[CARD GRAPHIC CHOOSE] 7970 Black Ed. xfx X GTX 670 FTW EVGA

[Cruncx]

Hi guys.
First of all... I do know that there are alot of pepople asking about this same question, i already saw all the charts about this graphic cards but I still cand decide wich one should i get =/
I have this 2 cards to choose from:

http://xfxforce.com/en-us/Products/...-HD-7000/AMD-Radeon-HD-7970/FX-797A-TDBC.aspx
[AMD Radeon™ HD 7970 - Double D HD 7970 Black Edition 3GB DDR5 1000M 2xmDP HDMI DVI PCI-E - FX-797A-TDBC]

and

http://www.evga.com/Products/Product.aspx?pn=02G-P4-2678-KR[EVGA GeForce GTX 670 FTW]

Oh, and don`t intend to do an OC... Just to take in consideration this.
For the games we have nowadays, i don`t think it is necessary... Specially cuz i`ll run them on 1920x1080p only.
But, at the future for example, if necessary it may be that i do the OC to play the games...

Please, dont try to suggest another cards because at the story that i'll buy there are just this 2 avaliable.. and i'm not from north america =P

So, i would really like to know your oppinion, as long as it is based on facts/charts, not just "ohh, i hate NVIDIA so go for 7970..." or "AMD sux, are u crazy? go for NVIDIA!".

I personally have never had any Radeon by my own, so i dont't have any experience with them. That's why I'm here asking you guys for some help

About the other components:
I`m using a Benq 24" Full HD monitor - don`t remember the model, and I`m travelling right now...
2x4GB corsair 1600 MHZ
ATX 800W REAL CORSAIR GAMING GS
ASUS P8Z77-V LE
i5 3570
2TB HDD seagate barracuda green
pc case: Corsair 300R
http://www.corsair.com/carbide-series-300r-compact-pc-gaming-case.html

About what I am going to use it for: games.
I like to test all the games - for fun, not any kind of work - of MMORPG kind...
So I think that it`s probably not worth to focus on the bench-marking of just some games... But of the general performance of the card.

Is there any other info needed that i forgot to say?

 

[wand3r3r]

Here's a summary.

Based on performance I'd go with the 7970. When the performance feels sluggish a year or two down the road just bump the clocks up a little by sliding those couple sliders in the catalyst control panel (even though you said you won't OC).

The 7970 (ghz) is faster then the 680 and when it wins it's margin is far greater then the minority of wins the 680 has. Plus the 670 is slower then the 680.

The one thing you haven't mentioned is the prices in your country.
If the 670 is ~10-15% cheaper then I'd go for it. I assume the NV card isn't much cheaper so I'd for sure go 7970.

 

[biostud]

you get slightly better performance with the 7970 and you get physX + lower power consumption with the 670.

 

[dlock13]

Honestly, I posted a similar inquiry on another forum. Hands down, everyone recommended the 7950/7970 over the Nvidia products reason being that the 7970 already performs anywhere from 10-25% better than the 670/680 (if I'm not mistaken).

I would get the 7970 just because it seems like AMD is finally pushing out an incredibly strong line up of cards.

 

[aaksheytalwar]

Not even worth comparing. Compare a 7970 with a 680 oc at least considering 7970 ocz much better even with reference models.

 

[Cruncx]

Hmm, got it.
I`ve never made an OC... I`m actually kinda afraid of doing so.
But thinking about it as a possibility when its needed...
Any other thoughts? Hints?

 

[wand3r3r]

Overclocking is quite easy with the current HD 79xx cards and they generally take nice bumps (free performance).

Basically you can just download MSI Afterburner, and adjust the clocks.

You just have to move the power limit to the max. (old picture doesn't have that slider)

Then you bump the "core clock" up say +20 MHz at a time and save it.

Go run a benchmark say Unigine Heaven and watch if there are any strange artifacts or polygon shapes popping up in the screen or snow like pixels.

Repeat.

At some point you will see some artifacts so you can stop raising the core clock. At that point back down a little bit (20-50 MHz or so). Then try some games. If you see artifacts back the core clock down slightly.

Keep an eye on temperatures.

When you have found the stable core clock and have backed down a little from the max where you saw artifacts (or it crashes) you can start doing the same to the memory.

 

[Cruncx]

Nice, it helped alot!
Just to know... Will I have ti buy a new cooler for it to avoid overheat, and then, taking out its life time?
Cuz right now i wouldn`t have money for this, but maybe in some time...
And this card is already factory OC wouldn`t there be any problem on pushing it even more?
THX!!

