Worth upgrading from 6970?

[WhiteNoise]

I'm tossing around the idea of upgrading from my 6970 2Gb

I haven't researched cards since I bought my 6970 at release. I like both ATI and nvidia so I don't mind which maker.

I want something that performs better. Not just slightly better but something that I will be happy with for another 2.5 years.

Also I never buy top of the line. I prefer upper middle range to lower high range.

That said I don't have a set price.

What should I be looking at these days?

[james888]

This will answer all your questions. If you are looking for high mid or low high your not looking at a huge upgrade though.


I upgraded from a 6950 to a 7970. It was a pretty decent upgrade. I did it mostly for compute reasons not gaming. I know the 7970 will hold me for a few years though. Especially since it clocks up to 1300mhz.

[Crap Daddy]

6970 was top of the range so I suggest a 7970 non GE. Given that the new consoles will be out this year I'm not too sure though about 2.5 years. I would still wait for next gen of cards, 6970 is still a solid performer.

[WhiteNoise]

I guess I should have stated I usually don't by the VERY top of the line. That chart is handy. Thanks all.


Looking at that chart and current prices I'd be leaning towards the 7970 @ $380ish Vs the GTX 670 @ $360ish

Looks like either of those would be a good upgrade from my 6970. I'll have to read some reviews and give it some thought.

[WhiteNoise]

Originally Posted by Crap Daddy

I would still wait for next gen of cards, 6970 is still a solid performer.

For the most part I have no issues. I play all my games at 1920x1080 and I hate to have to turn the pretty visuals down to play.

Lately there have been a few games that made my pc chug which bothers me but tbh upgrading to something new now might not help any.

Playing FC3 and Crysis 3 at max settings is impossible.

Plus I'm going to grab the ARMA III alpha game...

[erocker]

ArmA III and my 7970 are working great together... and at a higher resolution. The 7970 is definitely a better deal than a 670... Though a 660ti beats them all in terms of price/performance and you should be satisfied with the performance.

[Mindweaver]

Originally Posted by erocker

ArmA III and my 7970 are working great together... and at a higher resolution. The 7970 is definitely a better deal than a 670... Though a 660ti beats them all in terms of price/performance and you should be satisfied with the performance.

+1

[WhiteNoise]

I'm going to grab the ARMA 3 alpha today and see how my card handles it. maybe I'll OC my card too.

Then I'll see what I need to do. The 7970 is a good price so I may start looking for a deal on one. I can then toss my 6970 into my HTPC.

[james888]

I was able to play crysis 3 beta at ultra settings and it played smooth. Your system is pretty similar to mine minus the 7970.

[AsRock]

Originally Posted by WhiteNoise

For the most part I have no issues. I play all my games at 1920x1080 and I hate to have to turn the pretty visuals down to play.

Lately there have been a few games that made my pc chug which bothers me but tbh upgrading to something new now might not help any.

Playing FC3 and Crysis 3 at max settings is impossible.

Plus I'm going to grab the ARMA III alpha game...

Been playing FC3 over the last week and it's played flawlessly ( all so been a blast to play ) HDAO x4 every thing else is max and got 35+ fps. HDAO x8 i get mouse lag but i am happy enough with x4..

As for my CPU it's clocked at 4GHz and my ram is on T1 setting running @1600MHz.

Just to note CCC settings are app controlled.

[WhiteNoise]

Well there have been patches for FC3 and driver updates for my card. I haven't touched FC3 since the first week it released. Might actually play fine now.

[WhiteNoise]

So I'm looking at two 7970's at the moment. One new and one used.

New one: GIGABYTE GV-R797OC-3GD Radeon HD 7970 3GB (includes Crysis 3 and new Bioshock games) $379.99 plus tax (I have to pay sales tax as I live next door to Newegg)
GIGABYTE GV-R797OC-3GD Radeon HD 7970 3GB 384-bit ...

Used one: SAPPHIRE Vapor-X Radeon HD 7970 GHz Edition 3GB $360 even (local seller)
SAPPHIRE Vapor-X 100351VXSR Radeon HD 7970 GHz Edi...

This guys claims he has owned this card for a bit over a month and its near new. Bought for testing purposes only.

What do you guys think?

[AsRock]

Originally Posted by WhiteNoise

Well there have been patches for FC3 and driver updates for my card. I haven't touched FC3 since the first week it released. Might actually play fine now.

True, Sorry as i keep telling my wife i cannot read minds yet.

Originally Posted by WhiteNoise

So I'm looking at two 7970's at the moment. One new and one used.

New one: GIGABYTE GV-R797OC-3GD Radeon HD 7970 3GB (includes Crysis 3 and new Bioshock games) $379.99 plus tax (I have to pay sales tax as I live next door to Newegg)
GIGABYTE GV-R797OC-3GD Radeon HD 7970 3GB 384-bit ...

Used one: SAPPHIRE Vapor-X Radeon HD 7970 GHz Edition 3GB $360 even (local seller)
SAPPHIRE Vapor-X 100351VXSR Radeon HD 7970 GHz Edi...

This guys claims he has owned this card for a bit over a month and its near new. Bought for testing purposes only.

What do you guys think?

