2x6870 or single GPU?

[DJ-phYre]

I recently build a new PC and was trying to get back into PC gaming and now it looks like I am ready to make the jump... I recently sold some items and have some extra cash and would like to upgrade my GPU (even though I've only had it for a few weeks).

I have this card currently:

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16814150561

Would it be worth it to get another one for Crossfire or should I go the single GPU route?

If I were to do crossfire, I would need to also get a larger PSU since I only have a 750W with 2xPCIE connectors (each card takes 2).

I would probably be playing BF3 and definitely playing RAGE and MW3 (I actually sold my XBOX 360 to get cash for the upgrade).

I have $200 cash and can sell the 6870 if I decide to upgrade to a different GPU. If I go the way of crossfire I would be getting some extra cash from the sell of the PSU for a new PSU + 6870.

I would be gaming on a single monitor at 1920x1080

 

[lehtv]

Since you've already got one 6870, and since it won't play BF3 on high settings @ 1080p smoothly, 6870 crossfire is the obvious solution. Upgrading to something else isn't worthwhile at this point, it's either crossfire or hold out until 7000 series.

Does you motherboard have x16 lanes three slots apart?

What's your CPU?

And which 750W PSU is that? In general, even 650W is enough for 6870 crossfire but of course it needs four PCIe connectors.

 

[DJ-phYre]

Since you've already got one 6870, and since it won't play BF3 on high settings @ 1080p smoothly, 6870 crossfire is the obvious solution. Upgrading to something else isn't worthwhile at this point, it's either crossfire or hold out until 7000 series.

Does you motherboard have x16 lanes three slots apart?

What's your CPU?

And which 750W PSU is that? In general, even 650W is enough for 6870 crossfire but of course it needs four PCIe connectors.

I was mistaken, it was a 700W, just looked up my order details. Here are the specs:

i5 2500k
ASUS P8Z68-V PRO
OCZ ModXStream Pro 700W -- http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16817341018

 

[lehtv]

That's an alright PSU, not what I'd go with but not that bad either. One 6870 uses about 140-150W if I'm not mistaken, that's about 12A. Both of the rails on that PSU are rated at 25A, but the combined +12V output is 46A. That's only 552W on the +12V, which is very low for a 700W rated PSU.

If you go 6870 crossfire, I recommend selling the OCZ and getting either of these http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...rder=BESTMATCH
They come with 4 pcie connectors, 5 year warranty, and a single 12v rail rated at 744W.

If you can't spare the extra cash you would probably be fine with the OCZ and some molex->PCIe adapters.

 

[TemjinGold]

Are you playing any of that (i.e. RAGE) now? If not, I would recommend waiting till you actually play them because that may be long enough for 7xxx to come out.

 

[DJ-phYre]

Are you playing any of that (i.e. RAGE) now? If not, I would recommend waiting till you actually play them because that may be long enough for 7xxx to come out.

I have RAGE, but I am finishing up Deus Ex before I start...

 

[DJ-phYre]

How much are the 7xxx cards going to cost?

 

[DJ-phYre]

What's a good PSU to get with 4x6 pin PCIE adapters that will run the 2x6870s

 

[SickBeast]

OP, I don't think you'll be happy at the end of the day with a pair of 1gb cards crossfired.

My advice to you is to wait until there is a more powerful 2gb card that meets your budget.

I'm finding that with a pair of 768mb GTX 460s in SLI, I'm hitting the memory wall fairly regularly with the newer releases. With 1gb, the situation isn't going to be much better at all.

What you could always do is just sell the card you have now and invest in something with 2gb.

 

[lehtv]

What's a good PSU to get with 4x6 pin PCIE adapters that will run the 2x6870s

Pay attention please

If you go 6870 crossfire, I recommend selling the OCZ and getting either of these http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...rder=BESTMATCH
They come with 4 pcie connectors, 5 year warranty, and a single 12v rail rated at 744W.

 

[happy medium]

Sell your 6870 and buy 2 6870 2gb cards for 185$AR each at Newegg.

 

[lehtv]

^ That would end up costing about a $100 more than another 6870 (if the first 6870 1GB is sold at a good price). Not sure if worth it

 

[happy medium]

^ That would end up costing about a $100 more than another 6870 (if the first 6870 1GB is sold at a good price). Not sure if worth it

I believe there are still gtx570's for under 300$, thats the best deal for you.
At your resolution they are as fast as a 6970 or 35% faster than your 6870.


edit: I didn't notice that 6970's are down to 300$AR now. I would go that route.
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16814102918

2 6870's are too powerfull for only 1gb of v/memory in todays games. Better to go with 2gb of memory if you are buying 2 cards or planning to x-fire.

