Can I improve on my GTX 260 C216 for $300?

[Grooveriding]

It also matched the 5870 in Metro 2033. Even the Anandtech review showed what, about an 8% difference in performance overall at 1920 x 1200. I doubt anyone could even distinguish that.

http://www.techreport.com/articles.x/19242/10

"The Fermi-based GPUs have the advantage here, so much so that the GTX 460 1GB essentially matches the Radeon HD 5870."

No one is concerned with how these cards perform in older games (they all perform fine). It's how they perform in newer games that's important.

http://images.hardwarecanucks.com/image//skymtl/GPU/GTX-460/GTX-460-31.jpg

http://images.hardwarecanucks.com/image//skymtl/GPU/GTX-460/GTX-460-73.jpg

Plus better visuals in newer games like Just Cause 2, Metro 2033, Mafia II, etc. Features ATI can't currently compete with.

This is nonsense. The 460 lacks the power to deliver playable frames in Metro 2033 on settings that display that games potential.

Normal settings in that game look nothing like high or very high, and that benchmark is skewed because Metro is an nvidia sponsored title and performs better on that hardware. Compare the 460 to the 5870 on high or very high without AA. Let us know.

Better visuals in Just Cause 2 ? More nonsense. I went from ATI to nvidia and noticed nothing in that game, beyond having to literally, quite literally, stop actually playing the game, find some water, walk up to it, look closely, and go.. ah.. more waves.

A game's release date holds no bearing on its demands from a GPU, Crysis can attest to that, released in 2007, still is about the most demanding game out there.

Better off not offering back seat opinions, or parroting nvidia news releases when you have no actual basis to offer any sort of informed opinion. Given your track record on claims of gpu performance proving false in these forums, better to abstain altogether.

 

[toyota]

It also matched the 5870 in Metro 2033. Even the Anandtech review showed what, about an 8% difference in performance overall at 1920 x 1200. I doubt anyone could even distinguish that.

http://www.techreport.com/articles.x/19242/10

"The Fermi-based GPUs have the advantage here, so much so that the GTX 460 1GB essentially matches the Radeon HD 5870."

No one is concerned with how these cards perform in older games (they all perform fine). It's how they perform in newer games that's important.

http://images.hardwarecanucks.com/image//skymtl/GPU/GTX-460/GTX-460-31.jpg

http://images.hardwarecanucks.com/image//skymtl/GPU/GTX-460/GTX-460-73.jpg

Plus better visuals in newer games like Just Cause 2, Metro 2033, Mafia II, etc. Features ATI can't currently compete with.

would you please go away because everyone is getting sick of you. and why do you keep quoting me when what you say has NOTHING to do with what I am saying? I said the gtx460 isnt much of an upgrade over his gtx260 in some games. heck the old gtx260 was basically dead even with the gtx460 in Just Cause 2 according to techreport. I also said the gtx460 cant run most games on max settings with AA and tessellation on in the first place.

 

[happy medium]

The OP's question was, can I improve on my gtx 260 for $300.

The answer is yes.

He has a few choices.

1.Buy a 5870 for $380 and sell his gtx260 for 120$ = $260 out of pocket= 70% improvement in performance = crap upgrade.
2. buy a 5850 for 285$ sell his gtx 260 for 120$= 165$out of pocket = 55% improvement in performance = good upgrade
3. buy a gtx460 for 230$ sell his gtx 260 for 120$ = 110$ out of pocket = 45% improvement = very good upgrade

There is a reason why this Dirt 2 review does not include a gtx 260, because it's direct x 11 and the gtx 260 can't benchmark in direct x 11's better visuals. If it could it be DOWN near the 5770 in the graphs.
Don't wait 5 or 6 months for a S.I. or Nvidia refresh, thats just plain stupid

That about sums it up.

 

[tincart]

Or: Ignore wreckage and happy_medium, save your money and wait to see if the refreshes (SI and Fermi II) offer a more appreciable performance gain for $300 in a few months.

