• Welcome to TechPowerUp Forums, Guest! Please check out our forum guidelines for info related to our community.

Upgrading For BF3

Joined
May 18, 2010
Messages
3,427 (0.68/day)
System Name My baby
Processor Athlon II X4 620 @ 3.5GHz, 1.45v, NB @ 2700Mhz, HT @ 2700Mhz - 24hr prime95 stable
Motherboard Asus M4A785TD-V EVO
Cooling Sonic Tower Rev 2 with 120mm Akasa attached, Akasa @ Front, Xilence Red Wing 120mm @ Rear
Memory 8 GB G.Skills 1600Mhz
Video Card(s) ATI ASUS Crossfire 5850
Storage Crucial MX100 SATA 2.5 SSD
Display(s) Lenovo ThinkVision 27" (LEN P27h-10)
Case Antec VSK 2000 Black Tower Case
Audio Device(s) Onkyo TX-SR309 Receiver, 2x Kef Cresta 1, 1x Kef Center 20c
Power Supply OCZ StealthXstream II 600w, 4x12v/18A, 80% efficiency.
Software Windows 10 Professional 64-bit
I don't see how a different CPU is going to increase BF3 performance at all. Going to a 6970 from a 5870 for BF3 isn't a bad choice. About 10 more FPS plus he'll be able to use more AA. I just can't recommend going CrossFire anymore.

He is in the UK, a 2GB 6970 will run him about £280. That is a lot of dough for 10 FPS.

Seen a few used 5870s for £130 on Ebay "buy it now". I'll go CF, save £150 whilst getting the same or better performance as the 6970.
 

JrRacinFan

Served 5k and counting ...
Joined
Mar 17, 2007
Messages
20,064 (3.23/day)
Location
Youngstown, OH
System Name Dual Build Streamer
Processor Ryzen 7900x3d : Ryzen 4600G
Motherboard AsRock B650E Steel Legend : Giga B450i Aorus
Cooling Custom Water 1x420 : Stock
Memory 32GB T-Force Deltas : 16GB Dominator Platinums
Video Card(s) PowerColor 7900 XTX Liquid Devil: iGPU
Storage 20+ TB
Display(s) Sammy 49" 5k Ultrawide
Case Custom White Painted Phanteks Enthoo Pro 2
Audio Device(s) Onboard : Onboard
Power Supply EVGA 1200W P2
Mouse Corsair M65 RGB Elite White
Keyboard Hyperx Origins 65
Software Windows 10
He is in the UK, a 2GB 6970 will run him about £280. That is a lot of dough for 10 FPS.

Seen a few used 5870s for £130 on Ebay "buy it now". I'll go CF, save £150 whilst getting the same or better performance as the 6970.

But that brings up the question; Will the low-end 800W 2nd tier supply stand up to run 2 5870's?
 
Joined
May 18, 2010
Messages
3,427 (0.68/day)
System Name My baby
Processor Athlon II X4 620 @ 3.5GHz, 1.45v, NB @ 2700Mhz, HT @ 2700Mhz - 24hr prime95 stable
Motherboard Asus M4A785TD-V EVO
Cooling Sonic Tower Rev 2 with 120mm Akasa attached, Akasa @ Front, Xilence Red Wing 120mm @ Rear
Memory 8 GB G.Skills 1600Mhz
Video Card(s) ATI ASUS Crossfire 5850
Storage Crucial MX100 SATA 2.5 SSD
Display(s) Lenovo ThinkVision 27" (LEN P27h-10)
Case Antec VSK 2000 Black Tower Case
Audio Device(s) Onkyo TX-SR309 Receiver, 2x Kef Cresta 1, 1x Kef Center 20c
Power Supply OCZ StealthXstream II 600w, 4x12v/18A, 80% efficiency.
Software Windows 10 Professional 64-bit
800w is enough. I don't have enough power connectors :(, So new psu.

Power connectors isnt a big deal, you can buy molex to 6-pin adaptors for like £2 if needed.

The issue is, is your psu of quality, what brand is it. What is the amp per rail like?

