[Solved] Best Gfx Card for Racing and RTS games

I've been reading lots of articles and benchmarks here and there but most of them are geared towards First person shooters (fps), so I've been wondering if racing and rts games need the same graphics muscle.

To be frank, here are the games I will be planning to play.

Racing: Need for speed franchise (except prostreet)
RTS: Dawn of War franchise, Red Alert franchise (including the new one) some warcraft 3, expecting Startcraft 2

And add GTA franchise there (VC, SA, and IV)

Going to play on: something like 1680x1050, but considering 19x12, but don't want too big monitor

And my mind's been juggling between these for the past months.
GTX 260, HD 4850, HD 4770, HD 5750, HD 5770, HD 5850

Please recommend me the best out of these, but I'm open to your suggestions as well!

I don't want my power bills to soar and turn my room into an oven toaster since I live in the tropics (Philippines btw).

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if you have the budget then go for HD5850

Reply to renz496

A 5850 would be a good bet since it has speed to burn for current games and the horse power needed for future games.

Reply to nforce4max

Very quick answers there, I'm going to think that up.

Here it goes:

Money alloted for gfx card < $200

I'm on a tight budget (sadly), 5850s are still in their $250.

So would the 128-bit stuff in 5700s disappoint me? Since they fit the bill in my power consumption and temperature checklist.

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Reply to leoblack9

leoblack9 wrote :

Very quick answers there, I'm going to think that up.

Here it goes:

Money alloted for gfx card < $200

I'm on a tight budget (sadly), 5850s are still in their $250.

So would the 128-bit stuff in 5700s disappoint me? Since they fit the bill in my power consumption and temperature checklist.

It all depends but any way the 57x0 cards are good and slightly under perform the 4870 while only using less power.

Reply to nforce4max

Alright, thanks there mate.

Now, how long should the 5700 reach the stores here...

Figures, the 4800s reached it here as early as November last year, though only by Palit and Powercolor brands are dominant here.

Rarely do I see Sapphire or HIS or the other brands so my bad.

Reply to leoblack9

So my mind juggled, again.

Since ghe 4850, 5750 and 5770 are within my budget (not to mention monsters in that price range) of 200$

Which provide the big bang of the buck?

Reply to leoblack9

Bump

Reply to leoblack9

A racing game with eyefinity and 3 monitors would be amazing and immerse yourself completely in the game.

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Reply to chef7734

Yes, but sadly I didn't acquire my budget by growing it on trees.

Reply to leoblack9

Okay I have only one question.. How can you advise him which GPU to get if you don't know his specs. For all we know he could be running a dual core processor with a 350w power supply which could completely decimate a poor HD 4870.

leoblack9, what are your specs/hardware components.

This is the information I need to give you an informed GPU decision:

CPU: (Model and clock speed)
RAM: How much ram and what type/speed (ddr2/ddr3)
Motherboard: (Model, if possible)
Power Supply: Model/Watt (i need the model to check the efficiency/reviews/connectors)
Case: Full tower? Small Form tower? Mid tower? (Size is what im asking.. some of these cards are big...
Monitor resolution: believe it or not resolution matters... Big time...

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Reply to AsAnAtheist

Alrighty then, I'm still on the assembling and the heavy thinking stage.

AsAnAtheist wrote :

This is the information I need to give you an informed GPU decision:

CPU: Phenom II x4 940 BE (Not overclocked, man I feel so sad being afraid to).
RAM: Corsair 4GB DDR2
Motherboard: MSI K9A2CF-F 790X/V-PCI-E/S/GL/R
Power Supply: Silverstone ST50F OR Thermaltake 550W jumbo fan
Case: Antec 300
Monitor resolution: 1680x1050, for now, there's a chance I might go 19x12

I'm on a tight budget, but if I've magically grown money on trees I'll readily buy an i7 860 on an MSI x58 PRO

Reply to leoblack9

Ok if you are bound by your psu go for a 4650 or wait for the 5xx0 cards that have the redwood core.

Reply to nforce4max

It's just current wishlist, not built yet. I can change my PSU anytime I wanted.

What's the PSU sweetspot for non-crossfirers/sliers?

