What Should I Buy???

[dcf-joe]

I plan on upgrading my computer by the end of this year. I am moving from an ancient AMD 3000+ with ATI X300. I am confused as to whether or not I should get SLI GTX 280's or Crossfire 4870 X2's???

I am confused because, even with all the hype that the X2 had, since it came out, I have been reading some threads, and some say that the GTX 280's are better???

 

[erocker]

If you are planning on using a monitor 22" or under one card should suffice. The 4870x2 handles AA better, which should be more beneficial on a smaller monitor.

 

[zilla]

For 22" you may not even need that. One 4870, 260, or 280 would likely be just fine.

 

[johnnyfiive]

One 4870X2 is perfect IMO. Two 4870X2's would be overkill unless your playing games on a 30" monitor.

 

[JC316]

I would just go with a single 4870 if I were you and spend the extra cash on a kick ass CPU. My E1200 and 3870 runs nearly all my games at 1680x1050 easy.

 

[newconroer]

I plan on upgrading my computer by the end of this year. I am moving from an ancient AMD 3000+ with ATI X300. I am confused as to whether or not I should get SLI GTX 280's or Crossfire 4870 X2's???

I am confused because, even with all the hype that the X2 had, since it came out, I have been reading some threads, and some say that the GTX 280's are better???

Anything besides a GPU should be left until AFTER Nehalem launches. Really, good things come to those that wait. If nothing else, the price on all current CPUs will come down, and there's a lot of options on the dark side.


As for 280 being better than 4870 x2, yes and no. In certain applications the 280 responds better, but from a horsepower standpoint it's not. Having said that, the gains of a x2 over a 280 are unfortunatley not as noticeable as we'd all hoped. And going even further, depending on your expectations and monitor resolution, a 280 or X2 might be more than you need.

There is no "Crysis" killer out there in the form of a single card solution. Running two GX2s, 4870X2s or 280 SLI would be a lot of power draw and heat output, as well as cutting into any budget you might have for other components.

The GPU is going to help you 'upgrade' the most at this point. Moving to a GTX 260 or 4870, would be a VERY noticeable step up from where you are now. Even a 9800GTX+, 8800 GTX, 4850 or hell an old 640 8800 would be good, and a lot of those cards are at acceptable prices.

Whatever you do, start with a quality power supply.

If I had to recommend one that would support a single card solution, it would be Silverstone's Decathlon 650. http://silverstonetek.com/products/p_contents.php?pno=da650&area=

 

[zilla]

One poster above made a very astute observation - with Intel poised to to to the new chips - to upgrade you'll need a new mobo, this actually positions some of the AMD systems as the perfect temporary system. You can nab a 4800+ brisbane, or an older 5000+ BE cheap, slap it on an AM2+ motherboard of our choice, get an HD4850 and be very happy with 22" gaming. Heck I'm happy with my 9600GT - though it struggles only in Crysis lol. Later you can move the AM2+ system to backup role and still move the 4850 (or whatever GPU you get) to the new Intel rig and "see" how you like it's gaming capabilities, or sell it to make up some cost.

 

[J-Man]

One 4870X2 is perfect IMO. Two 4870X2's would be overkill unless your playing games on a 30" monitor.

You answered my question then

I was planning on getting a second 4870 x2 but a single 4870 x2 is enough for my 24"

 

[a_ump]

well like the others said, GTX 280 or HD 4870x2, though were it me i'd say GTX 280 guaranteed constant FPS for future games. as for nehalem, if your willing to spend 284 on a processor, then wait for nehalem. otherwise get it now. cause they're only coming out with 3 processors one at $284, $562, and $999. i can't find a link where i read that but here's a link supporting it
http://techreport.com/discussions.x/15110
though i suppose u could wait for them, cause prices of current quads would drop. not too sure about c2d since there won't be nehalem dual cores till Q3/4 09

 

[J-Man]

4870 x2 you need. I'm happy now I get 100-110 FPS average in GRID

 

[GAR]

A Single GTX 260 and 4870 should be more than enough. A single GTX 260 overclocked is running ALL my games with high AA at 1920x1200, COD4/TF2/CSS/DODS/GRID/Crysis, well crysis doesnt have AA but it runs real smooth on high

 

[J-Man]

Yes, it's best to read what everyone else says

If you have a 19", 20" or a 22", a 4870 will be fine. I personally think if you have a 24" or bigger then you need a 4870 X2. I have a 24" so I got the HIS 4870 x2 on launch.

 

[twicksisted]

Yes, it's best to read what everyone else says

If you have a 19", 20" or a 22", a 4870 will be fine. I personally think if you have a 24" or bigger then you need a 4870 X2. I have a 24" so I got the HIS 4870 x2 on launch.

im on a 24" samsung with a 4870 single.... and its perfect... even crysis plays fine in high 1080p

 

[J-Man]

im on a 24" samsung with a 4870 single.... and its perfect... even crysis plays fine in high 1080p

I like Crysis on V High

 

[twicksisted]

I like Crysis on V High

yeah... thats pretty impressive

 

[J-Man]

yeah... thats pretty impressive

I didn't wanna buy the 4870 because I actually thought the card wouldn't cope at 24" resolution.