Question are video card prices headed down yet?

[Saylick]

Glad to hear you're satisfied with your 6800XT.

Yeah, I plan on running Timespy and Unigine Superposition to see if there's issues and to make sure clocks, power, and temperatures are all within expectations. Might throw in Furmark as well for kicks. Unfortunately, I don't play PC games all that much anymore so I don't have an up-to-date Steam library with something graphically challenging. I might try scripting 3DMark and Unigine to run for a few hours at a time to simulate a gaming session instead.

Got the RX 6800 and so far I must say I am VERY impressed. Like WOW. I haven't built a new-ish PC in over 10 years so the performance gains are just staggering. It's one thing to read reviews and to see FPS charts, but it's another to run synthetics and real workloads and watch it fly.

So far, I've spent the last 2 hours just running it through its paces in 3DMark Timespy Extreme + the stress test. Stock settings were in-line w/ my expectations, then overclocked it and re-ran the tests to make sure. Next up: Unigine Superposition. If it passes that, then I think I'm good to roll.

Edit: It passed!

 

[DAPUNISHER]

@Saylick

It being able to overclock is the real win. I have read people talk about how worn out mining cards can't take any memory overclock for gaming.

A 6800 would suit me perfectly now. I am going to start hunting right after cyber Monday. The used market should get even better then, as more people upgrade. That is my thinking anyways.

 

[Saylick]

@Saylick

It being able to overclock is the real win. I have read people talk about how worn out mining cards can't take any memory overclock for gaming.

A 6800 would suit me perfectly now. I am going to start hunting right after cyber Monday. The used market should get even better then, as more people upgrade. That is my thinking anyways.

Yeah, I love the 6800 specifically because of how AMD cut down the N21 to make it: it has the same memory subsystem as the full N21 die but with ~75% of the shaders, so I really don't have a desire or need to overclock the memory. I am confident the shaders are well fed. The only thing it needs is more clocks, which it can easily do since it also shares the same VRM design as the 6800XT. I was checking GPU-Z's reported power and it didn't exceed 233W even after the overclock on the shaders! It literally is a better 6700XT in every way except for price, but the higher performance justifies it. For 1440p gaming, it's perfect.

If you're hunting for a used card on Ebay, I don't know how much you will save if wait for BF/Cyber Monday. I think when AMD reveals RDNA 3 people will realize that there's only new high-end cards, so the only downward pressure on used prices will be the NEW prices of old stock. Alternatively, there could be a rush of people looking for used cards since there's no new cards coming out in the sub-$1000 price point. More people viewing used cards on Ebay leads to more bidders and thus higher used card prices.

 

[VirtualLarry]

https://www.bestbuy.com/site/hp-victus-15-6-gaming-laptop-intel-core-i5-12450h-8gb-memory-nvidia-geforce-gtx-1650-512gb-ssd-mica-silver/6503849.p?skuId=6503849

Could add to cart, couldn't check out.

 

[DAPUNISHER]

If you're hunting for a used card on Ebay, I don't know how much you will save if wait for BF/Cyber Monday. I think when AMD reveals RDNA 3 people will realize that there's only new high-end cards, so the only downward pressure on used prices will be the NEW prices of old stock. Alternatively, there could be a rush of people looking for used cards since there's no new cards coming out in the sub-$1000 price point. More people viewing used cards on Ebay leads to more bidders and thus higher used card prices.

You are probably right. However, I am hoping against reason, some of the 6900&6950 models see price cuts big enough that some 6800 series owners decide to move to the top of the product stack because the price difference after selling their cards is so attractive. Or that some of the 6800 series models see price cuts so significant that weekend, that I can pull the trigger on one NIB. Then sell off my 3060ti to recoup a portion of the cost. The Nvidia tax is real, may as well try to leverage it to jump ship and give them the middle finger.

 

[Ranulf]

https://www.bestbuy.com/site/hp-victus-15-6-gaming-laptop-intel-core-i5-12450h-8gb-memory-nvidia-geforce-gtx-1650-512gb-ssd-mica-silver/6503849.p?skuId=6503849

Could add to cart, couldn't check out.

Check this one out... $700 with a 3060, 5600H cpu.

Acer Nitro 5 15.6" 144Hz FHD Gaming Laptop, AMD Ryzen 5 5600H, Nvidia GeForce RTX 3060, 8GB DDR4, 512GB NVMe SSD, Windows 11, AN515-45-R6XD - Walmart.com

Buy Acer Nitro 5 15.6" 144Hz FHD Gaming Laptop, AMD Ryzen 5 5600H, Nvidia GeForce RTX 3060, 8GB DDR4, 512GB NVMe SSD, Windows 11, AN515-45-R6XD at Walmart.com

www.walmart.com

 

[GodisanAtheist]

Check this one out... $700 with a 3060, 5600H cpu.

