4870 CrossfireX - Time to move on..?

[Dustee]

Well, I've recently moved on from windows vista x64 to windows 7 x64.. I've noticed vast improvements to memory usage, loading times, benchmarking etc.. However, with the new current standard being DirectX11 I'm still lingering in the DX10 arena with my 2 x Sapphire 1GB 4870's running in Crossfire..

I have an MSi G3 Board (which again is a new upgrade) and these cards Definitely perform Much better on the new socket 1155 in comparrison to my old 775

For example; I run BF3 on all High Settings at 1080p Resolution and achieve around 55-63fps single player and 48-54fps multiplayer...
So definitely Playable to every degree..

-- I don't particularily want to spend a great deal whatsoever.. so my question is;

Will selling these cards on the ever so popular love to hate it auction site gonna cover the cost of paying for a new card and not lose me any performance in the process..

 

[ThePengu1n]

Short answer: No

Longer answer: Maybe, but you'd have to spend some money as well (not just what you'd make from selling your 4870s)

Think how much you'd like to spend, then we can reccomend some cards

 

[ANN1H1LAT0R]

It depends on your budget and what you want. If you buy a slightly better card that does Dx 11 you may find your average FPS will actually be lower as DX 11 has a massive impact on performance and so overall you may feel like youve made a poor decision BUT using these effects in BF3 will make the game shine and if you still get over 40FPS you'll be laughing

However like I say you may get lower than that and be disappointed. Im sure others will advise better than me but Id say leave it unless you have a good budget to throw around

 

[Dustee]

Short answer: No

Longer answer: Maybe, but you'd have to spend some money as well (not just what you'd make from selling your 4870s)

Think how much you'd like to spend, then we can reccomend some cards

It depends on your budget and what you want. If you buy a slightly better card that does Dx 11 you may find your average FPS will actually be lower as DX 11 has a massive impact on performance and so overall you may feel like youve made a poor decision BUT using these effects in BF3 will make the game shine and if you still get over 40FPS you'll be laughing

However like I say you may get lower than that and be disappointed. Im sure others will advise better than me but Id say leave it unless you have a good budget to throw around

Well, im guessing i'd fetch around £80 approx for the 2cards with crossfire bridge ready to go.. and dont get me wrong they game VERY well indeed seein as i see lots of people with bf3 and crossfire issues.. i certainly get none of them, so maybe that is a DX11 issue..
Im not too fussed with a few fps drops here n there, aslong as im around 40ish .. playable is comfortable, im not a hardcore gamer, just a bit here n there, i much prefer halo on my xbox...

That said.. budget wise i guess id be looking at adding an extra £80 to what i make from my current cards so anywhere in the ballpark of £160 - £180 going on the bayy prices atm

 

[Martini1991]

You'd need a 5870 at the very least.
Or just go Crossfire ; http://overclockers.co.uk/showproduct.php?prodid=GX-269-AS
180 total

 

[ANN1H1LAT0R]

Id say it isnt worth it then for the gains if any you'd recieve

Like you say your gaming perfectly well currently and at decent settings. I'd leave it

 

[Dustee]

You'd need a 5870 at the very least.
Or just go Crossfire ; http://overclockers.co.uk/showproduct.php?prodid=GX-269-AS
180 total

Yess I literally just saw that and was googling some reviews on it... Hmm at that price i'd 100% crossfire it.. however, at that price overall could i not get a better card and run just a single gpu with nice textures frame rates and lower power consumption and without the issues of some games with crossfire compatability..

 

[Dustee]

Id say it isnt worth it then for the gains if any you'd recieve

Like you say your gaming perfectly well currently and at decent settings. I'd leave it

I guess you just answered my question then.. i'm not interested in the eyefinity setup and well as much as its nice to play titles like BF3 on my pc, im not the kinda gamer that will sit and play it from one day to another.. just here n there when i feel the mood strikes.. that said, when i do play... i like it to look visually appealing (which it does..) just curious i guess as to how much improvent dx11 will make over dx10.

Just all these different cards with bandwidth / shader processors etc.. gets all a bit too much to understand at time

 

[ALXAndy]

Well, I've recently moved on from windows vista x64 to windows 7 x64.. I've noticed vast improvements to memory usage, loading times, benchmarking etc.. However, with the new current standard being DirectX11 I'm still lingering in the DX10 arena with my 2 x Sapphire 1GB 4870's running in Crossfire..

I have an MSi G3 Board (which again is a new upgrade) and these cards Definitely perform Much better on the new socket 1155 in comparrison to my old 775

For example; I run BF3 on all High Settings at 1080p Resolution and achieve around 55-63fps single player and 48-54fps multiplayer...
So definitely Playable to every degree..

-- I don't particularily want to spend a great deal whatsoever.. so my question is;

Will selling these cards on the ever so popular love to hate it auction site gonna cover the cost of paying for a new card and not lose me any performance in the process..

Your cards are woefully out of date. You are running BF3 in DX9 or DX10 mode when it is clearly a DX11 game.

