Graphics card woes~

Sup guys, So, again, in tried and true fashion, I've come again to the GS forums to ask another tech related question.

I've currently got a 9600GT in my main gaming rig (Yeah, I know...) and I'm going to replace it sometime this week. Here's the deal. I'm not quite sure what to get!

Currently I'm playing Crysis, Farcry 2, GTA IV, CoD MW:2, BFBC2: ME, ME 2, and a shlew of others.... Before the rampant fanboyism comments, I want to stay away from nVidia; as they have done me extremely poorly in customer service twice now and what a sales rep told me was a "powerful" card ended up being completely lackluster overall. Not to mention this, but I do not have an amazing way of cooling a GPU (it's nothing terrible, it's just not liquid) and I have been told that Fermi runs like a pancake griddle iron.

From everything I've read, the 5850 is an amazing card, but I've been told several things, and I'm just trying to cut through some of the "hype" and get what's best for my current needs -Is it true you can overclock these 5850's to amazingness? - I've also been told you can flash the bios of a 5850 to a 5870 and achive REDICULOUS OCing results? (Confirm/Deny) -I've been told that two 5770's run faster in many new applications. If I can overclock the 5850, which would be faster, a 5770 CF or a 5850 OC? -Would I be better off to just spend the extram bling and get a 5870?

Price range is looking to be around 350.

TL;DR version - 5770 CF/ 5850 OC/ 5870

Sup guys, So, again, in tried and true fashion, I've come again to the GS forums to ask another tech related question.

I've currently got a 9600GT in my main gaming rig (Yeah, I know...) and I'm going to replace it sometime this week. Here's the deal. I'm not quite sure what to get!

Currently I'm playing Crysis, Farcry 2, GTA IV, CoD MW:2, BFBC2: ME, ME 2, and a shlew of others.... Before the rampant fanboyism comments, I want to stay away from nVidia; as they have done me extremely poorly in customer service twice now and what a sales rep told me was a "powerful" card ended up being completely lackluster overall. Not to mention this, but I do not have an amazing way of cooling a GPU (it's nothing terrible, it's just not liquid) and I have been told that Fermi runs like a pancake griddle iron.

From everything I've read, the 5850 is an amazing card, but I've been told several things, and I'm just trying to cut through some of the "hype" and get what's best for my current needs -Is it true you can overclock these 5850's to amazingness? - I've also been told you can flash the bios of a 5850 to a 5870 and achive REDICULOUS OCing results? (Confirm/Deny) -I've been told that two 5770's run faster in many new applications. If I can overclock the 5850, which would be faster, a 5770 CF or a 5850 OC? -Would I be better off to just spend the extram bling and get a 5870?

Price range is looking to be around 350.

TL;DR version - 5770 CF/ 5850 OC/ 5870

Antholography

All three are nice choices honestly. Sorry to hear that you had some bad customer service there. Where did you buy the card? I'm curious to hear what salesman would sell the 9600 as a powerful gaming card.

Got a question for you first though, what resolution do you play games at, and are you planning on buying a new moniter within the next year or so? Gigabyte has a factory overclocked card that has a better cooler than the standard 5850's, which is always a nice touch.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814125318

The 5870s are going to be around $400, so just above your price range. They are wonderful performers though, and run pretty quiet and cool when compared to the competition, as well as the previous generation of cards.

Personally I would shy away from going Xfire 5770s though, they may perform pretty darn well but why not just get a single card solution that would perform just as well for $100 more, it will last you longer on it's own, won't have scaling issues, and you can always add on another in the future when they drop the price. This is personal taste though, i've never been a big fan of multi card solutions.

All of these options will be able to max out anything on the market though. I'd narrow it down based on what res your moniter puts out

I suspect a single 58xx card will be a more efficient choice, particularly if you want to upgrade in the future. But with experience of 5770CF, it's a good setup - I run the likes of Crysis and JC2 at 1920 x1080 with a rock solid frame rate and high detail settings (I really should test Crysis at ultra).

Well I dont know what store or brand you bought for your 9600GT, but Ive never had a issue with PNY or XFX, XFX being the best from my experience.

Because you had a bad experience with a certain store or brand dont blame Nvidia, since ATI have their share of problems too like any other brand product.

But if your still wanting ATI then a XFX 5850 would do the trick.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814150491&cm_re=XFX_5850-_-14-150-491-_-Product

And dont count out the GTX 470 neither since is faster then a 5850. and is still within your budget. but you need a 550w+ psu

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814130550&cm_re=GTX_470-_-14-130-550-_-Product

How I ended up with the 9600-

I was at a clinic of sorts where they were advertising various graphics cards that were on display. I started talking to a rep and said I was a casual gamer that was looking to get something with a little bit of headroom if I wanted to advance into "hardcore" gaming. Granted, this was last year, but setting me wit ha 9600 was a doosh move. I didn't know about places like this, and I didn't know much about hardware, and ever since I realized I got screwed I have been on a vendetta to make sure I know before I buy

What I most likely will do is go with a 5850 and CF later. It won't hurt for now, and it gives time for things to get better optimized for CFirng.