 

[Durvelle27]

what country do you reside in and what's your budget ?

 

[Cruncx]

I`m from Brazil...
but i`ll buy it at Paraguay. My budget for the graphic card is 400~500 USS...
but i`ll buy at this store all the components from this store:
http://www.navenet.com/ - the site is currently down... =[

 

[Durvelle27]

what games will you be playing ?

 

[Cruncx]

Well, there is the problem...
I like to test alot of games, but all of them MMORPGS...
I don`t like to stay on just one, and I test then once they are released or so.
So its important to consider the future games, not only the launched-already ones...
Did it help? Anything else u would like to know?

 

[Durvelle27]

In my opinion i think you should go for the HD 7970 if it cost less but if the GTX 670 is less than go for it. If both are equal in price get the HD 7970 as it has the best price/performance ratio

 

[aaksheytalwar]

The 7970 is easily worth a $100 premium

 

[Cruncx]

Hmm, so far I`ll get the 7970 then...
Any other thoughts?
And just to be sure... Are this replies of u guys consideration exactly the models i posted the link of?
Because this are the only available at the story I`m going to buy from...

TY =]

 

[OILFIELDTRASH]

The 7970 is easily worth a $100 premium

No.

 

[OILFIELDTRASH]

Hmm, so far I`ll get the 7970 then...
Any other thoughts?
And just to be sure... Are this replies of u guys consideration exactly the models i posted the link of?
Because this are the only available at the story I`m going to buy from...

TY =]

I say the 670. AMD is a company on the brink of bankruptcy. Do you trust they'll be around to rma your card or provide adequate drivers when they don't know if the company will even be around in a year or two. I play at 1080p and the 670 is the perfect balance of performance and power consumption. I have my PC right next to me and I don't want my computer putting out anymore heat than it already does.

 

[Cruncx]

I say the 670. AMD is a company on the brink of bankruptcy. Do you trust they'll be around to rma your card or provide adequate drivers when they don't know if the company will even be around in a year or two. I play at 1080p and the 670 is the perfect balance of performance and power consumption. I have my PC right next to me and I don't want my computer putting out anymore heat than it already does.

Hmm, got ur point.
But, not thinking about the power consumption and the heat the will come out of it, thinking just about the performance: which one of the 2?

 

[OILFIELDTRASH]

Hmm, got ur point.
But, not thinking about the power consumption and the heat the will come out of it, thinking just about the performance: which one of the 2?

Well then just look at the number of GPU charts out there. Its pretty clear the 7970 is the faster of the two.
I don't like cards missing features like 3d vision and physx.

 

[Zanovar]

I say the 670. AMD is a company on the brink of bankruptcy. Do you trust they'll be around to rma your card or provide adequate drivers when they don't know if the company will even be around in a year or two. I play at 1080p and the 670 is the perfect balance of performance and power consumption. I have my PC right next to me and I don't want my computer putting out anymore heat than it already does.

Not sure i understand part of this argument(seen it mentioned a few times too).surely rma would be handled by partners you bought the card from?,msi giga saphire etc?

 

[OILFIELDTRASH]

Not sure i understand part of this argument.surely rma would be handled by partners you bought the card from?,msi giga saphire etc?

Nice how you don't even mention the drivers.

Im pretty sure xfx or other partners that are AMD exclusive would fold up their tents in light of the fact their exclusive source of income (AMD) went out of business.

Remember the discount you are getting on the 7970 is due to the lack of exclusive features and the fact a financially strapped company is giving them away just to stay afloat.

 

[Final8ty]

XFX is not exclusive to AMD, they still make lower end NV cards and to keep it simple then buy a brand that is not exclusive to AMD.

 

[Zanovar]

Nice how you don't even mention the drivers.

Im pretty sure xfx or other partners that are AMD exclusive would fold up their tents in light of the fact their exclusive source of income (AMD) went out of business.

Remember the discount you are getting on the 7970 is due to the lack of exclusive features and the fact a financially strapped company is giving them away just to stay afloat.

Rofl.erm what?,i was on about your silly rma argument.not the drivers.

 

[Final8ty]

Rofl.erm what?,i was on about your silly rma argument.not the drivers.

The whole thing was silly.

 

[OILFIELDTRASH]

The whole thing was silly.

Really? Say he's one of those guys that keeps gpus for 3+ years. Don't you think it would be wise to consider the fact AMD will likely not be around to replace his card?
Not dogging AMD, its a valid point.