Tom's Hardware > Forum > Graphic & Displays > Graphics Cards > 2X ATI 4670 or 1 X ATI 4850?

2X ATI 4670 or 1 X ATI 4850?

Forum Graphic & Displays : Graphics Cards - 2X ATI 4670 or 1 X ATI 4850?

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speedbird   09-11-2008 at 08:13:37 PM

Which is the better option? I've never used Crossfire, but is it worthwhile? I have a P35 neo2 FR motherboard, which states 2X 16X slots with 1X16 and 1X4 operations.

Thanks

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IndigoMoss   09-11-2008 at 08:16:53 PM
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1x 4850 would be the better choice. The 4670 performs very close to the HD 3850, which 2x 3850s do not perform better than the 4850. Hell the 3870X2 only trades blows with the 4850, and loses most of the time when AA is enabled.

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evongugg   09-11-2008 at 08:27:19 PM
- 0 +

I would go with the HD4850.
1x4 will slow down the video card.
X38/X48 is the motherboard for Crossfire.

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hannibal   09-11-2008 at 09:06:16 PM
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4850... definitely...

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hairycat101   09-11-2008 at 09:07:22 PM
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One card is usually best. Lots of games aren't even optimised to take use of the second card... which could leave you with one 4670 trying to do what you could have done with one 4850.

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prince10t   09-12-2008 at 04:07:20 PM
- 0 +

Hmm, I've been thinking about that too @speedbird. Maybe some of you already check some reviews on the web about 4670 in CF, on where it really trails a LITTLE BIT behind 4850. the good thing I like with 4670 in CF is that they dont require additional power (6Pin PCIe)/ power consumption at Idle and load is ok, and low temps . But having a single 4850, there is a headroom for you for future upgrade, like 4850 in CF. Interesting isnt it. I'm also confused myself.

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L1qu1d   09-12-2008 at 04:13:00 PM
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4850is your best bet. the 4670 is a very cheap options, unless you plan on only playing current gen games, and not that well I might add, the 4850 is about 30% faster than the 8800 GTX. It should should be more than enough for current games, and it should (but we never know) be able to play next couple of games at high no prob.

If it can't, just add another card:)

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Dekasav   09-12-2008 at 05:56:26 PM
- 0 +

4670 is a great card, and runs remarkably well for it's intro-price, but putting 2 in CrossFire really isn't the best way to go most of the time. Reasons being, is in CF you're second card is only going to run a PCI-e x4, which will likely bottleneck it (slightly). Second, you have problems with microstuttering with two cards so weak, it's likely to appear more rapidly. The price differences are negligible, and the only reason I can see to go 4670 CF over a single 4850 is that your power supply doesn't have any 6-pin outputs.

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tech4now   09-13-2008 at 01:49:45 AM
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I would and am going to use two 4670 cards. Together they are cheaper and faster then one 4850. Plus they run much cooler. I have the same mobo and the x4 slot will not put any bottleneck that your notice from the 4670 but when moving to higher end card could be enough to think about.

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dagger   09-13-2008 at 01:56:15 AM
- 1 +

tech4now wrote :

I would and am going to use two 4670 cards. Together they are cheaper and faster then one 4850. Plus they run much cooler. I have the same mobo and the x4 slot will not put any bottleneck that your notice from the 4670 but when moving to higher end card could be enough to think about.



That's quite not right. On Newegg, the cheapest 4670 cost $80 each, plus $9 shipping each. That's almost $180. The cheapest 4850 cost $170, or $140 if you count in mail in rebate, plus free shipping. Single cards do not bottleneck, so it's a non issue. A single 4850 outperforms 4670 cf. 4670 cf is a worse deal no matter how you look at it.

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 Reply to dagger
tech4now   09-13-2008 at 02:13:50 AM
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Well my case might be a little different. I get free shipping and for me they only cost 70 with newegg cause of work. so 70+70 is 140 and that is still cheaper then the 4850 and they are cooler and use less power.

about the speed tweaktown tested two together and was indeed faster so , at least for me cheaper , faster , efficient . its the way to go. they will last me until the next gen or two.

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Sus-penders   09-13-2008 at 04:53:27 AM
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I would personally feel a lot more comfortable with a single 4850. You should reconsider. Even if it is a bit more expensive, it's worth it.

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Sus-penders   09-13-2008 at 06:12:40 AM
- 0 +

Heh, "the mainstream maestro".

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speedbird   09-13-2008 at 12:20:32 PM
- 0 +

It seems overall that a single 4850 would be better, judging by the posts in this thread.

Reply to speedbird
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