What would be a good upgrade

[eltoro1234]

Hi there,

I have an i7 930 (bloomfield) o/c to 3.6ghz, on a p6x58d-e mobo, 2x 5870 in crossfire, I was wondering if an upgrade to the i5 3750k, a new mobo maybe the sabertooth x79 and a rad 7970 would be worth while, or maybe a combination of the ones I already have and the ones I want, this will just be for gaming on a Dell 27" ultra sharp @ 2560x1600 (not yet bought) it may seem extreme, but I'm a bit of a graphics whore and like everything on max settings, so any input would be great thanks.

 

[Novuake]

The Sabertooth X79 is not for the I5-3570K. X79 is socket 2011 and the 3570K is socket 1155.

What is your budget?

I should say go for the I5 and HD7970 GHz if you have the cash. You could consider the ASRock OC formula or an ASUS ROG board, just don't get the Sabertooth heatshield crap. Those 'shields' trap heat instead of disapating it.

The HD7970 GHz would give you a great graphics performance increase as it compares to the HD6990 and GTX590.

To be honest getting the I5 would give you a bit of an increase overall but a big increase in per core performance if you OC it properly, this will help you a lot in BF3 MP for example.

 

[Brett928S2]

Hi there,

I have an i7 930 (bloomfield) o/c to 3.6ghz, on a p6x58d-e mobo, 2x 5870 in crossfire, I was wondering if an upgrade to the i5 3750k, a new mobo maybe the sabertooth x79 and a rad 7970 would be worth while, or maybe a combination of the ones I already have and the ones I want, this will just be for gaming on a Dell 27" ultra sharp @ 2560x1600 (not yet bought) it may seem extreme, but I'm a bit of a graphics whore and like everything on max settings, so any input would be great thanks.

Hi

I had a pair of the 5870s (2gb versions) and they are and were a very powerful pair of cards.....

I looked into whether to replace them with a 7970 and it was LESS powerful for games than my 5870s

So I HAD to buy this >>>> http://www.powercolor.com/us/products_features.asp?id=423

Its the 7990...the most expensive and best card in the world...a LOT of money but take my word, you have little choice unless you decide to keep your 5870s ....

All the best Brett

 

[Novuake]

Hi

I had a pair of the 5870s (2gb versions) and they are and were a very powerful pair of cards.....

I looked into whether to replace them with a 7970 and it was LESS powerful for games than my 5870s

So I HAD to buy this >>>> http://www.powercolor.com/us/products_features.asp?id=423

Its the 7990...the most expensive and best card in the world...a LOT of money but take my word, you have little choice unless you decide to keep your 5870s ....

All the best Brett

Please provide proof that 2x HD5870s are more powerful than one HD7970 GHz Edition?

 

[Brett928S2]

Please provide proof that 2x HD5870s are more powerful than one HD7970 GHz Edition?

Hi

Not easy to do as the 2g versions of the 5879 were EXTREMELY rare and a pair of them ever rarer... so there were no benchmarks...

What I did was (as I own Computer shops) was fit a 7970 , and play the games (all FPS) that I normally play (Metro 2033, BF3, etc etc)

I could NOT notice the difference....

I then bought a 7990 and it was a stunning difference...

The OP can believe me or not, but he sounds like me lol....he likes the best... and as he realises, the best is NEVER cheap...

When I bought my pair of 2gb 5870s they cost me just over £1000 for the pair...

The 7990 is actually cheaper at around £750 ...

All the best Brett

 

[Novuake]

Hi

Not easy to do as the 2g versions of the 5879 were EXTREMELY rare and a pair of them ever rarer... so there were no benchmarks...

What I did was (as I own Computer shops) was fit a 7970 , and play the games (all FPS) that I normally play (Metro 2033, BF3, etc etc)

I could NOT notice the difference....

I then bought a 7990 and it was a stunning difference...

The OP can believe me or not, but he sounds like me lol....he likes the best... and as he realises, the best is NEVER cheap...

When I bought my pair of 2gb 5870s they cost me just over £1000 for the pair...

The 7990 is actually cheaper at around £750 ...

All the best Brett

Very scientific. LOL

But yes of as you say "he wants the best" then the HD7990 or HD7970x2 cards are the best option. IF his PSU and budget will allow.

 

[eltoro1234]

The Sabertooth X79 is not for the I5-3570K. X79 is socket 2011 and the 3570K is socket 1155.

What is your budget?

I should say go for the I5 and HD7970 GHz if you have the cash. You could consider the ASRock OC formula or an ASUS ROG board, just don't get the Sabertooth heatshield crap. Those 'shields' trap heat instead of disapating it.

The HD7970 GHz would give you a great graphics performance increase as it compares to the HD6990 and GTX590.

To be honest getting the I5 would give you a bit of an increase overall but a big increase in per core performance if you OC it properly, this will help you a lot in BF3 MP for example.

thanks for taking your time to reply, I will yake a look at the ROG boards.

 

[eltoro1234]

Hi

I had a pair of the 5870s (2gb versions) and they are and were a very powerful pair of cards.....

I looked into whether to replace them with a 7970 and it was LESS powerful for games than my 5870s

So I HAD to buy this >>>> http://www.powercolor.com/us/products_features.asp?id=423

Its the 7990...the most expensive and best card in the world...a LOT of money but take my word, you have little choice unless you decide to keep your 5870s ....

All the best Brett

hi there, thanks for your reply, mine are only 1gb versions so not has powerfull as yours, so the 7979 might be an increase for me?

 

[eltoro1234]

Very scientific. LOL

But yes of as you say "he wants the best" then the HD7990 or HD7970x2 cards are the best option. IF his PSU and budget will allow.

thanks again for your reply, my psu is a corsair 750 HX (could always buy a better one if needed) just want to make sure I get the right kit.

 

[Brett928S2]

hi there, thanks for your reply, mine are only 1gb versions so not has powerfull as yours, so the 7979 might be an increase for me?

Hi

Yes, the 7970 would be an improvement of (as a guess) around 10 to 30%...

The 7990 would be a huge improvement of 50 to 100%...

For my 7990 i put in an 850 OCZ psu, but I am pretty sure your 750 would be fine...

All the best Brett

 

[Novuake]

thanks again for your reply, my psu is a corsair 750 HX (could always buy a better one if needed) just want to make sure I get the right kit.

The 750W should be fine. Since its a Seasonic and HX series.

 

[Novuake]

Hi

Yes, the 7970 would be an improvement of (as a guess) around 10 to 30%...

The 7990 would be a huge improvement of 50 to 100%...

For my 7990 i put in an 850 OCZ psu, but I am pretty sure your 750 would be fine...

All the best Brett

It will be more like a 30 - 40 improvement since the card has 3GB RAM. He would barely run ANYTHING on such a large resolution with 2 x 5870 1GB.

 

[eltoro1234]

It will be more like a 30 - 40 improvement since the card has 3GB RAM. He would barely run ANYTHING on such a large resolution with 2 x 5870 1GB.

thanks again, any idea what motherboard and cpu would compliment the 7970

 

[eltoro1234]

Hi

Yes, the 7970 would be an improvement of (as a guess) around 10 to 30%...

The 7990 would be a huge improvement of 50 to 100%...

For my 7990 i put in an 850 OCZ psu, but I am pretty sure your 750 would be fine...

All the best Brett

thanks again for taking time to respond, I'm learning (slowly)

 

[Novuake]

thanks again, any idea what motherboard and cpu would compliment the 7970

The I5 3570K is perfectly fine but since you have an I7, you seem to have the cash to get an I7 3770K.

Just get a decent Z77 board and you are set.