 

[3DVagabond]

The suggestion of waiting is a pretty good one, IMO. You will more than likely be able to get a better deal in the near future. Maybe even a 5870 for less than $300 after selling your old card and kicking in the proceeds. (Actually, you might be able to do that now and it'd be my choice,)
The 460 is a good card (It's not as good as Wreckage makes it out to be. Please listen to what everyone else is saying. Should be pretty easy to sidestep the bull.), but if you want to do multi-monitor it won't be a good choice for you. One 460, or even a 5850 probably won't do the job in Dx11, w/eyecandy, etc... With your board you won't be able to add a 2nd nVidia card, if needed.

This is just my own opinion on overclocking video cards. At least overclocking them hard enough to get up to the next level. ie: 5850->5870 or 460->470. The 5850, 5870, and 460 are very well balanced cards. They're powerful, efficient, quiet (a bit subjective to quantify), and cool running. You "wring the piss out of them" and you remove those qualities. You push a 5850 to it's limits and it then runs more like a Fermi, hot, power hungry, and noisy (relatively speaking). Most of the reasons people prefer the ATI cards are out the window.

 

[happy medium]

The suggestion of waiting is a pretty good one, IMO. You will more than likely be able to get a better deal in the near future. Maybe even a 5870 for less than $300 after selling your old card and kicking in the proceeds. (Actually, you might be able to do that now and it'd be my choice,)
The 460 is a good card (It's not as good as Wreckage makes it out to be. Please listen to what everyone else is saying. Should be pretty easy to sidestep the bull.), but if you want to do multi-monitor it won't be a good choice for you. One 460, or even a 5850 probably won't do the job in Dx11, w/eyecandy, etc... With your board you won't be able to add a 2nd nVidia card, if needed.

This is just my own opinion on overclocking video cards. At least overclocking them hard enough to get up to the next level. ie: 5850->5870 or 460->470. The 5850, 5870, and 460 are very well balanced cards. They're powerful, efficient, quiet (a bit subjective to quantify), and cool running. You "wring the piss out of them" and you remove those qualities. You push a 5850 to it's limits and it then runs more like a Fermi, hot, power hungry, and noisy (relatively speaking). Most of the reasons people prefer the ATI cards are out the window.

Waiting was not the OP's question!
The question was can he improve upon his gtx 260 for 300$.

The answer is yes, plain and simple.

Not wait 5 or 6 months for a refresh, thats just plain stupid. Why not wait for the gtx 695, thats out in about a year and should be 3 times faster for 300$.
At best wait for 2 weeks for some price drops.

The op can spend 110$ now and see a 45% improvement now.
How much will his gtx 260 be worth in 6 months? 75$?

 

[tincart]

Waiting was not the OP's question!
The question was can he improve upon his gtx 260 for 300$.?

I'm getting tired of having to suggest you actually READ things before posting your nonsense.

Consider where balane says:

I have no problems leaving the computer alone for now if I'm not getting my money's worth.

And consider the phrasing of the original question:

Would it be worth it to upgrade from the GTX to the 5850 from a performance aspect and if not, is SLI an option for me?

So clearly, he considers NOT upgrading at this point to be an option. He is asking whether it would be worth upgrading right now and not whether he can "improve upon his gtx 260?" That is the question that you want to answer, not the one he is asking.

 

[3DVagabond]

Waiting was not the OP's question!
The question was can he improve upon his gtx 260 for 300$.

The answer is yes, plain and simple.

Not wait 5 or 6 months for a refresh, thats just plain stupid. Why not wait for the gtx 695, thats out in about a year and should be 3 times faster for 300$.
At best wait for 2 weeks for some price drops.

The op can spend 110$ now and see a 45% improvement now.
How much will his gtx 260 be worth in 6 months? 75$?

I never said wait 5 or 6 mos. for a refresh.

The suggestion of waiting is a pretty good one, IMO. You will more than likely be able to get a better deal in the near future.