If need be, you could still get a good Corsair, Thermaltake, Antec, XFX etc PSU, about 52A - 60A for about £60-70 and you'll be within budget to go CF.
 

105tommy105

New Member
Joined
Dec 25, 2011
Messages
61 (0.01/day)
Power connectors isnt a big deal, you can buy molex to 6-pin adaptors for like £2 if needed.

The issue is, is your psu of quality, what brand is it. What is the amp per rail like?

If need be, you could still get a good Corsair, Thermaltake, Antec, XFX etc PSU, about 52A - 60A for about £50 and you'll be within budget to go CF.

One of them rarely heard of makes, if I got xfire I would defiantly upgrade the psu. If I got the hd 6970 I would consider still upgrading it. Any idea what I could sell a used xfx 5870 for?
 
Joined
May 18, 2010
Messages
3,427 (0.68/day)
System Name My baby
Processor Athlon II X4 620 @ 3.5GHz, 1.45v, NB @ 2700Mhz, HT @ 2700Mhz - 24hr prime95 stable
Motherboard Asus M4A785TD-V EVO
Cooling Sonic Tower Rev 2 with 120mm Akasa attached, Akasa @ Front, Xilence Red Wing 120mm @ Rear
Memory 8 GB G.Skills 1600Mhz
Video Card(s) ATI ASUS Crossfire 5850
Storage Crucial MX100 SATA 2.5 SSD
Display(s) Lenovo ThinkVision 27" (LEN P27h-10)
Case Antec VSK 2000 Black Tower Case
Audio Device(s) Onkyo TX-SR309 Receiver, 2x Kef Cresta 1, 1x Kef Center 20c
Power Supply OCZ StealthXstream II 600w, 4x12v/18A, 80% efficiency.
Software Windows 10 Professional 64-bit
One of them rarely heard of makes, if I got xfire I would defiantly upgrade the psu. If I got the hd 6970 I would consider still upgrading it. Any idea what I could sell a used xfx 5870 for?

Ebay, they are selling for about £100-120 in auction. Or about £130-150 in "buy it now".

If you can sell your 5870 that would also be a good move. Use the rest of the money to fund a 6970 like erocker suggested. Although you'd need to to meet the difference to the tune of about £150 for essentially a glorified sidegrade. Maybe you should wait for the 7xxx before opening your wallet.
 

105tommy105

New Member
Joined
Dec 25, 2011
Messages
61 (0.01/day)
Yea I have 70% of the money for a 6970 at the moment, with a Acer Aspire one that I need to sell along with the 5870 I can sell. Early in this thread erocker said the 2gb of VRAM would be better than 1gb, I'm Gunna skip the 7 series, get an oc'ed 6series (or a 5970?) and wait for the 8xxx to get a big leap in performance.
 
Joined
May 18, 2010
Messages
3,427 (0.68/day)
System Name My baby
Processor Athlon II X4 620 @ 3.5GHz, 1.45v, NB @ 2700Mhz, HT @ 2700Mhz - 24hr prime95 stable
Motherboard Asus M4A785TD-V EVO
Cooling Sonic Tower Rev 2 with 120mm Akasa attached, Akasa @ Front, Xilence Red Wing 120mm @ Rear
Memory 8 GB G.Skills 1600Mhz
Video Card(s) ATI ASUS Crossfire 5850
Storage Crucial MX100 SATA 2.5 SSD
Display(s) Lenovo ThinkVision 27" (LEN P27h-10)
Case Antec VSK 2000 Black Tower Case
Audio Device(s) Onkyo TX-SR309 Receiver, 2x Kef Cresta 1, 1x Kef Center 20c
Power Supply OCZ StealthXstream II 600w, 4x12v/18A, 80% efficiency.
Software Windows 10 Professional 64-bit
Yea I have 70% of the money for a 6970 at the moment, with a Acer Aspire one that I need to sell along with the 5870 I can sell. Early in this thread erocker said the 2gb of VRAM would be better than 1gb, I'm Gunna skip the 7 series, get an oc'ed 6series (or a 5970?) and wait for the 8xxx to get a big leap in performance.

