HD7950 or HD6950 trifire

[jdfoxx]

Okay back again lol. I just purchased a system from a friend of mine which came with a gigabyte hd7950.

I have just found 3 B-Grade HD6950 which can be unlocked to 6970 for £109 each. I found out today i can return the hd7950 as its only 8 days old and get a refund for £256 adding a further 80 quid i could bag my-self 3 of these and the plus side is they are the 2GB versions Using RadeonPro for the micro stuttering would solve that if it occurs.

If i did get these would anyone be able to help me unlock them to the 6970 specs? And is it also worth it over one 7950/7970 I know ill have to buy a better psu and would produce more heat and lekie but for trifire setup for only £330 is a steal rite ?

 

[ALXAndy]

I would stick to two GPUs.

 

[jdfoxx]

I yeah, see what ya mean. Think ill just stick with the 7950 and overclock it some plus its only gaming @ 1080p does it matter about the size of the screen or is just the resolution ill be using a 55" HDTV

 

[ALXAndy]

CFX is fine but just stick to two cards. Going over adds pathetic gains tbh.

Two 6950s well spaced will beat a 7950 quite easily I would have thought. But obviously the best idea is to go a 7950 then add another at a later date.

It's always wise to make sure one GPU can cut it if CFX is being a dick.

 

[opethdisciple]

Stick with the 7950.

 

[BaDBoY_uK]

Stick with the 7950.

+1 and good article above

 

[chris-82]

7950 then add another at a later date if u wish

 

[MeMeMeMe]

CFX is fine but just stick to two cards. Going over adds pathetic gains tbh.

Two 6950s well spaced will beat a 7950 quite easily I would have thought. But obviously the best idea is to go a 7950 then add another at a later date.

It's always wise to make sure one GPU can cut it if CFX is being a dick.

I went from two 6950s to two 7970s. I did some tests of the single 7970 vs the CF 6950, and found performance was very similar.
Since a 7950 isn't that far behind a 7970, and can usually be overclocked bettwer than a 6950 (and better than two 6950s definitely), a 7950 seems a much better option to me than 2 6950s.

Trifire might be nice, but often isn't as well-optimised as crossfire, if it even works. With the 7950, you have the advantage you can add another if performance seems lacking in the future- with trifire 6950s, there's no upgrade path other than dumping them, and they'll lose their value very quickly.

 

[tommybhoy]

I went from two 6950s to two 7970s. I did some tests of the single 7970 vs the CF 6950, and found performance was very similar.
Since a 7950 isn't that far behind a 7970, and can usually be overclocked bettwer than a 6950 (and better than two 6950s definitely), a 7950 seems a much better option to me than 2 6950s.

2x clocked 6950>70's are considerably faster than a clocked 7970@1080p when driver support is in place with the exception of shader intensive titles like SD's etc, although there is much less work involved with the single gpu.

3 6950>70's support, well the hit and miss ratio with profiles will be higher than 2 cards.

Said all that, stick with what you have.