How big is the upgrade from a gtx260 to a gtx470?

I am happy with my 260, but there have been some recent games where i have to dial back the graphic options or resolution, such as Just Cause 2 and Battlefield BC2, so i am considering upgrading to a GTX470. The 470 is not too expensive and i think it could hold me over until later next year. What do you think?

wow...quantum leap, unless you can sli the gtx 260's....no dx11 though

Nah IMO, get another 260 and it will be better than a 470 - the DX11

better to get the GTX 470 than to SLI GTX260s. I don't know if microstutter has been fixed, but SLI bugged the hell out of me when I had it. And besides, if you sell your GTX260 you could get a GTX470 by adding on not much more than the cost of getting a second GTX260.Mr_NoName111

I agree with this. If you can spend $30-50 more, get a 5870 instead.

[QUOTE="Mr_NoName111"]better to get the GTX 470 than to SLI GTX260s. I don't know if microstutter has been fixed, but SLI bugged the hell out of me when I had it. And besides, if you sell your GTX260 you could get a GTX470 by adding on not much more than the cost of getting a second GTX260.hartsickdiscipl

I agree with this. If you can spend $30-50 more, get a 5870 instead.

[QUOTE="hartsickdiscipl"]

[QUOTE="Mr_NoName111"]better to get the GTX 470 than to SLI GTX260s. I don't know if microstutter has been fixed, but SLI bugged the hell out of me when I had it. And besides, if you sell your GTX260 you could get a GTX470 by adding on not much more than the cost of getting a second GTX260.Videodogg

I agree with this. If you can spend $30-50 more, get a 5870 instead.

Lower temps, lower power consumption, better performance.

[QUOTE="hartsickdiscipl"]

[QUOTE="Mr_NoName111"]better to get the GTX 470 than to SLI GTX260s. I don't know if microstutter has been fixed, but SLI bugged the hell out of me when I had it. And besides, if you sell your GTX260 you could get a GTX470 by adding on not much more than the cost of getting a second GTX260.Videodogg

I agree with this. If you can spend $30-50 more, get a 5870 instead.

Better performance, lower power consumption, less heat inside your case.

ok...best version of the 5870? Best manufacturer?

ok...best version of the 5870? Best manufacturer?

Videodogg

They're almost all good. I'd personally recommend Sapphire or XFX.

I did the same thing your planning on doing my GTX260 was starting to struggle in some games so got the GTX470 i made sure to get the Asus Voltage Tweak Edition after reading reviews.

It has allowed me to get a card with the same performance of the much more expensive GTX480 couldn't be happier. Oh yes and faster then the Radeon HD5870 which i nearly bought my card does run hotter and uses more power then the HD5870 would though. So take that into consideration if that is an issue for you.

Now have the GTX260 doing some Physx work so no performance is taken from the GTX470 when playing Physx enabled games.

I did the same thing your planning on doing my GTX260 was starting to struggle in some games so got the GTX470 i made sure to get the Asus Voltage Tweak Edition after reading reviews. It has allowed me to get a card with the same performance of the much more expensive GTX480 couldn't be happier. (OH yes and faster then the Radeon HD5870 which i nearly bought) Now have the GTX260 doing some Physx work so no performance is taken from the GTX470 when playing Physx enabled games.Timbury

I would say atleast with the GTX470 it is over blown seems to be more the GTX480 even though i have my card clocked higher then a GTX480 temps don't seem to be an issue for me. Gets up to about 69-72c while playing MW2 for a extended session which is more then what my GTX260 was putting out, but isn't as bad as these 90c i was seeing in reviews.

Edit* On power consumption the GTX470 is a hungry card and overclocked it needs more juice but again this isn't an issue for me, may be for you?

I did the same thing your planning on doing my GTX260 was starting to struggle in some games so got the GTX470 i made sure to get the Asus Voltage Tweak Edition after reading reviews.

It has allowed me to get a card with the same performance of the much more expensive GTX480 couldn't be happier. Oh yes and faster then the Radeon HD5870 which i nearly bought my card does run hotter and uses more power then the HD5870 would though. So take that into consideration if that is an issue for you.

Now have the GTX260 doing some Physx work so no performance is taken from the GTX470 when playing Physx enabled games.

Timbury

Or you could get a 5870, download MSI afterburner, and do your own voltage/frequency tweaking. Making it faster than the GTX 470 or 480. When it comes to voltage tweaking and overclocking, everybody can play at that.

ok...best version of the 5870? Best manufacturer?

Videodogg

Well, if you can afford the extra $50 the Sapphire VaporX edition is hands-down the one to get. The 2GB cards are pointless unless you crossfire them and run at triple monitor resolutions, so don't waste your money on those. Since you're already going a little bit over budget though I guess the VaporX is also out of consideration, so really any of the brands are just as good as the others. People tend to like Sapphire and XFX the most though.

Yeah and my card was still cheaper then the 5870 im just saying thats what i done :( no need to get snarky!

I mean i only changed my mind at the last minute to get the GTX470 after reading a view on my particular model, I had planned on getting a 5870 beforehand. Im not trying to be fanboyish or put down the 5870 which is what i think you think im doing.

Yeah and my card was still cheaper then the 5870 im just saying thats what i done :( no need to get snarky!Timbury

Snarky? Lol.. I don't think I've heard that one before. All I was saying is that if he can afford to get a 5870 over a GTX 470, he should do it. Stock for stock, and OC-for-OC, the 5870 is faster. Given that it uses less power and puts out less heat, I think that gives it 3 big pros. No offense to your personal tastes, I was just stating facts to make sure that the TC stays properly informed.

