replacing my 7950 this year

[Blue Shift]

Yeah, that's right, I did just say that. No, I didn't buy it used. Yes, I'll be looking at high-end cards. Yes, I've been following the 5xxx/Fermi saga. Yes, there's still a working 7950gt, and it can run Crysis.

I've been sitting on this decision for a while now, and have posted a similar topic on a different forum (a few months ago). I'll go ahead and quote it, then add some more info below the quote.

Background

I'm running a PC that I normally do rolling upgrades on in order to stay up-to-date. I've got a strangely long-lived geforce 7950gt (3 years old), an Athlon64 5000+ X2 (1 year old), AND 4GB PC6400 RAM. I'm gaming on a 1440x900 display.


Situation

This year, I've purchased several of the major releases; namely Fallout 3,Prototype, Overlord II, Red Faction: Guerrilla, Borderlands, and Dragon Age: Origins. I can get 30fps in most of them at max settings, except for Guerrilla which needs to have the effects turned down a bit. That much is good.

At the same time, Anti-Aliasing appears to be going out of style, and games are beginning to look like shit at low resolutions. Take Borderlands, for example: The black outline around objects has a minimum thickness of a couple pixels, and has a ton of staircasing even with AAx4. I can't always use AA in some games (Prototype, Fallout 3), and the shadows are ridiculously messed up in others (Overlord II, RF:G, Prototype). I believe that this is because I'm not running directX 10.

Two paragraphs up, I lied. GTA IV, Prototype, and RF:G all either look like someone took a crap on my monitor or run as if the same happened to the inside of my computer, depending on the settings. Sometimes both.


Dilemma

A new video card, I can stomach. $200 isn't THAT bad. If I got a new video card however, a lot of those games (the three problem ones in the above paragraph, to be specific) would still look like shit because of the resolution that I'm playing them at. A nice, big monitor would run me $200. According to Tom's Hardware, processor speed starts to matter a lot more when screen resolution cranks up... That could potentially mean another $150.

If I'm reading the signs right, then my system of rolling upgrades has failed. I hit the sweet spot (which I calibrated for Oblivion) so well that switching out any one component won't clear a bottleneck; it'll create one. And all for what; so that I can play some crap game that I just wasted $50 on and probably won't still be interested in at the end of the month? For a poorly optimized MMO (Champions Online) that's little more than a time-eating piece of drivel? Dragon Age and Borderlands were good, but are graphically underwhelming and already not a real challenge for my rig.


Gut Reaction

Right now, it looks like the only way out is to ride this rig (sinking-ship style) through the slow time this Winter, Spring, and Summer in order to make a big upgrade in the fall... Hopefully a Fermi and a 1600x1200 (or 1920x1080) monitor, and possibly a new cpu. For TES V.


Addendum: I don't want to invest this much money on something I'm not going to get much use out of. Does anyone know of anything good that'll be coming out next year?

Update: Borderlands and the DiRT 2 Demo both go haywire if launched after my computer has been on for "a while." This entails insane artifacting, with every second or third pixel flashing in a seizure-inducing manner.

During the interim months, I've been reflecting on how I can stand my system being the way it is. The result is this:

1) I game at 30fps. Even a 7950gt can crunch that many frames at medium-high settings on most recent games.
2) Until a few months ago, I was running Windows XP. While this is true for a lot of gamers, not caring about dx10 can lead to not caring about a lot of things.
3) 1280x1024, 1440x900... These are my monitors' resolutions. Enough said.
4) I still like my video card. It's been quite a trooper.


So, if all of the above things are true, why do I want to upgrade now? The answer is simple: There are now (or soon will be) ways to get more eye candy. Bigger screens. DX11. PhysX. Eyefinity. 3D Vision.

...and the real kicker: There are problems. I have to restart my computer before launching nearly any recent game, or else I get the dreaded shimmering black artifacts. In the sky, in the shadow, in random places on objects... They don't show up in screenshots, which is fucking weird.

I can put up with these issues for as long as I need to. There's no real rush.


After following news articles and forum posts about the 5000s and 400s for the past 9 months or so, I can honestly say that I'd consider both Red and Green. The only real requirement is that the card must be a monster, capable of supporting me over the next three years, during which time I'll definitely stop gaming at 30hz on a 1440x900 screen.


