Asus GTX 260 vs. Sapphire Radeon HD 4850x2 vs. BFG GTX 280

Also can't decide between Asus GTX 260 or Sapphire Radeon HD 4850x2 or BFG GTX 280

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Prod [...] 6814121257

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Prod [...] 6814102809

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Prod [...] 6814143141

http://firingsquad.com/hardware/sa [...] x2_review/

The 4850 x2 is consistently faster than the 280.

What kind of system are you running, what resolution do you need to drive?

what resolution are you playing at?

At lower resolution the gtx 260 should work just fine. At higher resolutions i would highly recommend the gtx 280. Even if the 4850x2 gets better performance on some games, the hassle that you have to go through to get a multi-gpu system working with all your gamins can be a right pain in the ass. The single card solution saves oh so much time and headaches imho

^true, but the GTX 275 isn't out for a couple more weeks, so thats something to keep in mind.

Get the 4890 it is basically a GTX 285 at a much better price.

Yeah dude, honestly your throwing words around. This card exchanges blows with the 275 GTX, don't classify the card at what its not.

Its OC version of 950 mhz+ may compete with the 285 GTX. Other than that, this card is in a lower category. Your the only person thats actually calling a 285 GTX equal.

I'm all for the 4890 instead of the 275 GTX, but don't go overboard. So many reviews that go against your word.

Anyways for OP,

4850 X2 should be the fastest 1, the 280 GTX should be the most stable, and the 260 GTX is the cheapest. You need to give us more information....Resolution size, system specs, what you want from the card etc.

I game at that res and have an OC'ed GTX260. Although it does fine I'd like to have the extra stream processors and the extra memory. Those 2 things will allow for better game play especially when you crank up the goodies to make things look nicer and crisper.

On paper the 4850x2 sems good until you run into games that only work on one of those cores. Then you get the performance of a single 4850 card.

I love how you post the 1 benchmark where ATI does the worst. If you look at all the others the 4890 is the same damn thing as a GTX 275, which both are not NOTICEABLY slower than a GTX 285.

No, all the reviews justify what I am saying. I admit I should have explained more, but the same thing applies. The GTX 275 and the 4890 are identical and the GTX 285 is not noticeably faster, the extra 2-5 average FPS will never equal a different gaming experience. This is just how the 4870 1GB is slightly behind the GTX 260 216, but not by an amount that can be seen in anything other than a benchmark. Right now the GTX 285 is kind of useless in the market since it does not give anything to the consumer that a GTX 275 or a 4890 can't, except Tri-SLI. The 4890 is out now so it is the logical choice, the GTX 275 might be slightly cheaper since it is not quite as appealing which will make it the better choice, which ever can be found for cheapest is the best.

To the OP, there is nothing wrong with ATI's drivers that isn't wrong with nVidia's, your screwed pal . For the money the 4870 512mb would be good for that resolution, but the 4890 might give you an extra push, it all depends on your budget. The GTX 260 216 is a good card that sometimes can be found for $20 cheaper that the 4870 1GB, so that would be good (I have seen deals like these twice since I believe nVidia is slowly phasing it out). I would stay away from the 4850 X2, since the 4890 is virtually the same without the driver issues (the 4850 X2 is technically not a supported card, but a Sapphire exclusive). Also note that the GTX 280 might be able to be found for real cheap since it is mostly out the door, I will check for you.

Edit: Sorry all deals on the GTX 280 are gone.

4850x2 ~ 2x4850 Xfire or 2x9800GTX SLi

4850x2 = lotsa driver issues
2x4850 Xfire or 2x9800GTX SLi = little driver issues

4850x2/2x4850 Xfire > GTX280 ~ 9800GX2 > GTX260 ~ 4870

x2s ftL?

The Radeon 4870 rocks and is better that a GTX 280, check it here:

http://firingsquad.com/hardware/sa [...] /page4.asp

I have an ATI RADEON HD4670 and I can play crysis amongst other titles with the video settings maxed without a hitch? I payed $180.00 at best buy for it 3months ago and I havnt had any problems what so ever? Just throwing that out there.

For the money: 260 Gtx 216 superclocked is just fine For 1680 - 1050 Res.