660 Ti 3GB SLi or 7970 3GB Crossfire for 30" Gaming

[thm1223]

Hey guys,

So I'm just about to pull the trigger on my first custom PC. However, I am curious as to which of the following two cards I should get a pair of for gaming @ 2560x1600 resolution:

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...pk=660ti%203gb

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16814202001

I was all set on 2 Sapphire 7970s until I noticed that there's a 3gb version of the 660ti for $130 cheaper each.

What is the opinion of Anandtech? :hmm:

 

[Durvelle27]

Hd 7970

 

[MBentz]

If you've got the money, the 7970s.

 

[thm1223]

So I guess the question is the following then:

How much of a performance increase will I see if I Crossfire 2 of those 3GB 7970s compared to SLing 2 of the 3GB 660 Ti's?

Enough to justify an extra $280?

 

[Grooveriding]

Two GTX 660ti cards in SLI are barely faster than a single 7970, only 6% faster to be exact.

Two 7970s will blow them out of the water and then some. 3GB 660ti or not, they lack the horsepower and bandwidth to push the pixels your resolution demands. You're comparing two of nvidia's mid-range cards to two of the fastest single GPU cards available... Answer is clear. A single 7970 is better than 660ti SLI at your resolution due to being pretty much just as fast but without any of the multi-gpu drawbacks.

Two 7970 cards are a whole different league of performance than two 660ti cards.

 

[toyota]

Two GTX 660ti cards in SLI are barely faster than a single 7970, only 6% faster to be exact.

http://i.imgur.com/1epJK.jpg



Two 7970s will blow them out of the water and then some. 3GB 660ti or not, they lack the horsepower and bandwidth to push the pixels your resolution demands. You're comparing two of nvidia's mid-range cards to the two of the fastest single GPU cards available... Answer is clear.

yep and only 3% faster using 8x AA. gtx660 ti SLI is a sad setup at 2560 for $600.

 

[TakeNoPrisoners]

The 7970s would give quite a bit more performance because they have a faster memory bus and preform better then any of the GTX 6xx series cards at high resolutions.

However I think the 7970s would be overkill, instead I would recommend two 7950s as they can be overclocked very close to 7970 speeds. If you don't want to mess with overclocking they still have plenty of power and the memory bandwidth will not be an issue for those cards as it could be with the GTX 660 Ti.

 

[thm1223]

yep and only 3% faster using 8x AA. gtx660 ti SLI is a sad setup at 2560 for $600.

Ok last question and then I'm literally going to go pull the trigger on my parts:

Is there a different set of GPU cards I should be considering or are a pair of 7970s, as were recommended to me in my build thread, the best bet w/o spending an absurd amount of $$$?

 

[JM Popaleetus]

If you can afford dual 7970s... Why not dual 670s or 680s instead? From personal experience, AMD does a very poor job with multi-gpu drivers.

 

[thm1223]

If you can afford dual 7970s... Why not dual 670s or 680s instead? From personal experience, AMD does a very poor job with multi-gpu drivers.

What about the fact that the 7970s have 3gb? And how much of an increase are we talking about for the extra $200-$400 it will cost to do that?

 

[Grooveriding]

I think for monetary efficiency, Takenoprisoner's suggestion is the best in recommending two 7950s and overclocking them.

I would go with two factory overclocked and custom cooled 7950s for your resolution personally, and then overclock them some more.

 

[RussianSensation]

You can save some $ and pick up HD7950 CF for around $660:

MSI TF3 for $317
+
Gigabyte Windfroce 3x 7950 for $340

If you want those Vapor-X 7970 cards, head over to Superbiiz:

http://www.superbiiz.com/detail.php?name=AT-7970GHZ

Use coupon code TECH101 for $15 off = $458 - $15 = $443

On 2 of those you'd save $54 not buying on Newegg. Personally I think if you don't mind overclocking, HD7950 in CF is a good option. Alternatively $800 GTX670 SLI is good. I wouldn't buy 660Ti since at high resolutions those ROPs and memory bandwidth is really stressed.

Also, if you set up bitcoin mining these 7950 cards can make you some $ on the side if your electricity cost is reasonable (~ $0.15 per KwH). A little bonus feature if you want.

 

[JM Popaleetus]

What about the fact that the 7970s have 3gb? And how much of an increase are we talking about for the extra $200-$400 it will cost to do that?

The extra 1GB per card will probably be moot.

What extra cost? The 7970s are the same price as a 670 (or 680 vs. GHz edition).

 

[thm1223]

You can save some $ and pick up HD7950 CF for around $660:

MSI TF3 for $317
+
Gigabyte Windfroce 3x 7950 for

If you want those Vapor-X 7970 cards, head over to Superbiiz:

http://www.superbiiz.com/detail.php?name=AT-7970GHZ

Use coupon code TECH101 for $15 off = $458 - $15 = $443

Edit: Putting two in my cart and using that coupon was only $15 off the total.

On 2 of those you'd save $54 not buying on Newegg. Personally I think if you don't mind overclocking, HD7950 in CF is a good option. Alternatively $800 GTX670 SLI is good. I wouldn't buy 660Ti since at high resolutions those ROPs and memory bandwidth is really stressed.

Hmm... GTX670 SLi or 7970 Crossfire?

Hmm...


Hmm...


Ahhhhhhh!!!! D:

 

[thm1223]

The extra 1GB per card will probably be moot.

