7970 or GTX 680

[CAT-THE-FIFTH]

The HardOCP comments about BF3 performance are weird. At least for the SP part they say the HD7970 is superior and then say the GTX680 is better for the MP.

However,there are no indications of the framerates which they are getting.The only problem is that with MP you cannot be consistent with the testing conditions.

Then he talks about gameplay being smoother with the GTX680 but provides no latency graphs like The Techreport does.He then goes on how lower framerates with SLI are better than higher framerates with Crossfire,without any showing any data. He says there is no way of measuring latency and yet The Techreport does it.

Hopefully,The Techreport will test both cards in SLI and Crossfire and it will be interesting to see their latency results,ie,are the latency results for the GTX680 SLI lower than the HD7970 Crossfire??

 

[Sin_Chase]

Posting SLI/Xfire benchmarks in a thread where no desire for either multi GPU setups is expressed is stupid.

SLI/XFire is a huge kettle of fish with scaling issues not only PER GAME but PER driver.

SLI/Xfire performance changes massively with driver releases. On any given release from either camp the bench results could sway in any way.

Unless the OP is going to use a multi GPU setup stick to single card benchmarks.

 

[CAT-THE-FIFTH]

Posting SLI/Xfire benchmarks in a thread where no desire for either multi GPU setups is expressed is stupid.

SLI/XFire is a huge kettle of fish with scaling issues not only PER GAME but PER driver.

SLI/Xfire performance changes massively with driver releases. On any given release from either camp the bench results could sway in any way.

Unless the OP is going to use a multi GPU setup stick to single card benchmarks.

Good point.

 

[Gregster]

Mid range 680 is faster than high end 7970

Its a no brainer really, the 680 is the only way to go. You would have to be demented to buy a 7970.

This comment is pointless.

I own a 680 and can understand why people would buy a 7970.

 

[Agnostic]

It's a tough battle going up against Verdetrols, thanks for the sad face, i'd have one if i'd waited 2 1/2 months for an overpriced, overclocked midrange card that has "short man" syndrome

Yet this "midranged" card trades blows with AMD's "high end" card. Now, I'm usually one for AMD, but you really are the epitome of fanboy.

 

[tommybhoy]

snip

Nothing stupid about it whatsoever, dual setup results are valid, especially at the resolution the op's planning on using-5760x1080.

Imo, it makes complete sense to gather as much information as possible when making such an expensive purchase.

Dual card setups have the advantage of buying one card now, with the option of adding more oomph if required at a later date if finance permits with the benefit of giving you time to gather the sums of monies required.

Although I would highly recommend doing your homework regarding the tech's advantages/pitfalls before jumping in feet first.

 

[dave_beast]

Yet this "midranged" card trades blows with AMD's "high end" card. Now, I'm usually one for AMD, but you really are the epitome of fanboy.

Ahh insults

The Nvidia part was meant to be $299, because it was built using cheaper capacitors etc, whether it trades blows with 7970 or not is beside the point, a pair of 6870's overclocked on LN2 would smash the 7970, doesn't make them high end though

 

[LateX'Dog]

Should Vram be taken into consideration here?

2gb on the 680 and 3gb on the 7970, i've seen a couple of skyrim posts that say they use up to 1.9gb of Vram.

If thats the case, the 680 will bottleneck faster due to the smaller ram size?

 

[Mojo]

Yet this "midranged" card trades blows with AMD's "high end" card. Now, I'm usually one for AMD, but you really are the epitome of fanboy.

The GTX680 is not a midrange card. It is Nvidia's flagship single GPU card until late 2012/early 2013 when GK110 comes out. How do people keep forgetting that?

Once again, the two cards are so evenly matched that unless you're really anal about power consumption and the couple of pounds it'll save per year on your bill, go BY PRICE

 

[jms198]

IMO unless you want to be an early adopter then it would be silly to get the 2gb 680 when the 4gb launches next month.

Will the extra memory make a difference? Maybe but when you're spending that much I'm sure you could wait 2 weeks for reviews and 3 weeks for launch to find out.

EDIT: as above the 680 is midrange in a way that the 4870 was midrange; its a profitable card with affordable perfomance. Not the usual NV monster; best everything with price not an option. They are as far as I can see trying to grab the price/performance crown, something they have not really IMO been bothered about before.

 

[andybird123]

I shall leave this here for the op, both cards on stock clocks, so the AMD has more to go:

Maxed out, the 680 is struggling though:

Funny how you've taken 1 graph out of an article that also says this;

Again, the single player result is opposite of multiplayer, where 680 SLI was vastly superior.

The Bottom Line

It all comes down to pricing and performance, and you'll find that on both price and performance GeForce GTX 680 SLI wins.

In every game we tested GTX 680 SLI was faster, and provided gameplay options Radeon HD 7970 CFX did not. We were not bottlenecked at all at 5760x1200 with GTX 680 SLI. In fact, in BF3 Multiplayer GTX 680 SLI provided better performance, higher in-game settings, and a smoother experience, and this is a highly memory sensitive game. When we looked at power utilization we found GeForce GTX 680 SLI was more efficient in every single game, using less power, but giving us more performance.

With GeForce GTX 680 SLI you will be paying less money for a more efficient solution, getting more performance, a superior gameplay experience, and a smoother gaming feel than you will with AMD Radeon HD 7970 CrossFireX.

 

[Mojo]

EDIT: as above the 680 is midrange in a way that the 4870 was midrange; its a profitable card with affordable perfomance. Not the usual NV monster; best everything with price not an option. They are as far as I can see trying to grab the price/performance crown, something they have not really IMO been bothered about before.