Reading comprehension is important. Especially when your going to be rude about it, apply statements to people they never said, make outlandish comparisons (wait for the GTX-695? 3x as fast? $300.00?), and accuse people of being stupid. Pull your head in a bit, mate.

 

[happy medium]

So clearly, he considers NOT upgrading at this point to be an option. He is asking whether it would be worth upgrading right now and not whether he can "improve upon his gtx 260?" That is the question that you want to answer, not the one he is asking.

And for the 4th time the answer is yes, it would be worth upgrading now.
45% improvement for 110$ and direct x 11 features IS worth it!!! Right?
If you say it's not, you must be trolling, theres no other answer.

 

[happy medium]

I never said wait 5 or 6 mos. for a refresh.



Reading comprehension is important. Especially when your going to be rude about it, apply statements to people they never said, make outlandish comparisons (wait for the GTX-695? 3x as fast? $300.00?), and accuse people of being stupid. Pull your head in a bit, mate.

I wasn't talking to you sorry. MY bad.

When you say wait a bit, what is a bit? A month, 2,3,4?

 

[tincart]

Increase in performance over a GTX 260 is more like 30% give or take on the title. Considering his statement that he is happy with the performance in games he is playing, it sounds like a 30% improvement isn't going to do much to improve the experience.

There is no guarantee he will be able to sell the 260 for what you say.

It is up to his judgement, not yours, to decide what would be worth it for him. Of course, you're doling out the usual FUD to make that decision more difficult, but what's new?

Finally, you have absolutely no idea what the GPU market will look like nor what prices or performance will be a few months down the road and have absolutely no basis to suggest that the best value is available now. You are making things up. Again.

 

[OILFIELDTRASH]

The OP's question was, can I improve on my gtx 260 for $300.

The answer is yes.

He has a few choices.

1.Buy a 5870 for $380 and sell his gtx260 for 120$ = $260 out of pocket= 70% improvement in performance = crap upgrade.
2. buy a 5850 for 285$ sell his gtx 260 for 120$= 165$out of pocket = 55% improvement in performance = good upgrade
3. buy a gtx460 for 230$ sell his gtx 260 for 120$ = 110$ out of pocket = 45% improvement = very good upgrade

There is a reason why this Dirt 2 review does not include a gtx 260, because it's direct x 11 and the gtx 260 can't benchmark in direct x 11's better visuals. If it could it be DOWN near the 5770 in the graphs.
Don't wait 5 or 6 months for a S.I. or Nvidia refresh, thats just plain stupid

That about sums it up.

You forgot paypal fees and the cost of shipping the card. The 260 would get maybe $110 right now. Take out paypal fees and shipping and he has about $95 left. On top of that he's assuming the risk he doesn't get scammed in the process of selling it.

I'd upgrade but I'm also a guy who has had 3 different 470's, a 5850, and a 5870. For the money you can't do better than a 470.

 

[happy medium]

You forgot paypal fees and the cost of shipping the card. The 260 would get maybe $110 right now. Take out paypal fees and shipping and he has about $95 left. On top of that he's assuming the risk he doesn't get scammed in the process of selling it. I'd do it but I'm also a guy who has had 3 different 470's, a 5850, and a 5870. For the money you can't do better than a 470.

Talk about getting technical? Solution 120$ plus shipping, Postal money order only.

All in all it adds to the price of the 3 choices I gave.

 

[edplayer]

Do you feel that if I spent $300 on a 3850, even overclocked it, that it's a worthwhile way to spend my money? I have no problems leaving the computer alone for now if I'm not getting my money's worth.

If I don't get a video card I'm going to get myself a new fishing pole.

I play at 1920x1200 and like my details cranked up. FPS is very smooth pretty much all the time. To the point where I never felt like checking it. Everything runs pretty darn good.

Honestly, for the most part I'm not dissatisfied with the performance I have now. I would like to be able to use Directx 11 in Dirt 2 though. I would like to be able to play any upcoming games for the next couple years.

Don't buy any videocard right now.

Your current card is still very good. Yes, you will get an improvement with some of the newer cards but I think that you will be dissatisfied with the amount spent and the improvement for that money.