Acer Nitro 5 15.6" 144Hz FHD Gaming Laptop, AMD Ryzen 5 5600H, Nvidia GeForce RTX 3060, 8GB DDR4, 512GB NVMe SSD, Windows 11, AN515-45-R6XD - Walmart.com

Buy Acer Nitro 5 15.6" 144Hz FHD Gaming Laptop, AMD Ryzen 5 5600H, Nvidia GeForce RTX 3060, 8GB DDR4, 512GB NVMe SSD, Windows 11, AN515-45-R6XD at Walmart.com

www.walmart.com

-Its should be mandatory on laptops especially for manufacturers to post the power targets of their components.

Looks like a very solid, well balanced laptop for $700 (little light on system RAM but hey can't win them all) but it'd be nice to know how many watts that 3060 pulls down to know it's true performance bracket.

 

[jpiniero]

-Its should be mandatory on laptops especially for manufacturers to post the power targets of their components.

Looks like a very solid, well balanced laptop for $700 (little light on system RAM but hey can't win them all) but it'd be nice to know how many watts that 3060 pulls down to know it's true performance bracket.

Acer's website says the 3060 is 95 W... but being Walmart it could be different or worse binned.

 

[bigboxes]

For this to add up assumes free or cheap electricity. Because otherwise pure electrical heating is about the most inefficient and expensive way to heat your home.

I don't really want to think what it'd cost heating my home with wall panels right now, but some back of napkin math puts it at somewhere around 80-120.000DKK (~US$ 10.500 - 15.800). Assuming I'd need 10-15MW over winter.

I live in North Texas and rarely turn on the heat, all electric. I grew up in the upper midwest and was always told to just add another layer. I wear shorts/tshirts year round. I'm just happy to be able to turn off the a/c for just little bit. I think I used maybe a little over a 100kWh this last week. I'm not a miner though.

 

[Insert_Nickname]

I grew up in the upper midwest and was always told to just add another layer.

I handle cold a lot better then heat. As you say, just add another layer. No big deal.

I don't know quite how to put it, but some of the problems here also stem from that. People expect to be able to wear shorts and t-shirts indoors all year round, and maintain 25-28C indoors like it's the Mediterranean here. It's not like when I was a kid in the late 70's, early "fattig firserne" (poor mans 80's*). You just put some more clothes on. People don't want to do that anymore. Now, they're being forced to.

*Everybody and their dog was broke back then. Oil crisis aftermath, massive inflation, very high unemployment. So little has changed really.

 

[Heartbreaker]

I live in North Texas and rarely turn on the heat, all electric. I grew up in the upper midwest and was always told to just add another layer. I wear shorts/tshirts year round. I'm just happy to be able to turn off the a/c for just little bit. I think I used maybe a little over a 100kWh this last week. I'm not a miner though.

You need a heat pump for AC in the summer anyway, so I don't get why you wouldn't just have a reversible one if you needed a little heat in the winter rather than wasteful resistive heating.

 

[bigboxes]

You need a heat pump for AC in the summer anyway, so I don't get why you wouldn't just have a reversible one if you needed a little heat in the winter rather than wasteful resistive heating.

You keep saying wasteful. I don't need much heat. My a/c is electric. My max bill was ~$160 this summer. I'm hoping for $70 next month. I run my home server and main rig 24/7.

 

[Stuka87]

You need a heat pump for AC in the summer anyway, so I don't get why you wouldn't just have a reversible one if you needed a little heat in the winter rather than wasteful resistive heating.

If he lives in a colder climate, heat pumps aren't an option.

I use an evaporative cooler in the summer, super cheap to run (about $30 a month). But in the winter, we spend a lot of time in freezing temps, and heat pump efficiency drops significantly below 40F. So very few homes here use heat pumps, and those that do, aren't happy with them in the coldest months.

 

[Heartbreaker]

If he lives in a colder climate, heat pumps aren't an option.

I use an evaporative cooler in the summer, super cheap to run (about $30 a month). But in the winter, we spend a lot of time in freezing temps, and heat pump efficiency drops significantly below 40F. So very few homes here use heat pumps, and those that do, aren't happy with them in the coldest months.

He lives in Texas. No trouble for a heat pump in a Texas winter. They are getting quite popular in much of Canada.

 

[igor_kavinski]

I use an evaporative cooler in the summer, super cheap to run (about $30 a month).

What about humidity? I lost a 486 PC to mold growing in a dusty corner of the mobo due to all the moisture in the air from that cooler.

