To crossfire, or not to crossfire...

[clydefrog]

...that is the question.

Haha. Anyway, hows it goin guys? I have a rather simple question i need solved.

I have an XFX Radeon 4870, which i am very pleased with and recently i've collected some cash and i was thinking about upgrading; yet there is a dilemma.

Should i go ahead and purchase another 4870 (around $150 on newegg) and utilize crossfire (my PSU and Mobo are crossfire ready)? Or, should i just wait until the ATI cards hit the 6000 series (though i dont know when that will be) and buy one of those instead to replace my 4870?

I'm trying to ready my computer for Battlefield: Bad Company 2, so i was just wondering what to do with my spare "computer cash" i've collected...

Tips or suggestions?

Thanks,

Clydefrog

 

[metalweenis]

I also have a 4870 and recently decided not to do it. I'm going to wait it out for newer cards. I see no reason to upgrade something that is technically old technology. I think the 4870 is doing really good in just about every game out there still. I am not worried about it running any games coming out within the next year, either. Also, if you take a look at most benchmarks, the performance is not doubled - unless at VERY high resolutions.

 

[clydefrog]

I see. So, you didnt upgrade OR crossfire?

 

[metalweenis]

Indeed I did not. I will only upgrade when I see the need to do so. So, when my card starts to get under 40fps or so on max settings at my resolution(1920x1200) I will probably upgrade. Right now, the only game that even dips that low is Crysis.

 

[shadowryche]

That a 512mb card or 1gb card? I ran a pair of 1gb 4870's for a while and was pleased by the performance. Granted my 750 watt power supply was almost insufficient, prolonged games of MW2 would crash my system. Now I'm running a pair of 5770's and haven't looked back.

 

[megamanx00]

I say crossfire it. I would if I currently had one 4870. Since I have two 3850s though I probably gonna wait for the 5830, or for the 5850 to come down in price. We'll see what the situation is after my income tax ^_^

 

[capt_taco]

I wouldn't bother doing anything yet. The 4870 is plenty for most games out there unless it's 512MB and you're playing on a huge screen. Would help to know what CPU you have, but my guess is that the increase in performance won't be worth the money. Wait until you can get a 58xx for cheaper, or something even better.

 

[branflakes71]

My question is: what resolution are you playing at? You may not see much benefit of a crossfire if your 4870 is holding strong at your current resolution.

 

[metalweenis]

In conclusion, it's a waste of money to Crossfire these cards. If that wasn't true, I would have done it by now lol

 

[sabot00]

Well 1920x1200 with 8xAA will stress the 4870 a lot (what my nominal rig plays at), I upgraded that to a 5850.

 

[metalweenis]

Yeah that is true for some games, but I usually don't use any AA/AF unless I really need to.

 

[clydefrog]

Thanks for the answers, sorry for not responding sooner.

My 4870 is 1GB, and i play on a 24" monitor with i believe 1920x1200 resolution (cant remember exactly).

My CPU is, for those who wanted to know, is a Intel Dual Core 3.0GHz processor.

My card runs all current games maxed out. It's just that BC2 recommended requirements listed a quad-core cpu as recommended; i dont know, i just feel insignificant without it

that is why i was wondering whether or not to corssfire

 

[branflakes71]

Which Intel dual core? E8xxx series?

You'll definitely be able to play the game with your current rig. Perhaps wait until it's out to see what settings you're running at, then crossfire if that will improve performance enough to make you happy.

 

[werxen]

Yeah you should be fine if you overclock your CPU. The only dual cores worth getting are the E8* series IMO. Top of the line chips those are.

 

[clydefrog]

Its the Intel E8400 series.

I just got the beta a few days ago, it looks as if its running fine. except i cant max shadow detail and world detail at the same time, i get a bit of flickering...