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HD 4890 upgrade...its almost time...

Hex73uk

Hex73uk

Hex73uk

Associate
Joined
6 Mar 2012
Posts
7
Still quite happy with my AMD HD4890 playing BF3 @ 1920x1080 on Low settings with average of 60fps in DX10.1 (minimum 40fps).
Suprisingly smooth which is why I am able to wait it out a bit longer of necessary. :D

I am due an upgrade soon though and have been waiting on more info about the new AMD 78xx cards.
I'm interested in hearing opinions on what I should upgrade to next.

Requirements:

* 1920x1080 gaming, single screen. Not bothered about Ultra. Medium-high would be fine.

* Budget: £200

* Moderately quiet. I installed a 3rd party cooler on my 4890 because the XFX one was rattly and not cooling enough.

* I also run a hackintosh boot on the same system so I need a card that is compatible with that (ignore this requirement if you know nothing about hackintosh setups).

System details in my sig.

Thanks!
 
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I wasn't expecting that, isn't that a bit pricey for an old card? (GTX 480).
And how does that match upto a 6850/70 for example?
 
I recently followed a very similar upgrade path to you, going from a 4890 up to a 6950 and it's done me wonderfully playing at 1920x1200 resolution; I can only assume it will run even faster on a slightly smaller screen ratio.

I managed to purchase mine from the MM a month or so ago, although I can see you are a new member and that's off the cards.

I personally am not a huge fan of the 480 as it is noisy with stock cooling (forcing you to go custom cooling - bonus being EVGA warranty still holds even if you change cooling) and it's power draw is pretty massive. Performance wise, however, it is above the 6950 or other similarly priced cards.

I would hang on for just a bit longer as we've got the 78xx series approaching retail and keplar is (allegedly) looming ever closer and you might be able to pick up a bargain in lieu of all the new tech entering the market.
 
Overclock the 480 to 800mhz (easy) and it will fly.

Power consumption? you'll spend about £5 a year on that if you game for three hours a day.
 
One possible issue with the GTX480 is size.

My current case is an old Antec P180B (the first model).


My XFX HD4890 just about fits.

I am thinking of getting another case at some point, but one thing at a time. :)

This is an old photo (I now have a different board, Corsair H60 and the card has a different cooler), but the case and location is the same.
You can see the power to the card is at the front end of the card (rather than the side), and theres very little room left in front.

DSC00046.jpg
 
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4890 is the same size isn't it? it's quite a whopper !

Gelid on the 480 and overclock it. They respond very well (Fermi) to overclocks and from my experience the yields you get per mhz are far better than AMD's.

My 470 improved ten fold when pushed to 755 with no voltage. My 6970 hardly showed anything tbh.
 
I would be worried about airflow in there..

Look up the Midgard by Xigmatek. They even do a cheaper one but I'm not sure if it's ATX and not MATX.

Edit. Yeah, look up the Xigmatek Asgard III. It takes an ATX board, looks rather nice and has nice airflow :)
 
Went from a 4890 to the TwinF III 6950 and have been so happy with quiet performance on a single screen setup. Can play everything you throw at it on High without stuttering.

If you can find one for around 200 or less from somewhere still then would say it's a good deal. :)

It would have higher scores than the stock 6950 linked in the comparison by Orcvader as its clocks are a lot higher and has OC headroom too.
 
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