 

[fleshconsumed]

What about humidity? I lost a 486 PC to mold growing in a dusty corner of the mobo due to all the moisture in the air from that cooler.

Where do you live? Evaporative coolers work best in low humidity climates like Colorado/Arizona/Nevada, yeah, they will bring up humidity up, but not to the point of growing mold.

 

[igor_kavinski]

Where do you live?

Abu Dhabi but it gets really icky humid in August.

 

[Stuka87]

What about humidity? I lost a 486 PC to mold growing in a dusty corner of the mobo due to all the moisture in the air from that cooler.

Our ambient air humidity percentages average between 10-20% during the summer. With the exception of a 2-3 week period when the monsoons come up from the gulf of mexico into nevada/california/utah where we will hit upwards of 40%. So if anything, the extra humidity from the cooler actually helps keep static electricity down, which can be an issue is really low humidity levels.

 

[Insert_Nickname]

If he lives in a colder climate, heat pumps aren't an option.

Mine is rated for -30C. It's not really efficient down there, but should still be a bit better then pure resistive heating.

If we have -30C outside, we have other problems. That very rarely happens fortunately.

Abu Dhabi but it gets really icky humid in August.

Had the bad luck having to go to Dubai one august. Yuck. I wholeheartedly agree.

 

[repoman0]

So very few homes here use heat pumps, and those that do, aren't happy with them in the coldest months.

I’m happy with mine year round (Boston) *shrug*

Newer units are much better in cold ambient temperatures than they used to be.

 

[blckgrffn]

Video card prices falling and all that - I made some questionable decisions over the weekend.

I decided to check CL for some cheap cards. I bogeyed two, a GTX 980 for $60 driven to me and a $250 6700XT reference design.

I met the guy with 980 and paid the $60, then kept driving to the 6700XT and paid $230. I was gone from my house for less than an hour.

Both cards tested out great with overnight loops and some benchmarks. My daughter is getting the 6700XT and the 980ti she was rocking that I got for $180 about 18 months ago (a *solid* pickup at the time) is going into my parts bin. My boy got one when they were like $950? I kept the box sealed for weeks hemming and hawing. I sold his RX470 8GB for $385 though, so... yeah. Crazy. This is much more of a comfortable spot.

I've been trying to move a gorgeous PC with a 12100F in it and 6500XT but the price is a little high. With this uber cheap GTX980 Superclocked I can lower the price a reasonable amount AND it doesn't have the AMD/6500XT stigma attached to it. Never mind that in my testing the 980 is a step behind the 6500XT while using like 3x the power. I'll put that in my parts bin too. Also, the 980 is a 4GB so it probably never saw any mining.

Irony was that both of these guys threw me cheese eating smiles when I asked why they were selling, saying they had moved up to a 3080Ti. Man, that GTX 980 guy got a *treat*, I think the 6700XT upgrade would have been noticeable but much less of a step.

ANYWAY. We are getting back to where the market would have been. I am not high on picking up a 8GB or less card at this point for serious usage, and honestly the power usage on the 3080 and higher cards tells me they need some big cases with serious airflow and I've been moving to more compact cases in general so I am pretty cool on those until they are really "cheap" whenever that is.

 

[igor_kavinski]

then kept driving to the 6700XT and paid $230. I was gone from my house for less than an hour.

Mamma Mia! At that price, I want one too!

 

[VirtualLarry]

I was gone from my house for less than an hour.

And some guy with a hammer showed up???

 

[blckgrffn]

Mamma Mia! At that price, I want one too!

Reference cards have no transferrable warranty, so it's a fairly big gamble. I learned this *after* meeting a guy in a little grocery store in the shadiest part of town and giving him $1K in cash for my 6800 NIB and I was feeling buyers remorse. That was April 2021. Although I hate RMA'ing any of this stuff, as it feels like that's a rabbit hole of pain and disappointment.

So... I probably should have pushed it lower but it all worked out.

 

[Aikouka]

This keeps reminding me that I need to find the time and prioritize getting rid of a few extra cards that I have. I keep trying things and just not being satisfied, which usually results in extra hardware lying around. Heck, one of them is an unopened 3060 Ti that I got as part of the Newegg Shuffle ages ago. I planned on using it, but never did... and then hesitated on selling it due to being anti-scalping. (I didn't want to sell it at MSRP and then have someone turn around and scalp it.)

If he lives in a colder climate, heat pumps aren't an option.

A ground-source heat pump would work fine regardless as ground temperature tends to be very consistent if you go down to the correct depth. The only problem is that you're obviously introducing far more complexity (and cost) into the system.