Hi Everyone,
I'm at a crossroad when it comes to a videocard upgrade. I recently update my machine (2500k, P8Z68-V Pro, 8GB Ripjaws, Corsair 750w PSU) and kept my old 4870 512MB, hoping to upgrade when the new generation launches. Well I've been playing the BF3 Beta and the 4870 just can't keep up. I usually run a resolution of 1680x1050 but to get acceptable performance I needed to turn down the resolution to 1280x 720 along with all settings on low. It really didn't look all that great, but at least things ran a bit smoother. This led to me thinking that maybe I should upgrade a bit sooner.
Now, here's my understanding of the upcoming generation. As far a I know, AMD was supposed to launch this year, but this has been delayed. They were going to launch parts which have the performance of the current 6950/6970 cards but at a lower price point, more towards how the 6850/6870 are currently priced. Afterwards they would be launching higher performing parts. I haven't followed Nvidia's new line because I thought it to be too far off.
And so here's my dilemma. I'm stuck between between the following choices:
1. Keep my current card, deal with having mediocre performance in BF3, and wait until the next generation is available and upgrade then.
2. Purchase either a 6970 or a GTX570, whichever I can find for a better price. (I'm a bit more partial to AMD cards, but that's just because this 4870 has lasted me for so long)
3. Based on Anandtech Bench, I could buy 2 6850s and run them in crossfire for better performance than the 570 or 6970. The price here would be about the same. ($150 each for the 6850s, and about 340 for the 570/6970) The only thing here that worries me is some of the issues associated with running crossfire, my main concern being "microstutter" that I've heard about. Is this really such a large issue? I've read the Tom's Hardware article on the subject, and it seems that only when the framerate dips does this issue become very apparent.
4. Whatever else you guys might be able to suggest. Based on Tom's Hardware, running two 560s in SLI offer pretty good performance as well.
Cliffs:
- New system, using old 4870 512MB
- Wait to upgrade, or go with a 570/6970 or run a dual 6850s/560s
- Open to suggestions
- Purchasing in Canada
Thanks in advance.
I'm at a crossroad when it comes to a videocard upgrade. I recently update my machine (2500k, P8Z68-V Pro, 8GB Ripjaws, Corsair 750w PSU) and kept my old 4870 512MB, hoping to upgrade when the new generation launches. Well I've been playing the BF3 Beta and the 4870 just can't keep up. I usually run a resolution of 1680x1050 but to get acceptable performance I needed to turn down the resolution to 1280x 720 along with all settings on low. It really didn't look all that great, but at least things ran a bit smoother. This led to me thinking that maybe I should upgrade a bit sooner.
Now, here's my understanding of the upcoming generation. As far a I know, AMD was supposed to launch this year, but this has been delayed. They were going to launch parts which have the performance of the current 6950/6970 cards but at a lower price point, more towards how the 6850/6870 are currently priced. Afterwards they would be launching higher performing parts. I haven't followed Nvidia's new line because I thought it to be too far off.
And so here's my dilemma. I'm stuck between between the following choices:
1. Keep my current card, deal with having mediocre performance in BF3, and wait until the next generation is available and upgrade then.
2. Purchase either a 6970 or a GTX570, whichever I can find for a better price. (I'm a bit more partial to AMD cards, but that's just because this 4870 has lasted me for so long)
3. Based on Anandtech Bench, I could buy 2 6850s and run them in crossfire for better performance than the 570 or 6970. The price here would be about the same. ($150 each for the 6850s, and about 340 for the 570/6970) The only thing here that worries me is some of the issues associated with running crossfire, my main concern being "microstutter" that I've heard about. Is this really such a large issue? I've read the Tom's Hardware article on the subject, and it seems that only when the framerate dips does this issue become very apparent.
4. Whatever else you guys might be able to suggest. Based on Tom's Hardware, running two 560s in SLI offer pretty good performance as well.
Cliffs:
- New system, using old 4870 512MB
- Wait to upgrade, or go with a 570/6970 or run a dual 6850s/560s
- Open to suggestions
- Purchasing in Canada
Thanks in advance.
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