GTX 470 + i7 930 or HD 5970 + x6 1090T?

[hthero715]

So the last time I built a computer was when I was in high school in 2004 and I haven't kept up with the latest and the greatest until very recently.

I have been checking Tom's and PassMark for scores and am drawn between either a i7 950 + GTX 470 or a x6 1090T + HD 5970.

The purpose of the computer is mostly gaming and media. I am still re-learning everything so any advice, criticism, or help you guys can give would be really helpful. Thanks

 

[xaira]

the x6 with the 5970 should give you better performance

 

[saint19]

Hi hthero715 and welcome to Tom's forum.

For lifespan I'd go with 1090T + 5970 but for performance I'd go with i7-950 (or i7-930 ur thread isn't clear about the CPU) + GTX470 (maybe in the future u can add another one for SLI)

 

[reccy]

I have the i7 930 with the GTX 470 and WOW is all i can say..

 

[Onus]

Unless you live in a cold climate and need your PC to double as a space heater, I'd probably choose an i7/930 and one 1GB GTX460, planning to add a second one for SLI later if needed.

 

[hthero715]

Thanks for the responses. The i7 950 + GTX470 is probably what I will go with for now and add another 470 later down the line. This lineup saves me some coins and the benchmarks I've looked at makes it look like the 470 and 5970 trades blows up and down the graphs; I dunno if its worth the money for the 5970 when I can SLI at a comparable price.

 

[geofelt]

You might want to read the following two tom's articles:
http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/game-performance-bottleneck,2737.html
http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/game-performance-bottleneck,2738.html

At 1920 resolution, a i5-750 with a mild overclock to 3.0 and a GTX480 would be a fine combination that would cost less than either of the two options you mentioned.

The x6 1090T is not a particularly good gaming cpu. It is better used for multi core enabled applications.
The 5970 is a great card, but it is expensive and probably more than you need.

The i7-950 and GTX470 will be good, and give you the option of sli later. But... it is more likely that a better/cheaper/video card will appear in a year or two and make such a sli ugrade a poor choice in the future.

 

[iam2thecrowe]

or you could wait until ATI releases its new cards very soon.

 

[hthero715]

Best answer selected by hthero715.