AMD HD Radeon 6950 or Nvidia GeForce GTX 570

buska103

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Jul 31, 2009
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APPROXIMATE PURCHASE DATE: 1 week to 2 months
BUDGET RANGE: USD $250-350
USAGE: Gaming; Battlefield Bad Company 2, Crysis, Crysis Warhead, GTA IV, GTA EFLC
CURRENT GPU AND POWER SUPPLY: HIS Ice-Q ATI Radeon HD 4850 512mb and Corsair 750HX modular 750W PSU
OTHER RELEVANT SYSTEM SPECS: AMD Phenom II 955 3.2ghz cpu, MSI 790FX-GD70 mobo (quad PCI express 2.0 compatible), Mushkin 2X2GB DRR3 1600mhz RAM - Cooler Master HAF932 case, aircooled
COUNTRY OF ORIGIN: East Coast US
OVERCLOCKING: No
SLI OR CROSSFIRE: Maybe
MONITOR RESOLUTION: 1920x1080
COMMENTS: Best bang for buck


I'm really torn between the two. I realize that the 570 runs better than the 6950 at 1080p resolutions (which is what I have), but is the $50 difference worth getting the 570 over it? The only game I will be really playing is BFBC2.
I'd love some input on this...
 

Rollo

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Jul 2, 2006
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GTX570 hands down.
1. Smacks down the 6950 at 19X10 gaming:
http://www.xbitlabs.com/picture/?src=/images/video/radeon-hd6970-hd6950/charts/24_69vs470aa_big.png
This is reason enough to buy a 570 over a 6950. (or 6970 for that matter)
2. It's better to have PhysX than not. PhysX isn't a deal maker or breaker for me personally, but there are games out and coming where it does make a difference in level of immersion that I like to play with it on.
3. 3d Vision. It's not good to lock yourself out of this. Last year I bought two more 2233RZs for $600 to supplement the one NVIDIA gave me because I like this so much. This year I just spent over $1000 on three GD235s so I could do 3d Vision Surround in 1080p. I have a Dell 3007 WFP-HC that I haven't had as the display on my main PC for over 2 years now due to 3d Vision, and I paid $1100 for the Dell the same year I got my first 2233RZ. When you pick TN panels over arguably the best gaming monitor available, that's already bought and paid for sitting in your house, AND pay another $1600 to do it, that says something about the draw of 3d Vision.
4. CUDA apps- don't use them or code for them personally, but CUDA is the the best that industry currenty has.
5. Forced ambient occlusion- not a deal maker or breaker to me, but better to have than not.

On the ATi side:
1. MLAA- sucks. Blur inducing crap AA for rare games that don't support decent AA
2. 1 card Eyeyfinity. I don't think a single 6950 has the stones to be a good gaming solution at 57 X 10, but EyeFinity is nice and if you have displayport monitors/adapter, this would be a plus.

And that is all I can think of for ATi, unless maybe their video card sound option is still better. I use on board sound, have never cared about video card sound, so I haven't kept up on this.



NVIDIA Focus Group Member
NVIDIA Focus Group Members receive free software and/or hardware from NVIDIA from time to time to
facilitate the evaluation of NVIDIA products. However, the opinions expressed are solely those of the Members
 

jfem

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Dec 20, 2009
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I choose HD 6950 for the price. But I suggest GTX 460 SLI or 6850 Crossfire. They are better in performance than either of the two while having a very compelling price.
 

Digital Dissent

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The AA on the ati cards are actually vastly superior to the nvidia offerings. I have used both the 6950 and 570 recently, and while the 570 does appear to run faster with AA on, the ati offering's quality level of AA is second to none. I was dramatically impressed. That said I did choose the 570 over the 6970, for other reasons.
 

plznote

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Jun 12, 2010
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Right, Intel QuickSync handily beats CUDA and Stream for that matter.
AMD has their own 3D granted it's hard to come by the monitors in NA but still.


 

buska103

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Listen; I have no desire for 3D, no desire for tri-moniters. I have no idea what CUDA is, so I clearly do not need that either. PhysX, I also don't know much about, I did a quick google search and the only game that I have and seems to support it is Mafia II, and t be honest, I think that game is pretty terrible.


All I need is a simple video card that can run GTA IV/Crysis/BFBC2 at 1920x1080 at all maxed or almost maxed settings; at a $300 budget.
Unbiased opinions please.
 

Digital Dissent

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Feb 24, 2010
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Hes absolutely right.
 

Tamz_msc

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The HD 6950 at stock performs like the HD 5870, the latter one being available for 240$.However it can be unlocked to a HD 6970, after which it matches the GTX 570 in performance.However AMD plans to kill this feature very soon, so you might have to hurry if you plan on this unlocking business.Also, you cant be sure if it will work properly or not. Though many have been successful in doing so, you never know what might happen.Its just like overclocking the CPU. Sandy Bridge can overclock to 4.4 GHz in the reviews, but its possible that yours might not.

On the other hand, the GTX 570 gives you excellent performance out of the box.It also performs better in games supporting tessellation like Metro 2033, Dirt 2 etc.
Moreover its very cool and almost inaudible while gaming. It is priced nicely as well( the MSI GTX 570 costs 330$ on newegg).

So, you have the choices, and its up to you to decide.