I'm convinced that the reason this card has held up so well is that XFX took the time to craft a board capable of withstanding the test of time; no melting solder here. According to their statements, it was designed to withstand the higher temperatures potentially caused by the card's lack of active cooling. Anand had a lot to say about it here: http://www.anandtech.com/video/showdoc.aspx?i=2833&p=2

Because of the good experiences I've had from XFX, I'll be looking at innovative boards and cooling solutions for cards with ATI and the Big Green's chips, from all high-quality manufacturers. For example, I like the looks of Sapphire's 5850 Toxic edition. It's not quite crazy enough, though. Perhaps their version of the 5970 could eventually kick ass. Or an XFX GT480.


So, yeah, waiting for options looks good right now. Does anyone have any comments on different manufacturers, want to share some general advice, and/or want to flame me for something I've said in this ridiculously long first post?


PS: I have no set price range. The goal is to find something that will last, not a throwaway $100 FotM card.

 

[cusideabelincoln]

I don't think you should be hesitant about upgrading the video card (first). Those games that you mentioned can look better with a better video card - one that is capable of enabling high amounts of AA at your resolution (until you get a new monitor).

 

[zmatt]

Steven, is that you?

 

[Cheesetogo]

If you really want to buy right now, 5970 is probably your best bet. For $600, you get the power of 2 5870s. Nvidia isn't much of an option at the moment -- they still haven't brought in anything new to go up against the 5800 series. However, it looks like they're about due to be coming out with it.

Personally, I would wait, especially given that you're still relatively comfortable with your current graphics card. Some people say that it doesn't make sense to wait because there's always something better coming around the corner, but if you ask me, there are still better times to buy than others.

 

[zmatt]

If you really want to buy right now, 5970 is probably your best bet. For $600, you get the power of 2 5870s. Nvidia isn't much of an option at the moment -- they still haven't brought in anything new to go up against the 5800 series. However, it looks like they're about due to be coming out with it.

Personally, I would wait, especially given that you're still relatively comfortable with your current graphics card. Some people say that it doesn't make sense to wait because there's always something better coming around the corner, but if you ask me, there are still better times to buy than others.

100% behind you. The HD58xx cards are the Alpha dogs right now. You couldn't have asked for ATI to one up themselves more. Even a 5850 would be a smart buy as it is almost 2x the speed of a 4850 and will give you plenty of oomph.

 

[Blue Shift]

I don't think you should be hesitant about upgrading the video card (first). Those games that you mentioned can look better with a better video card - one that is capable of enabling high amounts of AA at your resolution (until you get a new monitor).

Being able to move from 8x to 16xAA doesn't help when your screen appears to be overlaid by a grid whenever brightness goes below a certain amount. This effect is far more noticable than aliasing whenever I have >= 4xAA active.

If you really want to buy right now, 5970 is probably your best bet. For $600, you get the power of 2 5870s. Nvidia isn't much of an option at the moment -- they still haven't brought in anything new to go up against the 5800 series. However, it looks like they're about due to be coming out with it.

Personally, I would wait, especially given that you're still relatively comfortable with your current graphics card. Some people say that it doesn't make sense to wait because there's always something better coming around the corner, but if you ask me, there are still better times to buy than others.

My answer:

I can put up with these issues for as long as I need to. There's no real rush.

I fully support the second half of your statement. If I were shooping for a card right now, well, I wouldn't be shopping for a card right now. The 5970 looks nice, but I'd much rather wait until manufacturers have had more time to innovate and the competition has picked up. Not to mention supply issues.

Are the old solder problems from ~4 years ago still relevant, or present in today's cards?

 

[toyota]

you really need need BOTH a gpu and cpu upgrade. upgrading that gpu isnt going to get you what you want if you are keeping that cpu for any length of time. in fact you listed 3 games, GTA 4 RF: Guerrilla, Prototype) that arent going to really improve much at until that cpu is also upgraded.

its silly to try and buy a video card to last 3 years. for the same amount of money you spend on a card now to do that you could easily buy a decent card now that meets all your needs and upgrade at sometime. a card faster and much cheaper than a 5970 will come out long before that card becomes a bottleneck. in other words if you dont have a huge monitor and/or a system that can push a 5970 then dont waste your money on one.

 

[evolucion8]

With your CPU, you will bottleneck mildly the HD 5850, but it will give you a great boost in image quality and performance, specially with Anti Aliasing.

