Gtx 470 vs 5850 vs 6870

yeah i have 650w psu with an intel core 2 quad Q9400 2.66 ghz.

and i know that gt470>6870>5850, but i need to know whats the best for the money. the 470 and 6870 are the same price, but the 470 i heard is a power hog. also since the 5850 is just below the 470 and 6870, but is way cheaper, that could be a good buy too.

the 5850 is a solid choice. there is open box version of that one currently on newegg for $200, no rebate, if you care.

a solid 650w psu is fine for the GTX470. you really can't go wrong with any of three

470 draws 150w more each hr than 6870.

6870 also has eyefinity with 3+ display support.

wow so like 2.5w a min? that's like....nothing. both cards idle at less watts then a 9800GT. the ATI 6870 actually uses more power for movie playback. There is no question is uses more watts then either of the ATI cards but lets not make it out like he can't pay his cable bill because of it.

FYI. the cost of going from a GTX 260 to a GTX 480 in terms of increased cost for watts per month, is just enough to purchase one small coffee at DD


http://www.techpowerup.com/reviews/HIS/Radeon_HD_6870/2...

what about heating, anyone know i also heard that the 470 also has heat issues, but im not sure.

Not heat issues, these cards are designed to run hot, so having the GTX470 run at 70-90oC is perfectly fine.. The limit is 105oC..

Also if you get a standard reference card, the heat is pushed out the back of the system.

Have 2 of the GTX470's and the first runs at 80-90oC..

All three cards are solid. I've seen the 6870 cheaper than the gtx 470, but it seems to me as though the 5850 is the best bang for your buck in this case. In a few cases it outperforms the gtx 470, tohugh it's consistently beaten by the 6870. All three cards are great--but for that price and the power consumption you can't beat that 5850.

and that msi card is a great product as well, my buddy has one.

Do you plan to crossfire? The new 6k series usually scales better under crossfire, which actually makes them equal to or better than the old series. Even if you don't, drivers haven't totally matured for these cards yet, although they are similar to the old gen, they aren't exactly the same(especially since 1120 shaders can now beat 1440 shaders, 6870vs5850).

The GTX 470 generally equals or beats the 6870 though(except when two cards are present), so it would also be a good deal.

When tessellation becomes more popular the GTX 470 will also scale better under higher tessellation factors, this will make the GTX 470 a better choice later down the road if it can still play games with its better tessellation scaling anyway   .

i don't plan on using crossfire anytime soon, but i will be looking into sli/crossfire in maybe 2-3 years when i got money for a new pc.

allright, i guess im going with the 5850, unless of course another great discount comes by. thanks everybody.

Best answer selected by BigmanQ.

This topic has been closed by Mousemonkey