Where's the current "sweet spot" for some moderate gaming?

[krnmastersgt]

Oh my bad I saw 900 posted somewhere so I just figured a 900 watt, weird number but whatever, and yeah I still think it might be a good time to upgrade your PSU, modular is fun.

 

[zeroburrito]

he said he had a 550. its a very good 550 though. there is also another 8800gt by asus at ncix for like 227 with another custom cooler.

nevermind that is 256..wow the price threw me off. rip!

 

[JoLLyRoGer]

Originally posted by: zeroburrito
he said he had a 550. its a very good 550 though. there is also another 8800gt by asus at ncix for like 227 with another custom cooler.

nevermind that is 256..wow the price threw me off. rip!

Nah it's cool. FWIW you got me going back to their site and I found this one from EVGA for $225.00 and it IS a 512 MB card.

The only thing that has me scratching my head though is WTF is an e-GeForce? Just some fancy name or is it some POS non-reference board with a G92 and some craptastic Chinese/Mexican electrolytic capacitors?

 

[zeroburrito]

nice. i doubt that is available though at that price. no stock. it probably sold out the day that price came up. there are some pretty cheap 3870's 221 and below there also that are in stock.

 

[JoLLyRoGer]

Originally posted by: zeroburrito
nice. i doubt that is available though at that price. no stock. it probably sold out the day that price came up.

Huh, I missed that...

 

[taltamir]

I think that calculator is telling you what type of RATING your PSU needs, not how much power it takes out the wall... the numbers match.
Generally speaking a PSU should be rated for twice your power draw from the wall. Otherwise it would NOT be able to provide enough power.

The 550watt is assuming maxed out draw on the v3, and v5 and v12 rails... that is not realistic. Most of the power is drawn on the v12, by the CPU and video cards.
with the 2900 realistic power draw from the wall is 350-400watts on load, and with a 3850/3870 it would be 250watts or so from the wall on load. But your 550watt psu might not necessarily be able to feed the the 2900. (it probably wouldn't, not too sure, kinda borderline)

You need to know the v12 amperage rating of your PSU, and amperage requirement of the video cards in question. All available from the manufacturer's websites. (note that they will be giving you a total system requirement estimation, not how much is needed for just the video card)

 

[zeroburrito]

he said it was 41. pretty high. hes got a pretty beastly psu.

 

[krnmastersgt]

e-GeForce is the name of any GeForce card made by EVGA I find it interesting their top story on their website is breaking the 30k mark on 3DMark06 with their stuff.

 

[ZoNtO]

chiefvalue.com has 3870's for 224 right now

Too lazy to post the link but you have fingers.

 

[crisium]

256-bit 2900 Pro info:

http://forums.techpowerup.com/showthread.php?p=619613

Overclocked, he says it performs the same as his 3870. Yet cheaper. If you have the power for it, it seems the best deal currently.

 

[RussianSensation]

Originally posted by: krnmastersgt
The 2900Pro outperforms the 3870 when they're both overclocked, the main difference from what I can remember is that the 3870 uses less power and is a lot cooler, the 2900Pro runs pretty hot, especially when you stress it.

That doesn't make any sense. 3870 > 2900XT and 2900Pro < 2900XT. 3870 will overclock far beyond 2900Pro, not to mention that 2900P's memory subsystem is inferior to 2900XT which is slower than 3870....

Also that VX550 handles 520 Watts with ease. Whoever is saying HD2900XT needs 300-400 watts needs to back up that claim.

A full system with a Core 2 Duo X6800, NF 680 (hot chipset), 4GB of ram, and 2900XT consumes about 309 Watts at load. Even if a Quad consumed 100 watts more that'd still wouldn't even come close to stressing the VX550....

 

[happy medium]

A 2900pro 512bit memory bus overclocked to xt speeds will = or surpass a stock 3870.
A 2900pro 256 bit memory bus overclocked to XT speeds (at 1600x1200 or below) will = or surpass a stock 3870.

The 2900pro consumes 130 watts at load.

Heres a power reference chart for all current video cards under load.
It's updated often.

http://www.atomicmpc.com.au/forums.asp?s=2&c=7&t=9354

 

[JoLLyRoGer]

Originally posted by: RussianSensation

Originally posted by: krnmastersgt
The 2900Pro outperforms the 3870 when they're both overclocked, the main difference from what I can remember is that the 3870 uses less power and is a lot cooler, the 2900Pro runs pretty hot, especially when you stress it.

That doesn't make any sense. 3870 > 2900XT and 2900Pro < 2900XT. 3870 will overclock far beyond 2900Pro, not to mention that 2900P's memory subsystem is inferior to 2900XT which is slower than 3870....

Also that VX550 handles 520 Watts with ease. Whoever is saying HD2900XT needs 300-400 watts needs to back up that claim.