 

[toyota]

With your CPU, you will bottleneck mildly the HD 5850, but it will give you a great boost in image quality and performance, specially with Anti Aliasing.

no its not just a mild bottleneck at all. a 5000 X2 will not even deliver half of what a 5870 is capable of in many modern games especially some of the ones he listed. turning on more AA because you are getting shitty framerates doesnt change that fact.

 

[blanketyblank]

How long exactly can you wait. I doubt you'll see any price drops till Christmas, and that will be just be due to holiday sales. I think a 5850 will work very well for you, and with the current state of things will definitely last 3 years as long as you're willing to do medium settings eventually. What you really need to watch for is if a new console like if ps4 or xbox 720 is coming out. No games should tax your card otherwise unless they are programmed for higher hardware (designed for high end pc, a very bad idea since limits market) or are very poorly ported/programmed (gta4).

 

[Blue Shift]

you really need need BOTH a gpu and cpu upgrade. upgrading that gpu isnt going to get you what you want if you are keeping that cpu for any length of time. in fact you listed 3 games, GTA 4 RF: Guerrilla, Prototype) that arent going to really improve much at until that cpu is also upgraded.

How would Fermi factor into this? Could a GPU with a fuck-ton of compute features compensate for an older CPU until it's upgraded?

 

[Udgnim]

How would Fermi factor into this? Could a GPU with a fuck-ton of compute features compensate for an older CPU until it's upgraded?

GPU general compute needs developer support to take advantage of compute features. it's very much in its early infancy still so I would not bank on this at all.

 

[CurseTheSky]

I disagree with the consensus that an X2 5000+ will be a huge limiting factor. A bottleneck? Yes. Making things unplayable even after a respectable graphics card upgrade? I doubt it.

If it were me, I'd do things in this order. Keep in mind that the upper mid-range is usually the sweet spot for price / performance ratio.

1. Buy an HD 5750, HD 5770, or HD 5850, depending on your budget. I suggest a card with 1GB of VRAM.

2. Later, when you've saved more cash, buy a 23-25" 1920x1200 (16:10) or 1920x1080 (16:9) monitor. Some of the more expensive ($250-300ish) TN panel monitors are actually quite decent these days; the cheaper ones still tend to be junk. If you can afford it, I HIGHLY recommend the NEC EA231WMi (23", 1920x1080, E-IPS panel) that I'm using. For only around $300-350, it blows my $500 Dell 2408WFP out of the water.

3. After installing the graphics card and new monitor, if you find your system is still running sluggish with a few games, THEN consider upgrading your processor. Keep in mind that even if your processor is a bottle neck currently, you're not going to get less performance from a graphics card upgrade. At worst, you just won't see a big boost. Also keep in mind that lower resolutions (800x600, 1024x768, etc.) are more CPU-limited, while higher resolutions (1920x1080) are more GPU limited.

 

[toyota]

I disagree with the consensus that an X2 5000+ will be a huge limiting factor. A bottleneck? Yes. Making things unplayable even after a respectable graphics card upgrade? I doubt it.

If it were me, I'd do things in this order. Keep in mind that the upper mid-range is usually the sweet spot for price / performance ratio.

1. Buy an HD 5750, HD 5770, or HD 5850, depending on your budget. I suggest a card with 1GB of VRAM.

2. Later, when you've saved more cash, buy a 23-25" 1920x1200 (16:10) or 1920x1080 (16:9) monitor. Some of the more expensive ($250-300ish) TN panel monitors are actually quite decent these days; the cheaper ones still tend to be junk. If you can afford it, I HIGHLY recommend the NEC EA231WMi (23", 1920x1080, E-IPS panel) that I'm using. For only around $300-350, it blows my $500 Dell 2408WFP out of the water.

