From ATI to Nvidia - Choosing GPU to Replace Radeon HD 4850 x2 (crossfire)

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IceBoy109

Member
Feb 28, 2011
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SOLD!

As soon as I can get 2 from Amazon these will be my new cards of choice!

Thanks again!

I had no luck finding how loud these cards are in comparison to my 4850s in crossfire, but I'm hoping that since they run so much cooler, that they will also have their fans at a lower and quieter RPM. Based on the few reviews i found on NewEgg (and none on Amazon) I'm a little hesitant to go with the Galaxy version.

On the other hand, the EVGA version with its lifetime warranty is supposed to be annoyingly loud. It seems even after being content with the cards I will get, I still need to research some more. :p
 
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IceBoy109

Member
Feb 28, 2011
68
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Figures - i found the 460s that are rated to be super quiet (gigabyte branding) and of course, there are no rebates through Amazon and are only available from an Amazon merchant located in CA or NewEgg (California too)...so no Amazon free shipping, and whether I buy it from Amazon or Newegg I'm paying tax and shipping. Go figure the ones I'd want are the most expensive. bah!

There is a rebate on the Newegg site...but it expires in a half hour. I don't know how common GPU rebates are! Should I hold out for a rebate for March? I know when I was looking at Motherboards it was like a new rebate came out every month.
 
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3DVagabond

Lifer
Aug 10, 2009
11,951
204
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Why are we comparing 460x2 to the 6950? The OP doesn't want one.

And if we must compare them don't leave out the fact that the 6950 is cheaper and is a single GPU solution, with all of those benefits. Lower power, no SLI/Crossfire scaling worries, and has 2gig of RAM for higher res gaming. They both can O/C but the 460 can't be unlocked to a 560.

Now, back on topic. What's the best 3 monitor performance from nVidia for $250.00?
 
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3DVagabond

Lifer
Aug 10, 2009
11,951
204
106
IceBoy109 said:
Figures - i found the 460s that are rated to be super quiet (gigabyte branding) and of course, there are no rebates through Amazon and are only available from an Amazon merchant located in CA or NewEgg (California too)...so no Amazon free shipping, and whether I buy it from Amazon or Newegg I'm paying tax and shipping. Go figure the ones I'd want are the most expensive. bah!

There is a rebate on the Newegg site...but it expires in a half hour. I don't know how common GPU rebates are! Should I hold out for a rebate for March? I know when I was looking at Motherboards it was like a new rebate came out every month.
Click to expand...

Can you claim rebates for both cards? Aren't most one per household?
 
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IceBoy109

Member
Feb 28, 2011
68
0
66
3DVagabond said:
Why are we comparing 460x2 to the 6950? The OP doesn't want one.

And if we must compare them don't leave out the fact that the 6950 is cheaper and is a single GPU solution, with all of those benefits. Lower power, no SLI/Crossfire scaling worries, and has 2gig of RAM for higher res gaming. They both can O/C but the 460 can't be unlocked to a 560.

Now, back on topic. What's the best 3 monitor performance from nVidia for $250.00?
Click to expand...

Thanks for the info 3DVagabond. $250 was just a number I used for a starting point. I didn't/don't really know enough about the new cards to see how they would compare to my current setup to know what would be a cost effective replacement. One of the reasons that I'm even considering NVIDIA is because it's the only found solution to being able to control the fans and lights on my computer. (Has to do with a Dell Master Control Board compatibility with any replacement motherboard...in my case a Big Bang XPower).

I'm currently setup with a Crossfire setup, so I'm not too concerned about power as I'm pretty sure the 460s take up less juice and run cooler than my current 4850s. (Although, I'm not certain, since in looking at pictures they seem to have more power ports than my 4850s)

I just read up on the 6950 being able to be unlocked to a higher end card that is physically identical. I thought that was pretty neat and definitely noteworthy. However, if for what seems to be $60 more (after rebates), I can get a little more oomph out of an sli 460 setup, get control of my lights/fans, and still have control over my three monitors...I don't mind the difference in price.

The trouble I'm facing now, is that the only 460 card I'm really okay with (due to noise) is one that isn't really priced as well as I'd like. If I've missed out on the rebates that end tonight from NewEgg and nothing better comes out, I might still have to go with the 6950 and lose out on the opportunity of controlling my case lights.

Again, thanks for your input. The 6950 is definitely still on my list of considerations, but I have no problem hearing what others may suggest based on my rig and what I'm trying to accomplish.

For the record...if I had to set a price cap...I'd say around $300...and that's why tax and shipping is sort of kicking my arse right now. :'(
 
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3DVagabond

Lifer
Aug 10, 2009
11,951
204
106
IceBoy109 said:
Well, had I planned in advance, I have no problem creating an account on NewEgg for my girlfriend and using a prepaid AMEX card. ;)
Click to expand...

Create an acct. for your girlfriend!!!! :eek: Look, it might seem safe, because she's a chick and what damage could she possibly do from a place like Newegg. Trust me though, no kind of shopping acct. is truly safe in the hands of a woman. ;)

Seriously, good plan. Sometimes I really hate the fact that I am solely lacking in deviousity. :'( (Just coined a new word. It's the ability to be devious.)
 
