Need better graphics! :D

[oliharan92]

So just before xmas i built a custom gaming pc with the following specs,

asus x58 sli motherboard
6gb crosair xms3 tripple channel
gtx 460 1gb
i7 950 3.2Ghz
ocz stealthxtreme 600w
antec 902 case

so having used it and tryed some games out mainly bfbc2 i find that i cant max it with decent fps so i was wondering should i buy another gtx 460 for sli? or maby sell my graphics and get a 580 gtx single? or one of the new 6 series ati?
i play at 1080p on a 50" hdtv if that makes any diffrence.

also if any of you know about gaming notebooks please take a look at this thread: http://forums.anandtech.com/showthread.php?t=2134972

cheers!
oli

 

[Arkaign]

How about sell 460 and get a single 570? They seem perfect for maxing out 1080p as a single card.

 

[oliharan92]

thanks for the fast reply! will that allow me to enable full graphics including aa and af?
cheers
oli

 

[calvin0416]

what resolution are you playing?

1080p on a 50" = ?

There's a very hot deal on another thread for the HD6950 for 289 shipped no rebate to handle from Amazon.

With 2GB of VRAM, it should be better if you're playing at over 1920 resolution.

http://forums.anandtech.com/showthread.php?t=2134702

edit: oops wrong graph

 

[Arkaign]

thanks for the fast reply! will that allow me to enable full graphics including aa and af?
cheers
oli

Well, I'll put it this way :

In any game where it can't do max/max/max kind of settings, any single GPU would still choke, and any dual GPU less than the top tier will also still choke.

There's not a giant difference between the 570 and 580, certainly not enough to warrant the huge price difference.

But yeah, most games at the moment could be utterly maxed out with a 570 @ 1080p. Frame rate may sometimes be in the 30s, but mostly higher.

http://www.anandtech.com/show/4051/nvidias-geforce-gtx-570-filling-in-the-gaps/6

1920x1200 Metro 2033, 100% maxed, 36+fps. 1080p would be a little faster.

I also find that backing some tiny things off can make the game more fluid without sacrificing any real visual quality imho, at least for shooters and things where you're moving a good bit anyway. I always keep resolution and textures at the max, but sometimes go to the 2nd-level shadow settings, that's typically helpful without making any difference to me. Whether a shadow looks slightly blurry or super exact makes no impact on things, I rarely see super sharp shadows in real life anyway unless I'm standing in bright sunlight lol.

 

[happy medium]

2 gtx460 in sli are faster then any single card out there. It will max BF2 @ 1920x1080 easily.

Spend another 180$ and grab another gtx460 1gb , thats the best option.
You do not need 2gb of ram for your 1080p resolution, thats a waste.

 

[Arkaign]

what resolution are you playing?

1080p on a 50" = ?

There's a very hot deal on another thread for the HD6950 for 289 shipped no rebate to handle from Amazon.

With 2GB of VRAM, it should be better if you're playing at over 1920 resolution.

http://forums.anandtech.com/showthread.php?t=2134702

That's a tough one, good price for sure. The 6950 is decidedly slower than 570 at 1080p, and with a 50" TV setup, it seems doubtful that op would opt to switch for a much smaller and still somewhat pricey 2560 display.

OP : this section would probably be the best guide to you.

Look at the 1920x1200 res here, look at the cards listed, decide what makes the most sense to you.

http://www.anandtech.com/show/4061/amds-radeon-hd-6970-radeon-hd-6950/18

Either the 460SLI option, single 570, or single 6950 would make for a sizable upgrade. I always prefer single GPU when possible, but the 460SLI is still a pretty tough performer even with the hassles (heat/noise/psu draw/optimization variance)

 

[oliharan92]

im in the uk and things are more expensive than the usa so i think i will look into doing sli with the gtx 460 since looking at benchmarks it beats a single g0 at bfbc2 and costs less! lol

also did any of you get a chance to look at my other thread about a notebook? it in my 1st post.
im really stuck with that one atm :s

 

[happy medium]

Need we say more? And if you overclock the gtx460's ,its a great upgrade.

 

[Arkaign]

Well, I hate to say it, but your PSU is gonna be stretched on SLI'd 460s with a 45nm i7 setup. I think it will work, but it will probably be closer to the limit.

A cautionary tale, this guy had almost the same setup, and a similarly thirsty cpu (QX6850).

http://hardforum.com/showthread.php?t=1568536

 

[tweakboy]

How about sell 460 and get a single 570? They seem perfect for maxing out 1080p as a single card.

8800 GT card can run in 1920x1200 except some games like Far Cry or Crysis you should set it to 1400,900

What is it that you want out of BF2 ?

