ATI 5970 vs. 2 x GTX 470

[zard]

Dumb question: which is better, a single 5970, or two GTX 470's in SLI?

They're nearly identical in benchmarks; the only discernable pro/cons are that while the 5970 is simpler, requires less wattage, and runs cooler, the 470's would have PhysX (for the few games seeming to support it).

So basically, temperature/efficiency vs. PhysX. My main concern is that the MoBo (Gigabyte's X58A-UD5) only supports 1-slot SLI, meaning the cards will be toe-to-toe, and minimal airflow for the top card.

I'll be building in a Silverstone FT02. Any thoughts would be appreciated.

 

[Rustyy117]

2 x GTX470's should be better than a single HD5970, but the heat and power usage may put you off, Depends what your most concerned about tbh...

 

[dragon5677]

i too have the same question nvidia cards seem to offer much more than just gaming performance
also i plan to go with gigabyte ud3r or ud5 but the cards literrally stick to each other so is there any other good motherboard which supports both sli and crossfire

 

[Maziar]

+1 to omgitzfatal
2 470's perform better but they run much hotter,have more consumption and are more noisier.
And since the performance difference isn't very much, my vote goes for HD 5970.

 

[Tamz_msc]

Performance difference between the 5970 and GTX 470 SLI is pretty big.
http://www.anandtech.com/show/3836/msis-geforce-n470gtx-gtx-470-sli/4
If the power consumption and heat bothers you, get the GIGABYTE GTX 470 SOC that Tom's reviewed recently.It has a completely redesigned PCB and uses less power than the reference GTX 470, even though it is overclocked.

 

[Maziar]

According to the link you posted,in some games yes,but in most game the difference is between 10-20 FPS which isn't anything huge.

 

[BruceOTB]

According to the link you posted,in some games yes,but in most game the difference is between 10-20 FPS which isn't anything huge.

15fps additional (average of 10-20) is huge if your hovering around 25-35fps. If your more than 50fps already, it's negligible.

 

[BruceOTB]

^That's for first person shooters btw.

 

[Maziar]

Well everyone has different view points,for me a difference of 10-20 isn't much especially when you get much higher power consumption,more heat and noise.

 

[dragon5677]

yeah but you get some additional perks with nvidia

 

[ramx]

Go for 2*Zotac GTX 470 Amp!.Its runs pretty cool and performs better than a 5970.But you need about 2.5 slots for a single card.If u have that much clearance on ur motherboard,look no further.

 

[Tamz_msc]

A better option would be the Gigabyte GTX 470 SOC.It comes overclocked with a custom cooler, stays cooler than a reference 470 and consumes less power than a reference 470.

 

[daxx]

id say go with a 5970 oc, get a crossfireX mobo wait untill the 6xxx series comes out then buy a cheap 5970 and crossfire them together.. thus having quadfire.. and utterly raping the 470 sli.. get a nice wc on it or a sick triple fan heatsink and oc it to 1000/1500 on both... btw a 5970 should handle everything out todate atm.. when needed upgrade to another when the price drops... only reason the 480 an 470 are faster is because they came out sooo much later lol.. the 6xxx series is almost here now.. i see no real compition between the gtx and the Hd considering HD is about to mop the floor with them again a about a month or so.. ive seen some benchmarks of 4890-1gb CF on Fear 2 1920-1200 maximum graph,aa keep up to the gtx295 within a few fps(3-4) so, not trying to sound like some Ati fanboy lol it just seems Ati has cards out faster and preform better.. thats my 2 cents

 

[Griffolion]

yeah but you get some additional perks with nvidia

Please elaborate?

 

[reccy]

2x GTX470's in Sli is damn impressive performance. The first GTX470 runs NEar its limits (80-95oC) and has a very loud fan at these speeds (reference blower type cards) But if you wear a headset dont let that put you off.

Cons - Use more wattage and the first in Sli gets rather hot, but not to the point of overheating.

Seriously a good buy mate

 

[Petey1013]

You won't have to worry as much about sandwiched cards in the FT02. best aircooled case out right now, especially for SLI cards like the 400 series. Works awesome. Second, Unless 5970 prices have dropped recently, you should be able to pick up 2 470s cheaper then a 5970, and they'll be faster.

 

[jyjjy]

The proper comparison for the HD5970 in terms of performance is two GTX 460s. The GTX 460s also use much less power/give off much less heat than two GTX 470s so that isn't nearly as much of a concern.

 

[bystander]

i too have the same question nvidia cards seem to offer much more than just gaming performance
also i plan to go with gigabyte ud3r or ud5 but the cards literrally stick to each other so is there any other good motherboard which supports both sli and crossfire

If you are refering to the gigabyte GA-X58A-UD3R, you can actually seperate an SLI/CF setup with extra space. You just plug the top card in the 2nd slot, and the 2nd card in the last slot. The only draw back is it operates at PCIe 2.0 x8, which shouldn't limit performance hardly at all.

 

[daxx]

Id have to agree with you on that. unless and 5970 drops in price then go with sli, i picked up a 5970 for 275 by chance because my old xfx card failed randomly underload, so i was able to get a 475 dollar credit -lucky me my warranty was for life- only thing id say that would change my mind... well a few things... less power,heat and if you get 2 xfx cards they have a double lifetime warranty meaning if you ever go to sell your lifetime transfers to that seller, also its modder friendly meaning even if you take the stock cooler an oc the crap out of it they still cover it fully.

 

[dragon5677]

Please elaborate?

i meant about 3d vision and physx and.

 

[dragon5677]

If you are refering to the gigabyte GA-X58A-UD3R, you can actually seperate an SLI/CF setup with extra space. You just plug the top card in the 2nd slot, and the 2nd card in the last slot. The only draw back is it operates at PCIe 2.0 x8, which shouldn't limit performance hardly at all.

what about ud5 are there other better motherboards which do sli/cf

 

[bystander]

what about ud5 are there other better motherboards which do sli/cf

I do not know about the ud5, but I have the UD3R and have done exactly what I mentioned above and it worked great.