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Reply to leoblack9

leoblack9 wrote :

It's just current wishlist, not built yet. I can change my PSU anytime I wanted.

What's the PSU sweetspot for non-crossfirers/sliers?

550w with room to grow while not having to spend like the federal government.

Reply to nforce4max

but hey about this,
4770 crossfire
it's better than those single cards, but no dx 11

Reply to Ehsan W

Not to worry, won't be even caring about DX 11 games as I won't be playing them.

4770 was supposed to be my first choice

then the 5700 series appeared, but the 128-bit Achilles heel sets me back and the 5850 is $150 away.

4770 seems to be balanced at 128-bit though.

Quote :

550w with room to grow while not having to spend like the federal government.

Then thermaltake 550w jumbo fan it is.

Message edited by leoblack9 on 10-16-2009 at 04:39:33 PM

Reply to leoblack9

Bumpedy bumpedy (x3) Boo (nothing I just remembered cinderella and the fairy godmother)

Message edited by leoblack9 on 10-16-2009 at 09:02:30 PM

Reply to leoblack9

i say spend an extra $9

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Prod [...] 6814125292

4890 1 gb. smooth as silk at 1680*1050 with all the tricks on.

no need to make

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Reply to dougie_boy

Best answer

Okay looks like a solid build. Power supply is good. Case is big enough for the cards you listed.

GTX 260, HD 4850, HD 4770, HD 5750, HD 5770, HD 5850
(HD 4870 was brought later)
Out of all these cards we can eliminate:
HD 4850, HD 4770, HD 4870

The cards I would recommend in order from highest recommendation to lowest (recommendations are made with the near future in mind):

--HD 5770 (really cheap/effective essentially a 4870 with higher technological potentials (eyefinity, DX 11, low power consumption yada yada you heard it all before)
These two card: HD 5850/HD5770 are kind of tied, but the HD5770 takes the priority because of low price/low power use. Honestly I will consider purchasing a HD 5770 and some solar panels and see if I can get it powered with the sun. Im already doing the margins/costs/building materials...
--HD 5850 if you can afford it, I would really recommend since it will handle 1920x1200 resolutions better then the 5770. Also your doing a better job at future proofing your setup.
--HD 5770 CrossfireX- Great benchmarks, low power consumption. However the price tag will near $300-$450, which would be better to just get a HD 5870 then Crossfire it way later on when it becomes less powerful. (the reason why I am adding more $$ is because of the need to upgrade power supply to something a bit more powerful, also the probable need to purchase a cooler to cool while you overclock the CPU to make sure there is no bottle necking.)

Reply to AsAnAtheist

Quote :

i say spend an extra $9

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Prod [...] 6814125292

4890 1 gb. smooth as silk at 1680*1050 with all the tricks on.

But the 4890 will turn my niche into a microwave right?

Yes it's a lucrative deal, but I want to save as much power as possible, don't want a $100+ jump in the bills.

Oh, I will use my computer for 4-8 hours (game included, and fluctuates between randomly)

Quote :

The cards I would recommend in order from highest recommendation to lowest (recommendations are made with the near future in mind):

Thanks, I really like the suggestion with the Solar Panels

My current favorites are the 5750 and 5770s as of the moment.

So if I buy the 5750, would it be beneficial if I buy an i7 860 along with it? Since I'm not an overclocker and it fits the bill on the LGA 1156 since I don't dual-card.

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Reply to leoblack9

leoblack9 wrote :

But the 4890 will turn my niche into a microwave right?

Yes it's a lucrative deal, but I want to save as much power as possible, don't want a $100+ jump in the bills.

Oh, I will use my computer for 4-8 hours (game included, and fluctuates between randomly)

So if I buy the 5750, would it be beneficial if I buy an i7 860 along with it? Since I'm not an overclocker and it fits the bill on the LGA 1156 since I don't dual-card.

the 4890 is one of the least power efficient suggested and would be warmer than the 5770 by a bit.

the speed difference between the i5 and the i7 is not huge in games. [url=http://www.hardocp.com/article/2009/09/07/intel_lynnfield_core_i5_i7_processors/5][/url]

nice little piece on the two CPUs.

i say take the 5770 with the core i5.

