4870 or 4890?

[rishwin]

Logic tells us the 4890 is better, but it is exactly the same price as the 4790. Which is better performance wise? Which is better on lower resolutions below 1600x1200? And which can be used on a 600W power supply?

If they are too similar... are there any differences?

 

[coozie7]

The HD4890 is a bit faster and, so I am told, overclocks better.
What sort of resoloution are you talking about here? Both cards are ideal for 16x10
but something less expensive would be a better match for 1280x1024.
Which PSU? They are not equal in quality.
What are the rest of the specs of the system this card is going into?

 

[rishwin]

Ideally going into a Quad Q9400 with 8GB DDR2 PC8500. Running 1280x1024 at the moment (with an 8800GT) but not getting the results i want so wanting to upgrade my GPU.

PSU is a Coolermaster iGreen 600W.

 

[coozie7]

The 8800GT is not that weak, you should not have too many problems at that resoloution unless you are using a lot of AA or setting the game to the highest settings.
For 1280x1024 a 9800GTX/GTX+/GTS250 from Nvidia or a HD4850 from ATI would be a better match.
If you plan on a larger monitor, go for either the 1Gb HD4870/GTX260 or for a bit more punch HD4890/GTX275.

 

[rishwin]

Having issues playing UT3 and Prototype atm, even without AA turned on i'm still getting shoddy FPS... Hoping to get better results with the 4890, like i said it is exactly the same price as the 4870 so just wanting to know how much better it is, if at all.

Also, my apology with the PSU, it will actually be using a Coolermaster Real Power 620W. Should that be enough?

 

[wonderingwhatis]

4970? Did I miss something?
I thought they had the 4770 and 4870??

 

[coozie7]

Yes, I see, Prototype. For other readers: Does n't that use PhysX? I do n't know.

@ Rishwin: With both cards at the same price, go for the HD4890, it is a little faster and, if you wish, can be overclocked further. After all, you might as well get the most out of you money
Also wait until someone else posts on the subject of PhysX, if Prototype uses it, as I think it does, you might be better off with the Nvidia GTX260 rather than a ATI card.
One last point, does your motherboard support SLI? If so I would definately say get the GTX260 and use the 8800 for PhysX.

 

[rishwin]

Will be going into an Asus P5W DH Deluxe motherboard, which is crossfire, not SLI.

Also don't see any PhysX settings in game, so not sure if it does.

 

[juvealert]

will a PCI-E version 2.0 video card work on a mobo with PCI-e version 1.0?

 

[Winly]

i will go for the ATI HD 4890

 

[rishwin]

juvealert, way to hijack my thread.

Winly, yea that's what i'm starting to think, can anyone confirm that a Coolermaster Real Power 620W PSU will be enough?

 

[coozie7]

@ rishwin: As long as you stick to one card, you'll be fine with that PSU.
I was speculating about SLI, Get the HD 4890.

@ Juvealert: Yes, the PCI-E interface is backwards compatable, and no, unless you install a GTX295 or HD4870X2 card there will be no loss in performance.

 

[ausch30]

http://forums.slickdeals.net/showthread.php?sduid=0&t=1408999

4890 for as little as $135 w/ free shipping

 

[rishwin]

Sweet, thanks coozie.

@ aush, looks like a great deal but i'm in australia, the mail in rebate wont work, and i don't think they even do international shipping.

 

[randomizer]

Might I ask where you're finding the HD4870 the same price as the HD4890? Either the 4890 is dirt cheap or the 4870 is priced like diamonds. They're $80 apart where I'm looking.

 

[rishwin]

All stores i've checked here list the 4870 and 4890 around the $300 AUD mark. That's about $230 USD, i know it's alot more than you guys pay in the US, but stuff like this is alot more expensive here. Buying it over there + shipping it here comes out more expensive.

 

[randomizer]

Let me introduce you to StaticICE and PriceSpy my fellow Aussie friend.

 

[rishwin]

Thanks alot for that randomizer. I was actually already looking at the ones in Perth, buying it cheaper from over east + shipping = same price but longer wait

Now i am actually quite a fan of Gainward's "Golden Sample" range, which were actually the prices i was quoting... what are your thoughts on them? Worth the extra $50 AUD?

Also, which of these two would be better; Gainward's Golden Sample GTX260+ 1792mb, or their 4870 1GB? Links are here if you want to check them out, the prices are very similar and it looks like the GTX260+ is a greater deal?
http://www.pccasegear.com/index.php?main_page=product_info&cPath=193_687&products_id=11017
http://www.pccasegear.com/index.php?main_page=product_info&cPath=193_686&products_id=11201

 

[coozie7]

I do not think you'll go wrong with either but I'd go for the GTX260, I know this is going to block Crossfire for the future but frankly I would not be happy with two of those 4870s' pumping heat out into my case anyway.
Also, if you can, chek the size, they look very long and may not fit into your case.

 

[rishwin]

Using an antec 900 case, hopefully it will fit lol it's not exactly a "small" case

And yea i want suggestions for single-GPU setups, i do not intend on upgrading my PSU anytime soon and a 620W simply can not accommodate for more than 1 card.

 

[ausch30]

Using an antec 900 case, hopefully it will fit lol it's not exactly a "small" case

And yea i want suggestions for single-GPU setups, i do not intend on upgrading my PSU anytime soon and a 620W simply can not accommodate for more than 1 card.

That's not entirely true. You could run 2 4850's or lower on the PSU you have now but I would suggest the single best card you can afford anyway. The GTX 260 and HD4870 are at the same level and the GTX 275 and HD 4890 are on par with each other. Any of the four would be a good choice, you should look for the best available in your price range and the best deal available at the time of purchase. I tend to favor AMD/ATI bacause I like to root for the little guy but my CPU is a Q9650 and my video is a GTX 260 because they were the best deals at the time.

 

[randomizer]

Now i am actually quite a fan of Gainward's "Golden Sample" range, which were actually the prices i was quoting... what are your thoughts on them? Worth the extra $50 AUD?

See if you can find the Palit GTX 260 Sonic in Perth. Same card minus the brand name minus $50 plus a different sticker on the cooler. Palit is the OEM for Gainward and XpertVision. I think they might have 1 year less on the warranty as well because from memory Palit is 2 years. Gainward are 3 years for some warranty claims and 2 years for others.

As for the HD4870, you can buy reference cards now for around $219 here in NSW.

 

[rishwin]

Nah can't find any "Palit" around here :S

If the GTX260 is = 4870, would the 1792MB GTX260 be the same, or would that be up with the 4890? How much difference does 2x the GRAM make?

 

[randomizer]

That much VRAM is most important at resolutions of at least 1920x1200 but more likely 2560x1600. The GPU wouldn't be able to run that kind of resolutions though (2560x1600). The exception would be in older games where it might come in handy if you're playing them on a 30" monitor.

 

[ausch30]

+1^

You can get a 4850 with 1gb but the GPU isn't powerful enough to run at the resolutions where that much memory would be useful. Just as the GTX 260 and 4870 wouldn't really be able to make the best use of anything over 1gb. Even the GTX 275 and 4890 might only improve a couple frames with over 1gb of memory. It's really just a marketing ploy to try and make their product more attractive. It may however be useful in the case of SLI where both GPU's only use half of the total memory of the 2 cards.