4890 v 5850

[scubba85]

I was wondering if the 100+ premium is worth getting the 5850 over the 4890.
This is for a q9550@4.0 playing at a resolution of 1680x1050 with a decent amount of eye candy.

Currently using a 9800gt@ 700/1750/1060

No need to worry about future proofing, this is just a little bump for my system before I drop some cash into an i7 build.

Also, as far as 4890's go I was looking into the msi cyclone version or the HIS ones since they are cheaper, and I overclock my own cards, so no sense in that premium price.

 

[shubham1401]

Get 4890 cuz you don't want future proofing.
Moreover 4890 will perform very well at 1680X1050.

Get 5850 only if you want DX11.

 

[shadow187]

For you, the 4890 is the way to go. Though you could just use the 5850 in that system and switch it when you build your i7 system.

 

[scubba85]

Thanks for the quick response.

4890 it is then since I'm probly gonna drop a pair of 5870's in my i7 machine in a month or 2.

On a side note, this will be my first ATI card, and I know I need to erase drivers, safe mode driver sweep, all that good stuff, but about ATI brands, is the cheaper HIS card a good brand, or should i pay a bit more for a better brand?

 

[TheGreatGrapeApe]

And depending on how quickly you will be upgrading and how much further the price difference is it might be worth looking at a lower model like the HD4770, 4850, 4870 if it helps you save money and get that i7 rig faster.

@ your resolution the 4890 isn't necessary, but of course, nice. I guess it depends on your reason for upgrading and if you need the extra juice for something truly taxing like moded Crysis or something.

 

[Kapanci]

get hd5850 when u build the system with i7 , it is still an enough gpu for ur new system .

 

[scubba85]

Well I will have this set up as a second computer for friends to LAN with after i get my i7 rig, so i want it to keep up with current dx10 titles that we play/show some epeen around my friends.

As far as my i7 rig goes, thanks for the input but the extra money that I would save wouldn't be enough to allow me to get my i7 rig any faster. Just counting down paychecks
Also the 100 dollar 4850 is a wonderful card, or so I hear, but would the performance be very noticeable coming from my 9800gt?

On that note what kind of performance gains can I expect upgrading to the 4890? 50%?

Also, anyone have any information on the reliability of cheaper branded 4890's such as HIS and MSI? And is the nonreference msi cooler worth it?

Guess I could start googleing the answers for myself during my lunch break.

As always, thanks for the answers and suggestions.

 

[jay2tall]

5850 is more powerful and will be adequate longer than a 4890. And has DX11.

A 4890 is slower and is only DX10.

If your budget can afford a 5850, get it, if not get the 4890. Why do people asked such silly questions. Get the best within your budget, plain and simple. They are both good cards, the 5850 is just newer and faster.

 

[brockh]

If you're counting paychecks I'm not sure why you would want to buy into an intermediate upgrade, it's essentially wasting money. Simply, the HD 4890 will perform lower than the 5850, and it will not support DirectX 11. It's a great card, don't get me wrong, and will significantly increase your gameplay over a 9800GT; I'm using one, but the 5850 is the obvious choice. The only problem with the 5850 is finding the thing. :/

The main objective is what is gonna save you money and what is gonna be viable. If you spend money on a 4890 now I really wouldn't advise buying/carrying it over for a medium/higher end i7 build because with that processing power you want to expect to have a card that can keep up as well. As such, the 5850 is much more viable to carry over into your i7 build, and if you need more power you can add a second one (if you get a CrossFire capable motherboard) later which is about equal to a stock 5970 in most games.

Like has been said before, there's a noticible difference in card price between the HD 4890 and HD 5850 -- about $100 or even more. Regardless, even if the card ends up only costing $175, that's $175 more you're gonna have to spend that you don't have when you're building your i7 system. If you really, really have to have an intermediate upgrade I'd recommend an HD 4870. An HD 4770/4850 performs too close to a 9800GT to spend money on, but I still think you should just wait.

Well I will have this set up as a second computer for friends to LAN with after i get my i7 rig, so i want it to keep up with current dx10 titles that we play/show some epeen around my friends.

Not keeping your loaner computer up to date will be good motivation for your friends to spend money on their own awesome computers to bring to a LAN. If they don't care that much I doubt they'll care to notice the video card in your old one.

As far as my i7 rig goes, thanks for the input but the extra money that I would save wouldn't be enough to allow me to get my i7 rig any faster. Just counting down paychecks
Also the 100 dollar 4850 is a wonderful card, or so I hear, but would the performance be very noticeable coming from my 9800gt?

$150-200 is enough to make a noticible difference in any build.

 

[scubba85]

Well the reason I asked that "silly" question is because I don't like to waste money. I don't plan on playing DX11 games, and the computer that the new card will be going into is going to be used as a secondary gaming machine at 1680x1050. I was wondering if the performance gains would warrant the $310 cost of the 5850 going into a computer that is only going to be used every Saturday to every other Saturday.

Just because I can afford it doesn't mean that I need it, or that the cost is warranted.

Based on previous suggestions and a couple of quick searches, I believe that the 4890 will be my choice. Thanks for the answers and suggestions everyone.

 

[brockh]

Well the reason I asked that "silly" question is because I don't like to waste money. I don't plan on playing DX11 games, and the computer that the new card will be going into is going to be used as a secondary gaming machine at 1680x1050. I was wondering if the performance gains would warrant the $310 cost of the 5850 going into a computer that is only going to be used every Saturday to every other Saturday.

Just because I can afford it doesn't mean that I need it, or that the cost is warranted.

Based on previous suggestions and a couple of quick searches, I believe that the 4890 will be my choice. Thanks for the answers and suggestions everyone.

Oh okay. Your post made it sound like you were buying a new card that you might have carried over into your new computer. For a spare one the HD 4890 is fine.

 

[jay2tall]

^It really comes back to you. What level of performance are you willing to pay for. even in DX9 or DX10 graphics the 5850 will outperform the 4890. However, if you aren't willing to pay for that then go with the 4890. It's a great card in itself. But whether it warrants the extra cash for the 5850, that depends who you ask. To me, sure it is. But like you said this is not your primary gamer, so obviously you aren't going top notch on it. In that case the 4890 is probably your card.

 

[TheGreatGrapeApe]

If it's moving to another build even the HD5770 would be a consideration and yes it's an upgrade from the GF9800GT, but it depends on the app/game as well.
Otherwise I would look to HD4870/4890 price differentiation.

 

[scubba85]

Nope the new card is going to stay in this machine. And I have decided on the 4890, but thanks for all of the input.

 

[shubham1401]

Before buying see some benchmarks for 4890.
You will get your answer yourself...

 

[Raidur]

If you plan on getting 2 5870s in 2 months, why not just buy a single 5870 now and another when you upgrade the rest of your system? That would make more sense to me instead of buying a 4890 and having to resell it dropping its value by 25-50% to 'rent' it for a couple months.

Either way you go you will be damn surprised by the increase in performance from a 9800GT. Graphics cards are getting more and more insane every year or 2, gotta love it.