I was going to but after looking at the gains on getting one $400 for 10-30 fps if lucky. I would wait till 8xxx range is out so they be either cheaper or you can get a some what improved 8xxx. But still then i my self would think twice about it as games play fine for me for the most part and i am surly not dropping $400 for arma 3 which is still in alpha and being cpu intensive thought in my case be better of upgrading my current system for a i7 and the other to be a i5 setup.

Still waiting for a game i play that i cannot have AA turned on and if that was the case then i would.

Would be cool to hear how one of them do for you with a single 7970 if you do end up buying and trying arma 3.

[alwayssts]

I can understand the pain.

In today's world for 1080p you really want something that performs like a 660ti/7870XT 1536sp/old 7950 (800mhz). Anything more is future-proofing, but granted that level is perhaps right outside of the scope for 6970.

For me the answer was overclocking a 7870 to 1200mhz, which is essentially similar to all those, because I'm 'thrifty' and require a shorter card. With the latest drivers I have not encountered many issues, and FC3/Tomb Raider etc play fine while looking pretty. I know nothing about ARMA.

That said, I'm a guy that will upgrade every cycle to fit the form factor and cost envelope.

It appears space is not an issue and you upgrade about every two years. I would recommend two segments above where I mentioned.

IOW, I think you are right looking at a 7970.

nVIDIA and/or AMD may come out with nice <225w cards during a refresh that perform very close over-all, which is what I will wait for, but I doubt the value will be substantially different when you consider the either personal or monetary worth of the game bundles available from AMD, the time between now and then as your current card is not making you happy, and the current price of 7970.

[james888]

Originally Posted by WhiteNoise

So I'm looking at two 7970's at the moment. One new and one used.

New one: GIGABYTE GV-R797OC-3GD Radeon HD 7970 3GB (includes Crysis 3 and new Bioshock games) $379.99 plus tax (I have to pay sales tax as I live next door to Newegg)
GIGABYTE GV-R797OC-3GD Radeon HD 7970 3GB 384-bit ...

Used one: SAPPHIRE Vapor-X Radeon HD 7970 GHz Edition 3GB $360 even (local seller)
SAPPHIRE Vapor-X 100351VXSR Radeon HD 7970 GHz Edi...

This guys claims he has owned this card for a bit over a month and its near new. Bought for testing purposes only.

What do you guys think?

I have heard great things about the gigabyte cooler but I hear those gigabyte cards are voltage locked. I have a regular sapphire 7970 that came with that cooler. The sapphire cooler kept my 7970 at 60c at stock.

It probably is better to wait for 8000/700 series's.

[alwayssts]

Good point to mention voltage locks on that card. There are other options, granted their price is in-line with the likely performance benefit from voltage adjustment.

Still, if you figure '8870' and 780GTX (or whatever) will be ~$260-300, launching perhaps in a month or two but conceivably up to much later in the year as the products they are replacing depreciate to that level, that they probably won't have bundles like this for a while, and probably will overclock to similar performance as a stock 7970 ghz ed...it's all pretty relative and subjective.

[james888]

Originally Posted by alwayssts

Good point to mention voltage locks on that card. There are other options, granted their price is in-line with the likely performance benefit from voltage adjustment.

Still, if you figure '8870' and 780GTX (or whatever) will be ~$260-300, launching perhaps in a month or two but conceivably up to much later in the year as the products they are replacing depreciate to that level, that they probably won't have bundles like this for a while, and probably will overclock to similar performance as a stock 7970 ghz ed...it's all pretty relative and subjective.

My 7970 can get to 1300/1800mhz. It is a beast at those clocks. Unless I am benching or have a game that needs it, which I don't, I run it at it at stock. You don't need ghz editions, they are just pre overclocked 7970's. You could just get a regular 7970 and overclock it yourself.

[WhiteNoise]

Thanks for all the input guys. Rumor has it that the AMD 8xxx cards might release second quarter this year so i think I'll wait.

As for ARMA 3; I bought it and played it yesterday. I allowed it to detect my hardware and adjust accordingly and it looks pretty damn good.

[tokyoduong]

Originally Posted by james888

My 7970 can get to 1300/1800mhz. It is a beast at those clocks. Unless I am benching or have a game that needs it, which I don't, I run it at it at stock. You don't need ghz editions, they are just pre overclocked 7970's. You could just get a regular 7970 and overclock it yourself.

Some people, like me, like high preOC versions of the card so I don't have to do it myself and void the warranty.

But you are right, if you want to OC to insane levels anyways then get a stock non OC card since it's probably cheaper.

[Flow]

Originally Posted by WhiteNoise

Thanks for all the input guys. Rumor has it that the AMD 8xxx cards might release second quarter this year so i think I'll wait.

As for ARMA 3; I bought it and played it yesterday. I allowed it to detect my hardware and adjust accordingly and it looks pretty damn good.

I heard it the other way around, could be q4 or even next year.
Regardless, I'm in the same boat with my unlocked 6950 toxic from sapphire.
And the truth is that while tombraider looks and plays great, it could look even greater, same for FC3 and especially crysis 3 which all require me to play just high, which in nowadays games is just a cover for medium graphics.

I'm gonna get the Gigabyte GV-R797TO-3GD, that card is already very good clocked and a Ghz edition.