C2D E8400@3.9ghz enough for HD4870 CrossFire

[OMGiTzzFATAL]

Hey all

Just wondering if i get another HD4870 512mb, will my C2D be able to keep up its overclocked to 3.9ghz atm

my specs:
P5Q-E mobo
C2D E8400@3.9ghz
4gigs of OCZ PC2 8000 @865mhz
XpertVision Radeon HD4870 sonic dual edition 512mb (790/1100)
TRUE HS with AS5
CoolerMaster RealPower 700W modular PSU
CoolerMaster HAF 932 Full tower case
Maxtor DiamondMAX 21 160GB HDD
LG DVD Player
32in Toshiba HD ready LCD TV 1920x1080

Please post your thoughts, tips, advice ETC...

P.S please dont tell me to get a HD4870x2 i know they are good but i dnt have the money for it, ive got about 180 quid to spend.

 

[jsc]

Yes.

 

[OMGiTzzFATAL]

wow that was short and sweet,

any others got any thoughts? is it worth it? will i get better performance increase by getting a entery level quad instead of another hd4870? (i play games on my pc, and thats it).

post your ideas!!! Thanks

 

[zenmaster]

It Depends on the Game/Program.............

Some Programs are CPU efficient and do not require lots of horsepower.
Some Are CPU Hogs and Require Fast CPUs.
Some Only use 2 Cores
Some Only use 4 Cores

However, No Game is going to REQUIRE those types of specs.
If it did, it would be suicide because there would not be a sufficient market.

You System is Sufficient for any gaming needs.

 

[Jim_L9]

Unless you want to play FSX your machine with a second 4870 will subdue almost any current game @1080P.

 

[evongugg]

Since you are a gamer it is worth it.
A Quad would be slower in games than what you have.
Your mobo supports Crossfire at x8 speed which is okay.

 

[Kari]

yep, keep the OCed dual and go crossfire.
Be aware though that some games don't really scale that well with crossfire while others will get 80-90% performance increase. It's a bit hitt and miss, really...

 

[OMGiTzzFATAL]

ok thanks alot to all that have replyed, really helpful infomation

Another thought crossed my mind , i read that nvidia are about to release there new graphics cards, i think there called GTX275 and GTX295, also intel will be releasing the larabee soon right?

so is it worth upgrading now? (take into consideration the economic down turn) or should i want until the next generation of video cards are released?

Any ideas? please post!!

 

[Kari]

larrabee is still vaporware, launches in 2010 or something....

and GTX285 and especially 295 are going to cost a lot more than 4870

the 40nm nextgen is due sometimes in Q2 or Q3, looks like ati's first will be a midrange card in Q2 and the highend cards for both companys will be in Q3 or so I've understood the rumours going around. But there will always be something better just around the corner...

 

[OMGiTzzFATAL]

Ok thanks alot Karl.

It seems to be impossible to stay up to date (unless you have money to burn) so i think ill go for another HD4870, that should give me decent performance, even when the new cards are released.

I dont understand the core i7 if most games only use 2 cores and a hand fall use 4 cores, maybe there aimed at people who use photoshop and HD decoding. I think ill stick with my trusty Duo for now

i understand that some games scale better than others, i read some reviews about crossfire and older games like UT3 didnt scale well at all, also prey didnt either, but games like COD4 which scaled amazingly well (more than 100% performance increase vs one HD4870) and others like devil may cry 4.
i also noticed that id notice the most difference in performance when the game is set to a high resolution (1650x1080 and above).