3. After installing the graphics card and new monitor, if you find your system is still running sluggish with a few games, THEN consider upgrading your processor. Keep in mind that even if your processor is a bottle neck currently, you're not going to get less performance from a graphics card upgrade. At worst, you just won't see a big boost. Also keep in mind that lower resolutions (800x600, 1024x768, etc.) are more CPU-limited, while higher resolutions (1920x1080) are more GPU limited.

its like some of you guys live in a fantasyland. a 5000 X2 would be a massive bottleneck for a 5870. hell its a large bottleneck for a much slower card.

the OP mentioned playing Prototype. well guess what at 1680x1050 and 4X AA a 5000 X2 doent even provide a decent framerate. an i7 delivers THREE times the framerate and thats with just a gtx285. http://www.pcgameshardware.com/aid,...System-Requirements-and-Screenshots/Practice/

GTA 4 is another game he mentioned playing and of course a 5000 X2 would absolutely suck in that game compared to having a better cpu. the lowest cpu they use here is a faster 6000 X2 and its looking pretty unplayable so how do you think an even slower 5000 X2 would do?http://www.pcgameshardware.com/aid,...System-Requirements-and-Screenshots/Practice/

and please dont break out the typical BS response saying those were not at 1920x1200 with 8x AA or some other nonsense. thats irrelevant because the 5000 X2 is not even delivering a good experience at all. trying to make a ridiculously gpu limited situation just because you have a shitty cpu is beyond stupid IMO.

 

[CurseTheSky]

its like some of you guys live in a fantasyland. a 5000 X2 would be a massive bottleneck for a 5870. hell its a large bottleneck for a much slower card.

Read my first sentence again. I said it would be a bottleneck, but it wouldn't make things unplayable after a graphics card update. Similarly, I just upgrade my brothers computer from an E6600 @ stock, 2GB DDR2, and 7900 GS to E6600 @ stock, 2GB DDR2, and 8800 GTX. He went from have nearly all the settings turned down to nothing on Dragon Age (1920x1080) to having everything nearly maxed. Some games are more CPU bound than others (GTA4 is a known example, as is Flight Simulator X and Supreme Commander) and others aren't. There is absolutely no harm in buying one part (graphics card) first, testing the waters with that, and buying subsequent upgrades afterward.

Finally, where did I say anything about an 5870?

 

[toyota]

Read my first sentence again. I said it would be a bottleneck, but it wouldn't make things unplayable after a graphics card update. Similarly, I just upgrade my brothers computer from an E6600 @ stock, 2GB DDR2, and 7900 GS to E6600 @ stock, 2GB DDR2, and 8800 GTX. He went from have nearly all the settings turned down to nothing on Dragon Age (1920x1080) to having everything nearly maxed. Some games are more CPU bound than others (GTA4 is a known example, as is Flight Simulator X and Supreme Commander) and others aren't. There is absolutely no harm in buying one part (graphics card) first, testing the waters with that, and buying subsequent upgrades afterward.

Finally, where did I say anything about an 5870?

others had mentioned the 5850 and the OP had mentioned even a 5970 so I just drew a compromise and lumped my response together. that E6600 is a better cpu than a 5000 X2 and going from a 7900GS to an 8800GTX just eliminated the gpu bottleneck so that was a good decision. sticking a $400 or even $300 video card in a system with a 5000 X2 is in no way a good idea though unless someone just enjoys wasting money. he needs a new platform before considering that type of gpu power.

a 5000 X2 is an okay cpu with a lower end card and will get the job done if you arent picky. if trying to use a very high end video card though its a very poor cpu as it cant deliver the performance needed at higher settings and with that much gpu power it is a massive bottleneck in many games.

buying the card now will certainly help in almost every game because the gpu he has now is pretty slow but in general he will be wasting so much performance in the meantime. the OP already mentioned some games that need a fast cpu so to me its a waste of money to buy a high end card until he also gets the cpu needed to run those games smoothly.

 

[CurseTheSky]

Right, so we're just looking at the same problem in a different manner. You suggest just going ahead and buying everything now (which he will eventually need to do at some point anyway) while I take the more conservative approach and suggest buying one part at a time. Either approach works, it's just a matter of preference and money. Makes sense.

One big thing that I haven't seen others mention (or miss) is PSU limitations. He could be running a 300-500w PSU of iffy quality, and a 5850, 5870, or 5970 could turn it into a time bomb.

What's your PSU, OP?

 

[Blue Shift]

Right, so we're just looking at the same problem in a different manner. You suggest just going ahead and buying everything now (which he will eventually need to do at some point anyway) while I take the more conservative approach and suggest buying one part at a time. Either approach works, it's just a matter of preference and money. Makes sense.

One big thing that I haven't seen others mention (or miss) is PSU limitations. He could be running a 300-500w PSU of iffy quality, and a 5850, 5870, or 5970 could turn it into a time bomb.