What extra cost? The 7970s are the same price as a 670 (or 680 vs. GHz edition).

Then which is better given their equal pricing?

 

[JM Popaleetus]

Hmm... GTX670 SLi or 7970 Crossfire?

Hmm...


Hmm...


Ahhhhhhh!!!! D:

I vote for SLI, easily. I love my 6850s, I've just been let down many times over the past two years with driver issues.

Then which is better given their equal pricing?

Again, 670 gets my vote.

 

[thm1223]

I vote for SLI, easily. I love my 6850s, I've just been let down many times over the past two years with driver issues.Again, 670 gets my vote.

Yes research has led me to multiple threads citing Crossfire's inferior driver support as an issue.

I will let the rest of you experts weigh in and then purchase my rig accordingly.

Oh, and if you recommend the 670 please do link me to the specific one you think is the best bet (I assume one of the EVGA models). Thanks!

And I assume 2 670s in SLi can run on a 750w PSU?

 

[JM Popaleetus]

Yes research has led me to multiple threads citing Crossfire's inferior driver support as an issue.

I will let the rest of you experts weigh in and then purchase my rig accordingly.

Oh, and if you recommend the 670 please do link me to the specific one you think is the best bet (I assume one of the EVGA models). Thanks!

And I assume 2 670s in SLi can run on a 750w PSU?

Any of the big brands will be fine. Just get the one that is factory overclocked the most stock at your price point. Your PSU should be fine assuming it's a quality one such as a Corsair.

Specifically however, performance wise, the ASUS 670 TOP is the best in speed and fan noise, however it is about impossible to find now. I think you'll then find the Gigabyte Windforce to be the other favorite. I would provide links, but I'm on my phone .

 

[RussianSensation]

Hmm... GTX670 SLi or 7970 Crossfire?

http://www.xbitlabs.com/picture/?src=/images/graphics/geforce-gtx-690-sli/zfulltable.png

If you want an NV card, there is a good GTX670 alternative. It has excellent overclocking headroom and high quality materials: MSI 670 Power Edition. If you value noise, Asus DCUII (even the non-top) is great. In this case you are looking at $840 or so vs. $660 for HD7950 CF. That's a huge price difference especially since 670 SLI isn't any faster. Think about it, that's $180 towards your next upgrade. Plus for the next 2-3 months you can make $ with each 7950 when not gaming. The value of 1 bitcoin is now well over $13. An HD7950 will make 7 a month. That's $91 per each 7950. If you don't like the cards, just sell them in 3 months and get NV with the Amazon/Newegg gift cards from the mining run.

 

[Grooveriding]

The 7970 is the fastest single-gpu card currently available at 2560x1600. I haven't seen benchmarks done of 7970CF vs 670SLI on recent drivers, so I have no idea which would be faster in multi-gpu comparisons.

If you can find those benchmarks they are your best bet to making an informed decision on the best performing setup for your resolution with the current state of drivers from both vendors. :thumbsup:

 

[JM Popaleetus]

Plus for the next 2-3 months you ca... well [URL="http://www.btcbuy.info/"]over $13. An HD7950 will make 7 a month. That's $91 per each 7950. If you don't like the cards, just sell them in 3 months and get NV with the Amazon/Newegg gift cards from the mining run.

Bitmining should definitely not be a deciding factor for hardware unless the machine you're building is specifically for it.

 

[RussianSensation]

Bitmining should definitely not be a deciding factor for hardware unless the machine you're building is specifically for it.

Why exactly should a rig be built specifically for mining? Game 5 hours a day and bitcoin mine when sleeping/working at the office.

I'll tell you what I'll pick up a 2nd 7970 for free really soon and you let me know how those $800 670 SLI work out. :thumbsup: We have a couple guys on our forum with 3 7970s already, who game and mine on the side and paid $0 for them. The alternative is $1,500 GTX680 Tri-SLI. It starts to add up quickly. I realize it's not for everyone, but it should at least be mentioned imo. It's your choice if you don't want to use the videocards outside of gaming.

 

[JM Popaleetus]

The 7970 is the fastest single-gpu card currently available at 2560x1600. I haven't seen benchmarks done of 7970CF vs 670SLI on recent drivers, so I have no idea which would be faster in multi-gpu comparisons.

If you can find those benchmarks they are your best bet to making an informed decision on the best performing setup for your resolution with the current state of drivers from both vendors. :thumbsup:

The 660 article from Guru3D actually has some good comparisons of multi-GPU benchmarks: http://www.guru3d.com/article/gigabyte-geforce-gtx-660-ti-windforce-oc-review/24

 

[thm1223]

Bitmining should definitely not be a deciding factor for hardware unless the machine you're building is specifically for it.

Bitcoin?

 

[JM Popaleetus]

Why exactly should a rig be built specifically for mining? Game 5 hours a day and bitcoin mine when sleeping/working at the office.

I'll tell you what I'll pick up a 2nd 7970 for free really soon and you let me know how those $800 670 SLI workout. :thumbsup: We have a couple guys on our forum with 3 7970s already, who game and mine on the side and paid $0 for them. The alternative is $1,500 GTX680 Tri-SLI. It starts to add up quickly.

So your electricity and cooling is free? Awesome! Where I live, I'd pay more per bitcoin in electricity.

And there is a big difference between mining on the side like you said, and making it a purchasing factor as you did before.