A full system with a Core 2 Duo X6800, NF 680 (hot chipset), 4GB of ram, and 2900XT consumes about 309 Watts at load. Even if a Quad consumed 100 watts more that'd still wouldn't even come close to stressing the VX550....

I'm back to 2nd guessing myself again then, I don't know. The CPU calculations comparing my Quad OC'd to a stock X6800 shows only about a 50W difference.

My gut tells me I should be able to handle a single 2900Pro (flashed to an XT) without any problems. Maybe I'll just try it and see.

Originally posted by: happy medium
A 2900pro 512bit memory bus overclocked to xt speeds will = or surpass a stock 3870.
A 2900pro 256 bit memory bus overclocked to XT speeds (at 1600x1200 or below) will = or surpass a stock 3870.

The 2900pro consumes 130 watts at load.

Heres a power reference chart for all current video cards under load.
It's updated often.

http://www.atomicmpc.com.au/forums.asp?s=2&c=7&t=9354

That thread you reference ultimately references the same PSU calculator I used to spec out my system, and a 2900Pro Overclocked will consume more than 130 watts at load.

--------------------------------------------------
GFX Card Comparison Table
--------------------------------------------------

This table shows GFX cards power consumption, not what the recommended PSU requirements are, but rather the actual draw of the card. These are the full load power consumption figures for the GFX card only.

All readings taken from here http://www.extreme.outervision.com/psucalculatorlite.jsp unless other wise noted with a * or some other symbol etc. Readings with a % (percent) symbol are the official "peak power consumption" from the manufacturer. For everything else, see the legend below.

Still an excellent reference though. Looks like they also get their ratings from several sources according to their legend.

 

[Arglebargle]

What exactly is the benefit of flashing the 2900Pro to XT? I picked up a 2900Pro 512bit, and have seen some folks have done it, but what advantage does this actually give?

 

[zeroburrito]

none. it will say it is an xt, thats it. it's not really a true flash, not unlocking anything. all it does is say your card is an xt...yay.

 

[taltamir]

there is one benefit, the default clock speeds become that of an XT.
So if you reformat, and forget to install rivatuner and set an OC, then your base speed is a little faster.

 

[zeroburrito]

yea you don't have to take the 5 seconds to put the oc where it was before. you can also sell it as an xt to someone for more(the biggest advantage).

 

[SlowSpyder]

Originally posted by: RussianSensation

Originally posted by: krnmastersgt
The 2900Pro outperforms the 3870 when they're both overclocked, the main difference from what I can remember is that the 3870 uses less power and is a lot cooler, the 2900Pro runs pretty hot, especially when you stress it.

That doesn't make any sense. 3870 > 2900XT and 2900Pro < 2900XT. 3870 will overclock far beyond 2900Pro, not to mention that 2900P's memory subsystem is inferior to 2900XT which is slower than 3870....

Also that VX550 handles 520 Watts with ease. Whoever is saying HD2900XT needs 300-400 watts needs to back up that claim.

A full system with a Core 2 Duo X6800, NF 680 (hot chipset), 4GB of ram, and 2900XT consumes about 309 Watts at load. Even if a Quad consumed 100 watts more that'd still wouldn't even come close to stressing the VX550....

The 2900XT has more memory bandwith then a 3870. The 512bit version of the 2900Pro does as well. That and the cores are pretty much equal on a mhz to mhz basis. So, if they all overclock to a given level and the 2900Pro/XT have more memory bandwidth then the 3870, you can expect them to perform slightly better.

 

[JoLLyRoGer]

OK, so I've been all day doing my own research and I found a review of the ABIT IP35 Pro benchmarked with an E6600 OC'd heavily and an X1900XT pulling 169W under load.

The difference between that processor and my processor overclocked is about 57W (according to the PSU calculator). So 219 Watts if it were my system.

According to that graphics card site referenced earlier the x1900XT pulls 66 Watts so 219-66 = 153Watts for my system - a video card.

Add 2 SATA HDD's @ 8.5 Watts while seeking and another IDE drive @ 9.5 Watts while seeking (pulled from manufacturers sites) and I'm up to 179.5Watts.

Add 10 Watts for the SATA DVD-RW (give or take) and that's 189.5Watts.

3.6 Watts for the 200mm fan and 2.9 x 4 for the 120s + 2.16 for the HSF and I'm up to 206.86 Watts (maunfacturer's spec)

Add a Soundblaster X-Fi Extreme Music w/ front panel I/O upgrade and I don't know but I'd be surprised if it took more than 30 watts, so lets assume 30 watts. (I couldn't find actual numbers here) Now I'm up to a whopping 236.86 Watts (give or take 10).

Throw in a couple of USB devices at max 5Watts each (5V * 1A per USB spec) and now we've got 246.86 Watts

Add in a nice LCD Fan controller and call that 15 Watts just for the helluvit so now that's 261.86 Watts for my system w/o a video card.

