Unofficial: Which card to get for BF3 thread.

[Keysplayr]

Guys and Gals,

Constant threads being created with the likes of "Which card should I get for BF3" so why not make a dedicated thread for this?

We can post benchmarks as they emerge from various sites as usual.
Post your links here and I'll update the OP with them.

Or, change the title of one of the more comprehensive theads currently existing. Don't care which.

Keys

BF3 Beta bench image
http://www.hitechlegion.com/reviews/gaming-software/13498?start=2
http://www.pcgameshardware.com/aid,...cards-SLI-und-Crossfire-benchmarked/Practice/
http://www.pcper.com/reviews/Graphi...esting-and-Image-Quality-Evaluation-Day-1/Ind
HardOCP BF3 Beta

And also, Nvidia just posted this Battlefield 3 Beta performance guide. Should help. It includes a review of the
graphics in the game, game settings and help for gamers that want to know if their PC is powerful enough to get
the best gaming experience.
Battlefield 3 Beta Performance Guide

 

[Will Robinson]

BF2 always looked better with an ATi card so I suggest getting one for BF3.
Side by side with a friend of mine's computer,his game always looked a bit pale with a yellowish tinge to it,with colors looking a bit washed washed out.
My ATi equipped rig always looked a little richer,with better color hues and saturation levels.

 

[superccs]

The most expensive one you can afford.

 

[Fanatical Meat]

BF3 look good at slightly above medium settings on my old GTX260 (the non 216 version). Not sure of the FPS but it runs acceptably. I'll probably wait for the next generation of cards.

 

[Ken g6]

I've seen only one benchmark of the BF3 beta. It makes it look like dual 570s are the way to go. But I don't know if I should believe it.

 

[tviceman]

Dollar for dollar (aside from the gtx580 which outperforms everything with the added expense of costing extra), Nvidia cards are outperforming AMD cards with the current beta.

http://www.hitechlegion.com/reviews/gaming-software/13498?start=2
http://www.pcgameshardware.com/aid,...cards-SLI-und-Crossfire-benchmarked/Practice/
http://www.pcper.com/reviews/Graphi...esting-and-Image-Quality-Evaluation-Day-1/Ind

So far, the gtx570 >= hd6970, gtx560 >= hd6950... so on and so fourth. The gtx570 looks to hit the best balance between performance and price, with a few coming in at under $300 on newegg.

 

[Grooveriding]

I've seen only one benchmark of the BF3 beta. It makes it look like dual 570s are the way to go. But I don't know if I should believe it.

Wait for real benchmarks to come out from more credible solid review sites. I would expect someone planning on spending the money for 2 570s to play this game would be wanting to crank up the settings.

The 570s will choke from having not enough VRAM to run BF3 on Ultra settings with everything turned up. The game is extremely hungry for VRAM.

http://vr-zone.com/articles/battlef...enshots-and-hd-video-walkthrough/13625-1.html

'At 1080p Ultra settings (with everything graphics details set to maximum), we get an average of around 50fps for a single AMD 6970/GTX580, 80fps for a AMD 6990 (2 GPU crossfire) and 140fps for a AMD 6990 in Quadfire, which is actually quite similar to the one-year old Battlefield: Bad Company 2 on maximum settings. It also needed around 1.3GB of GPU framebuffer for the ultra preset textures. A side-by-side monitor test showed indistinguishable image quality from both AMD and Nvidia solutions (drivers at default settings), so we know that there is no quack3.exe foul play yet.'

I would look at 2GB 6950s, 6970s and GTX 580s/480s depending on your budget, the 570 I would not consider due to VRAM issues. I've seen 2GB 570s around, but they are overpriced @ $400.

 

[RobertR1]

I'd wait for the final game along with better drivers from both sides. I do think Dice along with nvidia/AMD will take a decent jump up in performance from where we are today.

 

[skipsneeky2]

I'd wait for the final game along with better drivers from both sides. I do think Dice along with nvidia/AMD will take a decent jump up in performance from where we are today.

The best advice what i'm doing too not even gonna bother picking up and paying for my preorder of BF3 from best buy till the following week.

To many issues right now i saw a decrease performance wise from closed beta BF3 and reinstalling the open beta...closed played well and open sucks i don't even wanna bother but i might make a exception for Caspian :thumbsup:

 

[Skurge]

Dollar for dollar (aside from the gtx580 which outperforms everything with the added expense of costing extra), Nvidia cards are outperforming AMD cards with the current beta.

http://www.hitechlegion.com/reviews/gaming-software/13498?start=2
http://www.pcgameshardware.com/aid,...cards-SLI-und-Crossfire-benchmarked/Practice/
http://www.pcper.com/reviews/Graphi...esting-and-Image-Quality-Evaluation-Day-1/Ind

So far, the gtx570 >= hd6970, gtx560 >= hd6950... so on and so fourth. The gtx570 looks to hit the best balance between performance and price, with a few coming in at under $300 on newegg.

I didn't look at hitech legion's site, but PCgames hardware shows Nv cards leading and PCPR shows nV and AMD equal. So I would say it's still inconclusive, not surprising given that it's a beta.

 

[Madcatatlas]

geez, dont you just love tvicemans conclusion. And whats with nvidias whql drivers? ive been trown out of BF3, ive had my computer freeze, the display driver stopped responding (this is 30 min or so after i left BF3) . its one buggy and crappy driver Nvidia, Fix it.

 

[Grooveriding]

geez, dont you just love tvicemans conclusion. And whats with nvidias whql drivers? ive been trown out of BF3, ive had my computer freeze, the display driver stopped responding (this is 30 min or so after i left BF3) . its one buggy and crappy driver Nvidia, Fix it.

