Nvidia vs ATI

[judmann]

im thinking of buying a new graphics card,and at the moment i have a nvidia 8800 gtx is it worth updating yet or should i wait
my choices are

1.http://www.overclockers.co.uk/showp... GDDR3 TV-Out/Dual DVI (PCI-Express) - Retail


2.http://www.overclockers.co.uk/showp...al DVI (PCI-Express) - Retail (01G-P3-E895-AR)


3.http://www.overclockers.co.uk/showp...5 TV-Out/Dual DVI/HDMI (PCI-Express) - Retail

is there much difference all i know is that nvidia are like £200 more expensive also what are the top 2 cards like nvidia compared to 2 of the ati's


4.http://www.overclockers.co.uk/showp...ual DVI/HDMI (PCI-Express) - Crossfire Bundle

 

[JC]

Whats the rest of your spec, what PSU do you have and what gaming resolution are you going to play at?

 

[Things change I've changed]

1) what motherboard have you got ?

2) What PSU have you got ?

3) what type of games do you play ?

4) what size LCD screen have you got ?

5) how much do you realistically want to spend ?

 

[DAnDan]

Basically, the cards go something like this;

280
4870 just ahead of 260
4850 just ahead of 9800/800GTX
Then all your 8800GT

It's just a ROUGH idea, everyone will have slightly different views.

 

[SS-89]

As above with regards the details of the rest of your system...

The 280 Gtx and Gx2 are not worth it imo considering the 4870 can be had for £180 and offers much better price/performance. If you can't wait then crossfire a pair of 4870's (assuming you have an x38/x48 mobo) and if you don't, then hold off till the 4870x2 as it will beat the 280gtx and will retail apparently around the £350-£400 mark.

 

[judmann]

1) what motherboard have you got ?

2) What PSU have you got ?

3) what type of games do you play ?

4) what size LCD screen have you got ?

5) how much do you realistically want to spend ?

1. Asus P5K Premium/WiFi-AP Intel P35 (Socket 775) PCI-Express DDR2 Motherboard

2.Enermax Galaxy 850W

3.Arma Armed Assault waiting for OFP2 and Arma2

4.LG L227WT 22" Widescreen LCD Monitor

5.good value for money not worth paying ££££'s if nvidia is little bit better than ATI

so really how much better is nvidia to ATI at the moment is it worth the extra or is 8800gtx still ok or should i wait

 

[AgedIdiot]

If your gaming at 1680x1050 or less not worth an upgrade at moment imo.

Wait until you upgrade your monitor to a 24" or larger then look again

 

[Things change I've changed]

1. Asus P5K Premium/WiFi-AP Intel P35 (Socket 775) PCI-Express DDR2 Motherboard

2.Enermax Galaxy 850W

3.Arma Armed Assault waiting for OFP2 and Arma2

4.LG L227WT 22" Widescreen LCD Monitor

5.good value for money not worth paying ££££'s if nvidia is little bit better than ATI

so really how much better is nvidia to ATI at the moment is it worth the extra or is 8800gtx still ok or should i wait

If your happy with the 8800gtx then keep it, @ 1680x50 I can't imagine it struggling in many games even with high AA&AF, but if you really want to upgrade then I'd go for the 4870, you can't really go for CF with your currant motherboard anyway because it would be 8x 4x so would be pointless.

Everyone agree ?

 

[LoadsaMoney]

I do.

 

[judmann]

in spec for mobo it says
Expansion Slots 2 x PCI-E x16 supports CrossFire Technology


but dosnt this mean i can have two cards at 16x cf ?

 

[Things change I've changed]

in spec for mobo it says
Expansion Slots 2 x PCI-E x16 supports CrossFire Technology


but dosnt this mean i can have two cards at 16x cf ?

no P35 supports 2x PCI-E in CF @ a full 16x bandwidth, as far as I know it goes like this,

P35 chipset in CF, 8x 2x (PCI-E 2.0)

P45 chipset in CF, 8x 8x (PCI-E 2.0)

x38/x48 chipset in CF, 16x 16x (PCI-E 2.0)

But the P35 will run a single card solution @ 8x (PCI-E 2.0) and the p45 will run a single card solution @ 16x (PCI-E 2.0) so you could just wait for the 4870 x2 wich should run on your mobo fine if your desperate for CF performance.

 

[RJC]

You can run 2 cards in crossfire but the 2nd card will be restricted to 4 x.

Rob

 

[Things change I've changed]

You can run 2 cards in crossfire but the 2nd card will be restricted to 4 x.

Rob

Yeah I should have added that,

Yes you can actually run the cards in CF so your mobo is technically CF compatible but on the P35 it would be pointless because you are bottlenecking the performance of the cards.

 

[Greebo]

no P35 supports 2x PCI-E in CF @ a full 16x bandwidth, as far as I know it goes like this,

P35 chipset in CF, 8x 2x (PCI-E 2.0)

P45 chipset in CF, 8x 8x (PCI-E 2.0)

x38/x48 chipset in CF, 16x 16x (PCI-E 2.0)

But the P35 will run a single card solution @ 8x (PCI-E 2.0) and the p45 will run a single card solution @ 16x (PCI-E 2.0) so you could just wait for the 4870 x2 wich might run on your mobo fine if your desperate for CF performance.

Almost but not quite. If you are quoting in equivalent pci-e 2 speeds it should be as above.

 

[Things change I've changed]

Almost but not quite. If you are quoting in equivalent pci-e 2 speeds it should be as above.

thanks again, I've edited my post, I really need to revise these PCI-E configurations, I don't want to give people false information.

 

[judmann]

ok so if i want to cf 4870 @x16 i will need to upgrade my motherboard


thanks for all the help gents.

 

[Things change I've changed]

ok so if i want to cf 4870 @x16 i will need to upgrade my motherboard


thanks for all the help gents.

yes, to an motherboard with either x38 or x48 chipset, or you could just wait until the 4870x2 that should work on your current motherboard.

 

[judmann]

any ideas of a release date?

also would 1 card @x2 be as good as 2 cards

thanks again