 

[lehtv]

2 6870's are too powerfull for only 1gb of v/memory in todays games.

I contest that. In the OP's situation, a second 6870 is by far the easiest way to get extra performance. Most games currently don't use more than 1GB VRAM. 6870 crossfire would ensure 60fps constant.

 

[happy medium]

I contest that. In the OP's situation, a second 6870 is by far the easiest way to get extra performance. Most games currently don't use more than 1GB VRAM. 6870 crossfire would ensure 60fps constant.

I think its a little late to be crossfiring a 1gb gpu that will be replaced in 2 months with a 7 series.

A single 6970 will give him more than enough horsepower and enough memory for the next 8 to 10 months @ 1080p. I bet by then he will either buy a 7 series or another 6970 for much cheaper.

If he buys a second 6870, he is stuck with them. They dont tri-fire.

 

[edplayer]

I think its a little late to be crossfiring a 1gb gpu that will be replaced in 2 months with a 7 series.

I think that depends on the price.

If it were $180 or so, I wouldn't even consider it

For $130 or less, maybe...

 

[DJ-phYre]

I think that depends on the price.

If it were $180 or so, I wouldn't even consider it

For $130 or less, maybe...

I don't think they'll be getting to $130 anytime soon.

 

[DJ-phYre]

I believe there are still gtx570's for under 300$, thats the best deal for you.
At your resolution they are as fast as a 6970 or 35% faster than your 6870.


edit: I didn't notice that 6970's are down to 300$AR now. I would go that route.
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16814102918

2 6870's are too powerfull for only 1gb of v/memory in todays games. Better to go with 2gb of memory if you are buying 2 cards or planning to x-fire.

Out of all the comments in this thread, you point about 6970 seems to make the most sense in my situation. I can buy a 6970 and probably still have some extra cash after the sale of my 6870.

 

[lehtv]

You can sometimes find promo deals on 6870's for $140.

I think its a little late to be crossfiring a 1gb gpu that will be replaced in 2 months with a 7 series.

I think I can agree on that. A single 6870 should be fine until 7000 series; paying for new hardware now would not be cost effective... but it does depend on price too, crossfiring the 6870 for $140 wouldn't be bad at all

A single 6970 will give him more than enough horsepower and enough memory for the next 8 to 10 months @ 1080p. I bet by then he will either buy a 7 series or another 6970 for much cheaper.

First off a 6970, even after selling the 6870, would be almost $100 more than another 6870, while offering only 30% faster framerates as opposed to nearly 100% with a second 6870. With the 7 series around the corner I don't think it's a good idea to spend that much anyway. And secondly, what makes you think that 6970's are even sold a 10 months from now? They'll have been out of production for a long while

If he buys a second 6870, he is stuck with them. They dont tri-fire.

You're never stuck with anything. 6870 crossfire would probably sell for about $200 even after the 7-series are released, and that could be used towards a 7950 2GB that will probably last two years.

 

[Madcatatlas]

Well, memory issues aside, which i belive is abit too overrated, two 6870s will give you more power than any single gpu card on the market today for atleast the 1920x1200 res and below.

 

[Jhatfie]

I used to run 6870's in crossfire and the performance was generally very good. I had no driver related issues running crossfire and most games played excellent. I did have some rare problems running into vram limitations, but I also game at 2560x1600. For instance, the Witcher 2 uses around 1.3GB at that resolution with my desired settings, so the 6870's would stutter while my GTX580 is silky smooth at those same settings. However at your resolution you should be fine and the second 6870 will offer a large boost in performance.

If I were you, I would OC the 6870, most seem to do 1000+ mhz on the core, all of mine have anyway. This should bring you to 6950 level performance and may hold you off until the new generation cards pop up in a couple months. Play the new games and if at that time you decide the performance is not meeting your needs, then upgrade. The 6870 is actually a pretty decent performing card.

 

[Vdubchaos]

Pay attention please

I got one of these at microcenter for $60 after MIR
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16817371049

 

[blackened23]

I'm pretty leery of dual GPU because of microstutter. Very noticeable for me anyway, you've been warned.

 

[DJ-phYre]

I am probably going to wait for 7xxx series. I get by today with what I got, what's a few more months...