Comparing DX9 performance to DX11 performance isn't a fair comparison. From personal experience a DX11 game requires a good 40% more GPU grunt to get it running to an equally acceptable level. This is quite simply down to it running an entirely different API.

The only reason not to sell your cards is if you are completely happy with not having DX11 and having to lower effects and quality in order to run a game to a satisfactory level.

So yes. I guess it depends if you want to move on or not. DX11 was introduced a long while ago now, so if you have resisted the temptation then maybe you can do so for a while longer?

It's your choice at the end of the day.

 

[ANN1H1LAT0R]

Also you would maybe need to look at your PSU if you went for the recommendation above on GPU. The 6850 would hit 278W at peak. Two of those and youve gone above you PSU output and so would be unstable and crash the system so in theory youd need to splash out on a new PSU also

Once again even more cost for little gain IF any (cant stress the IF any part. Direct x 11 can be a killer afterall)

 

[Dustee]

Your cards are woefully out of date. You are running BF3 in DX9 or DX10 mode when it is clearly a DX11 game.

Comparing DX9 performance to DX11 performance isn't a fair comparison. From personal experience a DX11 game requires a good 40% more GPU grunt to get it running to an equally acceptable level. This is quite simply down to it running an entirely different API.

The only reason not to sell your cards is if you are completely happy with not having DX11 and having to lower effects and quality in order to run a game to a satisfactory level.

So yes. I guess it depends if you want to move on or not. DX11 was introduced a long while ago now, so if you have resisted the temptation then maybe you can do so for a while longer?

It's your choice at the end of the day.

Fair point, but as out of date as may be they punch well above their weight in current hardware setups..
DX9 well i cant remember when i last saw dx9 I had these cards running in DX10 on vista and only recently move on to windows 7 (hence the lack of needing a dx11 card before hand..)

 

[Dustee]

Also you would maybe need to look at your PSU if you went for the recommendation above on GPU. The 6850 would hit 278W at peak. Two of those and youve gone above you PSU output and so would be unstable and crash the system so in theory youd need to splash out on a new PSU also

Once again even more cost for little gain IF any (cant stress the IF any part. Direct x 11 can be a killer afterall)

PSU is 580watt and crossfire certifired with 630w peak.. so maybe its a safe bet to sit tight for now and see what happens later in the year

 

[ANN1H1LAT0R]

Agreed. 278x2 plus your CPU and other PC power requirememnts would take you over the recommended limit easily sorry to hinder your upgrade limits but when your going from an older system it just ends up costing more than you'd think

However your a 360 gamer so I'll let you off roll on the new xbox 720 (or whatever its going to be called) as you'll then be gaming with graphics more superior than PC gamers for a little while at least lol

 

[ALXAndy]

Fair point, but as out of date as may be they punch well above their weight in current hardware setups..
DX9 well i cant remember when i last saw dx9 I had these cards running in DX10 on vista and only recently move on to windows 7 (hence the lack of needing a dx11 card before hand..)

They don't punch above their weight. Switch any game to DX9 and run it on a modern card and they would be left in the dust.

A 5770 was £125 or so at launch. In DX9 mode it was a wee bit faster than a 4870. So you're not performing magic in any means. Not only that but the 5770 scaled far better due to architecture than the 4870. And it has just gotten better since (if multiple GPUs are your bag of course).

Personally I would hunt down a 5870. I think you would be rather surprised at what you can get for £90. Then if it floats your boat add another one so long as you're not bothered about lowering FSAA levels.

And Vista has DX11. As much as it pained Microsoft they realised that upsetting their customers wasn't an option.

Vista was a horrid, putrid OS and it was insulting for them to replace it within two years and then tell people they were to be punished if they did not pay for and move onto Windows 7.

I know, because when I bought my 5770s I had only bought Vista Home Premium about three months before for over £90 and I was in no mood to give them another £100 or so just for DX11. So when I installed Dirt 2 I noticed that the updater put on DX11.

 

[Dustee]

Agreed. 278x2 plus your CPU and other PC power requirememnts would take you over the recommended limit easily sorry to hinder your upgrade limits but when your going from an older system it just ends up costing more than you'd think

However your a 360 gamer so I'll let you off roll on the new xbox 720 (or whatever its going to be called) as you'll then be gaming with graphics more superior than PC gamers for a little while at least lol

Well, it's all good either way, I'll be upgrading slowly but surely over the next 12months anyways, stepping up to an i7cpu ssd and will eventually be a new psu (futureproof) and then watercooling..
But for now.. one step at a time.. Cheers for the help and direction.!

 

[IceShock]

Im running a 4870x2, your rig's surely got to out perform mine, and i run every game i want to fine which is why iv not upgraded my gpu, its still a nuke powerplant is this card.

If your wanting the dogs doodar then a single 7970 will be a good upgrade. and could buy another one later in time, the performance must be great.

Where as, like im doing, im waiting for a 7990 to come out, and ill just grab one of them.

This 4870x2 is first dual gpu card iv ever had, and it runs everything i want now full whack, and bf3 almost full whack with about same fps as you said in your post, so im a fan of dual gpu cards now.