I'm not sure how big your screen is, but for most resolutions 1GBs is just about enough for BF3. Although 2GBs would futureproof you for a bigger screen (higher resolution) + future games. If you get the 6970, yes the 2GB does get my general recommendation.

Dont be blind, you don't know the 7xxx series performs until official benchmarks are out, for all we know the 8xxx series might be slower. The 5xxx series was faster than the 6xxx series (hence your upgrade dilemma)
 

105tommy105

New Member
Joined
Dec 25, 2011
Messages
61 (0.01/day)
I'm not sure how big your screen is, but for most resolutions 1GBs is just about enough for BF3. Although 2GBs would futureproof you for a bigger screen (higher resolution) + future games. If you get the 6970, yes the 2GB does get my general recommendation.

Dont be blind, you don't know the 7xxx series performs until official benchmarks are out, for all we know the 8xxx series might be slower. The 5xxx series was faster than the 6xxx series (hence your upgrade dilemma)

So the 5970 would be the fastest choice out of all cards? Does the 5970 act like xfire since its 2 cards in 1 and mirror 1gb VRAM?
 
Joined
Oct 4, 2007
Messages
2,452 (0.41/day)
System Name PC
Processor i7 9700KF
Motherboard MSI Z390 A PRO
Cooling Noctua NH-U14S
Memory 32GB Corsair Vengeance DDR4 3000mhz
Video Card(s) PALIT RTX 4070 Dual 12Gb
Storage 2X Crucial MX500 2TB SSD, Samsung 850 pro 512gb SSD
Display(s) DELL C34H89x 34" Ultrawide
Case Corsair Obsidian 550D
Audio Device(s) Audioengine A5+ Speakers
Power Supply Corsair RM750
Mouse Logitech G403
Keyboard Corsair Vengeance K70
Software Windows 10 64bit
I havent read through all of the posts so forgive me if im chiming in here and have lost the plot... The original poster linked a 6970 and appeared to be happy with the price... that card will be perfect... go for it :)
 
Joined
May 18, 2010
Messages
3,427 (0.68/day)
System Name My baby
Processor Athlon II X4 620 @ 3.5GHz, 1.45v, NB @ 2700Mhz, HT @ 2700Mhz - 24hr prime95 stable
Motherboard Asus M4A785TD-V EVO
Cooling Sonic Tower Rev 2 with 120mm Akasa attached, Akasa @ Front, Xilence Red Wing 120mm @ Rear
Memory 8 GB G.Skills 1600Mhz
Video Card(s) ATI ASUS Crossfire 5850
Storage Crucial MX100 SATA 2.5 SSD
Display(s) Lenovo ThinkVision 27" (LEN P27h-10)
Case Antec VSK 2000 Black Tower Case
Audio Device(s) Onkyo TX-SR309 Receiver, 2x Kef Cresta 1, 1x Kef Center 20c
Power Supply OCZ StealthXstream II 600w, 4x12v/18A, 80% efficiency.
Software Windows 10 Professional 64-bit
So the 5970 would be the fastest choice out of all cards? Does the 5970 act like xfire since its 2 cards in 1 and mirror 1gb VRAM?

The fastest out of the mentioned is the 5870 CF

5870 CF > 5850 CF > 5970 > 6970 > 6870.

Although the 6970 and 5970 perform similar enough to be almost the same.

It's 1 PCB board so the ram isn't mirrored, its a full 2GBs.

Edit:

5850 CF? With a 6970 I would at least have a 1000mhz core and a high pushed mem clock. I suppose two 6970 would own all?

The clock speed makes no difference. Comparing clock speeds especially of two different generations of card will not give you a measurement of performance. Yes CF 6970 would own all (not because of cockspeed alone)

BTW. There is another choice of card. The 6990, costs £550-650. Because of its price tag I didn't bother mentioning it earlier.
 
Last edited:

105tommy105

New Member
Joined
Dec 25, 2011
Messages
61 (0.01/day)
The fastest out of the mentioned is the 5850 CF

5850 CF > 5970 > 6970 > 6870.

Although the 6970 and 5970 perform similar enough to be almost the same.

