So my 4870 is dying

[Kharohz]

Wanted some advice on what video card would be best with a Q9450 @ 2.66 (I suppose I could overclock it if nets me better options)

Wondering what would be the best performance choice before hitting a bottleneck.

Thanks

(And I don't need a new video card right away, if the 7xxx series has something worthwhile I can wait)

 

[happy medium]

Can't go wrong with a gtx460 1gb Hawk for 124$ AR on newegg this weekend.

 

[Kharohz]

Thanks for the suggestion, so a GTX 460 or 6850 would be the max one would recommend this computer to take?

I probably won't buy a new card immediately as my 4870 still works as long as I don't open a game. (Well barely, I downclocked all the way possibly prevent artifacts in windows)

Probally will wait a couple of months or two.

Just was wondering what was the best possible card.

Edit: And hell, if the 4870 dies, I can always throw a Voodoo3 2000 PCI back in the machine *grin*

 

[Smartazz]

That CPU overclocked should be able to handle better cards than the 6850 or GTX 460.

 

[LOL_Wut_Axel]

Wanted some advice on what video card would be best with a Q9450 @ 2.66 (I suppose I could overclock it if nets me better options)

Wondering what would be the best performance choice before hitting a bottleneck.

Thanks

(And I don't need a new video card right away, if the 7xxx series has something worthwhile I can wait)

Pretty much anything will be alright for a Q9*50 as long as it's over-clocked to 3.6-3.8GHz. About the only things I'd say would be a very noticeable bottleneck would be something like GTX 560 Tis in SLI or higher. With that in mind, the best all-around bang-for-buck card in the market is the Radeon HD 6870, a card which should provide a huge speed boost in comparison to your 4870 as long as you OC your CPU.

 

[Kharohz]

Good to know, the 6870 @ 159 AR with dirt3 and deus ex is pretty hard to pass up.

However, the problem I'm having is getting this damn q9450 to decent temps in order to OC to begin with.

I thought since I had non-stock cooler I wouldn't have issues, yet at stock I am having 50C idle and up to 70C while stressing with prime95. And thats without an overclock.

Might have to invest in a different cooler.

 

[happy medium]

Thanks for the suggestion, so a GTX 460 or 6850 would be the max one would recommend this computer to take?

Unless you spend 25$ on a cooler for your cpu. Yes

1600x1050 or 1080p resolution?

 

[Firestorm007]

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...n=6870&x=0&y=0

Sapphire 6870 with DEUS X $ 154.99 after rebate + free shipping...

 

[Smartazz]

Honestly, even if you don't overclock very high, the q9450 with a 6870 is a solid choice. The Q9xxx series is still pretty decent.

 

[LOL_Wut_Axel]

Good to know, the 6870 @ 159 AR with dirt3 and deus ex is pretty hard to pass up.

However, the problem I'm having is getting this damn q9450 to decent temps in order to OC to begin with.

I thought since I had non-stock cooler I wouldn't have issues, yet at stock I am having 50C idle and up to 70C while stressing with prime95. And thats without an overclock.

Might have to invest in a different cooler.

Perhaps it's not seated correctly. The Core 2 Quad Q9*50 series consumes a decent amount less power than the Core i7 900 (Quad-Core) series. If SpeedStep is enabled, which it should be by default, you should be seeing temps no higher than 40C at idle. Stock it should be in the low-to-mid 60Cs on full load on the stock cooler. If your current cooler uses push pins you should know they're not good when it comes to proper contact with the CPU IHS either, which doesn't help matters. So again, what I'd recommend is you go for a $25-$30 cooler like the Corsair A50 and CM Hyper 212+. Those use proper backplates and ensure much better contact, not to mention they're miles ahead of the Intel stock heatsink--the one you have now seems to be barely better.

If you get a new cooler make sure you install it properly and raise the CPU voltage slightly and 3.6GHz should be easy to reach.

Regardless, you can buy the 6870 now if you want. It'll bottleneck it somewhat if the CPU is stock, but it'll still be a good amount faster than the 4870.

 

[happy medium]

Honestly, even if you don't overclock very high, the q9450 with a 6870 is a solid choice. The Q9xxx series is still pretty decent.

The q9450 has only 6mb of cache compared to my cpu. So his cpu at 2.6 would = mine at 2.5 mabe even 2.4 with games.

I don't think he would get the true benifits of a 6870 with stock clocks.Even with his cpu at 3.0 it would be pushing it.
i would not match my cpu at stock with a 6870.
If you look at the history of these cpu's, they really stretch there legs at 3.5/3.6.

I think LOL-nut touched on that earlier.

I would not spend 40$ more for something that might gain me 2% performance. In this case 40$ is like 30% more money.

 

[LOL_Wut_Axel]

The q9450 has only 6mb of cache compared to my cpu. So his cpu at 2.6 would = mine at 2.5 mabe even 2.4 with games.

I don't think he would get the true benifits of a 6870 with stock clocks.Even with his cpu at 3.0 it would be pushing it.
i would not match my cpu at stock with a 6870.
If you look at the history of these cpu's, they really stretch there legs at 3.5/3.6.

I think LOL-nut touched on that earlier.

I would not spend 40$ more for something that might gain me 2% performance. In this case 40$ is like 30% more money.

