MSI 7850 vs MSI GTX 560 Ti OC

[ddan49]

Hello,

So I'm looking for a graphics card to play fps games (BF3, CoD MW3, etc.), but... y'know... I've got skyrim . I'm on a single 1680x1050 monitor, but I might upgrade to 1080p later. I don't think other specs matter much.

560 Ti: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814127565
7850: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814127663&Tpk=msi%20twin%20frozr%207850

So I'm on a budget, and the 7850 is pricey as it is. I kept hearing to wait for the 7850, and when it came out... well... a bit of a disappointment. On lower resolutions, it is actually WORSE than the GTX 560 Ti. The thing is that I want this for the future, as well, so maybe performing higher on higher (and thus more demanding) resolutions is better for the long term. Also, the 7850 has 2GB of RAM... er... I don't think it makes a difference NOW, but will it later on? I really like the MSI Twin Frozr OC series, so I'll get the OC version (if available) for the one I pick.

I'm open to suggestions for others, but this is all I know of at the moment. I'll be buying very late April, possibly early May, so if a mid-range Kepler card is coming out (although not that I know of), I can wait for that. I'm waiting for IB anyway

What do you guys think? Oh, and I've got the Fractal R3 selected, so 290mm is the GPU clearance. Not a problem for these two (that I know of). I'll be overclocking, as well. Which leads me to another question...

If the card is already factory OCed, does that leave the same amount of room to OC yourself? Meaning, if the limit for safe overclocking on the basic card is 1000MHz, and the basic is at stock 800MHz, and the factory OC is at stock 900MHz... does that mean that if I were to OC the factory already-overclocked card, I could go to 1100MHz?

Basically, what I'm asking is if a factory OCed card is just the same as a normal one, except they've done your dirty work of overclocking for you... or is it a faster card as is?

Thanks!

 

[rolli59]

Usually they have selected chips on the overclocked cards and better coolers! I personally would go with the HD7850 http://www.techpowerup.com/reviews/AMD/HD_7850_HD_7870/26.html

 

[hella-d]

That Midrange Kepler Card (I Am In-Fact Waiting For One A Bit Faster Than My OCed 460SE) Should Be Plenty And Yes You Can OC An Already OCed Card, Likely Even A Bit Faster Than The Max OC Of A Referance Card Due To The Fact That Alot Of Factory OCed Cards Are Built Upon Hand-Picked ("Cherry-Picked") GPUs. But I Wouldnt Expect A Whole Lot Higher Max OC Than A Referance Card (Say 5%).

 

[ddan49]

Thanks! But what Mid-Range Kepler cards are coming out? Also... when?

I don't know if the 7850 justifies the ~$40 price hike. Seems a bit much. Especially because tomshardware noticed a few problems with the 7850, and in general wasn't very happy with it:
http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/radeon-hd-7870-review-benchmark,3148.html

Issues are in the conclusion:
http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/radeon-hd-7870-review-benchmark,3148-21.html

It seems that they had problems with both the 7870 and the 7850, with the 7850 being especially cranky. BUT the 7850 did perform about 10% better overall...

 

[rolli59]

We go through these issues with every generation of cards, it is called drivers as an example the HD57xx cards improved in performance as the drivers matured!

 

[tuffluck]

7850 drivers are fine. you can OC the card to achieve 7870 performance and exceed gtx 570 performance easily. i personally don't think there is a better bang for your buck. 2GB of RAM is much more future-proof than 1GB. i also have read BF3 uses approximately 1.5GB of VRAM if it has access to that. seems like an easy choice personally.

as an additional note, i would upgrade to 1080p immediately. it is truly what all cards are gearing their performance towards.

 

[ddan49]

Best answer selected by ddan49.