Nvidia 560ti vs ATI 6950

[dabench]

I want to upgrade my current ATI 5770. I've been done research and I'm lost between the Nvidia 560ti and ATI 6950. Half the reviews I've read show the 560ti significantly faster and the other half show the 6950 significantly faster. So what's the "true" story. Is the 560ti better or the 6950? Is there another model from either ATI or Nvidia that is only $20 to $40 more? I'm a little partial to Nvidia but as you can see because I currently own an Ati card I won't rule them out.

Thanks

 

[RussianSensation]

1. What is your monitor resolution? Are you using 1 monitor only?
2. What is your CPU?
3. What games do you play?
4. Do you care for CUDA, PhysX or MLAA antialiasing in games like Borderlands and Mass Effect 2 that don't officially support AA?
5. Is CrossFire an option on your motherboard/PSU? (That's the cheapest way to get near GTX560/6950 performance for $100).
6. Would you consider overclocking or only out of the box performance?

GTX560 ti vs. HD6950 - Review 1, Review 2

 

[happy medium]

We need your system specs to help you.

edit: Russian also a step faster than me.

 

[dabench]

Running 1600x900

Don't want to mess with crossfire or sli.
No particular games, any and all.

Specs
core i7 920 sometimes overclocked to 3.2ghz if I feel I need more cpu power but usually run at default speeds.
6 gigs ram
Windows vista

 

[teatime0315]

Running 1600x900

Don't want to mess with crossfire or sli.
No particular games, any and all.

Specs
core i7 920 sometimes overclocked to 3.2ghz if I feel I need more cpu power but usually run at default speeds.
6 gigs ram
Windows vista

lolwut. 1600x900

dunno if you can even notice the difference between those cards.

 

[dabench]

lolwut. 1600x900

dunno if you can even notice the difference between those cards.

Again not according to the reviews. At that or close resolution its 50/50 for both cards.

 

[notty22]

You might want to base your buy on what you can get the best deal on then. Either that or what games you play, to give either card the edge.

 

[happy medium]

You might want to base your buy on what you can get the best deal on then. Either that or what games you play, to give either card the edge.

I agree, buy whichever is cheaper.

 

[Arkaign]

This is what you call a win/win situation. Both are awesome cards and damned good value for $$. I might lean 2GB 6950 (I'm biased, just bought one) if you think at some point you will buy a monitor capable of a notably higher resolution. I'm running 1920x1200, so it's kind of borderline with today's games to even find something that can use more than 1GB VRAM.

I do know that unlocking some 6950s is possible, and that overclocking 560ti to ~570 level is common.

 

[RussianSensation]

If you don't mind overclocking and the extra power consumption that will come out of it vs. the 6950, I'd lean towards the GTX560.

These are my reasons:

1) At your resolution, 2GB of Ram won't be beneficial
2) 6950s don't have a lot of overclocking room
3) 6950 2GB that unlock are MIA, or command a price premium above $230
4) GTX560 TI @ 950mhz is as fast as a GTX570 (and since #3 is not an option, you can't really get a 6950 1GB to be as fast as a 570).
5) NV does better in Civ5, Crysis 2, Starcraft 2 (some key games you may play). Obviously if you play F1 2010 or Dragon Age II, I would lean towards AMD. Moreso, NV performs better at lower resolutions (but your CPU would need to be overclocked to get the most of that since NV cards are more CPU dependent).
6) Some excellent 560s are available with aftermarket coolers, or you can go with EVGA for their premium lifetime warranty and 90-day step-up.

All in all, there are some excellent bundles to be had if you look hard enough. For instance, MSI Hawk @ 950mhz with a Hawx2, Just Cause 2, Mafia 2, nba2k11, 3dmark11 for $233.

That's GTX570 performance with a bunch of software for $30 more than a 6950 1GB. If you don't care for any of that, just pick whichever card you can find cheaper for $200.

 

[mosox]

For your resolution keep your card. In the fall the new AMD 7 series will be out and hopefully you will be able to buy one of those (or a cheaper GTX560, the prices will go down) and a full HD monitor ($450 for both).

 

[3DVagabond]

lolwut. 1600x900

dunno if you can even notice the difference between those cards.

I don't know if there's any noticeable difference between them regardless unless you run res and AA to the point that the 560ti runs out of RAM (assuming the 2gig 6950) or you use a game with PhysX.

I also wouldn't buy the cheapest 560ti or 6950. I'd spend a bit more to get the best 560ti or 6950. Better quieter cooling and premium components are worth the extra 10% or so they cost.

 

[dabench]

If you don't mind overclocking and the extra power consumption that will come out of it vs. the 6950, I'd lean towards the GTX560.

These are my reasons:

1) At your resolution, 2GB of Ram won't be beneficial
2) 6950s don't have a lot of overclocking room
3) 6950 2GB that unlock are MIA, or command a price premium above $230
4) GTX560 @ 950mhz is as fast as a GTX570 (and since #3 is not an option, you can't really get a 6950 1GB to be as fast as a 570).
5) NV does better in Civ5, Crysis 2, Starcraft 2 (some key games you may play). Obviously if you play F1 2010 or Dragon Age II, I would lean towards AMD. Moreso, NV performs better at lower resolutions (but your CPU would need to be overclocked to get the most of that since NV cards are more CPU dependent).
6) Some excellent 560s are available with aftermarket coolers, or you can go with EVGA for their premium lifetime warranty and 90-day step-up.

