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ATI 5850 or Nvidia GTX 470

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I am putting together a new gaming rig and was all but decided on the 5850 until TH's recent "Best gaming GPUs for the money August 2010" article that gave Nvidia's card the nod over the 5850.

I also found this video card comparison that shows the 470 surpassing the 5850.

http://www.videocardbenchmark.net/high_end_gpus.html


1. Which card would you choose and why?

2. I've read that the 470 sucks a lot more power and runs a lot hotter, can anyone verify or disclaim this?

3. Finally, as this is my first time building a pc I don't know which manufacturer to choose: EVGA, Sapphire, MSI, XFX, etc. How do you decide?


I appreciate the help and advice.

Thanks

:sol: 



More about : ati 5850 nvidia gtx 470

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Graphics card Expert

They're a personal preference because, imo, they stand out for reasons being:
1. Better cooling: A lot of reviews find MSI to have the best cooling, though make sure your case has good airflow/ venting.

2. Lesser nose levels: Again, they're the quieter ones. Mine (GTS250 1 gig) barely made a noise, even when I ran it at 100%, just to check the noise...note that the card had two fans and both running hardly made any noise!

3. Overall satisfaction with the brand.

Personally, I'm happy with the brand. Been using their cards over the years and never had a reason to complain. Never needed to look at their warranties. But that's just my experience with MSI. :) 
Graphics card Expert

The dual GPU 460 setup would cost around $450-$470, while a single 470 would come for $300. Plus, dual GPU would call for additional power.Also, a single 460 needs minimum 450W while the 470 needs 550 as per nVidia's website.

The performance would, no doubt be amazing with 2x460's, but the additional costs would be high.
Graphics card Authority

gtx 470 does run alot hotter than the 5850 and use alot more power, there is a slight penformance increase from the gtx470 but just not enough to justify it's flaws.

if you don't mind the lack of physx i'd go 5850.

the msi one with dual fan cooler is $269 after rebates and has free shipping

Hi,
interesting thread. I'm also hesitating between those two cards. The 470 is only 40€ more expensive so the price is not a problem. I'm concerned about the heat/noise of the nvidia though. For me, a SLI/CF is not an option.
Graphics card Expert

Tex-Twil said:
Also check out this review which says that the 5850 is faster that the 470:

Quote:

The Radeon HD 5850 was without a doubt the superior performer in our testing, washing away the GeForce GTX 470 in all but two games.



There are articles favouring either sides! It all depends on what you read and how you read it. Take this for eg:

Quote:
Along with the GeForce GTX 480 flagship, the GeForce GTX 470 is one of Nvidia's next-generation DirectX 11 cards, which performs between the Radeon HD 5850 and Radeon HD 5870, on average. Quite often it seems that the 470 performs more closely to the Radeon HD 5850, but in some cases, the GTX 470 really stands out.

Because of this, it's hard to give the GeForce GTX 470 a solid recommendation compared to the cheaper Radeon HD 5850. But its solid performance, coupled with PhysX, 3D Vision, and CUDA capabilities, can certainly make the GeForce GTX 470 an attractive buy for the gamer who values its strengths. And the price seems to be dropping, which takes the card a lot closer where it needs to be. At $315, the GeForce GT 470 would take a solid recommendation, but at $330 it gets an honorable mention. It's also worth mentioning that this board represents the best performance/price in Nvidia's GF100-based lineup.


http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/gaming-radeon-hd-ge...

For some people, PhysX, CUDA, 3DVision works.....for others, it simply doesn't. Given a choice, I would myself go for either the 470 or 2x460 (1gb's).

namelessonez said:
There are articles favouring either sides! It all depends on what you read and how you read it.

You are right. It's difficult to make a decision. Fact is that the 5850 is almost 1 year old and it still competes with a more recent 470. On the other hand, buying a hardware released one year ago is a bit strange :)  I will probably get the 470 because of the PhysX used in the upcomming Mafia II.
Graphics card Expert

wiinippongamer said:
few games use physx, it's a nice feature to have sometimes but it also kills penformance



Not so true....that's a typical mis-belief. If you have a powerful enough CPU (Quad Core@2.6 or above for instance), it doesn't 'kill' the performance. Also, in most games now, PhysX is mostly GPU oriented, with some possible exceptions....which also, I believe, has been taken care of by patches.

No offence to anybody, but it's kinda irritating how much people are trying to bash PhysX as a feature. It IS a good feature, and not just a gimmick.

Yeah. I just tried Mafia II demo and the PhysX effects are awsome. So I'm looking again at a GTX 460 or 470.

Do you know how much louder is the 470 compared to the 58050 ? What about the 460 ?
Graphics card Expert

1. Loudness:
470 would be louder than the 5850. But that doesn't mean its 'loud'. Also, the loudness would be noticeable when you turn up the fan speed....say, more than 60%. But I really doubt that it would be a bother. It would be louder only when 'compared' with the 5850.

2. Heat:
The 470 would also run hotter than the 5850. However, with some of the good brands (MSI), even that's taken care of. Also, you'll need to make sure your case has decent ventilation. Therefore, the cooling aspect would also be taken care of. See this one (with OverVoltage support):

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E168...

Keep in mind that the there are two fans here, which would make a little more noise than the 5850, but won't sound like a jet taking off!

Then there's Gigabyte at $359....OC'd, and three fans!

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E168...

Asus: $309

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E168...

Palit: $299

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E168...

MSI has this 5850:

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E168...

Then there's Asus: $329

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E168...

XFX: $289

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E168...

3. 460:
Without a doubt, the best bang for the buck! Especially if your considering SLI'ing 2 460's....the most recommended setup for the money! Again, you'll need proper power and cooling for 2 460's.

There are patches/ updated drivers which have helped lower the noise/ heat issues on the 470.


Conslusion:
470 will be louder/ hotter than the 5850, but if you can consider 1&2 above, I would recommend the 470. It's been found to be faster/ better than the 5850 in most games. As for the 460, an SLI setup would be the best bet.....better than a single 470/ 5850.

ok thanks.

I also found this sound bench which confirms what you say.



If I can sum up, the 460 seams to be a greatest deal as far as money/performance is concerned but is still slower that the 5850. The 5850 seems to be the greatest compromise between performance, heat, noise and price but does not offer PhysX. Since I decided that I want PhysX I think I will opt for the GTX 470 which is a bit more expensive, seems to be faster but alsoa bit louder than the 5850.



Graphics card Expert

The feel of actual gameplay cannot be compared to a video on youtube. Youtube may give an 'idea' of the settings, but will not give the finer details qua graphics quality. whereas what you experience while in-game is totally different.

I saw a number of vdeos of prrototype, BFBC2 before buying them. When I saw the videos, it was like "Hmm...ok graphics" but when I played them it was like "WOW graphics!!". You may want to use youtube, etc for reference sake regarding the 'type' of gameplay, rather than 'quality' of gameplay.

Hence, I would suggest you go with what you experience first hand.
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