The only thing that I would consider upgrading on your computer would be an SSD but I would consider that still not necessary (even though lots of SSD users love theirs).


Just get the fishing pole. You will probably enjoy that a LOT more than a slightly faster videocard.

 

[Wreckage]

Just get the fishing pole. You will probably enjoy that a LOT more than a slightly faster videocard.

Heh, I missed that option.

Get the fishing pole, just watch out for all those Shimano fanboys.

 

[zagood]

One thing that hasn't been mentioned is picking up an SSD. Won't do much for gaming, but it'll make just about everything else faster.

Get the fishing pole, just watch out for all those Shimano fanboys.

awesome.

 

[OILFIELDTRASH]

Talk about getting technical? Solution 120$ plus shipping, Postal money order only.

All in all it adds to the price of the 3 choices I gave.

Won't sell at that price. Not when I saw a 260 216 selling for $110 shipped. You're also assuming he has sold numerous items before because he's gonna have to have some pretty good selling feedback to get someone to send him a money order. They'll have no way to do anything if a seller just decides to keep the money and not send the part. At least with paypal you can file a dispute if someone rips you off.

 

[RussianSensation]

The third option is to sell the GTX 260 first, no idea what they're worth, and combine the money to have enough for a HD 5870

Sell the GTX260 for $100 and get a GTX460 1GB for $230. Overclocked, the GTX460 = GTX470 (which will be 50% faster than a 260 192 shader version). If you are not going to be overclocking, then you'd need to get a 5850 at least to make the upgrade is worthwhile. Unfortunately, I think buying a 5850 for $300 10 months after its release is not very wise (it's just poor value imo. Same thing for $370 5870s or $300 GTX470s). So if you don't plan on overclocking your CPU/GPU, I would advise you just sit on your system until next year (since you already mentioned that the games you play now run fast enough).

I can think of 2 intensive games coming out this year: Crysis 2 and Medal of Honor. You could always wait until they are released (prices should fall by then). It's unlikely that your videocard will fall much more from $100.

Your non-overclocked Q6600 @ 2.4ghz is going to be somewhat slow in some games. Even at 1920x1080 4AA, a stock Q6600 can seriously hold back a GTX470/5870.

Splinter Cell Conviction 1920x1080 4AA (32 fps vs. 49 for Core i7)
http://www.gamespot.com/features/6261472/p-5.html

Borderlands 1600x1200 (can't even get 50 fps average, 17 fps min....ouch)
http://www.techreport.com/articles.x/18799/6

Crysis Warhead 1920x1080 4AA (some cpu bottlenecking)
http://www.hardocp.com/article/2009/05/19/real_world_gameplay_cpu_scaling/4

Dirt 2 - you are good to go:
http://www.techreport.com/articles.x/18581/7

Of course the videocard is more important than the CPU at 1920x1200 4AA, but you should still consider overclocking your cpu to 3.4ghz or so to get most out of your upgrade.

If you aren't into overclocking, I would keep your parts until next year and then just upgrade the CPU and GPU.

 

[tincart]

I missed the best option. I too vote for the fishing pole.

It's been a great season for largemouth bass here. The old Ugly Stick has been getting a fair bit of use so far.

 

[3DVagabond]

I wasn't talking to you sorry. MY bad.

When you say wait a bit, what is a bit? A month, 2,3,4?

You quoted me. I can understand how you might have been thinking of the entire thread, though.

I said, "near future". While I think that's good enough for a general recommendation, I'm expecting price drops to be within a week or so of the full release of the GTX-460 1GB, assuming it has decent availability. I sure as hell wouldn't want to be an early adopter of the 460 considering the Palit SNAFU on the VRM heat sinks. I'd hold out a bit for independent verification the retail cards are actually on par with the early review samples. Not just a few forum threads that say, This card rocks!!! It o/c to 950 @ stock voltage and 1GHz @ 1.08V!!!