The Q9450 has 12MB (2x 6MB) of L2 cache. Q9*50 denotes 12MB L2 cache, Q9*00 denotes 6MB L2 cache, and Q8**0 denotes 4MB L2 cache. Just sayin'

http://ark.intel.com/products/33923...essor-Q9450-(12M-Cache-2_66-GHz-1333-MHz-FSB)

You can buy the Corsair A50 on TigerDirect and Amazon for $25 inc. shipping. You can also buy the Cooler Master Hyper 212+ for $28 on Newegg and $27 on Amazon inc shipping. Considering he'll be able to get 3.6GHz easily and with low temps with either I think it's a worthy investment. 2.66GHz to 3.6GHz is around a 30% improvement in performance, not to mention he should have lower temps.

 

[Kharohz]

^^^Beaten on the 12mb cache.

I went ahead and bought the 6870 listed above (thanks), being how I wanted deus ex anyways.

I reseated the CPU cooler earlier today because I thought maybe that was the problem as well, however the temps only dropped only a few degrees. Perhaps it is the direction of the fan that is attached? I have it blowing through the heatsink which gets pulled out of the case via the back case fan. I also attached another case fan to the side panel which pulls air out as well. Nothing. I use a Scythe Mini Ninja in case one was wondering.

The q9450 has a 12mb cache btw

Thanks for the help guys. I figure even if the 6870 gets bottlenecked some eventually when I do upgrade, I could easily just get another 6870 and crossfire with a new processor.

 

[happy medium]

The Q9450 has 12MB (2x 6MB) of L2 cache. Just sayin'

hmm, which one has the 6mb? q9300? My mistake.

 

[happy medium]

Thanks for the help guys. I figure even if the 6870 gets bottlenecked some eventually when I do upgrade, I could easily just get another 6870 and crossfire with a new processor.

Have you tried just using some Artic silver 5 and reseating your cpu?
You might get that sucker over 3.0, without a voltage bump and keep your temp under 75c.

 

[Kharohz]

I did use artic silver 5 when I reseated (and when I originally did it as well)

Although I'm sure even right now I could probally keep it under 75c at 3GHz, I just wasn't sure what I should limit myself to on the heat since I am OC noob.

 

[LOL_Wut_Axel]

^^^Beaten on the 12mb cache.

I went ahead and bought the 6870 listed above (thanks), being how I wanted deus ex anyways.

I reseated the CPU cooler earlier today because I thought maybe that was the problem as well, however the temps only dropped only a few degrees. Perhaps it is the direction of the fan that is attached? I have it blowing through the heatsink which gets pulled out of the case via the back case fan. I also attached another case fan to the side panel which pulls air out as well. Nothing. I use a Scythe Mini Ninja in case one was wondering.

The q9450 has a 12mb cache btw

Thanks for the help guys. I figure even if the 6870 gets bottlenecked some eventually when I do upgrade, I could easily just get another 6870 and crossfire with a new processor.

The Scythe Ninja Mini has higher surface area than the stock cooler, though not much. That could be why you're not seeing such good temps. Are you using decent thermal paste? The stuff Scythe bundles with their coolers is pretty horrible, I must say. Also, have you checked the BIOS to see if SpeedStep is enabled?

I'd still recommend you get another cooler if you have the space for it. Believe me, a 1GHz overclock on that CPU will be like setting it free. You'll be able to remove the bottleneck to almost nothing and if you do encoding or other CPU-intensive tasks it'll finish them 30% quicker while the CPU will also run cooler.

EDIT:

Since you said you're using AS5, which is still decent, I think it boils down to your current heatsink. The surface area is rather small, so it's not gonna dissipate heat that well.

 

[Kharohz]

I believe I bought the Scythe originally for its ability to be quiet and not OC ability, I'll check out if (and how) speedstep is enabled.

My motherboard apparently has voltage droopage issues, however I should still be able to get a decent OC out of it if I can get these temps down.

 

[LOL_Wut_Axel]

I believe I bought the Scythe originally for its ability to be quiet and not OC ability, I'll check out if (and how) speedstep is enabled.

My motherboard apparently has voltage droopage issues, however I should still be able to get a decent OC out of it if I can get these temps down.

Alright. If it's possible, could you tell us what motherboard you're using?

 

[Kharohz]

ga p35 ds3l.

I'm probably going to buy the Corsair A50

 

[LOL_Wut_Axel]

ga p35 ds3l.

I'm probably going to buy the Corsair A50

Not the best mobo in terms of VRMs, but for 3.6GHz it's just fine. Just don't go to 4GHz+ with it.

The Corsair A50 is a fine choice. It'll perform a lot better than your current Scythe Mini Ninja. For very quiet operation remember to use the bundled voltage resistor.

 

[Kharohz]

Alright! Thanks everything, one final question. How much heat is too much for my processor?

 

[LOL_Wut_Axel]

Alright! Thanks everything, one final question. How much heat is too much for my processor?

In terms of heat output, they can reach around 250-300W on full load at 1.45-1.5V at 4-4.2GHz. However, the CPU will degrade progressively quicker than most would want while creating tons of heat. This is not advised for 24/7 use. For 3.6GHz you shouldn't need more than 1.35V, at which point heat output is around 150W. If you're referring to temperatures, 70C or less on full load is good for 24/7 use.

 

[LOL_Wut_Axel]

OP, what did you decide to do?

 

[Kharohz]

Eventually I shall buy the Corsair A50 cooler (When I get the moneys) and depending if I see some real changes with temps I shall attempt an OC.

I should receive a 6870 tomorrow.

The only thing I to keep my eye on is how my memory will impact my OC, being a noob and all.