It's 1 PCB board so the ram isn't mirrored, its a full 2GBs.

5850 CF? With a 6970 I would at least have a 1000mhz core and a high pushed mem clock. I suppose two 6970 would own all?
 
Joined
May 18, 2010
Messages
3,427 (0.68/day)
System Name My baby
Processor Athlon II X4 620 @ 3.5GHz, 1.45v, NB @ 2700Mhz, HT @ 2700Mhz - 24hr prime95 stable
Motherboard Asus M4A785TD-V EVO
Cooling Sonic Tower Rev 2 with 120mm Akasa attached, Akasa @ Front, Xilence Red Wing 120mm @ Rear
Memory 8 GB G.Skills 1600Mhz
Video Card(s) ATI ASUS Crossfire 5850
Storage Crucial MX100 SATA 2.5 SSD
Display(s) Lenovo ThinkVision 27" (LEN P27h-10)
Case Antec VSK 2000 Black Tower Case
Audio Device(s) Onkyo TX-SR309 Receiver, 2x Kef Cresta 1, 1x Kef Center 20c
Power Supply OCZ StealthXstream II 600w, 4x12v/18A, 80% efficiency.
Software Windows 10 Professional 64-bit
Last edited:
Joined
Oct 4, 2007
Messages
2,452 (0.41/day)
System Name PC
Processor i7 9700KF
Motherboard MSI Z390 A PRO
Cooling Noctua NH-U14S
Memory 32GB Corsair Vengeance DDR4 3000mhz
Video Card(s) PALIT RTX 4070 Dual 12Gb
Storage 2X Crucial MX500 2TB SSD, Samsung 850 pro 512gb SSD
Display(s) DELL C34H89x 34" Ultrawide
Case Corsair Obsidian 550D
Audio Device(s) Audioengine A5+ Speakers
Power Supply Corsair RM750
Mouse Logitech G403
Keyboard Corsair Vengeance K70
Software Windows 10 64bit
if youre caught between an ATI HD5XXX series card/s or 6XXX series card it only makes sense to go for the latest model (6XXX).... it will cost less than a dual card or crossfire older model solution, 6970 will play BF3 in 1080p easily with room to spare and run cooler and use less power than the older 5XXX series.
 
Joined
Sep 18, 2011
Messages
1,743 (0.38/day)
Location
Asheville, North Carolina
System Name Red Giant
Processor Intel Core i7-12700K
Motherboard MSI Pro Z690
Cooling Corsair H100i elite
Memory Corsair Vengeance Pro 32GB
Video Card(s) MSI 4070TI Super
Storage 960 GB Sandisk SSD
Display(s) 27 inch Predator 144 hz 2k
Case CoolerMaster HAF X
Audio Device(s) Onboard
Power Supply Corsair AX1200
Mouse Logitech G502 Hero
Keyboard Corsair K95 Platinum
Software Windows 11 Pro
6970's CF will own any game out at max settings with no trouble whatsoever.
 

105tommy105

New Member
Joined
Dec 25, 2011
Messages
61 (0.01/day)
It's late. Bed time.

Some interesting benchmarks http://www.anandtech.com/bench/Product/292?vs=303

Agreed, Stayed up to see the extremely helpfulness from everyone.

if youre caught between an ATI HD5XXX series card/s or 6XXX series card it only makes sense to go for the latest model (6XXX).... it will cost less than a dual card or crossfire older model solution, 6970 will play BF3 in 1080p easily with room to spare and run cooler and use less power than the older 5XXX series.

I'm gonna forget about the 5 series then, if they are cooler then overclock is generally better.

6970's CF will own any game out at max settings with no trouble whatsoever.

I might be able to fork out for xfire the chances are slim, i will have to wait and see.



