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Tom's Hardware > Forum > Graphics & Displays > Graphics Cards > Which graphics card is better for gaming?

Which graphics card is better for gaming?

Forum Graphics & Displays : Graphics Cards Which graphics card is better for gaming?

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Ok so i'm interested in 2 graphics cards, one is from AMD/ATI and the other is from Nvidia.
Before i buy any of them i just want to know which of them is better at HD gaming.
AMD Radeon HD 6850 or the GeForce GTX 460?

Reply to Lazar_99
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Thanks man. I know the 6850 needs a bit less power than the GTX 460. In fact it doesn't need 2 6pin connectors like the GTX 460, it only needs 1 6pin connector

Reply to Lazar_99

Well, I suppose I should elaborate. Here's my thinking.
http://www.anandtech.com/bench/Product/291?vs=313 Slightly higher performance.
6850: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Prod [...] 6814161384
GTX 460: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Prod [...] 6814130752
Lower cost. (be sure to note the 256-bit bandwidth on the GTX 460. They are selling gimped ones with 192-bit for cheaper)

Haha, I think it's pretty self explanatory. What's your budget? You might consider bumping up to a 6870.

Reply to striker410

striker410 wrote :

Well, I suppose I should elaborate. Here's my thinking.
http://www.anandtech.com/bench/Product/291?vs=313 Slightly higher performance.
6850: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Prod [...] 6814161384
GTX 460: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Prod [...] 6814130752
Lower cost. (be sure to note the 256-bit bandwidth on the GTX 460. They are selling gimped ones with 192-bit for cheaper)

Haha, I think it's pretty self explanatory. What's your budget? You might consider bumping up to a 6870.



150$ is my budget. But here in my country the GTX 460 1gb with 256 bit bandwith is 135$ and the HD 6850 is 160$
Though i wouldn't mind spending 10$ more if the performance is worth it.
One more thing i should add is that my PSU only has 2 molex connectors and the GTX 460 requires 4 (i mean those 6 pin adapters. 1 requires 2 molex connectors).
On the other hand the HD 6850 requires only one 6pin power connector so i need 2 molex connectors (which i have).
So a good quality PSU with at least 4 molex connectors is 45$ here. If i buy the GTX 460 i'm gonna need a new PSU aswell, so the cheaper path is going with the HD 6850 by 20$. But since i never used AMD/ATI graphics cards, i'm not so sure about it. I've heard most people say that ATI's drivers suck so the HD 6850 could perform a bit slower than the GTX 460 even if its specs are better, an easy way to tip the scales towards the GTX 460 since Nvidia has great drivers

Reply to Lazar_99

If your PSU lacks 6-pin native connectors then there is a chance it won't run the 6850 either. What is your PSU exactly?

Reply to larkspur

larkspur wrote :

If your PSU lacks 6-pin native connectors then there is a chance it won't run the 6850 either. What is your PSU exactly?



Xilence XP500.
That's a 500W PSU.
Its other "specs" are:
AC Input |110-240V | 8.5A - 5.5A | 60-50Hz
DC Output |+3.3V | +5V | +12V1 | +12V2 | -12V | +5VSB
| 26.0A | 30.0A | 18.0A | 20.0A| 0,5A | 2.5A

Cable system:
x1 20+4 pin MB
x1 +12V 4pin
x2 S-ATA
x2 S-ATA
x2 Molex 4 pin
x1 4 pin FDD

Sorry about the long text but i wanted to be precise about its specs :D

Reply to Lazar_99
- 0 +

Mom! Dad! my psu blowed up real good!

Reply to davcon

Well it's an adequate power rating that's for sure. It has the power to run either card but like you said, trying to get two 6-pins out of the two 4-pin molex doesn't sound easy or even like a good idea. I dunno, maybe someone's tried it - EDIT: ^^^^^haha see above.

If the PSU wasn't an issue, for the prices you listed, I'd get the 460 (they are very similar performance). But with that PSU I would get the 6850. Some games run better on nvidia, and some on amd.


Message edited by larkspur on 01-26-2012 at 10:13:18 PM
Reply to larkspur

the 460 overclocks like a champ but I'd realy try and get a 6870 then x fire them.

------------------------------ Asus Z68 v-pro gen 3 | 2500k @4635 1.27 v core | 16gb G.Skill cas 9 @1648 | A50 cpu cooler | XFX 6950 gpu | Cooler master 600w psu | Crucial 64g ssd | Baricuda 1tb HDD | Antec DF 35 case | Logitech g510 keyboard g9x mouse | Samsung series 5 42 inch LCD
Reply to undercovernerd6

Yup, I think you'll be needing a new PSU. What website are you looking at? I may be able to help you select parts that offer good performance but don't cost an outlandish amount of money.

Reply to striker410
- 0 +

Here is a 6870 for exactly $150 right now:

http://www.tigerdirect.com/applica [...] CatId=7005

With any of these cards though you really want a decent power supply that will power these cards. Anyone will tell you that the most vital part in making or upgrading a computer is a high-quality power supply. There are lower priced-very good ones, yet there are also low priced very bad ones.

------------------------------ 2500K @4.2| 212+| MSI Z68MA-G45| HIS Radeon 6950 2GB UNLOCKED TO 6970| 12GB Corsair RAM| Ultra LSP 750W| NZXT Vulcan| AOC 23"
Reply to Deemo13

Deemo13 wrote :

Here is a 6870 for exactly $150 right now:

http://www.tigerdirect.com/applica [...] CatId=7005

With any of these cards though you really want a decent power supply that will power these cards. Anyone will tell you that the most vital part in making or upgrading a computer is a high-quality power supply. There are lower priced-very good ones, yet there are also low priced very bad ones.


Keep in mind it's after rebate.

Reply to striker410
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