The HD2900XT is reported to draw 161Watts at load so I'll go with it.

261.86 + 161 watts = (drumroll please.....) 422.86Watts!

Or about 76% of my PSU's rated continuous power output. What was I worried about??! Hell I could ALMOST run a pair of 2900's in CF if I wanted to!


Verdict.... That PSU calculator if full of shyte!


Anyone care to double check me or point out any glaring flaws?

 

[zeroburrito]

i had a feeling that calculator was way off. your numbers seemed way too high.

 

[happy medium]

Originally posted by: JoLLyRoGer

Originally posted by: RussianSensation

Originally posted by: krnmastersgt
The 2900Pro outperforms the 3870 when they're both overclocked, the main difference from what I can remember is that the 3870 uses less power and is a lot cooler, the 2900Pro runs pretty hot, especially when you stress it.

That doesn't make any sense. 3870 > 2900XT and 2900Pro < 2900XT. 3870 will overclock far beyond 2900Pro, not to mention that 2900P's memory subsystem is inferior to 2900XT which is slower than 3870....

Also that VX550 handles 520 Watts with ease. Whoever is saying HD2900XT needs 300-400 watts needs to back up that claim.

A full system with a Core 2 Duo X6800, NF 680 (hot chipset), 4GB of ram, and 2900XT consumes about 309 Watts at load. Even if a Quad consumed 100 watts more that'd still wouldn't even come close to stressing the VX550....

I'm back to 2nd guessing myself again then, I don't know. The CPU calculations comparing my Quad OC'd to a stock X6800 shows only about a 50W difference.

My gut tells me I should be able to handle a single 2900Pro (flashed to an XT) without any problems. Maybe I'll just try it and see.

Originally posted by: happy medium
A 2900pro 512bit memory bus overclocked to xt speeds will = or surpass a stock 3870.
A 2900pro 256 bit memory bus overclocked to XT speeds (at 1600x1200 or below) will = or surpass a stock 3870.

The 2900pro consumes 130 watts at load.

Heres a power reference chart for all current video cards under load.
It's updated often.

http://www.atomicmpc.com.au/forums.asp?s=2&c=7&t=9354

That thread you reference ultimately references the same PSU calculator I used to spec out my system, and a 2900Pro Overclocked will consume more than 130 watts at load.

--------------------------------------------------
GFX Card Comparison Table
--------------------------------------------------

This table shows GFX cards power consumption, not what the recommended PSU requirements are, but rather the actual draw of the card. These are the full load power consumption figures for the GFX card only.

All readings taken from here http://www.extreme.outervision.com/psucalculatorlite.jsp unless other wise noted with a * or some other symbol etc. Readings with a % (percent) symbol are the official "peak power consumption" from the manufacturer. For everything else, see the legend below.

Still an excellent reference though. Looks like they also get their ratings from several sources according to their legend.

This power reference for the 2900pro/xt comes from x-bit labs not the calculator.

http://www.xbitlabs.com/articl...adeon-hd2900pro_4.html

Your psu is fine, thats what I was saying. Happy overclocking as allmost all pro's clock to xt speeds. Unless your using 1900x1200 resolution the 256 bit 2900 pro is fine.

 

[Arglebargle]

It appears that the 512 bit 2900 Pros are back in stock at Ewiz for anyone who wants to bite. Wonder if I should get a second....and a new power supply...and more fans...and...

http://www.ewiz.com/detail.php?name=AT-29PRO51

 

[happy medium]

Originally posted by: Arglebargle
It appears that the 512 bit 2900 Pros are back in stock at Ewiz for anyone who wants to bite. Wonder if I should get a second....and a new power supply...and more fans...and...

http://www.ewiz.com/detail.php?name=AT-29PRO51

Thats the 512mb,512 bit version for 170.00$. With a little overclock should at least = if not surpass a 3870. Nice find!

 

[RussianSensation]

Originally posted by: SlowSpyder

The 2900XT has more memory bandwith then a 3870. The 512bit version of the 2900Pro does as well. That and the cores are pretty much equal on a mhz to mhz basis. So, if they all overclock to a given level and the 2900Pro/XT have more memory bandwidth then the 3870, you can expect them to perform slightly better.

Right only thing is we know HD series isnt memory bandwidth starved. And I dont really see how HD2900xt/pro can match 3870 for overclocking? Plus they are hotter running. Ya I guess if you get a really overclockable Pro version, it's worth it I am just less fond of overclocking GPUs than CPUs personally, because the results are a lot less "guaranteed".

 

[zeroburrito]

haven't heard of a pro yet that couldn't reach 800mhz(higher than stock xt). same core, same cooling. 3870's can easily oc to 860, which is the limit unless you get a fixed bios for it. 3870 also uses gddr4 which you can get to 2600 and beyond. still, a 2900xt which is on par with a stock 3870 for 170? amazing deal. scratch that, it's the best videocard deal PERIOD.