Message quoted 1 times

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Reply to dougie_boy

dougie_boy wrote :

the 4890 is one of the least power efficient suggested and would be warmer than the 5770 by a bit.

the speed difference between the i5 and the i7 is not huge in games. [url=http://www.hardocp.com/article/2009/09/07/intel_lynnfield_core_i5_i7_processors/5][/url]

nice little piece on the two CPUs.

i say take the 5770 with the core i5.

I forgot to tell, I edit videos as a hobby (Sony Vegas), and might possibly use my computer for Photoshop use (Information Design Student).

So I would probably consider those as well.

Reply to leoblack9

Oh, add some probable use of other Video editing programs, like adobe premier and after effects, so it makes me think of Nv's cards since it has more cuda support.

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Reply to leoblack9

3rd times' a charm? I don't think so, bump.

Reply to leoblack9

Well if the psu isn't the limit get a 5770 at least you will be able to run three displays with out issue great for multimedia and large spread sheets.

Reply to nforce4max

Monitors not a prob,

Nearly finalizing my mind though.

Power efficiency monster? 15 750 + 5750

I just gave up $100 for the 860 and hyperthreading, but damn thats a premium price for several seconds in encoding.

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Reply to leoblack9

leoblack9 wrote :

Monitors not a prob,

Nearly finalizing my mind though.

Power efficiency monster? 15 750 + 5750

I just gave up $100 for the 860 and hyperthreading, but damn thats a premium price for several seconds in encoding.

After a year or so the buyer's remorse will be all forgotten.

Reply to nforce4max

Don't know its buyer's remorse or not, since I bought mainstream parts not premium parts that would just be overkill for my needs.

It's alright though, I guess I would be the first person in the neighborhood to have such a nice spec.

Going to back to my final spec. Should I get a 5770 over a 5750? Is the extra dollars worth it?

Planning to buy a 16x10 22" or 19" monitor.

Though I could plan in keeping my old 1280x1024 to buy another to have an 2560x1024 on eyefinity.. wait is that possible? Eyefinity while using only 2 monitors?

Problem is my old Acer AL1707 monitor has only Analog D-sub input.

Reply to leoblack9

First stop bumping within the day. :non:

leoblack9 wrote :

Oh, add some probable use of other Video editing programs, like adobe premier and after effects, so it makes me think of Nv's cards since it has more cuda support.

Talk about getting sidetracked by marketing. CUDA is pointless, look up the AMD acceleration patch for Vegas.

Second if you go with nV then no DX10.1 effects and slower Havok physics in StarCraft 2 if that's a game you're concerned about.

The HD5750 reduces your power, but also gives you currently poor cooling, and is not worth the sacrifices, especially if you plan on expanding, either for editing or gaming.

If you're concerned about idle temps and power consumption and still want all the features, then an HD5770 is the way to go, PERIOD.

Message quoted 1 times

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Reply to TheGreatGrapeApe

TheGreatGrapeApe wrote :

First stop bumping within the day. :non:

Understood.

Quote :

Talk about getting sidetracked by marketing. CUDA is pointless, look up the AMD acceleration patch for Vegas.

I took your advice and started searching plugins for Vegas, and found some, good grief. I'll be eager to try the 5770's mettle on these programs. Thanks for the advice.

Quote :

Second if you go with nV then no DX10.1 effects and slower Havok physics in StarCraft 2 if that's a game you're concerned about.

The only game I care about with Havok Physics is Diablo 3, does Red Alert 3 have physics? Anyway, more power to Ati.

Quote :

The HD5750 reduces your power, but also gives you currently poor cooling, and is not worth the sacrifices, especially if you plan on expanding, either for editing or gaming.

Wow, thanks for reminding me. For a while there I forgot that the teardrop shaped cooler on 5750 was quite bad, noted on the article review here on Toms. Thanks a lot.

Quote :

If you're concerned about idle temps and power consumption and still want all the features, then an HD5770 is the way to go, PERIOD.

All in all, thanks for the wonderful advice TheGreatGrapeApe

Message edited by leoblack9 on 10-19-2009 at 08:59:56 AM

Reply to leoblack9

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