GTX285 or ATi 4870 X2???

[Mullet]

Hi All,

In the market for a new GPU....

Scan have a pretty good deal on the XFX 4870 X2.... and I am toying with the idea of getting one.

Which would you recommend, a 4870 X2 or GTX285??? Also, what sized PSU will I need to power a system with the X2..? I have a 625W Enermax at the moment, if the X2 means getting a new PSU that may be the thing that pushed me to the GTX285...

HEYELP

[Phage]

Whilst the X2 has more raw power, I'm leaning towrads the 285, as it's cooler and quieter, and leaves the option of an upgrade later with SLI without having to buy another PSU.
I would have thought 625W would be enough to handle the X2, but it would depend on what else you have in the box.

[Grymdawg]

indeed, what else is in your system?

I opted for the X2, it should be delivered sometime today!

apparently they are fairly noisey, but with headphones/speakers cranked up you wont hear .

i went for the X2 as its pretty cheap it terms of high end cards, plus it does the job very well if you have read the reviews.

[Mullet]

System will be i7 based (920) which I'd like to clock a little. No lights, 2 HDDs, one sounds card.... not too many things really...

Anyone got anything to add re. the noise generated by the X2?

[Will404]

I would go for the X2, especially with i7 as I think that i7 is better scaling on multi GPU set-ups, and it has soo much more power.

Depends what games you play tho

[shadowmaster]

You wont need a new psu for the 4870x2 has 625watt is more then enough.

The 4870X2 is more powerful then the GTX 285 and since its the same price or you might as well go with it.

[sammorris]

The HD4870X2 is a much better option for pretty much any game. It is noisier, but that's the price you pay for having two GPUs on one card. A 625W Enermax will easily handle an X2.

[Grymdawg]

Got my X2 last night and i dont even think its loud?

I thought it was going to be raging tornado loud by what the reviews had said.

Its a seriously good card, i couldnt believe the performance for the price.

[Phage]

Got my X2 last night and i dont even think its loud?

I thought it was going to be raging tornado loud by what the reviews had said.

Its a seriously good card, i couldnt believe the performance for the price.

Agreed - It's the future upgrade I was thinking of.
How loud is the X2 ? I'm currently on my 8800GT 512Mb and I have never heard it, and it's working hard on many games nowadays.

[Grymdawg]

Its about the same noise level as most cards, i dont get how these reviewers came to the conclusion of it sounding like a category 5.

Its at 53 degrees and its not even loud. The only time you really hear it is when its going full tilt and you have it maxed out, i heard it during a stress test and when i had far cry 2 on full everything. I remember my mates 9800GTX running hotter than this when he got his PC a few years ago and i could hear that even with the surround sound on.

I read alot of forums before i made the decision of buying one, i heard alot of stories of it being noisey and running hotter than the sun, i havent had any of these problems.

I used to be a complete nvidia fanboy but i am glad i listened to this forum and got an ATi card.

[Bugbait]

Its at 53 degrees and its not even loud.

You're lucky, mine idled at 80C (about 20-25% fan speed) most of the time. Didn't quite break 95C under load but the fan did get quite audible. Not any louder than other performance GFX cards but still audible. Water cooling dropped it to a much nicer 30C idle and no more noise.

[sammorris]

The HD4870X2 is probably a little noisier than the 8800GT, but it's quieter than almost every card out there when idling at the desktop, and it only genuinely becomes noisy under load when both cores are working fully. Games that do not use crossfire or do not have very good profiles don't make the card get hot enough to become noisy. ATI designed all of their cards (except the HD4890 for some reason) to be as quiet as possible while still being a safe temperature (people don't seem to realise that for any well made graphics card, 90ºC is perfectly fine 24/7 for years). This is my approach and I'm glad it's what they did over having loud cards that were needlessly cool like some board manufacturers tend to do.

[kfckfc]

Mullet,

I have a 4870X2 with 4 HDDs and an OC E8500 and am pulling 525 watts (on Furmark) from the wall so your PSU should be OK.

However though the X2 is great I would get a GTX285 in your position as it will give you the option to SLi with another GTX285 in future (4870X2 in Xfire scales poorly).

Another option to consider is a pair of HD 4890 (currently £139.99 each at overclocker.co.uk) this will give phenominal performance but you may wish to check the power consumption as it may exceed 625W.

Good luck.

P.S. - If I had the choice again I would go for 4890 in crossfire.

[sammorris]

Quad crossfire doesn't scale as well as SLi for two cards, but the extra power of the 4870X2 means it's still competitive. With a 625W PSU, neither card should really be doubled up without a new PSU as well. I tend never to advise people to consider adding a second card later down the line, because by the time they get around to it, it's almost always better just to buy whatever the new card is and sell the old one.

This is one of the best combos:
http://www.scan.co.uk/Products/1GB-X...-DVI-HDMI-HDCP
Two of those in Crossfire are seriously powerful. The 1Ghz core vs 850mhz stock has provided almost a 20% boost in several games which puts it in very close competition to the GTX285, but for two thirds of the price.

[Phage]

. I tend never to advise people to consider adding a second card later down the line, because by the time they get around to it, it's almost always better just to buy whatever the new card is and sell the old one.

I agree with your point about upgrading down the line. It's something to consider carefully when parting with your hard-earned.
I'm in no hurry, so I'm waiting to see what the forthcoming 40nm products do to pricing, and I'll make a decision then. Just off the bleeding edge is the place to be.

[sammorris]

You'll probably be waiting at least 4 months or so, I think the 40nm yield problems, though apparently now sorted, have pushed back the next gen to the christmas games release period.