The 260 is a bit faster than you are giving it credit for. At least according to techpowerup. While you can argue the definitive nature of the review, it is pretty comprehensive in it's data.

http://www.techpowerup.com/reviews/Zotac/GeForce_GTX_460_1_GB/31.html

 

[happy medium]

Increase in performance over a GTX 260 is more like 30% give or take on the title. Considering his statement that he is happy with the performance in games he is playing, it sounds like a 30% improvement isn't going to do much to improve the experience.

There is no guarantee he will be able to sell the 260 for what you say.

It is up to his judgement, not yours, to decide what would be worth it for him. Of course, you're doling out the usual FUD to make that decision more difficult, but what's new?

Finally, you have absolutely no idea what the GPU market will look like nor what prices or performance will be a few months down the road and have absolutely no basis to suggest that the best value is available now. You are making things up. Again.

You missed the part about the OP wants to play dirext x 11 in Dirt 2?
The gtx460 will overclock 25% garaunteed as will the 5850.
No I made the decision easy and gave him 3 fair options.
What have you said ,wait till a refresh? Thats the worst option given him so far. You have no idea when the new cards are comming out or how much they are going to cost or how fast they will be! Nothing,but that is the advise you usually give ,NOTHING.
At least I know about prices now and give 3 options NOW.

Thread derailment and forced bad opinions is your specially. Keep it up.

 

[happy medium]

You quoted me. I can understand how you might have been thinking of the entire thread, though.

I said, "near future". While I think that's good enough for a general recommendation, I'm expecting price drops to be within a week or so of the full release of the GTX-460 1GB, assuming it has decent availability. I sure as hell wouldn't want to be an early adopter of the 460 considering the Zotac SNAFU on the VRM heat sinks. I'd hold out a bit for independent verification the retail cards are actually on par with the early review samples. Not just a few forum threads that say, This card rocks!!! It o/c to 950 @ stock voltage and 1GHz @ 1.08V!!!

The 260 is a bit faster than you are giving it credit for. At least according to techpowerup. While you can argue the definitive nature of the review, it is pretty comprehensive in it's data.

http://www.techpowerup.com/reviews/Zotac/GeForce_GTX_460_1_GB/31.html

I agree with you with the wait a few weeks part, I stated the same thing earlier.

IMHO Techreport sucks, there on par with Tomshardware.
I stick with top end unbiased reviews like ANANDS.

 

[3DVagabond]

I said you could argue the definitiveness of the review. You could do that with any review though. It doesn't counter the data. Maybe you could point out the bias in the charts, if that's your claim?

 

[tincart]

You missed the part about the OP wants to play dirext x 11 in Dirt 2?
The gtx460 will overclock 25% garaunteed as will the 5850.
No I made the decision easy and gave him 3 fair options.
What have you said ,wait till a refresh? Thats the worst option given him so far. You have no idea when the new cards are comming out or how much they are going to cost or how fast they will be! Nothing,but that is the advise you usually give ,NOTHING.
At least I know about prices now and give 3 options NOW.

The angrier you get, the worse your spelling and grammar get. It's a bit funny.

The GTX 260 will also overclock.

You ignored the fourth option, which I and many other posters have suggested: Wait. That option, despite your nV salesman routine, is still the most viable option and one of the possible options that the OP suggested himself. Given that he suggested that option, it doesn't appear to be the case that playing DX11 Dirt 2 is an overwhelming factor in whatever decision he chooses.

 

[happy medium]

To put it to you simpley, we could go on and on with many different review sites and get dfferent results.

Anandtech is the biggest and the best. Amd and Nvidea needs them, not like other smaller sites which bow down and jump when GPU makers shout. I've read reviews where ANAndtech has blasted both AMD and Nvidia. Most other sites seem to pick who they will blast Amd OR Nvidia, rarely if ever both. They are chosing a side.

What better benches to give then from the forum YOU belong to.

I dont want to derail the thread so I will stop. Mabe I'll make a thread about review accountablilty and trust and why reviews are so undefined nowadays. The reviews just never match up anymore. agree?