4870x2

[Robert]

Right I have the money to order this now - but I'm a tad apprehensive.

I really do not know what to do. My 8800GTX is getting a bit long in the tooth and I fancy replacing it.

Any suggestions?

[Webby]

Buy a GTX260 ,4870, GTX280 or 2x 4850's instead?

Well you asked for suggestions

But seriously if your running at 1920*1200 or below then the 4870X2 is serious overkill.

Oh and I'm serious about the 2x 4850s much better value than the 4870X2 and out performs the GTX280 in most things (Crysis is an exception with its appalling duel GPU scaling) of course you will be needing a x38 or x48 motherboard to make the most of them... but saying that 2x 4850s £206 plus x38 motherboard £115 total cost £321 then you sell your old motherboard, nah this is just getting silly now

Anyway back to reality if your running at 1920*1200 or less get the GTX260 or 4870 and save yourself a big old chunk of cash.

[shaithis]

I wouldn't say that the 4870x2 is overkill for 1920x1200 TBH.

Lower then that, then yeah it's overkill but 1920x1200 is where the strain on the graphics card really starts to show in a lot of games.

[Boogle]

I was in a similiar boat, the 8800GTX certainly was a rather beastly card.

I did much research on the 4870X2, and decided against it for the following reasons:

1. Noisy, and no possible replacement coolers outside of water
2. Power hungry! Not a deal breaker for me, but a factor nonetheless
3. Its a CrossFire card - which means you're at the mercy of ATI's CrossFire profiles etc. I've used both SLI and CF, and CF can be a royal pain in the ass.
4. ATI drivers can't be uninstalled using the ATI uninstaller in safe mode, or when there isn't an ATI card present. That irritated me a lot.
5. Expensive!

So in the end I went with the Leadtek GTX280 for £242 @ Scan. £100 cheaper than the 4870 X2, doesn't have two GPUs, and is quiet enough to boot! Its not stupidly fast, but it does allow for a reasonable increase in performance. I'm fussy though, and few GPUs I've ever owned have truely impressed me - one of them was the 8800GTX.

Judging by actual in-game FPS charts, its certainly no slower than the 4870 X2. The X2 has the advantage in average and high FPS, but it can get occasional dips. The dips are something that really affects gameplay.

Either way the choice is yours - but £250 - £350 is a lot of money to spend and you want to be sure you get something good. Both ATI and NV are releasing new high-end GPUs before christmas (according to roadmaps & rumours). They're also both releasing new high-end GPUs (DX11?) in May/June next year. I wouldn't suggest waiting for the DX11 ones - but it might be worth waiting for the refresh before christmas.

[Webby]

I can't imagine DX11 is happening any time soon, were only on DX10.1!

I think you could be surprised by the current batch of crossfire it is scaling very well in the majority of games (the notable exception is crysis, but hey the engine is to blame there not the cards).

More cards before Christmas I can hardly wait! Although nVidia's will just be a die shrink no idea what ATi have planned apart from the 4850X2 and the 4830.

[The Asgard]

I'd go for the 280. I have seen Scan doing deals on the Leadtek for £240 ish. The X2 isn't worth the additional cost.