Worth upgrading from 8800GT to HD4890?

[OCNewbie]

My friend is running on a Pentium E5200 (2.5Ghz, dual core, stock, not oc'd), currently with an Nvidia 8800GT 512MB. Newegg is selling a Diamond branded AMD HD 4890 1GB for $69.99 shipped.

Would this be a worthwhile upgrade for my friend?

 

[Termie]

It's a good deal, but it's pretty old tech. Would probably give him a 50-100% boost in frames (the higher end is where he's VRAM limited). There have been better cards on offer for just a bit more, but never without a rebate. Plus, with his CPU, that's all the card he could handle anyway.

Bench: http://www.anandtech.com/bench/Product/175?vs=178

 

[happy medium]

Yea go for it for 70$.

 

[SlowSpyder]

That would be a good upgrade, but it's still a somewhat outdated card. For only $10 more after rebate he could get a 6770. I think it's very nearly as fast as the 4890, but supports DX11. With that CPU I wouldn't really bother going beyond those levels of cards.

 

[s44]

Get the $80AR 550ti at TigerDirect.

 

[Spikesoldier]

cheaper than 5770 and twice the mem bandwidth.

although it wont give earth-shattering gains over the 8800, its a good deal for cheap.

 

[RussianSensation]

That graphics will pretty much max out that CPU. It's way faster than an 8800GT. But it has 2 major disadvantages:

1) high idle power consumption
2) the stock cooler is very loud at load. Arguably the 3rd loudest videocard of all time after the FX5800 Ultra dustbuster and the HD6990. This card was way louder than my GTX470. I couldn't wait to sell it.

I'd rather sacrifice 15% performance and grab an HD6770 for $80 or a GTX550Ti.

Newegg just had an HD6850 for $99.99. I think we'll see more deals on the HD6850 for $100. I'd spend an extra $30 for that card, and overclock his CPU.

 

[skipsneeky2]

That graphics will pretty much max out that CPU. It's way faster than an 8800GT. But it has 2 major disadvantages:

1) high idle power consumption
2) the stock cooler is very loud at load. Arguably the 3rd loudest videocard of all time after the FX5800 Ultra dustbuster and the HD6990. This card was way louder than my GTX470. I couldn't wait to sell it.

I'd rather sacrifice 15% performance and grab an HD6770 for $80 or a GTX550Ti.

Newegg just had an HD6850 for $99.99. I think we'll see more deals on the HD6850 for $100. I'd spend an extra $30 for that card, and overclock his CPU.

Played with a 6990 and oh wow the 6990 could wake the dead.

Most of my computers are loud but my gf noticed the extra noise immediately...heck leaving the pc on overnight was not a option it was LOUD.

Eventually returned it buying ear muff headphones so i could hear my games wasn't a option for me either.

 

[RussianSensation]

Played with a 6990 and oh wow the 6990 could wake the dead.

Most of my computers are loud but my gf noticed the extra noise immediately...heck leaving the pc on overnight was not a option it was LOUD.

Eventually returned it buying ear muff headphones so i could hear my games wasn't a option for me either.

Ya, I also run MilkyWay@Home sometimes. So I'd need the GPU to be able to run at 99% load for hours at a time without sounding like my desktop is taking off like a Boeing Dreamliner.

 

[skipsneeky2]

Ya, I also run MilkyWay@Home sometimes. So I'd need the GPU to be able to run at 99% load for hours at a time without sounding like my desktop is taking off like a Boeing Dreamliner.

Amd should apply its cool n quiet technology to the 6990...turbine freaking engine i had a gtx295 and it was high end and not all that loud but man dual gpus really bite the dust on noise now adays.

Still a awesome gpu the 6990 and i do wish i kept mine but the first official drivers for it did nothing but piss me off and i wasn't a happy camper.

 

[Pacman4]

Newegg just had an HD6850 for $99.99. I think we'll see more deals on the HD6850 for $100. I'd spend an extra $30 for that card, and overclock his CPU.

Yes, and get a Saphire, very cool and quiet.

 

[soccerballtux]

That would be a good upgrade, but it's still a somewhat outdated card. For only $10 more after rebate he could get a 6770. I think it's very nearly as fast as the 4890, but supports DX11. With that CPU I wouldn't really bother going beyond those levels of cards.

bad advice, 6770 much slower

 

[SlowSpyder]

bad advice, 6770 much slower

I don't think it's that much slower. I know when the 5770 launched (as I understand it the 6770 is just a rebadge of the 5770) it was slower than a 4870. I think drivers have improved things over time for the 5770/6770. I'm sure it's still a bit slower, but I don't think it's "much slower".

http://alienbabeltech.com/main/catalyst-11-11-performance-analysis-hd-6000-5000-4000-series/3

Here is a 6770 vs. 4870 (no 4890). But considering a 4890 is probably ~10% faster than a 4870 (unless we're talking about vram limits on the 512MB model - they test the 1GB model), you can get a good idea.

Considering the price is very close, the 6770 should be much cooler, quieter, use less power, and support DX11, it doesn't seem like bad advice. It's certainly worth looking at in my opinion.

 

[LiuKangBakinPie]

What's your native resolution?

 

[OCNewbie]

He has one of those 1080p LCDs, so 1920x1080.

Here's AnandTech bench results for a 5770 vs 4890. Seems like the 4890 is quite a bit faster - http://www.anandtech.com/bench/Product/175?vs=172

He's pretty broke, so he's probably going to hold off buying anything for now. Perhaps he'll look for something used in the $50-70 range in a couple months.