What's your PSU, OP?

A "300-500w PSU of iffy quality."

Right now, I'm trying to take everything in stride. If the new GPU necessitates a full comp rebuild, then so be it. But that doesn't mean that everything needs to be done at once, only that there will be some sort of bottleneck for a certain period of time. In order to install a new CPU, I'd probably need a new MoBo... Things snowball from there. In any case, I'm using a crappy second-hand PSU that's probably worth replacing anyway.

a 5000 X2 is an okay cpu with a lower end card and will get the job done if you arent picky. if trying to use a very high end video card though its a very poor cpu as it cant deliver the performance needed at higher settings and with that much gpu power it is a massive bottleneck in many games.

Replacing the processor, on the other hand... We'll see. It's one of the newest (meaning most recently purchased) part in my current machine, and I've dealt with CPU bottlenecks before. I'd much rather buy a couple quality parts per year or so to keep a system refreshed than rebuild the entire thing every two years, which is exactly what you're suggesting here. If my CPU will be a limiting factor after this upgrade, then I don't see it as a reason to buy both a cheap cpu and gpu-- I see it as a source of direction for the next rolling upgrade-- A new cpu and motherboard.


Here, let me illustrate this difference in approaches:

toyota's suggestion:
Year 0: Mid-grade gpu, cpu (psu, mobo, ram req) -- $700-850
Year 1: Nothing.
Year 2: Mid-grade gpu, cpu (psu, mobo, ram req) -- $700-850
Year 3: Nothing.

what I typically do:
Year 0: High-end gpu (psu req) -- $500-750
Year 1: Mid-grade cpu (mobo, ram req): $300-400
Year 2: Nothing.

Using the least common multiple of a 6-year period, we're looking at a $2100-2550 6-year total for toyota's method, vs $1600-2300 for my typical one. That's 350 to 425 average per year, as opposed to my 267 to 383 per year.

This was calculated using the following numbers:
Mid-grade GPU:  300-400
High-end GPU:  400-600
mid-grade cpu:  100-150
MoBo:  100
RAM:  100-150
PSU:  100-150

Note that some of the numbers that I used to estimate the cost ceilings with toyota's method are lower than the prices of components needed.  
This assumes (with toyota's method only) that at least one part from the previous build may not be obsolete yet, even though I find that to be improbable.

A pros and cons table, from my perspective:

full mid-grade builds
+ Hassle: Smooth sailing with no upgrades for at least a year, OK for two
+ Balance: Everything was designed to work together
- Up-front cost: Literally buying a new computer once every couple of years
- Long-term cost: Demonstrated above, higher eventual cost

Rolling high-mid builds
+ Up-front cost: No one purchase is too much to stomach
+ Long-term cost: Demonstrated above, lower eventual cost
+ Boastability: One high-end part per cycle to be proud of (and grow attached to)
- Hassle: Upgrades must be carefully planned and executed within a time-frame
- Balance: System is (extremely, in this case) off-kilter for a brief part of the cycle
? Performance: Average performance over a period of time may be lower?


So, no. While I'm not saying that it's impossible for a stronger argument to sway me, right now I'd like to stick to the plan and, like the thread title states, "replace my 7950 this year." I have every confidence in my 5000x2's ability to last (meaning play modern games) until next year's round of upgrades. Once it's the bottleneck (and next on the chopping block), I'll overclock it.

There's still a long ways to go until purchase time, as well. I don't even know what games I'd be playing on this rig!

 

[toyota]

sorry but most of that crap just doenst add up. I think you are being completely illogical but are too blind too even see it.

I have a MUCH better system than yours that only cost 900 bucks over 18 months ago to build. heck the system I had for two years before my current one was a 5000 X2 and 4670(upgraded from 8600gt) which was only 600 bucks total and still better than yours. I sold that old system for 300 bucks and built this one so for a grand total of around 1200 bucks in four years I have had TWO systems that are better than your current one. and my current one is still good for modern gaming while yours isnt even close.

now back to your current issue with upgrading. keeping that cpu till next year while using it with a very high end card is asinine. you could buy something cheaper and that you could actually come close to utilizing which would make more sense.

you already mentioned GTA 4 and Prototype which I just showed you would be severely bottlenecked by your cpu and not even deliver very playable framerates.

do whatever you want because its your money but buying a 5870 or 5970 like you mentioned and using it with your 5000 X2 is a ridiculous waste of money. doing all that at 1440x900 is a whole new level of being ridiculous.

