. And like it that way. And need a graphics card that can make it that way. If you're happy playing games at medium-low settings, then I think you should trade Delta for his 4850s. I'm sure they would be sufficient for your needs.