Thanks for your help everyone, its helped me a hell of a lot, its 3am where I am and I need some sleep. Cheers
 
Joined
Jun 2, 2011
Messages
760 (0.16/day)
System Name An experiment in continuous upgrading
Processor Intel Core i7 2600k @ 4.4 Ghz | FX-8570 @ 4.0 Ghz | Phenom II X4 965
Motherboard MSI P67A-GD53 | MSI 990FXA-GD80 | Asus M4A79 Deluxe
Cooling Noctua NH-D14 | Zalman CNPS10x | Coolermaster*212+
Memory 24gb DDR3-1866 |8Gb | 8Gb
Video Card(s) ASUS GTX 970 Turbo x 2 (SLI) | Sapphire Radeon 7970 + GTX 670 (PhysX) | Radeon 4870 1Gb
Storage 2x240gb SSD + 4tb SSHD + HDDs | 240gb SSD + HDDs | 120gb SSD + WD Blue 500gb
Display(s) ASUS VG248 144hz + Samsung S23A700D 120hz + 3D Vision | 40" Sony 1080p TV | 23" 1080p
Case Cooler Master HAF-X | Lian-Li PC-8 | Antec 302
Audio Device(s) Senn. PC360 G4ME | Sound Blaster Zx | Generic
Power Supply Corsair TX850W | Corsair TX 750 | OCZ 700
Mouse Steelseries Sensei | Logitech G402 W/L | Generic
Keyboard Filco Majetouch Ninja Tenkeyless MX Black | Logitech wireless |SteelSeries 6Gv2 MX Red
Software About 800 top-rated games. | 200 top-rated games | No games
Benchmark Scores No time for benching, I prefer gaming.
I compared the 5870CF and 6970, I think with an overclock the 6970 would close the gap

A 6970 will come nowhere close to 5870 cf IMO. Video cards overclock by a few %, nothing huge. And those benches contain games that may well be cpu-bound, whereas BF3 is, in almost all cases, gpu-bound.

BTW your original 700w PSU just might do it, if it's a good brand. Some people exaggerate the power draw.
 
Joined
Jun 2, 2011
Messages
760 (0.16/day)
System Name An experiment in continuous upgrading
Processor Intel Core i7 2600k @ 4.4 Ghz | FX-8570 @ 4.0 Ghz | Phenom II X4 965
Motherboard MSI P67A-GD53 | MSI 990FXA-GD80 | Asus M4A79 Deluxe
Cooling Noctua NH-D14 | Zalman CNPS10x | Coolermaster*212+
Memory 24gb DDR3-1866 |8Gb | 8Gb
Video Card(s) ASUS GTX 970 Turbo x 2 (SLI) | Sapphire Radeon 7970 + GTX 670 (PhysX) | Radeon 4870 1Gb
Storage 2x240gb SSD + 4tb SSHD + HDDs | 240gb SSD + HDDs | 120gb SSD + WD Blue 500gb
Display(s) ASUS VG248 144hz + Samsung S23A700D 120hz + 3D Vision | 40" Sony 1080p TV | 23" 1080p
Case Cooler Master HAF-X | Lian-Li PC-8 | Antec 302
Audio Device(s) Senn. PC360 G4ME | Sound Blaster Zx | Generic
Power Supply Corsair TX850W | Corsair TX 750 | OCZ 700
Mouse Steelseries Sensei | Logitech G402 W/L | Generic
Keyboard Filco Majetouch Ninja Tenkeyless MX Black | Logitech wireless |SteelSeries 6Gv2 MX Red
Software About 800 top-rated games. | 200 top-rated games | No games
Benchmark Scores No time for benching, I prefer gaming.
The fastest out of the mentioned is the 5870 CF

5870 CF > 5850 CF > 5970 > 6970 > 6870.

Although the 6970 and 5970 perform similar enough to be almost the same.

It's 1 PCB board so the ram isn't mirrored, its a full 2GBs.

Edit:



The clock speed makes no difference. Comparing clock speeds especially of two different generations of card will not give you a measurement of performance. Yes CF 6970 would own all (not because of cockspeed alone)

BTW. There is another choice of card. The 6990, costs £550-650. Because of its price tag I didn't bother mentioning it earlier.