I have a 5830 and can run crysis at ultra its a great card so i think the 5850 would be your best choice they are great cards...

Also, don't mean t odouble post, but which one? I don't know what to make of the three....any opinions? Apparently the gigabyte has fan issues... http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814161332&cm_re=HD5850-_-14-161-332-_-Product http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814121370&cm_re=HD5850-_-14-121-370-_-ProductAntholography

How I ended up with the 9600-

I was at a clinic of sorts where they were advertising various graphics cards that were on display. I started talking to a rep and said I was a casual gamer that was looking to get something with a little bit of headroom if I wanted to advance into "hardcore" gaming. Granted, this was last year, but setting me wit ha 9600 was a doosh move. I didn't know about places like this, and I didn't know much about hardware, and ever since I realized I got screwed I have been on a vendetta to make sure I know before I buy

What I most likely will do is go with a 5850 and CF later. It won't hurt for now, and it gives time for things to get better optimized for CFirng.

AMD 965 @ 4.0

4.0 Gigs of DDR3 1600 RAM

TB HD

23' 1920x1080 Monitor

And, no, the 9600 GT WILL NOT run anything at high with 1440 res. It bearly runs some games at moderate with 1280 x 720

AMD 965 @ 4.0

4.0 Gigs of DDR3 1600 RAM

TB HD

23' 1920x1080 Monitor

And, no, the 9600 GT WILL NOT run anything at high with 1440 res. It bearly runs some games at moderate with 1280 x 720

Just a note, the 470 does not run that hot, reviewers are just biased, "no im locking the fan speed at 30%, wow its touching 100c", no wonder it gets that hot, if you left it on auto it wouldn't get that hot.

Anyway, because the TC prefers ATI, I would say 5850/70, the 2GB version (due to high res).

Alright guys

Any thoughts on this?

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814161302&cm_re=HD5850-_-14-161-302-_-Product

if that ones a no-go, I'll just wait the week or so out for the XFX

Also: what's the difference between THIS XFX

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814150491&cm_re=HD5850-_-14-150-491-_-Product

and this one?

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814150477&cm_re=HD5850-_-14-150-477-_-Product

Obviously, the cooler, but which one is better/etc?

I'm a little surprised at the 9600gt bashing. If you get one that's a full-blown 512mb GDDR3, full clock speed, non low-power version card.. they're actually a pretty respectable performer. Anywhere from about 10-20% slower than the 8800/9800gt in most games. Trying to run newer games at 1080p on one isn't a good idea, but for 1280x1024 to 1440x900 shouldn't be an issue in the majority of games. You may not be able to max all settings or crank up the AA, but it's not a bad entry-level gaming card. I built a budget computer for my little brother last December that had an Athlon II X2 240 and a 9600gt. He's running games at 1280x1024 maxed out with no issue. He only has to turn a few settings down in Crysis, of course.

Alright guys

Any thoughts on this?

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814161302&cm_re=HD5850-_-14-161-302-_-Product

if that ones a no-go, I'll just wait the week or so out for the XFX

Also: what's the difference between THIS XFX

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814150491&cm_re=HD5850-_-14-150-491-_-Product

and this one?

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814150477&cm_re=HD5850-_-14-150-477-_-Product

Obviously, the cooler, but which one is better/etc?

Honestly the PNY 1GB 9600GT is a joke trying to run anything even remotely playable at 1280.

BFBC is wretched, have to keep at minimums
GTAIV - Well, let's not go there.
Crysis - ...

About the only game it runs about half decently (mind you, at 30+ fps consistantly, no droppage) is MW/MW2.

If I wanted to sit in my undies and play WoW all day, this card wouldn't be terrible, but honestly as soon as you put even a little stress on it, it falls terribly, terribly short. It's got fan control issues and runs hot from the factory.

reviewers are just biasedAmith12

Honestly the PNY 1GB 9600GT is a joke trying to run anything even remotely playable at 1280.

BFBC is wretched, have to keep at minimums
GTAIV - Well, let's not go there.
Crysis - ...

About the only game it runs about half decently (mind you, at 30+ fps consistantly, no droppage) is MW/MW2.

If I wanted to sit in my undies and play WoW all day, this card wouldn't be terrible, but honestly as soon as you put even a little stress on it, it falls terribly, terribly short. It's got fan control issues and runs hot from the factory.

