6950 vs 6870

[badarang]

CPU:AMD Phenom II 955 x4 @ stock 3.2
RAM:G.SKILL Ripjaws Series 8GB (2 x 4GB) 1333
HDD:Seagate 500g HDD
MOBO:ASRock 990FX Extreme3 AM3+
VID:8800gt SSC

Im looking to upgrade my video card to something more modern and capable. I dont have room in my budget for anything over 220-230$.
I was looking at a couple cards and i couldnt decided between a 6870, a 6950, or a 7770. Is there a substanial performance difference between a 6870 and a 6950?

 

[rocknrollz]

Difference between the 6870 and 6950 are noticeable. Get the 6950.

http://www.anandtech.com/bench/Product/290?vs=293

 

[willard]

Yes, the 6950 is 10-20% faster than the 6870 depending on the game. That's why it costs more and has a higher model number. As long as the first number within the model number is the same, it's safe to simply compare them to determine which is faster. The 6970 is faster than the 6950, which is faster than the 6870, which is faster than the 6850, etc. The 7770 is in a different generation (the 7000 series) so you can't compare so easily.

The difference between the 6950 and 7770 is even larger, with the 6950 being between 20% and 100% faster depending on the game despite the 7770 being from a newer generation. This is because the 6950 was a top of the line card, while the 7770 is the bottom of the line.

So in short, the 6950 is far and away the most powerful of the video cards you listed.

 

[mikeangs2004]

depends on what game and at what settings/resolutions you play. How about 7850's at Newegg?

 

[willard]

depends on what game and at what settings/resolutions you play.

No it doesn't. The 6950 is faster than all of the cards he listed in all games and at all resolutions, differences typically in the double digit FPS. Very noticeable.

 

[badarang]

The two cards i was looking at were

6870
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814150521

6950
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814102987

I've looked at some other 6950's and the core clock is lower than the 6870 but it has 2g VRAM rather than 1...I suppose that is the selling point or is the gpu itself better performing even with the lower clock?

 

[willard]

Comparing clock speeds for different types of cards is not meaningful. You need to look at benchmarks.

http://www.anandtech.com/bench/Product/540?vs=510

The 6950 is simply faster than the 6870. Also, more VRAM is only beneficial in some games and at high resolutions with AA/AF cranked up. For most games, 1GB is plenty. In fact, 1GB 6950s tend to outperform the 2GB 6950s by a small margin, around 1%, in many games.

 

[badarang]

Best answer selected by Badarang.

 

[Mousemonkey]

This topic has been closed by Mousemonkey