Video card dilemma - 280 vs. 4870 vs. 4870X2 vs. 280+ (?)

[darXoul]

Hi, I'm planning a large PC upgrade - my old socket 939 and DDR400-based configuration has to go along with 8800 GTX and a 22" 1680*1050 Samsung 226BW LCD.

I'm a demanding gamer, aiming for a 26" H-IPS 1920*1200 LCD and smooth eye candy gameplay (at least 4*AA, high AF, max details) in latest games.

The problem is that the current video card market doesn't really seem to offer 100% what I need - the 4870 doesn't appear fast enough (not even mentioning temperatures) so despite its low price and nice noise/power consumption figrues, only a factory OCed model with 1GB RAM and non-reference cooling could make me switch back to AMD/ATi.

The X2 is of course damn fast but also (a) loud, (b) a power hog, (c) a dual GPU solution prone to microstuttering and other problems that I usually avoid, (d) not really faster than 280 GTX in Crysis, pretty much the only game where playability in 19*12 could be an issue.

The 280 looks like a winner thanks to its single GPU design, good performance and now also moderate price. However, if a 55 nm version is in the works, I'd be pretty mad to see the card clearly dethroned in a month or two as the single GPU king of the hill.

What would you recommend? I know it's my decision but this forum has always been a good source of info and advice so I'm eager to read your opinions

 

[videogames101]

A 4870's standard fan gets rid of the heat fine if you just increase it's speed a little, mine only goes to 45C full load. I Don't know about 1920x1200, but my 4870 powers a 1680x1050 Crysis Very High DX9 4xAA with no lag or stutter at all. It has plenty of juice.


Also, are you really going to be playing crysis that much? Probably not, and the 4870x2 can put through so much AA (48x with some edge-detect supersampling stuff) it'll blow your mind. And it can do it on most games that aren't crysis. But again, play crysis once through and you've seen about all there is to that game.

Best price/perforamnce - 4870, and it can power a 1920x1200
If you have the money, the HD4870x2 will blow any other card out of the water in almost any game except crysis, which ati cards happen to be bad at.

 

[darXoul]

Thanks for the advice. It would be great to see whether X2 owners do perceive any microstuttering on their cards. I've read contradictory reports here, including one from a guy who claims that e.g. Bioshock @ 56 FPS "didn't feel right", it simply didn't feel as smooth as the FPS readings would let you believe.

Only 512 MB RAM could be an issue in some games and with AA activated. That's why I'm reluctant to purchase a regular 4870. The stock cooling with its constant fan speed adjustments is a bit of a turn-off as well.