The 4870 was different in that it was able to get within 10-15% of it's Nvidia gtx2XX rivals but being a good 50% cheaper, forcing Nvidia to reduce the inflated prices of the gtx280 and 260 to more competitive levels.

The GTX680 is roughly the same performance and the same (massively inflated) price as the 7970. I can't see the parallel

 

[tommybhoy]

Funny how you've taken 1 graph out of an article that also says this;

If you read the op again, he was asking about BF3 at max.

What one should I get? I want to run 3x BenQ XL2420T and play bf3 at max? CS:go, Minecraft, WoW and Crysis.

The graphs were in response to the op's question.

At max settings, the 680 is starting to struggle over stock clocked 7970's.

It's the only title that will push the 7970/680's@5760, nearly every other game available won't cause either card much grief at all.

Did you even read what I recommended?

If you don't want to oc, get the 680, it does it for you, and no Dave it's not cheating, it just does it!

If you are capable of manually oc'ing a card i.e push the core slider to max in CCC then get the cheapest you can find of any of them, they both perform very very close, so close when flat out, you will find it extremely hard to pick a clear winner.

So far Kitch9 and Dave Beast think I prefer the 680's, and now you think I'm swaying to the 7970's, the 680/7970 debate is turning into a complete waste of time tbh.

 

[Agnostic]

The GTX680 is not a midrange card. It is Nvidia's flagship single GPU card until late 2012/early 2013 when GK110 comes out. How do people keep forgetting that?

Once again, the two cards are so evenly matched that unless you're really anal about power consumption and the couple of pounds it'll save per year on your bill, go BY PRICE

I didn't say it was. I put midranged in quote marks simply because he stated it. It's called using one's logic against them.

 

[Mal X]

The GTX680 is not a midrange card. It is Nvidia's flagship single GPU card until late 2012/early 2013 when GK110 comes out. How do people keep forgetting that?

Once again, the two cards are so evenly matched that unless you're really anal about power consumption and the couple of pounds it'll save per year on your bill, go BY PRICE

i think you'll find the GTX 780 and 790 are out in the next few months !!!!!!

 

[ALXAndy]

I didn't say it was. I put midranged in quote marks simply because he stated it. It's called using one's logic against them.

Ask yourself this. If Kepler is Nvidia's high end card how are they bringing out a faster 28nm Kepler chip later in the year?

Were they making two high end parts, both on the same technology? or, were they trying something new and making the cheaper parts first bringing in some coin to put into the higher end ones later in the year?

Because in all my days I have never seen a company make two high end parts, one trouncing the other on the same technology.

 

[Rusty0611]

i think you'll find the GTX 780 and 790 are out in the next few months !!!!!!

I've told you before - please stop posting garbage rumours in decent threads without at least linking and sourcing it.

 

[AssaTM]

On a serious note what would people say would be the ideal price for the 680 and the 7970? I can get a 680 for around £200 due to selling my old card and other funds being available, so i'd essentially be paying £200 for a 680, but then considering the aftermarket cooler ones with more power/a potential higher clock are around £100 more it seems, would a £500 680 where i'd essentially be buying it for £300 equal good value? as I would essentially be paying £300 for it, but the card itself is still £500, so is it more about the principal since it does cost so much, or would that still be seen as good value?

 

[Rusty0611]

I don't think this generation of high end cards offer good value for money at all. I say this having bought one. But value for money wasn't really a consideration for me personally.

Because with the £200 you're getting from selling your old card, you could buy a 7950 for around £300 and that would only cost you £100. Then overclock the hind parts off the 7950 and have excellent performance with the option of a cheap crossfire upgrade way later in the future when/if it starts to show its age.

In the high end market the 7950 is the best value for money in my eyes. But for true value for money the 6870 is exceptionally priced for what it offers.

Of course this is purely a value for money perspective. It could be argued (and I would agree) that the 7950 is still not great value for money. But in the current market it's a very good choice.

We can all harp on about "back in the day" when a 4850 was £100 and offered great performance or the 5870 being amazing for its price tag but I guess what I'm saying is that you have to judge it in its present context.

Sorry to ramble - hope that makes sense.

 

[ALXAndy]

Yet this "midranged" card trades blows with AMD's "high end" card. Now, I'm usually one for AMD, but you really are the epitome of fanboy.

And ATI's "mid ranged" 5000 series traded blows with Fermi, your point?

Spec to spec wise Fermi wiped the floor with the 5870. Yet, the initial launch? there was between 1-5 FPS between them depending on resolution and FSAA. The ATI card was faster than Fermi with no AA applied.

Yet, the 480 was bigger, badder and meaner in every single way.

The 7970 is AMD's Fermi. It completely underperforms and doesn't do what it should. I have no doubt that like Fermi AMD will go back to the drawing board and we will have a 480-580 type card that will absolutely stomp on Nvidia's mid ranged offering.

Right now all signs point to 104 being at its limit. Infact, there is even a "red screen of death" problem with a few cards. IE, they are not stable on their voltage. And Nvidia won't allow you to increase it. Why? Why have the locked the volts down and why does it overclock relatively poorly?

Maybe it's because they had to push the card so hard to make it do what it does? maybe because they had a card to beat ?

7970 beat the 580 in absolutely every single last way. The 680 does not beat the 7970 in absolutely every single last way. Overclocked the 7970 is 50/50 with it. And Nvidia had a chance to take the first punch and then sit on the canvas thinking about their next move.