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Why is the XFX so cheap?

Gegenki

Gegenki

Gegenki

Associate
Joined
30 Dec 2010
Posts
12
Trying to decide what graphics card to upgrade to.

I'm having trouble deciding between the 6850, 5870 and the 6870

The 5870 is coming in above the 6870 from reviews. and with the price I can see that. Most of them are hitting in around £300

But XFX have some really cheap cards going every now and then.
http://www.overclockers.co.uk/showproduct.php?prodid=GX-147-XF&groupid=701&catid=56&subcat=

Is there any particular reason? Should I be avoiding this card or is it just a genuine bargin? The fact that this card is so cheap is the only reason it is on my list otherwise I wouldn't be able to afford it with the other parts.

If I didn't get that I'd probably go for this
http://www.overclockers.co.uk/showproduct.php?prodid=GX-240-AS&groupid=701&catid=56&subcat=1866
I think I'm taken in by the heatsink. It looks like a beast, and I like Asus

some back story -
My goal is to able to play my games at 2048x1152@60fps
The games I have right now are UT3, left for dead 2 and dirt 2 so aside from dirt its easy pickings, but obviously I'm going to want to get new games.
I currently have an Athlon x2 5000+ and EAH3870. The CPU has been bottleknecking my GPU and I've been using my consoles for gaming because of this.

I'm planning to get an SB 2500K.
 
Last edited:
hah, the price went up by £5 since I made my post
Same with the Asus card, it was £204 yesterday.
When I made the post it was £199 and now its back at £204
 
go for the XFX ATI Radeon 6950 at today only at £226 and unlock it to a 6970 and it will be a a good step ahea of what you have purposed
 
^ Its only £4 off, but you do make is a very good point on the 6950. Going to have to hold off on the GPU for another week to put together the extra to pennies but it definitely looks worth the difference

I forgot about the VAT. I didn't see it as a big deal, its rare for me to buy anything of significant value. Its kind of upsetting now
 
Probably the only reason it seems so good in price is that it's an End Of Life product. I bet there'll be none on sale within a month or so.

At £205 it might be worth looking at the 6950s as they're slightly faster, only £20ish more and as jayextreme pointed out they have 2GB memory instead of 1GB.
 
I've recently bought an XFX 5870 (when they went EOL and really cheap!) and I've had no problems running all the games you've listed at 5760x1080 so don't let the 2GB vs 1GB framebuffer sway your decision too much as it won't be too noticable at your resolution unless you're one of the people who tries to minutely find the difference between 8xAA and 4xAA.

I would get the 5870 over the 6870 if you are not planning on crossfiring your card down the line, if you are definitely going to crossfire then go for the 6870 instead. If your budget will comfortably get a 6950 then do so, but if the extra £30 is going to hurt at all then I'd probably stick with a 5870 so long as you're not someone who needs to have the latest generation.

Before the 5870 I had crossfired 4870 1GB's, before that a single 4870 512MB, and before that a 3870. Each step was a noticable step up in performance so going straight from a 3870 to a 5870/6870/6950 will be a MONUMENTAL leap forward that will give you the biggest smile of your life! Whichever you choose, you will love it! :)
 
going straight from a 3870 to a 5870/6870/6950 will be a MONUMENTAL leap forward
Click to expand...

You are also spoilt for choice right now.

To be honest if that is all your money right there- get a quad core and a 5850. You will struggle to notice the difference between it an a 5870 once you overclock it a bit and the extra can go for a quad core cpu.

If you are future proofing though the 6950 is a really good option; 2gb for your res will become relevant in a few games now and some games in future and you have access to a significant amount more power if you get into the whole bios and overclocking thing.

http://www.overclockers.co.uk/showproduct.php?prodid=GX-192-XF&groupid=701&catid=56&subcat=1752
 
Well it's purely from personal experience, but the fan on my 6850 XFX was rattly and it went all 'artefacty' on me after a few weeks. So I can guess why their usually so much cheaper.

I will stick with the premium brands from now on.
 
Just bought an XFX 6950, got it before the week deals altered £221.99, their all manufactured at the same factory regardless if it's XFX, Asus, HIS, Sapphire, Gigabyte etc anyway unless it's a custom (non-reference) cooler.

Just get the cheapest card you can get, I usually upgrade every 12 months anyway & XFX are a nice price.
 
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