 

[CurseTheSky]

The PSU, unfortunately, is something that you really can't opt out of buying. Well, ok, you can, but you're risking catastrophic failure. It could be anything from failing to boot to crashing during games to blowing out and taking the motherboard with it to a house fire. The latter two are quite rare and somewhat over-dramatic, but it has happened.

Of course, this advise highly depends on what card you get. An HD 5750 / 5770 won't make a half-way decent 500w (or even 350-400w) unit break a sweat. An HD 5850 will be pushing a lower wattage (300-350w) unit to its limit, and an HD 5870 / especially 5970 would be asking for trouble.

Google your PSU for reviews, or at least figure out what platform it's built on. If it's something like a Coolmax, Rosewill, Aspire / Apevia, etc., spend the cash to replace it. $50 gets a pretty decent PSU these days, and even if you end up upgrading it later, a spare PSU is a wonderful thing to have. If you're running some form of Seasonic, Corsair, BFG, Antec, FSP, PC Power & Cooling, some OCZ / Silverstone / CoolerMaster models, etc. you should be all set.

It's sort of like buying tires for your car. We all hate to do it, since it's not a "fun" place to be spending the money, but only one thing actually connects your vehicle to the ground (in the case here, your computer to its power source). Finally, PSUs stay current far longer than most other hardware (mine is going on four years old), so they're a great investment.

 

[cbn]

I would look for a deal on a AM2+ mainboard and Phenom II x4 processor.

This way you could carry over that 4GB of DDR2 RAM.

EDIT: Here is an example using an old Fry's ad-->http://www.frys-electronics-ads.com...m-II-X4-945-Gigabyte-GA-MA78LM-S2-Motherboard

 

[Blue Shift]

The PSU, unfortunately, is something that you really can't opt out of buying. Well, ok, you can, but you're risking catastrophic failure. It could be anything from failing to boot to crashing during games to blowing out and taking the motherboard with it to a house fire. The latter two are quite rare and somewhat over-dramatic, but it has happened.

Yup. As I said above, I'm fine with buying a PSU.

I would look for a deal on a AM2+ mainboard and Phenom II x4 processor.

This way you could carry over that 4GB of DDR2 RAM.

EDIT: Here is an example using an old Fry's ad-->http://www.frys-electronics-ads.com...m-II-X4-945-Gigabyte-GA-MA78LM-S2-Motherboard

That's an awesome idea. The PCI Express 2.0 slot sweetens the deal... I'll definitely consider it.

Edit: Wait, the combo was only $119? Holy shit! Now that's something I can stomach!
Shopping for processor/mobo combos... Check.

sorry but most of that crap just doenst add up. I think you are being completely illogical but are too blind too even see it.

I have a MUCH better system than yours that only cost 900 bucks over 18 months ago to build. heck the system I had for two years before my current one was a 5000 X2 and 4670(upgraded from 8600gt) which was only 600 bucks total and still better than yours. I sold that old system for nearly 300 bucks and built this one so for a grand total of 1300 bucks in four years I have had TWO systems that are better than your current one. and my current one is still good for modern gaming while yours isnt even close.

now back to your current issue with upgrading. keeping that cpu till next year while using it with a very high end card is asinine. you could buy something cheaper and that you could actually come close to utilizing which would make more sense.

you already mentioned GTA 4 and Prototype which I just showed you would be severely bottlenecked by your cpu and not even deliver very playable framerates.

do whatever you want because its your money but buying a 5870 or 5970 like you mentioned and using it with your 5000 X2 is a ridiculous waste of money. doing all that at 1440x900 is a whole new level of being ridiculous.

If you think the math is wrong, PROVE that it's wrong. As to the lackluster nature of my current system, what games do you think I'm missing out on? Also, the current system actually violates the high-low rolling model that I outlined above; if it fit the model perfectly, this card would probably be an 8800 of some sort.

I mentioned GTA IV and Prototype in passing, yes. They're not games that I found particularly worth the investment, just more poorly-optimized console-port shovelware. Especially prototype. They were, however, the only games that I could mention (aside from RF:G, which is begging for PhysX support) that I've seen performance issues with.