Keysplayr

Keysplayr

Elite Member
Jan 16, 2003
21,211
50
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3DVagabond said:
Create an acct. for your girlfriend!!!! :eek: Look, it might seem safe, because she's a chick and what damage could she possibly do from a place like Newegg. Trust me though, no kind of shopping acct. is truly safe in the hands of a woman. ;)

Seriously, good plan. Sometimes I really hate the fact that I am solely lacking in deviousity. :'( (Just coined a new word. It's the ability to be devious.)
Click to expand...

I don't know man. That suggestion came pretty smoothly from you. My instinct tells me you are no stranger to deviosity. ():)
 
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IceBoy109

Member
Feb 28, 2011
68
0
66
Well, I got lucky and there are rebates available for March through NewEgg for the Gigabyte GTX 460s I've been looking at. Supposedly they are the most quiet over any other version. I was just looking for some quick clarification though.

AR Prices:

$169.99 - GIGABYTE GV-N460OC-1GI GeForce GTX 460 (Fermi) 1GB 256-bit GDDR5 PCI Express 2.0 x16 HDCP Ready SLI Support Video Card

$179.99 - GIGABYTE Ultra Durable VGA Series GV-N460OC2-1GI GeForce GTX 460 (Fermi) 1GB 256-bit GDDR5 PCI Express 2.0 x16 HDCP Ready SLI Support Video Card

$189.99 - GIGABYTE Super Overclock Series GV-N460SO-1GI GeForce GTX 460 (Fermi) 1GB 256-bit GDDR5 PCI Express 2.0 x16 HDCP Ready SLI Support Video Card

The only difference between these cards seem to be that they come overclocked, right? The Priciest one has an OC Tuner, but if overclocking manually, is there really any advantage to one of these cards over the other?

I'm a little concerned with the number of people who have issues with the $169.99 version. 31% of the buyers rated it at 3 eggs or less and based on what I read, a lot of it had to quality issues. It makes me really want to consider the EVGA lifetime warranty version (176.99 AR), but supposedly it's loud as hell. bah! Again, just reaching out for opinions or experiences that relate to my concerns.

My possibly faulty logic has me leaning towards the $179.99 Ultra Durable version which I hope is a little more reliable/durable than the $169.99 version while not running as hot/loud as the one that is most overclocked.
 
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96Firebird

Diamond Member
Nov 8, 2010
5,738
334
126
I have the $169.99 one, and I haven't had any problems with it... OC'd to 850MHz/2000MHz and running that way since October. You get a 3-year warranty, which is still pretty long when it comes to video cards. The only problem I've heard with this card is the VRM's get hot, but I haven't noticed anything, never really checked to be honest. Its really up to you to decide how much you want to spend...
 
Nemesis 1

Nemesis 1

Lifer
Dec 30, 2006
11,366
2
0
Are you guys ready for this . I just bought a 580nv . Ya you heard it right . Will someone please help keys up from the floor.
 
RussianSensation

RussianSensation

Elite Member
Sep 5, 2003
19,458
765
126
Nemesis 1 said:
Are you guys ready for this . I just bought a 580nv . Ya you heard it right . Will someone please help keys up from the floor.
Click to expand...

:thumbsup: Congrats. NV's Q2 financial results will reflect nice profit margins :p

Awesome card, but why didn't you wait for HD6990 to be released? What if it's $599-649?
 
Grooveriding

Grooveriding

Diamond Member
Dec 25, 2008
9,147
1,329
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RussianSensation said:
:thumbsup: Congrats. NV's Q2 financial results will reflect nice profit margins :p

Awesome card, but why didn't you wait for HD6990 to be released? What if it's $599-649?
Click to expand...


amd_radeon_hd6990_030111_02.jpg


():)
 
tweakboy

tweakboy

Diamond Member
Jan 3, 2010
9,517
2
81
www.hammiestudios.com
Get whats already on the system which is ATI or else your gonna run into problems with the geforce since it wil get confused that ATI was there before and not perform up to par.

Grab a 6850 call it a night...:':)thumbsup:
 
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Soundmanred

Lifer
Oct 26, 2006
10,780
6
81
tweakboy said:
Get whats already on the system which is ATI or else your gonna run into problems with the geforce since it wil get confused that ATI was there before and not perform up to par.
Click to expand...

Dumbest thing I've heard today, and I watched Fox News.
:thumbsdown:
 
Synomenon

Synomenon

Lifer
Dec 25, 2004
10,547
6
81
IceBoy109 said:
Looks like I may have found the answer in the Eyefinity FAQ:



Well...I'm looking to switch to nVidia anyway...maybe they have a better solution?
Click to expand...
I'm running three monitors off of a HD6950. I have run three monitors (each with its own, different resolution) off of a 6950. It just works. I couldn't do that with any NVIDIA card except for that Palit linked to somewhere above.
 
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IceBoy109

Member
Feb 28, 2011
68
0
66
Soundmanred said:
Dumbest thing I've heard today, and I watched Fox News.
:thumbsdown:
Click to expand...

Informative, and funny. As long as I uninstall all my ATI drivers, I won't have a problem switching will I? I've only used ATI up until now so I'm more curious than anything else. Even if there are some bumps along the way, I'd like to make the switch for the control panel purposes I explained earlier. Thanks.
 
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