eVGA GTX 260 - $269

[imported_cinder]

eVGA GTX 260

$299.99 up front - $30 MIR = $269.99

Not bad if ya ask me!

 

[IEC]

http://www.anandtech.com/video/showdoc.aspx?i=3341&p=13

4850 or 4870 are the winners in the $150-$300 bracket.

 

[DaveSimmons]

This is a good deal if you prefer nvidia or don't want to deal with the fan control issues for the 4850/4870.

My 4870 is working great (if a bit loud) but if the 260 had been priced this low a couple of weeks ago I might have bought it instead.

 

[IEC]

Fan control "issues" are a simple fix...

 

[Raider1284]

the fan issue is just fanboyism. Almost every card with a single slot cooler has the "fan issue". Very hard to cool a powerful card with a tiny heatsink, so they just crank up the airflow/noise to make up for it. The NVIDIA 8800gt had the exact same issue. Better not get an nvidia card either i guess, its got "the fan issue" as well.

 

[KeypoX]

Originally posted by: Raider1284
the fan issue is just fanboyism. Almost every card with a single slot cooler has the "fan issue". Very hard to cool a powerful card with a tiny heatsink, so they just crank up the airflow/noise to make up for it. The NVIDIA 8800gt had the exact same issue. Better not get an nvidia card either i guess, its got "the fan issue" as well.

No my 8800gt runs cool and quiet (hehe name of AMD's technology) and has no fan issue. Though the better buy is the 4850 for sure. I don't think bad design is the cliche you mention.

 

[imported_cinder]

nVidia drivers FTW.

 

[IEC]

Originally posted by: cinder
nVidia drivers FTW.

Can nVidia do 8-channel audio over HDMI?

*crickets*

ATI drivers are just as good these days. Though if you're talking about Linux support the story changes a little

 

[ericlp]

http://en.expreview.com/2008/0...d-4870-and-hd-4850/16/

if you look at the specs the 260 is pretty much on the same level as the 4870 and spanks the 4850 by 15-20%.

Tho, I guess if you not a Cutting Edge gamer then maybe the saving 100 bucks on a 4850 is for you. On the other hand, if your planning on playing crysis on you 24" panel and want the settings looking good your definitely better off splurging for a 260 card.

That is my take.

On the other hand if you can get a 4870 this cheap I'd opt for that since I think the card has not been fully optimized yet and the specs just look better tho, it's a bit worry-some when the GPU hits 90C - 100C. When we test with FurMark, GPU temp climbs up fast, almost reach 100C, quite terrible. Also the fan speed begin to raise up, when it going to 50% the noise level is already very high.

Stock cooler is more like a stock cooker. Can anyone say aftermarket cooler. I'm not liking the cooler (cooker) fan setup on these next gen cards at all.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/...258&CMP=AFC-C8Junction

You could get this for 5 bucks more I guess... It's really a toss up...

 

[nycdude]

very sweet

 

[imported_cinder]

Originally posted by: Spartan Niner

Can nVidia do 8-channel audio over HDMI?

*crickets*

ATI drivers are just as good these days. Though if you're talking about Linux support the story changes a little

Well, when I buy a graphics card, I intend to have the graphics function properly and I'm not too concerned how the audio fairs. Especially considering I am connected through DVI anyways. When I decide to make this computer a Home Theater PC maybe I will be more worried about HDMI audio.