All in all, there are some excellent bundles to be had if you look hard enough. For instance, MSI Hawk @ 950mhz with a Hawx2, Just Cause 2, Mafia 2, nba2k11, 3dmark11 for $233.

That's GTX570 performance with a bunch of software for $30 more than a 6950 1GB. If you don't care for any of that, just pick whichever card you can find cheaper for $200.

I'm not planning to buy the 2gig model because all the reviews I've seen show < 1% difference between the two.

For your resolution keep your card. In the fall the new AMD 7 series will be out and hopefully you will be able to buy one of those (or a cheaper GTX560, the prices will go down) and a full HD monitor ($450 for both).

Thanks, but I could say the same thing in the fall, why don't I wait until Winter for Christmas specials. No point in waiting.

I don't know if there's any noticeable difference between them regardless unless you run res and AA to the point that the 560ti runs out of RAM (assuming the 2gig 6950) or you use a game with PhysX.

I also wouldn't buy the cheapest 560ti or 6950. I'd spend a bit more to get the best 560ti or 6950. Better quieter cooling and premium components are worth the extra 10% or so they cost.

Thanks, like said in first quote only looking at 1gig model. Is there really that big of a difference between the cheaper and more expensive models. It's been my experience ,15 + video cards in the last 7 years, that there is virtually no difference between the brands. Is something different this time around?

 

[Pantalaimon]

The extra 1 gig doesn't matter if you don't have any plan in upgrading your monitor and resolution soon. If you do, it might be worth getting the 2 gig version now, instead of getting frustrated about the lack of memory later.

 

[dabench]

If you don't mind overclocking and the extra power consumption that will come out of it vs. the 6950, I'd lean towards the GTX560.

These are my reasons:

1) At your resolution, 2GB of Ram won't be beneficial
2) 6950s don't have a lot of overclocking room
3) 6950 2GB that unlock are MIA, or command a price premium above $230
4) GTX560 @ 950mhz is as fast as a GTX570 (and since #3 is not an option, you can't really get a 6950 1GB to be as fast as a 570).
5) NV does better in Civ5, Crysis 2, Starcraft 2 (some key games you may play). Obviously if you play F1 2010 or Dragon Age II, I would lean towards AMD. Moreso, NV performs better at lower resolutions (but your CPU would need to be overclocked to get the most of that since NV cards are more CPU dependent).
6) Some excellent 560s are available with aftermarket coolers, or you can go with EVGA for their premium lifetime warranty and 90-day step-up.

All in all, there are some excellent bundles to be had if you look hard enough. For instance, MSI Hawk @ 950mhz with a Hawx2, Just Cause 2, Mafia 2, nba2k11, 3dmark11 for $233.

That's GTX570 performance with a bunch of software for $30 more than a 6950 1GB. If you don't care for any of that, just pick whichever card you can find cheaper for $200.

Is NCIXUS the only place bundling the games?

 

[RussianSensation]

Is NCIXUS the only place bundling the games?

I haven't seen other places bundling games at this time. Although I can't say definitively that it's the only place in the world. ^_^

 

[crisium]

Now that the regular GTX 560 is out, could you guys make an effort to type "GTX 560 Ti" when you mean the Ti version? You don't want to take a chance of confusing people who suddenly hear that that much cheaper GTX 560 performs the same as the 6950... when it's really the GTX 560 Ti you are referring to.

It's not just this thread nor simply Russian who is doing this, but I wanted to point it out here. They are two different cards at two different price points and you have to treat them as such or else you are spreading misinformation.

 

[RussianSensation]

Update: crisium, thanks for pointing this out. Will definitely keep that in mind for future posts! When i was making most posts, the 560 wasn't launched yet.

Here are some more options I found:

Open box 6950 1GB with non-reference cooling for $180.

Galaxy GTX560 Ti with non-reference cooling for $200 (after rebate + shipping).

This Galaxy card is a great overclocker: http://www.hardocp.com/article/2011/02/01/galaxy_geforce_gtx_560_ti_gc_overclocking_review

 

[dabench]

I'm going to base my decision on which card and manufacturer have the best bundle. I'm primarily concerned with the game bundles. The only card I see that comes with a game is the Crysis edition of evga 560 ti super clocked but it costs $50 more so it's really not a "freebie" bundle.

 

[ViRGE]

I'm going to base my decision on which card and manufacturer have the best bundle. I'm primarily concerned with the game bundles. The only card I see that comes with a game is the Crysis edition of evga 560 ti super clocked but it costs $50 more so it's really not a "freebie" bundle.

Zotac should still be giving away Assassin's Creed: Brotherhood with some of their GTX 560 Tis.

 

[dabench]

I think I've narrowed it down to either the EVGA GeForce GTX 560 Ti DS Superclocked or N560GTX TI TWIN FROZR II OC. I'm leaning towards the MSI. Any plus or minuses for either?

 

[Dark Shroud]

The MSI card has a better cooler.

 

[Arachnotronic]

I've built a number of machines with the Twin Frozr series and they work like champs. Although I'm sure the eVga card is great, too (just have no first hand experience).

 

[StrangerGuy]

I won't suggest the Twin Frozrs...Great cooling but the heatsinks grow red rust only after a year. Firsthand experience with the 5770 Hawk.

 

[Makaveli]

grow red rust only after a year

Can you expand on this ??