Oh, and throwing money down the dump? You're suggesting that I buy a processor, a new motherboard (with an intel chipset), and replace my ram modules (with ddr3) in addition to the necessary gpu and psu.

Edit (after you edited in the 1440x900 comment): Wait, you're suggesting that I buy a new monitor this year, too? A new gpu, cpu, ps, mobo, ram, and monitor at the same time? How about not.

 

[toyota]

Yup. As I said above, I'm fine with buying a PSU.




That's an awesome idea. The PCI Express 2.0 port sweetens the deal... I'll definitely consider it.





If you think the math is wrong, PROVE that it's wrong. As to the lackluster nature of my current system, what games do you think I'm missing out on? Also, the current system actually violates the high-low rolling model that I outlined above; if it fit the model perfectly, this card would probably be an 8800 of some sort.

I mentioned GTA IV and Prototype in passing, yes. They're not games that I found particularly worth the investment, just more poorly-optimized console-port shovelware. Especially prototype. They were, however, the only games that I could mention (aside from RF:G, which is begging for PhysX support) that I've seen performance issues with.

Oh, and throwing money down the dump? You're suggesting that I buy a processor, a new motherboard (with an intel chipset), and replace my ram modules (with ddr3) in addition to the necessary gpu and psu.

Edit (after you edited in the 1440x900 comment): Wait, you're suggesting that I buy a new monitor this year, too? A new gpu, cpu, ps, mobo, ram, and monitor at the same time? How about not.

why should I explain basic math to you? I told you what both of my comps cost and they were/are both better than yours all while being cheaper. again I can play modern games way better than you on my current system for less money than you spent on your current system.

yeah go right ahead and buy that 5970 you are wanting and put it in your 5000 X2 system for gaming at 1440x900. have fun getting WAY less than 50% of what that 5970 can do. hell you will have so much overhead than even a single 5850 would give you the same performance. not to mention you would bottleneck the shit out of even a 5850 too at just 1440x900 with that poky cpu. lol

 

[Blue Shift]

why should I explain basic math to you? I told you what both of my comps cost and they were/are both better than yours all while being cheaper. again I can play modern games way better than you on my current system for less money than you spent on your current system.

yeah go right ahead and buy that 5970 you are wanting and put it in your 5000 X2 system for gaming at 1440x900. have fun getting way less than 50% of what that video card can do. hell you will have so much overhead than even a single 5850 would give you the same performance. not to mention you would bottneck the shit out even a 5850 too at just 1440x900 with that poky cpu. lol

I love you, toyota. Could you please keep throwing insults? It makes you look so smart, just like beginning sentences with lower-case letters.

Also, have fun missing the point.



Pre-post edit: He added in the "50%" line, adjusting quote
Pre-post edit 2: He added in some crazy-ass line about "overhead," followed by a typo and a swear. Adjusting quote.
Pre-post edit 3: He bashed the 500+x2 again. Adjusting quote.

Pre-post edit 4: I just hit preview without finding any more ninja-edited lines! Hooray!


/hypocrisy


PS. How, exactly, do you know how much I spent on my current rig? Whoa, perhaps identity theft IS a major problem for everyone!

Pre-post edit 5: He fixed the typo in "bottleneck." I'm not even going to bother changing the quote.

Real edit: Good night.

 

[toyota]

I love you, toyota. Could you please keep throwing insults? It makes you look so smart, just like beginning sentences with lower-case letters.

Also, have fun missing the point.



Pre-post edit: He added in the "50%" line, adjusting quote
Pre-post edit 2: He added in some crazy-ass line about "overhead," followed by a typo and a swear. Adjusting quote.
Pre-post edit 3: He bashed the 500+x2 again. Adjusting quote.

Pre-post edit 4: I just hit preview without finding any more ninja-edited lines! Hooray!


/hypocrisy


PS. How, exactly, do you know how much I spent on my current rig? Whoa, perhaps identity theft IS a major problem for everyone!

Pre-post edit 5: He fixed the typo in "bottleneck." I'm not even going to bother changing the quote.

Real edit: Good night.

how is any of that hypocrisy? I fixed some misspelled words and added other stuff for clarification. would you like me to detail every edit that I do? would that make you happy?

missing the point? lol, okay have fun with that 5970 and 5000 X2 at 1440x900.