should i upgrade my graphics?

[David]

I'm running a 8800 GTS 512 Over clocked. Runs pretty well even crysis goes quite well, obvisouly no AA etc but i was thinking of upgrading to a AtI 4870x2 (the dual core edition) 2gigDDR5 etc.

However my PSU won't handle it (currently 650w corsair) so i'd need a 850w or more to run it apparently (give i have x4 hdd's x1 optical etc).

So do i upgrade the psu and the gcard, for the cost of around £500 or f**k the whole idea off? suggestions/comments??

 

[McBunny]

this is why consoles are just so much easier to live with lol (note i didnt say better)

 

[Munson]

For a good performance boost, you could add another 8800GTS if you have an SLI board? But the 4870x2 is small tempting I must admit. I'm considering f**king off my pair of 8800GTS 512s and sticking the ATI in there. This would be part of an upgrade to 1920x1200 or possibly 2560x1600. No point otherwise, as currently I don't really need more power at 1680x1050.

What resolution are you gaming at? If 1920x* or more, then I'd say yes, definitely get the ATI beast. I certainly think I might - perhaps even two, if I change to an Intel chipset

 

[Munson]

this is why consoles are just so much easier to live with lol (note i didnt say better)

This is also why PCs make 'next-gen' console graphics look like Manic Miner within a year ~flame~fanboi~etc~

 

[McBunny]

i agree but is it really worth it ?

 

[Munson]

i agree but is it really worth it ?

Thinks back to uber-high-everything 60fps FarCry2 session last night. Yes, it really is worth it

 

[Aluco]

i agree but is it really worth it ?

Pretty much once your in the game yeah!

 

[McBunny]

lol maybe it is i dunno i havent been into pc gaming since avp and unreal tournament so its a while ago

 

[Aluco]

Although expensive I enjoy building/upgrading computers so it goes hand in hand =]

 

[David]

well there are so many games on the pc i have which are coming out and whcihh i want to play, and play well. it's worth it for me as it'll last a good while.

Roy, nah have an ip35pro now, got rid of the sli board. so ati is the way forward i think...oh well i guess it'll be a xmas present :-/ yeh gaming on a 1920 res...although normally turn it down cause the gts doens't do the job at that high reso

 

[McBunny]

Although expensive I enjoy building/upgrading computers so it goes hand in hand =]

i used to love it too now i cant stand computers i think it comes with supporting them all day

 

[David]

Been looking at benchmarks apparently, value for money wise, x2 4850 cards is the way forward, although i'm a bit reluctant to do this tbh as i'd want room for expandibility, but worth a thought.

 

[Munson]

Definitely 4870x2. Value for money is for girls and pikeys, bang for buck etc. means not the best. Bigger faster more expensive. Get the 4870x2. Do it.

 

[Munson]

God damn this thread. It's got me itching to put out on some new hardware. I've got so many options though.

QX9650 - Keep or move to i7? I reckon keep for now, but not for X58...
Asus P5NT Deluxe 780i - Keep, get an X48, or get an X58 for i7?
4GB Black Dragon DDR2 - Keep, or go DDR3 with an X48 or X58.
2x BFG 8800GTS512 SLI - Definitey dump for 4870x2, or maybe 2 with X48 or X58.

All the above options will eventually lead to the same path, but it's what to do when, which is tricky. Also with rumours that AMDs new processors might rock...FFS

Sensible option for now is to just stick a 4870x2 in my 780i board.

 

[Brasseye]

ps3 £285

 

[Aluco]

Whats people opinions on the BFG OC 9600 GT

Bought one last month and i reckon i could have chosen better

then again my HDD is bottlenecking my systems vista rating from 5.9 at 5.2 so can't be that bad?

 

[David]

Got a ps3. 9600 is ok, check tomshardware for benchmarks. Get a samsung f1 spintpoitn for 5.9 hdd rating...they're cheap aswell

Munson - screw i7 mate, wait for the technology to stabalise. I've heard they don't do gaming much benefit anywya....you're in a similar situ to me, i decided gcard is the way forward, but thats cause i run a 24" lcd...so want the reso's higher on games like crysis and new upcoming games.

New AMD's are only going to be triple core, not going to touch the potential of i7 chips...unless you know something i don't...

 

[Munson]

Got a ps3. 9600 is ok, check tomshardware for benchmarks. Get a samsung f1 spintpoitn for 5.9 hdd rating...they're cheap aswell

Munson - screw i7 mate, wait for the technology to stabalise. I've heard they don't do gaming much benefit anywya....you're in a similar situ to me, i decided gcard is the way forward, but thats cause i run a 24" lcd...so want the reso's higher on games like crysis and new upcoming games.

New AMD's are only going to be triple core, not going to touch the potential of i7 chips...unless you know something i don't...

Yeah I'm aware that i7 may not prove to be the ultimate gaming platform. That's why I want to wait a while before deciding. New s**t has come to light though - there are reported issues with nForce chipsets and the 4870x2 and installing drivers. Given that my CPU was £750 and only a year old, moving to socket 1366 is a bit gay, but perhaps inevitable eventually. If it is inevitable then there's little point in getting X48 now (which I may have to with the 4870x2) and then X58 later. Thus, my logic has now led me to start considering a pair of 280s in SLI, which will give me a huge performance boost on my existing platform.

RE: AMD - the future is not set. I've been reading that there could be some new s**t coming to light. Think it was on overclock.net

 

[David]

I see. Not convinced on the 280's though..i mean i'd rather spend £100 on a new mobo and get twin 4870's instead but thats me lol

 

[Munson]

FFS you might be right

 

[Aluco]

Just been reading on toms hardware and saw something about my processor not working to its full potential unless you flash your mobo or something. Can anyone confirm this ? I have a 9950 Black edition with this mobo,
http://www.overclockers.co.uk/showproduct.php?prodid=MB-275-AS&groupid=701&catid=5&subcat=806&name=Asus%20M3N-HT%20Deluxe%20HDMI%20nForce%20780a%20SLi%20(Socket%20AM2)%20PCI-Express%20DDR2%20Motherboard

If i do need to flash my mobo how do i do it ? and will i need to reinstall windows

 

[David]

...ok do you know what thread hijacking is?! wtf

 

[Aluco]

Sorry should have PM'd you

 

[David]

or start a thread...anyway as i'm posting this may aswell answer you. No flashing your bios is normally done with a floppy disc, there will be more instructions on how to do it on the manufatuers website, sometimes with some boards you can flash within windows and NO you don't have to reinstall the OS...

 

[Aluco]

Ok cheers, I'll have a poke around tonight.

sorry again

 

[iain187]

For a good performance boost, you could add another 8800GTS if you have an SLI board?

I have read before that if you buy 2 GFX cards at separate times, you need to check that the manufacturer hasnt updated the firmware as it can lead to problems in an SLI setup.