Got $300 which video card

[pooh_god]

Well I'm going with the new i7 setup so I need to keep it budgeted around $1500 total with $300 for a video card(s). I'm looking at the following setups to go with a Asus P6T Deluxe, Intel i7 920, 6 gigs of Gskill DDR 3 1600, 1 TB WD etc. I was thinking of going with 2 4850's in xfire, single 4870 or a GTX 260. This is where I need your help. I will be playing Far Cry 2, Crysis etc. Any input would be appreciated, I'm even considering dropping down to a P45 chipset so maybe I can get a 4870X2 or a GTX 280 if you guys think that would be more practical. Thanks

 

[vouslavous]

Get a P45 for now an E8500 overclock it to 4.0 and 2 4850's in crossfire. Should last awhile until i7 drops in price.

 

[pooh_god]

I was thinking the exact same thing but the i7 sounds so appealing at the moment. Let's just say I stick with the i7 do you think two 4850's in xfire would be alright? I don't want to hear about bottlenecking and all that stuff, I'm just looking for the best performance right now for $300 or less! Thanks people!

 

[desertdesign]

I would go for an evga gtx 280 sc..amazon lookin at around $360 bucks and when nvidia smacks ati again with there gtx 280 55nm ddr5 revision you can easily step up for a small amount of money..probley for nothing..(this is what im doing by the way tommorow since i just sold my 8800 ultras) go evga nvidia trust me you have the best company backing/customer service hands down and a step up program for the next three months.Oh and you have driver updates at a good pace that actually work with nvidia.

 

[dolmaface]

i would go gtx 260 core 216. better than hd4870 and gtx 280 stock, or at least practically was good as 280 stock. Im not sure if it beats the 4850 crossfire though

 

[rangers]

i would wait, you dont know whats going to happen with AMDs Deneb, its sounding like a bit of a monster and if it is, you can bet the i7 will drop in price

 

[tim924]

When Phenom was about to release they said it was gonna be a beast,but who really still care about what they say anymore now,you know there is a difference bewteen how they "sound" and actually performance,Intel has been solid over the years,amd lost it reputations badly,just a bit too hard to make anyone believe plus there's absolutely no offical reviews,all were made up by some amd fan sites,you really trust what those say?

 

[The_Blood_Raven]

i would go gtx 260 core 216. better than hd4870 and gtx 280 stock, or at least practically was good as 280 stock. Im not sure if it beats the 4850 crossfire though

How is the weather in that fantasy world you live in? A GTX 260 216 can not compete with a STOCK GTX 280, even when heavily overclocked the GTX 260 216 can only get close to STOCK GTX 280 and guess what? That 's right a GTX 280 tends to overclock slightly better than a GTX 260 216....



Regardless drop the P6T and get this:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813128362

Now get 2 8800 GTS 512mb cards and SLI them, they will be quite close to 4850s and will be able to overclock to levels a 4850 can't reach without a good cooler. Did I mention they are a good bit cheaper?
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814130401

Don't worry about the "Recertified" thing, EVGA offers a step-up program so those cards were perfectly working when they were sent in. I have bought 2 8800 GTS 512s, 1 9800 GX2, and 2 8800 GTXs Recertified and I have not had a problem. If you do however, you have 90 days to return 'em which is better than what newegg would offer for new ones.

Keep the i7 system, it is future proof and if you can afford it you should.

 

[Homeboy2]

1+ on the Evga recertified.

 

[rangers]

the only good thing that blood raven recommended was the motherboard
i would not go for 2x 8800gts over 4850s you would have to be a fanboy to buy 2x8800gts, old soggy tech just bang in a p3 and ur away

 

[The_Blood_Raven]

Wow, the performance is perfectly similar and it is over $100 cheaper... yep I'm a fanboy, my 4870 X2 just proves how much of a fanboy I am of nVidia....

 

[rangers]

i just cant get to grips with some one recommending a dx10 card over 10.1

 

[The_Blood_Raven]

Yeah, I know Far Cry 2 looks SOO much better on my 4870 X2 than 3 GTX 280s! (E-Sarcasm) DX 10.1 is going to be useless until the next generations which are rumored to be DX11 compatible. DX10.1 is nice, and if we were comparing 2 almost identical setups, like a GTX 260 and a 4870 I would definitely weigh DX10.1 into considerations, but the difference between 2 easily overclocked 8800 GTS 512s and 2 4850s moderately overclocked and hot as hell, well that's not a performance difference, the difference is the price and the 8800 GTS 512s win easy.