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ATI 4890 upgrade to what, wait or why bother?

rimscar

rimscar

rimscar

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Joined
24 Mar 2009
Posts
23
hiya,

current rig is:
Win7 HP 64bit
samsung hd1035j F3, 32 mb cache, 7200rpm 1TB main drive--no discipline :)
i7 920 D0, small o\c to 3.6ghz
OCZ GameXstream 850W psu
OCZ 6gb ddr3 1600/pc3012800 RAM
Asus P6T x58 mainboard
XFX ATI 4890 1gb
Monitor: HP LP2475W 1920*1200 24" :)

So i`ve got the spending itch...

The question is a nice 128gb SSD (as recently fitted to wife's pc) or someform of grpahics card update?

I play mostly LOTRO but in direct X 9 only, but also dabble in the usual FPS such as COD, AvP etc when i get sick of the grind.

So i do feel as though i`m missing out on the sexiness of Dx11, but equally the difference the SSD has made to the wife's rig is outstanding.

Given the latest bios flashing potential of the 6950, and the chaos that is the gfx marketplace at the minute, what do you guys think is the best bang-for-buck upgrade that i could do at the moment?

Is it worth spending circa £200 on a 6950/580 gievn the spec above?

Your considered thoughts appreciated :)
 
I would wait two weeks for pricing of the graphics cards to settle down. AMD is releasing the HD6950 1GB to compete with the GTX560TI 1GB and there are supposed to be price drops on the HD6950 2GB too.

TBH,an HD4890 is between the speed of an HD5830 and HD5850 in many games so it is not that slow a card.

An SSD would make your system feel more responsive though and help decrease loading times for games.
 
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Sensibly a barging priced HD5870 if You can find one :) otherwise wait 2 weeks and You will be spoilt for choice with £200 to spend
 
I only upgraded to 5850 because I upgrade from 1680 res to 1920 res, and my old trusting 9800GTX+ is no longer up to it.

If I was in your position with a 4890 (which is more than capable for majority of the games except for a few odd demanding titles), I would hold out till the end of the year for the release of the next gen cards that are going to be on 28nm process instead of 40nm process. However, if there are some demanding titles which your 4890 can't handle which you would want to play asap instead leaving it till the end of the year, then upgrade to either a GTX560 or 6950 2GB (and unlock) now.
 
Thanks for the input all.
Some interesting points there.

If i could just clarify on some comments though.

I do play my games at 1920x1200, as opposed to 1080, thanks to my rather lovely, if expensive, monitor!
I did contemplate crossfire 4890, but this doesn't allow for DX11? So although i do own DX11 capable games i can't currently play them in that mode, therefore that wouldn't be an option i think.

In my understanding, I suppose it all boils down to whether it would be a significant enough graphical step change with my £200.
Perhaps the advice is that a better upgrade would be an SSD, as there isn't enough of a generational difference between my current 4890 and any current Graphics card circa the sweet spot of £200?

Indeed, it would be better to wait until year end to see what the 28nm process brings, as this would, in all probability, herald a better bang for buck and graphical improvement over my current 4890?

thanks again
 
rimscar said:
Thanks for the input all.
Some interesting points there.

If i could just clarify on some comments though.

I do play my games at 1920x1200, as opposed to 1080, thanks to my rather lovely, if expensive, monitor!
I did contemplate crossfire 4890, but this doesn't allow for DX11? So although i do own DX11 capable games i can't currently play them in that mode, therefore that wouldn't be an option i think.

In my understanding, I suppose it all boils down to whether it would be a significant enough graphical step change with my £200.
Perhaps the advice is that a better upgrade would be an SSD, as there isn't enough of a generational difference between my current 4890 and any current Graphics card circa the sweet spot of £200?

Indeed, it would be better to wait until year end to see what the 28nm process brings, as this would, in all probability, herald a better bang for buck and graphical improvement over my current 4890?

thanks again
Click to expand...

Not worth it - just done the upgrade from the 4890 to the 6970. DX11 isnt worth the upgrade. Yes you could xfire for cheap to significantly increase performance.

Wait until the end of the year for newer cards to be available as mentioned above.

GZA
 
The 4890 is still a good GPU, my son is still using one plays BO, etc no probs, OC it a bit this will help you as well. If not go for a 560, it overclocks very well, great little performers.
 
I am sticking with my 4890s at present, admittedly i cant have DX11 yet, but tbh they will steam through anything in DX10 looking as pretty as you like at the same time at my 1920x1080 res.

I am doing the SSD then cards later on route
 
The 4890 is a good card still, I was very happy with mine but wanted to upgrade - mainly as i'd acquired a 1920x1200 monitor, upgrading from a 1680x1050 and wasn't able to play everything with all settings maxed. One thing to bear in mind is you will be able to recover £70 or so by sticking your 4890 on member market/ebay - which will co some way towards the costs of a new card.

Unless you are actually struggling with what you play tho, a SSD is a good investment.
 
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