Wow, what a load of BS. 5970 and 6970 somewhere similar? Whathow? What are you smoking? The 5970 is MUCH FASTER than the 6970, even comparing them is ridiculous. And then again a 5850cf is FASTER than a 5970? :twitch:

Here's a bit of REAL AND RELEVANT INFORMATION so that the OP is not completely blindsided by your misguided BS:

http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/battlefield-3-graphics-performance,3063-8.html

http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/battlefield-3-graphics-performance,3063-11.html
 
Last edited:

105tommy105

New Member
Joined
Dec 25, 2011
Messages
61 (0.01/day)
Wow, what a load of BS. 5970 and 6970 somewhere similar? Whathow? What are you smoking? The 5970 is MUCH FASTER than the 6970, even comparing them is ridiculous. And then again a 5850cf is FASTER than a 5970? :twitch:

Here's a bit of REAL AND RELEVANT INFORMATION so that the OP is not completely blindsided by your misguided BS:

http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/battlefield-3-graphics-performance,3063-8.html

http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/battlefield-3-graphics-performance,3063-11.html

A 6970 will come nowhere close to 5870 cf IMO. Video cards overclock by a few %, nothing huge. And those benches contain games that may well be cpu-bound, whereas BF3 is, in almost all cases, gpu-bound.

BTW your original 700w PSU just might do it, if it's a good brand. Some people exaggerate the power draw.


So what are you recommending?
 

JrRacinFan

Served 5k and counting ...
Joined
Mar 17, 2007
Messages
20,064 (3.23/day)
Location
Youngstown, OH
System Name Dual Build Streamer
Processor Ryzen 7900x3d : Ryzen 4600G
Motherboard AsRock B650E Steel Legend : Giga B450i Aorus
Cooling Custom Water 1x420 : Stock
Memory 32GB T-Force Deltas : 16GB Dominator Platinums
Video Card(s) PowerColor 7900 XTX Liquid Devil: iGPU
Storage 20+ TB
Display(s) Sammy 49" 5k Ultrawide
Case Custom White Painted Phanteks Enthoo Pro 2
Audio Device(s) Onboard : Onboard
Power Supply EVGA 1200W P2
Mouse Corsair M65 RGB Elite White
Keyboard Hyperx Origins 65
Software Windows 10

MatTheCat

New Member
Joined
Jun 21, 2008
Messages
883 (0.15/day)
System Name Bitch
Processor Intel i7 2600K @4.6Ghz
Motherboard MSI Z68A-GD80 (G3)
Cooling Noctua nh-u12p se2
Memory 8GB Corsair Vengeance 1866MHz 9-10-9-27
Video Card(s) POWERCOLOR HD 7970 3GB
Storage OCZ Vertex 2 240GB SSD / 2*320GB WDC RAID 0
Display(s) Samsung 226BW 21" 1650*1080
Case Lian Li PC B-25
Audio Device(s) Creative X-FI Professional PCI
Power Supply OCZ PC Power & Cooling 860W
Software Windows 7 x64
Want my opinion tommy? Lower the res you play at and wait it out for HD7k's.

My opinion is to keep the res he is playing it.....Keep FSAA OFF, turn down Shadows to High or even Medium, and get the all important 60 FPS that he is yearning for. And if that dont cut it then try dialing down a few more settings in BF3. In BF3 in particular, turning settings down results in remarkable increases in performance for a very hard to notice downgrade in picture quality.

Spending around 300 quid on that card is just stupid as it offers only a marginal performance increase over the 5870.

Wait it out for the HD7K's and see how much the 7950 is retailing for and what its performance, overclockability and unlockability is.
 
Last edited:

105tommy105

New Member
Joined
Dec 25, 2011
Messages
61 (0.01/day)
My opinion is to keep the res he is playing it.....Keep FSAA OFF, turn down Shadows to High or even Medium, and get the all important 60 FPS that he is yearning for. And if that dont cut it then try dialing down a few more settings in BF3. In BF3 in particular, turning settings down results in remarkable increases in performance for a very hard to notice downgrade in picture quality.

Spending around 300 quid on that card is just stupid as it offers only a marginal performance increase over the 5870.

Wait it out for the HD7K's and see how much the 7950 is retailing for and what its performance, overclockability and unlockability is.

When is the 7 series released?
 
Top