4850x2

[Tempered81]

benchmarks and more pics: (it's longer than a 4870x2!)
http://www.xtremesystems.org/f...howthread.php?t=206180

 

[SlowSpyder]

I think they need to make it a bit less then $400, for most people it would make more sense to just grab two 4850's and crossfire them for less then this card costs (seeing as 4850's can be found for ~$150 or even less).

 

[Extelleron]

At the same price I think I would still recommend the GTX 280 as the better option.... the HD 4850 X2 is probably going to perform better overall but you can't rely on software based scaling, especially since Crossfire is still not as great as SLI for the most part. In games that don't scale well, like Crysis, the GTX 280 is going to be faster. With the 4870 X2 it is less big of a deal since a single 4870 1GB is not far behind the GTX 280, so when Crossfire works it can be considered a "bonus."

For now I think the best values remain the HD 4870 1GB and GTX 260 Core 216. The GTX 280 is a bit out of place at $399 and doesn't offer much improvement over the other cards I mentioned, and the 4870 X2 is a bit too expensive, consumes too much power, and doesn't offer a solid increase over the GTX 280 in some important titles.

 

[MarcVenice]

So it should cost roughly what TWO hd4850 1gb cards cost? $400 is prolly about right, that'll be 340 euro's or so, which is about right compared to a HD4870 X2 at 420 euro's ... To bad it needs 6pin and 8pin ... I only got 2x6 pin -_-

 

[apoppin]

Originally posted by: MarcVenice
So it should cost roughly what TWO hd4850 1gb cards cost? $400 is prolly about right, that'll be 340 euro's or so, which is about right compared to a HD4870 X2 at 420 euro's ... To bad it needs 6pin and 8pin ... I only got 2x6 pin -_-

so do i Marc - i use an alligator clip and a wire strand to ground the exposed pins
- is "mickey mouse" popular in Europe? He has even used 2 sets of alligator clips to make 2900xt CF work
-it works fine! [as long as your PS is capable]

 

[BFG10K]

Originally posted by: SunnyD

LCDs cause this mystical input lag too, however they are the preferred display type these days. Makes me wonder, has this input lag thing been tested on CRTs by anyone credible?

http://www.behardware.com/arti...tors-the-3rd-wave.html

No, I'm not. How is something that provides more resources considered LESS robust?

Because the resources that are provided will never be utilized as well as a single card?s resources will. That and the extra resources can be a hindrance rather than an advantage.

Again, as I said, save for the very FEW exceptions, how many of those profile-less titles actually suffer in raw performance on a multi-gpu solution?

A few exceptions? What are you basing this on? Some reviews showing 10 or 15 games which is a drop in the bucket compared to the volume of titles out there?

The results of running a game without a profile on a multi-GPU system are unpredictable. If you?re lucky the game runs the same as it does on one card which means you get half the performance of your investment. At worst, much worse can happen.

Additionally, just because a game has a profile there?s no guarantee performance and/or compatibility will be at the expected level.

I think you have the mistaken impression reviews showing 10 or 15 games with pretty graphs means multi-GPU is an acceptable solution; in reality there are far more things to consider.

 

[nRollo]

Originally posted by: BFG10K

Originally posted by: SunnyD

LCDs cause this mystical input lag too, however they are the preferred display type these days. Makes me wonder, has this input lag thing been tested on CRTs by anyone credible?

http://www.behardware.com/arti...tors-the-3rd-wave.html

No, I'm not. How is something that provides more resources considered LESS robust?

Because the resources that are provided will never be utilized as well as a single card?s resources will. That and the extra resources can be a hindrance rather than an advantage.

Again, as I said, save for the very FEW exceptions, how many of those profile-less titles actually suffer in raw performance on a multi-gpu solution?

A few exceptions? What are you basing this on? Some reviews showing 10 or 15 games which is a drop in the bucket compared to the volume of titles out there?

The results of running a game without a profile on a multi-GPU system are unpredictable. If you?re lucky the game runs the same as it does on one card which means you get half the performance of your investment. At worst, much worse can happen.

Additionally, just because a game has a profile there?s no guarantee performance and/or compatibility will be at the expected level.

I think you have the mistaken impression reviews showing 10 or 15 games with pretty graphs means multi-GPU is an acceptable solution; in reality there are far more things to consider.

BFG10K is right about this subject, sort of.

There is no doubt whatsoever that it's preferable to achieve a level of performance with one GPU versus two if that is possible.

Multi GPU does offer higher AA levels and higher possible resolutions, but with the profile limitations*, microstutter, etc. BFG notes.

The only sensible thing to do if you're considering spending $400 on a video card is:

a. Compare the the performance of the GTX280 to the 4850X2 at your monitor's native res and see if the X2 differentiates itself enough to deal with the multi quirks.

b. Compare brand specific features and decide which are more important


*and the profile issues will be more pronounced with AMD solutions until they step up their dev relations and allow users to create profiles with any render mode

 

[qbfx]

Originally posted by: MarcVenice
So it should cost roughly what TWO hd4850 1gb cards cost? $400 is prolly about right, that'll be 340 euro's or so, which is about right compared to a HD4870 X2 at 420 euro's ... To bad it needs 6pin and 8pin ... I only got 2x6 pin -_-

400$ is 280 euro

 

[Creig]

Originally posted by: MarcVenice
So it should cost roughly what TWO hd4850 1gb cards cost? $400 is prolly about right, that'll be 340 euro's or so, which is about right compared to a HD4870 X2 at 420 euro's ... To bad it needs 6pin and 8pin ... I only got 2x6 pin -_-

Actually, you can get 1GB 4850s for around $180 AR right now. And considering that it has to be cheaper to produce a single card than two individual cards, I would say the 4850X2 should be priced around $350.

 

[Tempered81]

Originally posted by: BFG10K
There are hundreds of games out there (if not thousands) that have no profiles. And what about those games that might scale properly but don't render properly due to multi-GPU issues?

No scaling, rendering problems with crossfire? What games are these?