Help Me Pick My First Graphics Card

I know that the 7000 series is coming out soon but looking at the prices, I doubt those cards are within my budget. My budget for the graphics card is 250£. My budget for the desktop I intend to build is 1000£ but I am purely focusing on the graphics card right now due to certain circumstances. These circumstances are that I am on holiday outside of the UK where the graphics cards I am looking at seem to be cheaper here and there. I am only here till the 12th of January, though, and some deals are expiring soon. I intend to build the PC late January or early February at the latest.

The most demanding games I intend to play are probably The Witcher 2: Assassins of Kings, Crysis, Crysis 2, and StarCraft 2. I want to play these games at a resolution of 1920 x 1080. I found the following cards:

PNY GeForce GTX 570 - 284.89€ (237.27£) - Manufacturer Code: GMGTX57N2H12ZPB

INNO 3D GeForce GTX 570 - 284.89€ (237.27£) - Manufacturer Code: N57V-2DDN-J5KS

VTX3D Radeon HD 6970 - 273.89€ (228.20£) - Manufacturer Code: VX6970 2GBD5-2DH

XFX HD 6950 - 215.80€ (179.80£) - Manufacturer Code: HD-695X-ZDFC

Sapphire Radeon HD 6950 - 207.99€ (173.29£) - Manufacturer Code: 11188-09-21G

XFX Radeon HD 6950 - 204.10€ (169.99£) - Manufacturer Code: HD-695X-ZNFC

VTX3D Radeon HD 6950 - 201.95€ (168.20£) - Manufacturer Code: VX6950 1GBD5-2DHG

I bolded and highlighted every odd one to make the list easier to read. Hope it does more good than bad. I've been hanging out here a lot lately and judging from what I've read, the 6970 and the 570 are about equal with the 6970 having the edge apparently. That, plus considering that it's the cheaper card, is the reason I am currently focusing on the 6970. I put the 6950 cards in there simply because they are so much cheaperand thus I am considering them as well.

Thank you in advance for your input. :)

could still wait for them to release just cause their will be a pricedrop for current graphic cards

How much cheaper are they than where you are from? I think the 78xx series are going to be very similar to the 69xx series in performance but in the under 250 dollar range.

How much cheaper are they than where you are from? I think the 78xx series are going to be very similar to the 69xx series in performance but in the under 250 dollar range.

GummiRaccoon

could still wait for them to release just cause their will be a pricedrop for current graphic cards

carter15kd5

Wow, a 6970 for £228!

Wow, a 6970 for £228!

WWIAB

i have bought the asus direct cuda II hd 6870. If i overclock it i can easily match those 6950's I could buy a 6950 for the almost the same price but from a manufacturer like sapphire or pny. I rather have a little slower chipset and a much better cooling solution. My card is silent even under heavy load, your cards will be noisy even under medium load. And they will run hotter, so if you don't have a good case , even more heat.

From the cards you posted i would only choose the sapphire or xfx 6950

[QUOTE="WWIAB"]

Wow, a 6970 for £228!

Hexagon_777

i have bought the asus direct cuda II hd 6870. If i overclock it i can easily match those 6950's I could buy a 6950 for the almost the same price but from a manufacturer like sapphire or pny. I rather have a little slower chipset and a much better cooling solution. My card is silent even under heavy load, your cards will be noisy even under medium load. And they will run hotter, so if you don't have a good case , even more heat.

From the cards you posted i would only choose the sapphire or xfx 6950

evildead6789

[QUOTE="evildead6789"]

i have bought the asus direct cuda II hd 6870. If i overclock it i can easily match those 6950's I could buy a 6950 for the almost the same price but from a manufacturer like sapphire or pny. I rather have a little slower chipset and a much better cooling solution. My card is silent even under heavy load, your cards will be noisy even under medium load. And they will run hotter, so if you don't have a good case , even more heat.

From the cards you posted i would only choose the sapphire or xfx 6950

Hexagon_777

[QUOTE="Hexagon_777"]

[QUOTE="evildead6789"]

i have bought the asus direct cuda II hd 6870. If i overclock it i can easily match those 6950's I could buy a 6950 for the almost the same price but from a manufacturer like sapphire or pny. I rather have a little slower chipset and a much better cooling solution. My card is silent even under heavy load, your cards will be noisy even under medium load. And they will run hotter, so if you don't have a good case , even more heat.

From the cards you posted i would only choose the sapphire or xfx 6950

evildead6789

[QUOTE="evildead6789"]

i have bought the asus direct cuda II hd 6870. If i overclock it i can easily match those 6950's I could buy a 6950 for the almost the same price but from a manufacturer like sapphire or pny. I rather have a little slower chipset and a much better cooling solution. My card is silent even under heavy load, your cards will be noisy even under medium load. And they will run hotter, so if you don't have a good case , even more heat.

From the cards you posted i would only choose the sapphire or xfx 6950

Hexagon_777

Do you live here in the UK? If so, cooling shouldn't be much of an issue.

Even my 480s don't run hot.

[QUOTE="Hexagon_777"]

[QUOTE="evildead6789"]

i have bought the asus direct cuda II hd 6870. If i overclock it i can easily match those 6950's I could buy a 6950 for the almost the same price but from a manufacturer like sapphire or pny. I rather have a little slower chipset and a much better cooling solution. My card is silent even under heavy load, your cards will be noisy even under medium load. And they will run hotter, so if you don't have a good case , even more heat.

From the cards you posted i would only choose the sapphire or xfx 6950

Postmortem123

Do you live here in the UK? If so, cooling shouldn't be much of an issue.

Even my 480s don't run hot.

[QUOTE="evildead6789"][QUOTE="Hexagon_777"]So VTX3D isn't good, huh? I do intend to get a good case. >.>

WWIAB

I am also being advised to just get one of the original 6950s so I can flash it and turn it into a 6970. They are more expensive than other 6950s, but cheaper than the cheapest 6970 I could find.

A 560 TI is also an option, Gigabyte's model is alot cheaper than other 560TIs and 6950s. 560TIs are on par with 6950s.

I am also being advised to just get one of the original 6950s so I can flash it and turn it into a 6970. They are more expensive than other 6950s, but cheaper than the cheapest 6970 I could find.

Hexagon_777

I am also being advised to just get one of the original 6950s so I can flash it and turn it into a 6970. They are more expensive than other 6950s, but cheaper than the cheapest 6970 I could find.

Hexagon_777

I've seen a couple of those on ebay.

[QUOTE="Hexagon_777"]

I am also being advised to just get one of the original 6950s so I can flash it and turn it into a 6970. They are more expensive than other 6950s, but cheaper than the cheapest 6970 I could find.

WWIAB

[QUOTE="carter15kd5"]

could still wait for them to release just cause their will be a pricedrop for current graphic cards

Hexagon_777

[QUOTE="Hexagon_777"]

[QUOTE="carter15kd5"]

could still wait for them to release just cause their will be a pricedrop for current graphic cards

ronvalencia

exactly, people don't realize that even the 3gb 580gtx cards cost about 800$$, so whats the problem when the radeon 79xx series which are more powerful costs about the same?? if you dont have the money then tough, dont buy it, just dream about it.

[QUOTE="WWIAB"][QUOTE="Hexagon_777"]

I am also being advised to just get one of the original 6950s so I can flash it and turn it into a 6970. They are more expensive than other 6950s, but cheaper than the cheapest 6970 I could find.

Hexagon_777

[QUOTE="Hexagon_777"]

[QUOTE="WWIAB"] You'll be lucky to get one, they are heavily sought afterWWIAB