- Jan 23, 2012
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A little bit of background...
I run a small LAN room with 4 PC's and recently acquired a 5th. I host LAN parties twice a month. Since the 5th system was given to me (i3 2130), I don't yet have a video card for it. I currently have a Radeon 5850 (main rig, i5 2500k), 3x 4870 and one 4850. I know my cards are dated which is why I'm trying to upgrade since I need another card for my new system anyway. I usually replace my main card and move the others around like a ripple effect. I'm not made of money and expect my systems to last 3years minimum, which they have. That said, we tend to stick to playing the same games for long periods of time as they are rather fun (Starcraft2, Left4Dead, Age of Empires3, Dawn of War).
I want to know if it's worth buying older cards that were once king or buy lesser of the new series which have performance gain over my 3yr old cards? If I replace my main card, the current one will move to another system. I am looking for the most cost effective way to maximize life in my systems.
Here's where I'm at...
1) Buy 7950 for main rig
2) Buy 6950/6970 for main rig
3) Buy 5850/5870 for new system (then crossfire later when I upgrade main)
4) Buy 6850/6870/7770/7850/7870 for new system *(and others down the road)
I would also like to know if $150-200 is decent for a used 6950? or am I better off with 7950 on sale at NCIX for $280?
http://ncix.com/products/?sku=67546&vpn=GV-R795WF3-3GD&manufacture=Gigabyte&promoid=1265
And are there any brands I should look at specifically or stay away from?
Also note all systems are single display ranging from 1600x900 to 1920x1200. (full system(s) specs can be given if needed)
Sorry if I'm all over the place, I know that's a lot to take in. I look forward to hearing what you guys think.
I run a small LAN room with 4 PC's and recently acquired a 5th. I host LAN parties twice a month. Since the 5th system was given to me (i3 2130), I don't yet have a video card for it. I currently have a Radeon 5850 (main rig, i5 2500k), 3x 4870 and one 4850. I know my cards are dated which is why I'm trying to upgrade since I need another card for my new system anyway. I usually replace my main card and move the others around like a ripple effect. I'm not made of money and expect my systems to last 3years minimum, which they have. That said, we tend to stick to playing the same games for long periods of time as they are rather fun (Starcraft2, Left4Dead, Age of Empires3, Dawn of War).
I want to know if it's worth buying older cards that were once king or buy lesser of the new series which have performance gain over my 3yr old cards? If I replace my main card, the current one will move to another system. I am looking for the most cost effective way to maximize life in my systems.
Here's where I'm at...
1) Buy 7950 for main rig
2) Buy 6950/6970 for main rig
3) Buy 5850/5870 for new system (then crossfire later when I upgrade main)
4) Buy 6850/6870/7770/7850/7870 for new system *(and others down the road)
I would also like to know if $150-200 is decent for a used 6950? or am I better off with 7950 on sale at NCIX for $280?
http://ncix.com/products/?sku=67546&vpn=GV-R795WF3-3GD&manufacture=Gigabyte&promoid=1265
And are there any brands I should look at specifically or stay away from?
Also note all systems are single display ranging from 1600x900 to 1920x1200. (full system(s) specs can be given if needed)
Sorry if I'm all over the place, I know that's a lot to take in. I look forward to hearing what you guys think.
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