Best PCIe Card: $400 And Up
Honorable Mention:
Best PCIe Card For ~$430: Radeon 4870 X2 (Check Prices)
Exceptional 1920x1200 performance in most games, 2560x1600 in most titles (some with lowered detail)
| Radeon HD 4870 X2 | |
|---|---|
| Codename: | 2 x RV770 |
| Process: | 55 nm |
| Universal Shaders: | 1,600 (2 x 800) |
| Texture Units: | 80 (2 x 40) |
| ROPs: | 32 (2 x 16) |
| Memory Bus: | 256-bit |
| Core Speed MHz: | 750 |
| Memory Speed MHz: | 900 (3,600 effective) |
| DirectX/Shader Model: | DX 10.1/SM 4.1 |
It's hard to recommend the $430 Radeon HD 4870 X2 when two GeForce GTX 260s in SLI or two Radeon HD 4870 1 GB cards in CrossFire can be purchased for $360. However, we can't ignore how a lot of folks out there don't have SLI- or CrossFire-capable motherboards and it might not be worth the cost and trouble to upgrade. For these folks, the Radeon HD 4870 X2 gets an honorable mention as a single card, despite its high price.
Best PCIe Card For ~$520:GeForce GTX 295 (Check Prices)
Exceptional 1920x1200 performance in most games, 2560x1600 in most titles (some with lowered detail)
| GeForce GTX 295 | |
|---|---|
| Codename: | 2 x GT200b |
| Process: | 55 nm |
| Universal Shaders: | 480 (2 x 240) |
| Texture Units: | 160 (2 x 80) |
| ROPs: | 56 (2 x 28) |
| Memory Bus: | 448-bit |
| Core Speed MHz: | 576 |
| Memory Speed MHz: | 999 (1,998 effective) |
| DirectX/Shader Model: | DX 10/SM 4.0 |
Nvidia's GeForce GTX 295 sporting SLI-on-a-card is the most powerful single graphics card on the planet. Basically two attached GeForce GTX 275 cards that have been merged, the GeForce GTX 295 offers very notable gains over the Radeon HD 4870 X2 in the great majority of game titles. Even more impressive is that it does so while consuming less power than AMD's flagship does--no small feat.
If you want the best of the best, this is the card to get. The only way to get more performance is perhaps to connect two or three GeForce GTX 285s in SLI or quad-CrossFire two Radeon HD 4870 X2s, but unless you have a 30" monitor, that would likely be a gratuitous waste of money.
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I really wish the gtx 285 would go down in price and make this list. i would rather have this single gpu than another gpu in sli or crossfire. Then i would sli in the future if necessary. maybe there is hope for the gtx 285 to make the value list sometime this summer especially if ati comes out with their new gpu and the 285 has a nice drop in price.
another great article. i always enjoy this.
This article is always a good read.
I must admit I'm a little disappointed to see another month with no changes in recommendations, even with two new releases thrown into the mix. There's really only one change I expect for next month, and that totally depends on whether or not the 47XX card(s) from ATI goes gold and displaces the 4830. I suppose if it's enough of a performance increase over the 4830, it could potentially take over part of or the entire ~$80 to ~$130 range of recommendations.
I suppose we wait and see.
I bought 2 x GTX285, I want the fastest single GPU, and that is still the GTX285, then I can always fall back to single GPU when there are problems with SLI.
SLI and Crossfire came a long way, but there are still many situations where the performance does not add up.
That is why I consider 2 x GTX285 a much safer and better investment then a single GTX295 or Radeon 4870x2.
I bought 2 x GTX285, I want the fastest single GPU, and that is still the GTX285, then I can always fall back to single GPU when there are problems with SLI.
SLI and Crossfire came a long way, but there are still many situations where the performance does not add up.
That is why I consider 2 x GTX285 a much safer and better investment then a single GTX295 or Radeon 4870x2.
I bought 2 x GTX285, I want the fastest single GPU, and that is still the GTX285, then I can always fall back to single GPU when there are problems with SLI.
SLI and Crossfire came a long way, but there are still many situations where the performance does not add up.
That is why I consider 2 x GTX285 a much safer and better investment then a single GTX295 or Radeon 4870x2.
Good article as always - not anything to criticize except that I was surprised that 2 4830's in CF didn't even get a mention - after all you have a GPU solution there for $180 that beats all the competition (4870 1GB and 260 GTX) by a noteworthy margin:
http://www.xbitlabs.com/articles/v [...] sfire.html
After mail-in-rebates its only ~$150 - thats seem pretty good bang for the buck and even if isn't a solution for everybody as you need a crossfire capable board and some good air flow, its still a great choice to consider.
