7970 Ghz Edition vs Gtx 670 GC Factory Overclocked 4gb Edition

[pckid22]

So, I am in a dilemma as to which card would be a better buy. They each cost about the same. I will be running at 2560 by 1440. For those unfamiliar with each here are the links...

670 GC 4gb: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814162118

7970 ghz edition: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814202001&Tpk=7970%20vapor%20x%20ghz

My problem is that 1, I think I will need the extra vram of the 670 4gb in the future when I will be heavily modding games. Friends have already reached 2.8gb in skyrim with heavy mods... 2, I do not think ATI has the equivalent of Nvidia inspector, which I find very useful. 3, looking at this review (which is the only credible one I could find where each card had fully updated drivers) http://www.hardwarecanucks.com/forum/hardware-canucks-reviews/57413-amd-12-11-never-settle-driver-performance.html , it seems the 680 (the version of the 670 I would be getting is at least as fast as the 680) is in a tug of war with the 7970 and in some games one will be signifigantly better than the other while with another game it is vice versa. I cannot tell which is faster or better =( PLEASE HELP ME DECIDE.

Thank you in advance

 

[rostrow416]

the 7970

 

[pckid22]

Can I get some reasons and if possible something to support the reason?

 

[blazorthon]

The 670 4GB will run out of memory bandwidth before it runs out of capacity. The 7970 will not. I'd recommend the 7970. In particular, this 7970 GHz Edition:
http://pcpartpicker.com/part/gigabyte-video-card-gvr797to3gd

Strong factory overclock and a low price of only $410 for such a card is a great deal.

If you want a Nvidia card, then this is the 670 to get:
http://pcpartpicker.com/part/zotac-video-card-zt6030210p

Still lower performance, but it'll use a lot less power. However, given that AMD's Never Settle deal gives almost $200 in free games, I'd really lean towards the Gigabyte WindForce 7970 GHz Edition that I linked to,

 

[pckid22]

Will it really run out of bandwitdth? That is extremely misleading on nvidia's part. How much actual vram would you say it could have before running out of bandwidth?

 

[blazorthon]

Will it really run out of bandwitdth? That is extremely misleading on nvidia's part. How much actual vram would you say it could have before running out of bandwidth?

It's not Nvidia's fault IIRC, Nvidia didn't market the 670 4GB AFAIK.

There are a few situations where the 4GB model makes a difference, I admit that. However, there aren't many and in them, AMD is usually the better option anyway.

I'd say a little more than where 2GB is a bottle-neck is where it usually really starts to struggle, but AMD's lead at that point is usually too much to pass up IMO.

 

[pckid22]

Damn. Alright the only thing that is keeping me from a landslide descision is that I do not know of any kind of nvidia inspector type of program for ati cards. Do you know if they have some kind of software you can use to limit fps in games, add anti aliasing or A.F. and other special effects to games that do not have the option normally?

 

[blazorthon]

Sorry, I can't think of any right now, but I haven't slept yet either and might simply be forgetting stuff

 

[bigcyco1]

The answer is will you overclock or not ? And do you want those three free games that come with the vapor - x

 

[mike88931]

Yes, you should probably go for the 7970 ghz.

 

[pckid22]

I will surely OC in the future. Those 3 games do not hurt either. They all look good.

 

[CaptainTom]

I will surely OC in the future. Those 3 games do not hurt either. They all look good.

The 7000 series OC's far better overall. So yeah 7970 GHz is the clear winner.

 

[bigcyco1]

I will surely OC in the future. Those 3 games do not hurt either. They all look good.

Then i think you know the answer

 

[pckid22]

Alright it is decided. 7970 ghz FTW!

 

[johnvonmacz]

Damn. Alright the only thing that is keeping me from a landslide descision is that I do not know of any kind of nvidia inspector type of program for ati cards. Do you know if they have some kind of software you can use to limit fps in games, add anti aliasing or A.F. and other special effects to games that do not have the option normally?

Found this thread on google lol. They have it, it's called Radeon Pro