upgrade options for a spazza?

[Touchstone]

hey there

im looking forward to getting bfbc2, but unfortunatley im running an 8600gt and i have a sneaky suspicion* that its going to fail miserabley when it comes to all the particle effects etc etc in bc2.
so im looking to upgrade! i have about a 100-150 quid budget (naff i know but there we go), and if possible id like to keep the old card in my box as it would allow me to run a few more mointors when my cash allows it.
so im assuming that means i cant run ati as im sure there would be compatability problems?
anyways any help would be great as im thoroughly confused by gfx these days!

 

[TAC4U]

Well, you have the ATI 4890 for raw power or the slightly cheaper ATI 5770 for DX11 support - the latter is definitely worth considering if you buy a second one at a later date for Crossfire. Or you could save up a bit more and grab an ATI 5850, though that's a bit of a stretch. nVidia cards aren't really competitive at the moment.

 

[Touchstone]

aye ive noticed. could i still run both cards if i have one ati one nvidia?
also whats the difference between the 5750 and the 5770?

 

[Touchstone]

im also interested in nvidias cuda (im a 3d animator so could be useful) and physx. does the ati have an exuivalent (from what i see it does for the cuda stuff but not for physx) if so is the physx stuff gonna damage frame rate anywhere (im currently using a quad core q6600 running at 2.4ghz with 8gig ram)?
thx again

 

[TAC4U]

If you're interested in CUDA and PhysX then you'll want to be looking at the GTX260. ATI supports OpenCL, though it isn't as well supported or adopted currently. However, PhysX support is largely irrelevant as it stands thanks to nVidia blocking it from running with any ATI cards installed in the system. And as for CUDA - are you simply interested or actively looking to use it. If it's just a mild interest then you're best going with gaming performance and opting for the cards I suggested; if you're more seriously considering it then obviously ATI cards are out of the question.

As for running both cards - that isn't an option when it comes to PhysX and I'm unsure of the position regarding CUDA. And the 5750 is simply a cut down 5770, which itself is just a slightly cut down 4890 with added DX11 support. DX11 is largely irrelevant at this stage, especially with cards in your price range, though more titles are becoming available and with Crossfire is perfectly viable.

To me it sounds like you want to choose between the GTX260 (CUDA, PhysX) or the HD5770 (Eyefinity, OpenCL, DX11, Crossfire upgrade), with the HD5750 a possible option if you want to save a bit of money. Do you know whether your system supports SLI and/or Crossfire?

 

[Touchstone]

when it comes down to cuda, im interested really o see wether its gonna be implimented on 3d software as, gpu's adding to cpu power is being touted as the next big thing in rendering. however to my knowledge at the moment nothing uses it.
i think from the looks of it im gonna go with the 5770.
however im still not sure i understand your explanation about running the two cards.
would it be possible to run my old nvidia running 2 screens and the ati running another two screens from the same rig?
thx a lot for the advice!

*EDIT* scratch the motherboard sorry its an asus p5k deluxe motherboard