As our triple-posting friend brings up, there are indeed times when a single GTX 285 might be a good purchase, or even two. I felt that might need more attention as I read this. At least some people do indeed want or prefer single GPU solutions.
Other than that, good as always.
I am sorry about the triple posting, I got some errors and thought the post didnt got thru.
Good to see HD 4830 there. I waz wondering the last time y it was not in the list. Good work. Keep it coming.Very useful.
All these cards are good and all but non can give me the experience of playing KOTOR I for the first time on a 21" Mitsubishi and crappy Radeon 8500.
We need better games and not lame games with good graphic a la Crysis. I would gladly pay for a 275 or 4890 if KOTOR III or Modern Warfare II needs it.
I personally think these monthly evaluations should be split into two categories, Multi GPU and Single GPU. HD4850X2 might be a great bargain, but some people want to know the best value (in different price ranges) for single GPU configs. Multi GPU cards suffer from microstuttering, and driver support isn't perfect in every game.
For my personal needs, my value sweet spot is the HD4890 or GTX275.
The HD4850 might get higher average frame rates, but what about minimum frame rates? I'll NEVER buy multi GPU until they their issues are completely solved.
HD4850X2 rather. man, why no edit function?
We're still quite pleased that the Radeon HD 4850 X2 can now be found on Newegg for $260.
Geforce GTX 260's have dropped in price for some time now. In fact, there are several starting at $180, $80 below your suggested price point. Saying the 4850X2 will beat the similarly priced 260 is just plain off. A more adequate comparison in price would have been the GTX 275 or Radeon 4890. Was this just a cut and paste from last month's article, and oversight?
These poor guys can't win!
They get criticized for recommending cards paired in Crossfire or SLI. Then get comments on how readers were disappointed that a Crossfire configuration didn't make the list.
I have no problem if they restrict the reviews to single-card performance because multi-card setups are a graphics CONFIGURATION, not a graphics CARD. The graphics companies cheat a little by providing the dual GPU cards (the x2 cards for Radeon and the GTX295 for Nvidia, for example) and those could be evaluated as a CARD.
What about two's 4890's in crossfire for the crown. From what I've seen at techpowerup and other sites it beats the 295
We need better games and not lame games with good graphic a la Crysis. I would gladly pay for a 275 or 4890 if KOTOR III
KOTOR III is on the way... Bioware is developing the next Star Wars MMO in the KOTOR universe! Should be pretty sweet.
Good article as always - not anything to criticize except that I was surprised that 2 4830's in CF didn't even get a mention - after all you have a GPU solution there for $180 that beats all the competition (4870 1GB and 260 GTX) by a noteworthy margin: http://www.xbitlabs.com/articles/v [...] sfire.htmlAfter mail-in-rebates its only ~$150 - thats seem pretty good bang for the buck and even if isn't a solution for everybody as you need a crossfire capable board and some good air flow, its still a great choice to consider.
Two 4830's are pretty good, but a single 4870 512MB for the same price performs similarly and cheaper when you consider you don't need an Xfire motherboard and a beefier PSU. That's why two 4830's didn't make the cut... not to mention two 9800 GTs.
[EDIT] Yeah, that Xbit article makes a pretty good case for a couple 4830s. And therefore, probably a couple 9800 GTs. It's still not a slam dunk, but I'll reconsider for next month.
As our triple-posting friend brings up, there are indeed times when a single GTX 285 might be a good purchase, or even two.
I'd disagree, the criteria to make this list is price and performance, I don't think the price of a single GTX 285 is justified at all when the 4850 X2 beats it quite soundly.
If there's a game that a single 285 beats a 4850 X2 at because of multi-GPU issues, it probably doesn't beat it by much. Conversely, the 4850 X2 can really take it to a 285 from what I've seen.
Of course I haven't benched every game under the sun, so if you have evidence of a few notable exceptions to this I'd be happy to review it and coinsider it. But without seeing that eveidence I have a hard time recommending the 285.
I agree with Cleeve, the current price point of the GTX 285 makes it perhaps the worst value for money card you can buy at the moment.
If I wrote this article I may have included the HD 4980 in there as well (or at least given it a special mention) considering overclocking that card can result in 30% extra performance.