6850 7000 series equivilent?

[gman_42]

I'd like to get a new card sooner or later and was wondering if there was a 7000 series equivilent to the 6850. The price is VERY important (has to be under $150 before rebates) and performance should be around the same too. Any thoughts?

 

[Supernova1138]

The 7770 is the closest equivalent to the 6850. However, it's stock performance does fall behind the 6850 unless you are using the latest beta driver, Catalyst 12.7. Even then the 6850 may still pull ahead in some games if you are comparing it to the stock clocked 7770. The 7770 does overclock further than the 6850 does, so if you are looking at squeezing out as much performance as possible, it might be a good choice.

 

[gman_42]

Overclocking seemed like a possible option for me, but I am on a very tight heat restraint considering my case lacks a lot of airflow.

 

[Supernova1138]

I don't think the 7770 runs too hot, so you might be okay overclocking. Alternatively you can look for factory overclocked 7770s or see if they have released a GHZ edition of the 7770, those would be more competitive with the 6850.