[QUOTE="Timbury"]Yeah and my card was still cheaper then the 5870 im just saying thats what i done :( no need to get snarky!hartsickdiscipl

Snarky? Lol.. I don't think I've heard that one before. All I was saying is that if he can afford to get a 5870 over a GTX 470, he should do it. Stock for stock, and OC-for-OC, the 5870 is faster. Given that it uses less power and puts out less heat, I think that gives it 3 big pros. No offense to your personal tastes, I was just stating facts to make sure that the TC stays properly informed.

[QUOTE="Videodogg"]

ok...best version of the 5870? Best manufacturer?

hartsickdiscipl

They're almost all good. I'd personally recommend Sapphire or XFX.

sapphire and xfx offer the best ones my personal favourites are the following:

vapor-x hd 5870 (sapphire) (coolest 5870 imho)

toxic hd 5870 (sapphire) best factory oc'd 5870

xfx hd 5870 (best warranty for a 5870)

BUT the "best" hd 5870 isnt here just yet.. asus got it the hd 5870 matrix 3gb offering the best of all these worlds + it uses less power and has a better ocing headroom.

[QUOTE="hartsickdiscipl"]

[QUOTE="Videodogg"]

ok...best version of the 5870? Best manufacturer?

ionusX

They're almost all good. I'd personally recommend Sapphire or XFX.

sapphire and xfx offer the best ones my personal favourites are the following:

vapor-x hd 5870 (sapphire) (coolest 5870 imho)

toxic hd 5870 (sapphire) best factory oc'd 5870

xfx hd 5870 (best warranty for a 5870)

BUT the "best" hd 5870 isnt here just yet.. asus got it the hd 5870 matrix 3gb offering the best of all these worlds + it uses less power and has a better ocing headroom.

Lower power usage and better OC'ing headroom would be nice.. but 3GB of RAM on a 5870 is pointless. 2GB is approaching pointless.

[QUOTE="ionusX"]

[QUOTE="hartsickdiscipl"]

They're almost all good. I'd personally recommend Sapphire or XFX.

hartsickdiscipl

sapphire and xfx offer the best ones my personal favourites are the following:

vapor-x hd 5870 (sapphire) (coolest 5870 imho)

toxic hd 5870 (sapphire) best factory oc'd 5870

xfx hd 5870 (best warranty for a 5870)

BUT the "best" hd 5870 isnt here just yet.. asus got it the hd 5870 matrix 3gb offering the best of all these worlds + it uses less power and has a better ocing headroom.

Lower power usage and better OC'ing headroom would be nice.. but 3GB of RAM on a 5870 is pointless. 2GB is approaching pointless.

argue with the results on the ROG web page.. thats it im calling it the best single core gpu on the planet (when overclocked(vs oc'd gtx 480)

[QUOTE="hartsickdiscipl"]

[QUOTE="ionusX"]

sapphire and xfx offer the best ones my personal favourites are the following:

vapor-x hd 5870 (sapphire) (coolest 5870 imho)

toxic hd 5870 (sapphire) best factory oc'd 5870

xfx hd 5870 (best warranty for a 5870)

BUT the "best" hd 5870 isnt here just yet.. asus got it the hd 5870 matrix 3gb offering the best of all these worlds + it uses less power and has a better ocing headroom.

ionusX

Lower power usage and better OC'ing headroom would be nice.. but 3GB of RAM on a 5870 is pointless. 2GB is approaching pointless.

argue with the results on the ROG web page.. thats it im calling it the best single core gpu on the planet (when overclocked(vs oc'd gtx 480)

It has 2GB of RAM, not 3gb. 2gb is actually usable for some people in some games. All ROG does is hype the card and give speculated performance projections.. no real data. I have no doubt that it will be a great performer, but let's wait for the price tag and some real reviews.

[QUOTE="ionusX"]

[QUOTE="hartsickdiscipl"]

Lower power usage and better OC'ing headroom would be nice.. but 3GB of RAM on a 5870 is pointless. 2GB is approaching pointless.

hartsickdiscipl

argue with the results on the ROG web page.. thats it im calling it the best single core gpu on the planet (when overclocked(vs oc'd gtx 480)

It has 2GB of RAM, not 3gb. 2gb is actually usable for some people in some games. All ROG does is hype the card and give speculated performance projections.. no real data. I have no doubt that it will be a great performer, but let's wait for the price tag and some real reviews.

well in benchmarks (futuremark) they preform really well. 4 of them now hold the futuremark benchmark world record after having yanked it from the gtx 480.

[QUOTE="hartsickdiscipl"]

[QUOTE="ionusX"]

argue with the results on the ROG web page.. thats it im calling it the best single core gpu on the planet (when overclocked(vs oc'd gtx 480)

ionusX

It has 2GB of RAM, not 3gb. 2gb is actually usable for some people in some games. All ROG does is hype the card and give speculated performance projections.. no real data. I have no doubt that it will be a great performer, but let's wait for the price tag and some real reviews.

well in benchmarks (futuremark) they preform really well. 4 of them now hold the futuremark benchmark world record after having yanked it from the gtx 480.

It's not hard to imagine how that could've happened.. even with 4 regular 1GB 5870's OC'd. The fastest way to run GTX 480's is in Tri-SLI, since they don't scale well in Quad-SLI.. at least not yet.

http://gadgetsteria.com/2010/04/26/results-are-in-quad-sli-gtx-480s-waste-of-money-side-benefit-heater/