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Buy a second 3870 or a 4850?

Forum Graphic & Displays : Graphics Cards - Buy a second 3870 or a 4850?

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cappster   10-27-2008 at 04:04:00 PM

WWYD? I am thinking about buying a second 3870 instead of buying a 4850. I am not usre if that is the wisest move, but it seems to me that a crossfired 3870 setup packs more punch than a single 4850. Also, if I get a second 3870, will a GDDR4 card be compatible with a GDDR3 version? I already have a GDDR4 version and I was thinking of getting one of the cheaper GDDR3 models. I mean 70 dollars for a 3870 is very appealing.

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1HAPLO   10-27-2008 at 05:22:56 PM
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With the P965 chipset the 4850 would be the better option, The P965 has a 16x/4x Crossfre. With the 4X slot you could loose as much as 30% performance.

If you have a newer MB then your profile then the Xfire would be a option. Toms did a test on 4x/8x/16x PCIe slots and the 4X lost around 33%.

So If I was you I would get the 4850, Because that single card is going to be faster on all games. Crossfire is not supported by every game. Plus the 16X/4X crossfire on the P965 chipset is a nother reason.

1Haplo

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L1qu1d   10-27-2008 at 05:39:58 PM
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the 4850 performs just like the 3870 X2 just with out the hassle.

http://www.guru3d.com/vga/vga-cod4.png

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cappster   10-27-2008 at 07:32:23 PM
- 0 +

1HAPLO wrote :

With the P965 chipset the 4850 would be the better option, The P965 has a 16x/4x Crossfre. With the 4X slot you could loose as much as 30% performance.

If you have a newer MB then your profile then the Xfire would be a option. Toms did a test on 4x/8x/16x PCIe slots and the 4X lost around 33%.

So If I was you I would get the 4850, Because that single card is going to be faster on all games. Crossfire is not supported by every game. Plus the 16X/4X crossfire on the P965 chipset is a nother reason.

1Haplo



Good point. I was just hoping to take the cheaper route and have x-fire bragging rights. I do have the same MB, but it is about time to upgrade/overhaul my entire system. I can always sell my 3870 and offset the costs to come out to about the money I would've spent in the first place. Thanks for your input.

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------------------------------ Q9400 @ 3.4
Gigabyte EP45-UD3P
2x2 Corsair Dominator 1066
Crossfire ASUS TOP 4850's
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cappster   10-27-2008 at 07:36:11 PM
- 0 +

L1qu1d wrote :

the 4850 performs just like the 3870 X2 just with out the hassle.

http://www.guru3d.com/vga/vga-cod4.png



Thanks for the chart. I was looking at tomshardware charts and the xfire 3870's and 4850 went tat for tat. 1 card is better overall if they are close so thats what I will probably go with. thanks for your input

------------------------------ Q9400 @ 3.4
Gigabyte EP45-UD3P
2x2 Corsair Dominator 1066
Crossfire ASUS TOP 4850's
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rodney_ws   10-27-2008 at 07:52:49 PM
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cappster wrote :

I was just hoping to take the cheaper route and have x-fire bragging rights.



That would give you bragging rights? To who?

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L1qu1d   10-27-2008 at 09:47:41 PM
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Jebus:)

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cappster   10-27-2008 at 11:46:55 PM
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rodney_ws wrote :

That would give you bragging rights? To who?



Honestly, probably just to my self or probably to people who just know enough about computers to be somewhat impressed that I have a dual graphics setup. Its kind of like having a twin turbo setup on your car when you really only need one big turbo to go just as fast. Catch my drift?

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cappster   10-28-2008 at 02:56:51 PM
- 0 +

Well, I didn't buy either rather I purchased an e8500 wolfdale instead. I felt that a better processor would give me a FPS boost that I was looking for as my e6400 just wasn't doing it for me anymore. I am running bios version 1.8 so I shouldn't have any problems with compatibility as version 1.8 supports wolfdale processors.

------------------------------ Q9400 @ 3.4
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2x2 Corsair Dominator 1066
Crossfire ASUS TOP 4850's
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