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HD4870X2 - Where's it rank against modern cards? What beats it?

MichaelD

MichaelD

Lifer
I have a HD4870X2. It runs hot, it's noisy but it's been a killer GPU. :biggrin: I'm debating building a new gaming rig (I game at 19x12 and like eye candy) and am wondering if I should carry over this card to the new system or buy a new one. I'm looking only at a single card solution.

I've been out of the GPU loop for a few years and have no idea what card would beat the HD4870X2 (or give equivalent performance with less power usage/noise/heat). I'd appreciate some info/suggestions. Thanks!
 
If you are looking only at single card solutions then you really only have 2 options if you want to buy today. A 5970 or a 480. Both of which are not exactly much of an upgrade.

Honestly though unless you really want DX 11 today i would wait 3 months and see what happens with the new high end ATI 6000 series and if Nvidia gets there crap together by then to counter it.
 
Thanks, Rifterut. I never wanted to try dual-GPU XFire due to all the issues I saw people having. I've had no problems ever with this dual-GPU card. I did a little bit of surfing and discovered the HD5970. It sure looks like it would beat my card to a pulp, but for $650 it had better!
 
Are all 4870x2's 1GB? OP, unless you are having Crossfire issues I would stick with what you have. There are faster parts out there, but you'd have to go pretty high end to see a good size increase in performance. If your board does SLI two GTX460's should be faster (though I don't know if it'd be faster enough to warrant an upgrade). But with new Radeon 6xxx series coming in a few months, and you having a pretty fast card it may be worth waiting.

I generally don't recommend waiting (there is always something new coming it seems). But in this case, you have a fast part and new hardware is right around the corner.
 
I am going to echo the "wait for the 6xxx series" crowd. Speculated 6870 performance will be better than a 4870x2 with a single GPU. Wait for some reviews, the 4870x2 isn't going to go obsolete any time soon.
 
Wait till the 68XX series hit and then look at your options. I'd suggest going with a single GPU though. I had a 4870X2, It was a great card- I never had any 'problems' per say and while I used it I got used to the microstutter to the point where I didn't notice it. When I moved back to single GPU the difference was like night and day however. I'll never go dual GPU again anytime soon because I didn't realise how much smoother games could be compared to multi-GPU. Yes, you may get higher framerates but the MS is there always and simply not worth it IMO.
 
Wow, great replies! Thanks a lot, everyone. I never notice any microstutter with my setup/card. It's probably there but I don't see it. Then again, I've had this card for 3 years now...maybe it's there and I just don't see it?

The 4870X2 is indeed a fast card; I paid $550 for it three years ago...that hurt for sure, but I've really gotten my money out of it. I will read up on the upcoming 6xxx series cards. Thanks again. 🙂
 
I had a 4870x2 prior to my 5870 and can attest to it's strength & prowess. Stick w/ your card until the new ati cards show-up. 🙂
 
SlowSpyder said:
Are all 4870x2's 1GB? OP, unless you are having Crossfire issues I would stick with what you have. There are faster parts out there, but you'd have to go pretty high end to see a good size increase in performance. If your board does SLI two GTX460's should be faster (though I don't know if it'd be faster enough to warrant an upgrade). But with new Radeon 6xxx series coming in a few months, and you having a pretty fast card it may be worth waiting.
Click to expand...

All the HD 4870X2 comes with 1GB per GPU (There's some strange versions floating around that comes with 2GB per GPU I think, not very sure), I think that a GTX 470 SLI would offer him twice the performance of what he has, the GTX 460 single can't outperform the HD 5850 which is slower than the HD 4870X2, so having two GTX 460 SLI will be a performance boost, but not something to impress.

http://www.anandtech.com/bench/Product/174?vs=181

MichaelD said:
Wow, great replies! Thanks a lot, everyone. I never notice any microstutter with my setup/card. It's probably there but I don't see it. Then again, I've had this card for 3 years now...maybe it's there and I just don't see it?

The 4870X2 is indeed a fast card; I paid $550 for it three years ago...that hurt for sure, but I've really gotten my money out of it. I will read up on the upcoming 6xxx series cards. Thanks again. 🙂
Click to expand...

The HD 4870X2 is usually slightly faster than a single HD 5870, a real upgrade from such card would be an HD 5970 or a pair of GTX 460 1GB and none of those would offer you twice the performance, wait for the HD 6870. 🙂
 
Yep, I'm in waiting mode for sure. Wow...it HAS been only two years! Seems like longer. I think it's because I've never had a system this long w/o changing anything in it. LOL! I've got mid-line videocards stretching back 6-8 years...they're all worth nothing now. But maybe in 20 years they'll be collectible like the 3DFX cards. 🙂
 
I have my old 4870x2 regulated to my HTPC/lanbox. It's a great card and I got a great price for it years ago. It matches up to a single 5870 pretty well still and costs about the same. Only thing it lacks against the 5870 is dx11 and the fact it draws more power.

When the 6870 is released, I'll finally sell the 4870x2 out and one of the 5870's I have. I'll drop a single 5870 into the htpc rig and update the main rig with 2x 6870's.
 
+1 for waiting for 6 series. gtx 480 isn't much of an upgrade at all. I'm unsure of amd's naming scheme this round, but rumors are swirling right now about potential performance. wait at least for that in 45 days or so, hopefully they'll have a full release schedule including a dual gpu monster that would truly be a fit upgrade for that 4870x2.
 
MichaelD said:
I have a HD4870X2. It runs hot, it's noisy but it's been a killer GPU. :biggrin: I'm debating building a new gaming rig (I game at 19x12 and like eye candy) and am wondering if I should carry over this card to the new system or buy a new one. I'm looking only at a single card solution.
Click to expand...

The only single card performance upgrade (not side-grade like a 5870 or a GTX480) is a 5970. Given its ridiculous price of $600+, and the impeding launch of HD6000 series, I would suggest you carry over the 4870x2 for now. Once 6870 or faster cards are released, you can reevaluate your options.
 
It seems that for once, my timing is good. Like I said, I've been out of the loop on GPUs (and new PC tech in general) for a couple of years. My last new motherboard was an Abit IP35 Pro! That's ancient-tech these days. 😱 So, the 6xxx series comes out in a few weeks. Combine the initial price-gouging with the holiday season and that means Jan-Feb is the time to buy. See? I'm out of the loop, but I still know the game. LOL!
 
The 4870x2 is a great card. I foolishly had one and sold it to "upgrade"... sort of a mistake from a financial point of view... I would definitely wait until the next round of ATI-er now AMD cards comes out. There really isn't much game-wise that humbles a 4870x2 even now. Keep your cash for a while.
 
MichaelD said:
It seems that for once, my timing is good. Like I said, I've been out of the loop on GPUs (and new PC tech in general) for a couple of years. My last new motherboard was an Abit IP35 Pro! That's ancient-tech these days. 😱 So, the 6xxx series comes out in a few weeks. Combine the initial price-gouging with the holiday season and that means Jan-Feb is the time to buy. See? I'm out of the loop, but I still know the game. LOL!
Click to expand...


Every now and then a piece of hardware really justifies it's price. I imagine those who payed a premium for a C2D Q6600 and an 8800GTX could have gotten a good 2-3 years out of both of those happily. Hell, an overclocked Q6600 probably still have plenty of oomph for most tasks. My PhII @ 3.6 is probably pretty close in speed to one of those when overclocked. The 8800 would certainly be behind the times today, but it would have held it's own for a while. The 4870x2 (and I would imagine the GTX295 and 4850x2) are like that, they're not the fastest today, but still should provide a plenty good gaming experience.
 
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