How many FPS you getting and what are you nvpanel settings.

If your getting low FPS make shure to turn off AA but use AF16x as its free so is 4xAA but if your stuttering with BF2 then no AA

What other games you play and how do those run ?

 

[oliharan92]

yeh sorry forgot to mention i would upgrade the psu for sli
i was looking at the crosair hx 800w
thanks for all the help!

please help on this thread though as i dont know much about laptops!
http://forums.anandtech.com/showthread.php?t=2134972

cheers oli

 

[happy medium]

Your power supply has a kick a$$ 12v rail. I think it will be fine for sli.

 

[Arkaign]

Oh awesome, then you're set! 600W would function I think, but it's so borderline that I couldn't recommend it, as PSU's tend to age / get less efficient over time as well as perform poorly near the top of their rated limits. That 800W unit will be perfect for you, and even allow decent overclocking without stressing out.

Happy gaming!

 

[Arkaign]

Your power supply has a kick a$$ 12v rail. I think it will be fine for sli.

Well, I saw another post where a totally stock rig with stock GTX460 SLI was pulling ~450W from the wall using a 1000W PSU (not near limit so operating pretty moderately). That was also with lynnfield IIRC, which is a bit less hungry than nehalem. Add in overclocking, and I wouldn't risk the $$$ on a 600W unit. Something like your 750 or that 800 is what would make me comfortable with SLI.

 

[tweakboy]

Your power supply has a kick a$$ 12v rail. I think it will be fine for sli.

As happyMedium said , No need to change PSU.

You havent told us, what FPS you getting and what do you want ?

Throwing another 460 in there just might fix up your BF2 and it will be smooth frame rates.. gl

 

[oliharan92]

I get between 30-45 fps when I play, I would like a sli setup because it looks cooler since my case has a side window oh yeh I ply games at 1920 x 1080. Similar porformance in moh
Cheers
Oli

 

[calvin0416]

Yeah, GTX 460 SLI is less costly since you already have one and more powerful
(extra ~8fps even if you unlock your 6950 to 6970)

One thing to note tho, the 6950(6970) uses 22W Idle 157W Avg Peak 185W
(according to http://www.techpowerup.com/reviews/HIS/Radeon_HD_6970/27.html )

The GTX 460 SLI Idles at 141 peaked at 447W
(from http://www.techspot.com/review/309-geforce-gtx-460-sli-performance/page9.html )

Your system will draw 200W more you also need to spend ~150 for your PSU upgrade.

 

[Insomniator]

Why do people care about AA and AF so much? Is it just because it is a feature that can or cannot be maxed?

I swear I try games with AA/AF on or off and can barely tell a difference if it isnt in a screenshot.

 

[oliharan92]

it makes all the edges sharper i think like on walls and stuff, when your playing on a big screen i notice these things.

 

[Arkaign]

Yeah, GTX 460 SLI is less costly since you already have one and more powerful
(extra ~8fps even if you unlock your 6950 to 6970)

One thing to note tho, the 6950(6970) uses 22W Idle 157W Avg Peak 185W
(according to http://www.techpowerup.com/reviews/HIS/Radeon_HD_6970/27.html )

The GTX 460 SLI Idles at 141 peaked at 447W
(from http://www.techspot.com/review/309-geforce-gtx-460-sli-performance/page9.html )

Your system will draw 200W more you also need to spend ~150 for your PSU upgrade.

Listen to this man. 600W is marginal at best for SLI 460s, ESPECIALLY being combo'd with a Nehalem 1366 build. I wouldn't risk that investment you have in hardware to possibly blowing the PSU, which can damage components. Not to mention that overclocking would be out of the question with that limit. 750 or 800W will be a lot more comfortable, even if it still wouldn't be recommended for SLI'd overvolted 460s along with overvolted 4ghz+ i7-950 OC. That's getting into 1000W territory all said and done.

Stock voltage decent overclocks though, 750 or 800W should be pretty good for the GTX460 SLI setup.

 

[oliharan92]

well does anyone have any reccomendations for a decent modular psu? i dont overclock at the moment but it realy intrests me but i have no idea where to start :s
i want to oc my graphics and cpu once i feel comfortable enough with giving it a go.

could any of you have a look at my notebook thread as i would be very greatful!
cheers
oli

 

[tweakboy]

Did you try turning off AA and see how many fps you get then.

 

[calvin0416]

Does anyone know how much 200W translates into per month if you game say 3 hours a day, in UK (london?)

 

[oliharan92]

the 35 - 40 fps is without aa and af