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Old Feb 10, 2009, 06:05 PM   #1
petepete
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New Rig Which Videocard?

Hey guys, I have been saving my money for a while now and am looking at buying two EVGA geforce 295 gtx's, but some buyers have said they wished they got the 4870x2 due to buggy drivers etc. and I am wondering, if you have the money; would you get two 295 gtx's or two radeon 4870 x2's.

I will be gaming at 1920 x 1200 resolution and am wondering as well if quad sli / crossfire will scale well at this resolution.
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Old Feb 10, 2009, 06:06 PM   #2
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Get the 295's... No questions asked..
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Old Feb 10, 2009, 06:07 PM   #3
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Thank you for your quick response.. Is the scaling in terms of FPS nearly as good as 2500 x 1900 resolution or am i wasting my money?? overkill for my resolution im trying to say
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Old Feb 10, 2009, 06:08 PM   #4
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Well what games do you plan on playing?
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Old Feb 10, 2009, 06:10 PM   #5
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Um, call me naive...but will a pentium 4 cut it?
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Old Feb 10, 2009, 06:10 PM   #6
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Warhammer Dawn of War 2
Warhammer Online Age of Wreckoning
Crysis
Fear 2
Left 4 Dead
A few more I just can't seem to think of them right now =P

in the future
Starcraft 2
Diablo 3
(who doesnt right lol )
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Old Feb 10, 2009, 06:10 PM   #7
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I am buying a whole new rig,, how do i show you my cart on newegg? theres no link
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Old Feb 10, 2009, 06:11 PM   #8
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Screenshot it and post it here...
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Old Feb 10, 2009, 06:12 PM   #9
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Quote:
Originally Posted by petepete View Post
I am buying a whole new rig,, how do i show you my cart on newegg? theres no link
Oh right sorry bud Sounds cool then, whats going into this rig of yours? Interested as I am planning one for that very same resolution.
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Old Feb 10, 2009, 06:14 PM   #10
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I will be gaming on this monitor as well

the Aftermarket cooler for the i7 will be the Zalman CNPS 9900

http://www.futureshop.ca/catalog/pro...51&catid=25616

EDIT: I believe i will go EVGA for the GTX 295's
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Old Feb 10, 2009, 06:19 PM   #11
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Ya I would definitely say the 295;s there are definitly cheaper solutions but the 295's are future proof.. They are no doubt the best... I see your budget is huge so go for it man..If you want something cheaper tell me..But why not get a PII and do watercooling..? I7 is faster but phenom II's reach amazing clock speeds.
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Old Feb 10, 2009, 06:20 PM   #12
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You read my mind, I was actually thinking of doing that but I have no knowledge about water cooling. Maintaining the water cooling must be hell as well ,, and i really don't want to keep disassembling my machine and risk killing my parts

i thought i was future proofing before getting my radeon 1900 xt at 600 bucks back then,, i really hope these two cards don't screw me in the future lol
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Old Feb 10, 2009, 07:51 PM   #13
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Check out tomshardware.com, they just did a review with the 4870X2 pitted against three 280s and two 295s. It seems the 295 come out on top by about %10-15 in every review. I've just put together a new system with two EVGA GTX295, have them both OC'd by about %20. The only thing that ever dips below 60fps seems to be Crysis(only on the first load). I'm using windows7 and have not had a single issue with any of the EVGA OC'ing tools either, using the EVGA X58 mobo too. If you are going to be playing in high resolutions(1920x1200+) then definitely go with the 295s. I would personally suggest EVGA so you can trade in your cards when the 385 comes out. Send me a message or reply if you have any other questions.
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Old Feb 11, 2009, 03:58 PM   #14
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I would save 100$ and get the 4870x2's but its your call. gt300 is coming out along with the 40nm ever sooner than that.
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Old Feb 11, 2009, 04:08 PM   #15
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with one gtx 295 is more than enough for gaming, two is worse because of the electricity bill and the drivers are not polished enough to enjoy quad sli.

EDIT: if u are not going to overclock, get this http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...k=asrock%20x58 or this http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16813128362
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Old Feb 11, 2009, 04:13 PM   #16
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I'd get 2 4870 x2.
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Old Feb 11, 2009, 04:17 PM   #17
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Quad SLI with two GTX 295s is more for benchmark monkeys with money to blow than actual gamers.

At 1920x1200, I'd say one GTX 295 is more than enough, even with high levels of AA/AF.

Start with just one GTX 295 and you can always purchase another one down the road, when they're cheaper...
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Old Feb 11, 2009, 04:20 PM   #18
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4870 x2 or 4850 x2 FTW!
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Old Feb 11, 2009, 04:43 PM   #19
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Thanks for all the helpful advice =)
at 1900 x 1200 i just see quad sli and crossfire x gains (20% most of the time)
thats pretty significant
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Old Feb 13, 2009, 02:21 PM   #20
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at 1900x1200 i would just buy one GTX295, only game where you can't do 60fps on all high with one card is crysis, 50fps in crysis is more than enough for ultra smooth gameplay, 10 to 20% gain in fps for 100% extra price, waste of money
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Old Feb 13, 2009, 02:31 PM   #21
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If you haven't already, take a look at W1zzard's Review of the GTX295.
I agree that one card is sufficient to blow all your gaming out of the water, so to speak. Also there isn't much difference in performance (only like 3% I guess?) between it and the 4870X2.

(Between you and me, if you are really intent on buying 2 and find it overkill..... ship one to me)
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Old Feb 13, 2009, 02:38 PM   #22
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Yeah 1 4870x2 or gtx 295 would be plenty. Don't quad-sli for future-proofing games (a horrendous waste of money if used for that purpose as it isn't effective in too many games), only do that if your wanting crazy benchies. Sell the card in a year or so for a single gpu that performs like 2 295s.
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Old Feb 13, 2009, 03:11 PM   #23
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those are high prices :O trry direct canada, amazon .ca, best buy, futureshop .... those little shops... where do you live? anywhere beside the border?

(GO CANADIA! )

btw, if you could waiot before buying that, I can cut the cost in half for 95% of the performance I'll pm you my msn... we'll talk it over
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Old Feb 13, 2009, 03:18 PM   #24
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HD 4870X2 is cheaper, performs about the same at 1920 resolutions and I had more luck with ATi at higher resolutions. My 4830 performs about as good as my GTX 280 did at 1920x1080 but it gets raeped at lower resolutions like 1440x900 and 1280x720.
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Old Feb 13, 2009, 05:15 PM   #25
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n-ster i live in Toronto
I guess one 295 is good enough for me then =P
But if I plan on playing crysis i see a significant FPS boost.. the thing is i've been used to studdering well above 30 fps due to my processor bottleneck and I really dont want studders.. That was due to my p4 right? because just playing games like oblivion at medium graphics gives me studders,, i believe its my p4...
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