(Cheap) suitable replacement to XFX Radeon 4890

[ojai00]

The fan on my XFX Radeon 4890 died and I didn't keep my receipt so I'm not able to RMA. Aftermarket fans are pretty scarce but can be had for around $50-60. There is currently a deal for the Sapphire 7770 for $75 after MIR which I am tempted to get since it's just a little more than the price of a new fan. Benchmarks are comparable or slightly better than the 4890 and the power usage is significantly lower. The only games I play occasionally are L4D and L4D2. Other than that, I mostly use my PC for running WMC with a SiliconDust HDHomeRun Prime. It's a Core i7 with 12 GB RAM. I am also driving a 30" monitor. Can anyone let me know if this is a suitable replacement or if I should be looking at another card? I'm not looking to spend much more than this price. TIA for any input!

 

[nwo]

Radeon 7770 would definitely be a suitable replacement. But if you want more performance for the same $$$ grab a used GTX 560Ti which would actually be a really good upgrade from a 4890.

 

[SPBHM]

Radeon 7770 would definitely be a suitable replacement. But if you want more performance for the same $$$ grab a used GTX 560Ti which would actually be a really good upgrade from a 4890.

"The only games I play occasionally are L4D and L4D2."

sounds like even the 7770 is overkill
but it should be fine,

also you can probably just replace the fan (search on ebay), not the entire cooler, if you want.

 

[lavaheadache]

my 2 local best buy's have xfx 7770 oc's on clearance for something like $75, wouldn't hurt to check your local store

 

[nwo]

"The only games I play occasionally are L4D and L4D2."

sounds like even the 7770 is overkill
but it should be fine,

also you can probably just replace the fan (search on ebay), not the entire cooler, if you want.

True, true... It is overkill for those games. Fans are around 10-15 bucks on ebay, I'd look into that option first unless your graphics card is fried.

 

[ojai00]

Thanks for all the input! I'll look into the fan option first since it seems most economical.

 

[tweakboy]

Get a 5870,, or 5850 . gl

 

[TeknoBug]

Radeon 7770 would definitely be a suitable replacement. But if you want more performance for the same $$$ grab a used GTX 560Ti which would actually be a really good upgrade from a 4890.

A 560Ti? Why not the 750Ti then? I pulled out a 560Ti and tossed in a 750Ti in one of my systems, less power, somewhat better performance than the 560Ti and Shadowplay support.

 

[nwo]

A 560Ti? Why not the 750Ti then? I pulled out a 560Ti and tossed in a 750Ti in one of my systems, less power, somewhat better performance than the 560Ti and Shadowplay support.

Because a used GTX 560Ti would be in his price range while the GTX 750Ti would be about double the amount he is looking to spend.

 

[smulla]

I know I shouldn't say this but to all peeps please register your cards when you get them. I have a 5450 radeon and I registered it within 30 days and I'm glad I did this will be by third rma with XFX which I sent yesterday.

Of course if it happens 3 times fool on me and I would look for another videocard anyways. I don't do much gaming that is why I went with a PNY 630GT which is a few steps above a 5450 radeon.

Now I'm thinking about building another spare mediabox with the 5450 card that I have on hand during the summer.

I also recommend you buy online like Amazon, Newegg, or Tigerdirect so you have a receipt always.

 

[el etro]

How about the GTX 750 Non-TI? If not 7770 will be god too.

 

[Yuriman]

Personally, I'd probably get an 80mm or 92mm case fan and zip-tie it to the card.

~$3

 

[nwo]

Personally, I'd probably get an 80mm or 92mm case fan and zip-tie it to the card.

~$3

I don't think that would work very well if it's a reference card. 4870s run hot, so a 4890 runs even hotter. Even if it was a non-reference card, an 80 or 92mm case fan might not be sufficient.

 

[lavaheadache]

actually 4890's run cooler, at least mine does. I have 4 different reference 4879 512's and a reference 4890. The 4890 runs around 15c cooler at default fan speed

 

[EndlessWargasm]

Recently upgraded from a 4890 to a 6950. Picked it up for AU$100 on ebay. Twice as fast, twice as cool, similar power consumption. Managed to unload the 4890 for $75 as well.

That along with changing my i7 920 out for a l5639, made for great set of upgrades for my ageing x58 system. Out of pocket about $30 in total.

I'll probably upgrade the GPU again in another year or so, or sooner if I spot another good deal, I've got no need for any more compute at this point.

 

[Makaveli]

actually 4890's run cooler, at least mine does. I have 4 different reference 4879 512's and a reference 4890. The 4890 runs around 15c cooler at default fan speed

That doesn't jive with what i've seen I still have a 4890 in my HTPC and that thing runs hot when loaded.

 

[WT]

I'm in the process of dealing with a 4870x2 that gets hot as an oven, and so far it's cost me more to buy the parts - new fan, new TIM, good thermal paste @ $60 - than I paid for the card ($40) !!

There is a HUGE Amount of variety over the 4870-4890 product line, and obviously a single slot cooler will not match a dual slot cooler, which is my guess why lavaheadache is getting much different results than Makaveli in regards to their 4890 cards.

 

[nwo]

The only 4870 I have owned was a reference design 512mb card. It would idle with ridiculously high temps and surprisingly it wouldn't get much hotter during load. Idle was in high 60s, low 70s, load was in high 70s and low 80s.

But the air coming from the back of it was definitely hot, almost comparable to my reference 7970.

 

[Makaveli]

There is a HUGE Amount of variety over the 4870-4890 product line, and obviously a single slot cooler will not match a dual slot cooler, which is my guess why lavaheadache is getting much different results than Makaveli in regards to their 4890 cards.

You are probably correct here.

i've kept the card cause it was left over from a previous build, I will replace it with something low power soon since I don't play games on the HTPC.

This is my card here.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814102852