No idea where he came up with that () I haven't experienced the issues you're having, but I do get the white flashes while playing. It's a known SLI issue and should get fixed.

OP: You also need to take the current few meager benches around with a grain of salt. The map being benched is not as intensive on your machine as the big maps are.

When the Caspian Border servers were still open I was getting 40% less FPS on that map.

 

[Keysplayr]

Quite a few knee slappers. Thanks guys and keep em coming. I'll update the OP.

 

[imaheadcase]

BF2 always looked better with an ATi card so I suggest getting one for BF3.
Side by side with a friend of mine's computer,his game always looked a bit pale with a yellowish tinge to it,with colors looking a bit washed washed out.
My ATi equipped rig always looked a little richer,with better color hues and saturation levels.

Its suggestive, to many variables.

I played BF2 on nvidia card and looked better than my brothers ATI card.

 

[tviceman]

I didn't look at hitech legion's site, but PCgames hardware shows Nv cards leading and PCPR shows nV and AMD equal. So I would say it's still inconclusive, not surprising given that it's a beta.

I'm not arguing that things could swing one way or another and I did put a disclaimer in my statement with "the current beta."

geez, dont you just love tvicemans conclusion. And whats with nvidias whql drivers? ive been trown out of BF3, ive had my computer freeze, the display driver stopped responding (this is 30 min or so after i left BF3) . its one buggy and crappy driver Nvidia, Fix it.

Based on the only comprehensive benchmarks available at the time I made that post, exactly what is wrong with my conclusion? And Nvidia doesn't have whql drivers available specific to BF3. Your post made me double check which version I am running with because I did test BF3 out for a few minutes and have since not had any issues with my PC like you described. I am running the most up-to-date beta drivers. You must be unlucky I guess.

 

[96Firebird]

geez, dont you just love tvicemans conclusion. And whats with nvidias whql drivers? ive been trown out of BF3, ive had my computer freeze, the display driver stopped responding (this is 30 min or so after i left BF3) . its one buggy and crappy driver Nvidia, Fix it.

Are you talking about the latest WHQL driver, or the latest beta driver? The latest WHQL driver doesn't support the BF3 beta, so you will probably experience problems with that game... If you meant the latest beta drivers, they are beta drivers, so expect some problems...

FWIW, I've had zero problems with the beta drivers.

And as far as the topic goes, the GTX 460 1GB is getting dated, but I'm CPU limited anyways.

 

[bryanW1995]

I'm going to wait until the game actually comes out before making a decision. However, I'm pretty sure that my gtx 460 768 isn't going to be enough!

 

[happy medium]

I'm pretty sure that my gtx 460 768 isn't going to be enough!

I see your gaming at 1600x1050, with your overclock it might get by with high settings ,not ultra, but the difference between high and ultra I would guess is not all that much anyway,just like Crysis.

I also think this game uses memory avalable. If you have a 1.5 gb card it will use 1.3gb but if you have a 1gb card it will use under 1gb with the same settings.
I'm gonna try to run ultra setting vs high settings and see if my fps drop through the floor, I highly doubt it.

I see people saying 1gb is not enough but the benchmarks are showing a gtx560ti 1gb beating a 6950 at 1900x1200 ultra settings 4x aa.
I would think if the card was running out of memory is would tank in the benchmark.

 

[Capt Caveman]

Are you talking about the latest WHQL driver, or the latest beta driver? The latest WHQL driver doesn't support the BF3 beta, so you will probably experience problems with that game... If you meant the latest beta drivers, they are beta drivers, so expect some problems...

FWIW, I've had zero problems with the beta drivers.

And as far as the topic goes, the GTX 460 1GB is getting dated, but I'm CPU limited anyways.

Same here. Zero issues with beta driver.

 

[happy medium]

Single 1600x1050 monitor the best card seems to be the gtx560ti for 200$
Single 1080p the gtx570 for under 300$ is the best choice.

 

[amenx]

BF2 always looked better with an ATi card so I suggest getting one for BF3.
Side by side with a friend of mine's computer,his game always looked a bit pale with a yellowish tinge to it,with colors looking a bit washed washed out.
My ATi equipped rig always looked a little richer,with better color hues and saturation levels.

Aside from CP settings that can affect IQ, simply a different monitor can make a big difference.

 

[OILFIELDTRASH]

I'll be keeping an eye on the benchmarks. I'm downgrading from a 580 (could use extra cash and I don't game that much anymore) and need a card. I'm hoping either amd or nvidia bundle a card with the game so I can kill two birds with one stone. This is the only game I care about so whoever gives me the best performance for the dollar is getting my business.

 

[GoStumpy]

Excuse me if I sound ignorant, but:

GTX560ti is ~$220

ATI 6850 is ~ $120

Both are 256bit, GDDR5 1GB...

Can I get away without spending nearly double the price???

 

[notty22]

Excuse me if I sound ignorant, but:

GTX560ti is ~$220

ATI 6850 is ~ $120

Both are 256bit, GDDR5 1GB...

Can I get away without spending nearly double the price???

They are not equal , but a 6850 is a great card for 120 dolllars.
Its a slightly cut down 6870.
http://www.techpowerup.com/reviews/Palit/GeForce_GTX_560_Ti_Sonic/28.html

 

[toyota]

Excuse me if I sound ignorant, but:

GTX560ti is ~$220

ATI 6850 is ~ $120

Both are 256bit, GDDR5 1GB...

Can I get away without spending nearly double the price???

6850 is certainly the much better value if its just 120 bucks. what are the rest of your specs and what res do you want to play at though?