Antholography

I noticed that there was a PNY 9600gt for a ridiculously cheap price on newegg a few weeks ago. I looked at the reviews, and they were absolutely horrible. Chips overheating, fans not working correctly, bad performance, etc.. Trust me, not all 9600gt's are like that. Just a couple of the PNY 9600gt's. I don't know exactly what they did to manage to screw it up that badly, but they did. (PNY, that is).

[QUOTE="Amith12"]reviewers are just biasedsmc91352

Well the reviewers that just refuse to do what Nvidia/ATI told them, to keep it in the recommended settings, and what does that mean "Auto" for most people, its your own fault for locking the fan speed, and not letting the software do what it is there for, to keep things cool.

Well the reviewers that just refuse to do what Nvidia/ATI told them, to keep it in the recommended settings, and what does that mean "Auto" for most people, its your own fault for locking the fan speed, and not letting the software do what it is there for, to keep things cool.Amith12

[QUOTE="Amith12"]Well the reviewers that just refuse to do what Nvidia/ATI told them, to keep it in the recommended settings, and what does that mean "Auto" for most people, its your own fault for locking the fan speed, and not letting the software do what it is there for, to keep things cool.smc91352

Heat obviously.

Heat obviously.Amith12

[QUOTE="Amith12"]Heat obviously.smc91352

Oh forget it, we are off-topic enough, lets just help the TC :)

Sup guys, So, again, in tried and true fashion, I've come again to the GS forums to ask another tech related question.

I've currently got a 9600GT in my main gaming rig (Yeah, I know...) and I'm going to replace it sometime this week. Here's the deal. I'm not quite sure what to get!

Currently I'm playing Crysis, Farcry 2, GTA IV, CoD MW:2, BFBC2: ME, ME 2, and a shlew of others.... Before the rampant fanboyism comments, I want to stay away from nVidia; as they have done me extremely poorly in customer service twice now and what a sales rep told me was a "powerful" card ended up being completely lackluster overall. Not to mention this, but I do not have an amazing way of cooling a GPU (it's nothing terrible, it's just not liquid) and I have been told that Fermi runs like a pancake griddle iron.

From everything I've read, the 5850 is an amazing card, but I've been told several things, and I'm just trying to cut through some of the "hype" and get what's best for my current needs -Is it true you can overclock these 5850's to amazingness? - I've also been told you can flash the bios of a 5850 to a 5870 and achive REDICULOUS OCing results? (Confirm/Deny) -I've been told that two 5770's run faster in many new applications. If I can overclock the 5850, which would be faster, a 5770 CF or a 5850 OC? -Would I be better off to just spend the extram bling and get a 5870?

Price range is looking to be around 350.

TL;DR version - 5770 CF/ 5850 OC/ 5870

Antholography

sorry i just had to say this..hd 5830!!!!! ftw!!!

now im going to hide behind my tiny shield and prep for people to pelt me with rocks.

okayy.... go!

seriously though i love my 5830.. even if the bundled game sucks it has been an invalulable tool.

I can run GTA4 on a 4670 1Gb which is about the same give or take. I do suggest the 5850, its like the 8800GT of today!

[QUOTE="Antholography"]

Sup guys, So, again, in tried and true fashion, I've come again to the GS forums to ask another tech related question.

I've currently got a 9600GT in my main gaming rig (Yeah, I know...) and I'm going to replace it sometime this week. Here's the deal. I'm not quite sure what to get!

Currently I'm playing Crysis, Farcry 2, GTA IV, CoD MW:2, BFBC2: ME, ME 2, and a shlew of others.... Before the rampant fanboyism comments, I want to stay away from nVidia; as they have done me extremely poorly in customer service twice now and what a sales rep told me was a "powerful" card ended up being completely lackluster overall. Not to mention this, but I do not have an amazing way of cooling a GPU (it's nothing terrible, it's just not liquid) and I have been told that Fermi runs like a pancake griddle iron.

From everything I've read, the 5850 is an amazing card, but I've been told several things, and I'm just trying to cut through some of the "hype" and get what's best for my current needs -Is it true you can overclock these 5850's to amazingness? - I've also been told you can flash the bios of a 5850 to a 5870 and achive REDICULOUS OCing results? (Confirm/Deny) -I've been told that two 5770's run faster in many new applications. If I can overclock the 5850, which would be faster, a 5770 CF or a 5850 OC? -Would I be better off to just spend the extram bling and get a 5870?

Price range is looking to be around 350.

TL;DR version - 5770 CF/ 5850 OC/ 5870

Bigsteve3570

um...this confuses me. Do you mean crossfire 5770s?