Sapphire HD4850x2 vs. BFG gtx 260 OCX MAXCORE

gsymeoni

which card is the best at a quite low resolution say, 1280x1024? having in mind that every setting will be maxed out and full AA etc.. or is the resolution too low for a lot of gpu ram to be required? (2gb!) generally, the only things in the hd4850x2 holding me back from the gtx 260 are:

1.) the 2gb of RAM (too much or actually needed?)
2.) 2 x 800 stream processors (compared to 216 in the gtx 260, huge difference in numbers! do they matter in terms of visible performance?)
3.) dx10.1 (more "futureproof"?)

tell me what you think. are these trivial factors to be taken into consideration when deciding between the 2? or what? and please dont tell me that they are a waste of money for the resolution im aiming at ;p ive only got a choice in getting one of those two as a present :0 my questions also apply for other resolutions others might be interested in ;p

link for gtx 260: http://www.bfgtech.com/bfgrgtx260mc896ocxe.aspx
link for hd4850x2:http://www.sapphiretech.com/ce/produ...gpid=265&grp=3 (check the specs on the side bar)

DSK · *Last edited by DSK; 01-07-2009 at 22:23.*

Well it only uses 1GB of its ram then uses the other 1GB you buff the buffer so to speak.

Ok Nvidia measure there SP's differently so 800 works out around 160 but they are very different cards so you can't realy compair them in that way the only way is in pure perfomance basicly.

well DX10.1 does not realy matter not much games support it.

but at the the end of the day the HD4850x2 wipes the floor with the GTX260 theres no contest.

gsymeoni · 01-07-2009, 22:59 | posts: 15 | Location: Cyprus

should i consider the integrated ageia as anything worthy?

Knox · 01-07-2009, 23:03 | posts: 1,548 | Location: Oz, across from the Wizard

No, just like dx10.1 not many games are using it. So, in all fairness there feature sets are both well rounded, but neither one really stands out.

MileHighMilitia · 01-07-2009, 23:11 | posts: 603 | Location: Colorado

Well there's no doubt that the 4850x2 is faster, in many crossfire 4850 reviews, the 4850 cf beats out a gtx280. As for the resolution, at that resolution i would not expect much of a difference at all. So if u like Nvidia, and dont plan to ever get a better resolution screen, you would do fine with the 260. Otherwise, if u are impartial to either company and do want to get a bigger screen eventually definitely get the 4850x2.

gsymeoni · 01-07-2009, 23:12 | posts: 15 | Location: Cyprus

ive read a lot on driver issues concerning ati cards..that worries me a little. ive also read about some microstuttering (something like that) during gameplay with 2 ati cards sandwiched together. im completely new to all this but im being reeallyy picky on it ;p also, do the ati cards also have an integrated "ageia" feature ?

UnrealGaming · 01-07-2009, 23:29 | posts: 2,385 | Location: Serbia

Quote:

Originally Posted by gsymeoni

ive read a lot on driver issues concerning ati cards..that worries me a little. ive also read about some microstuttering (something like that) during gameplay with 2 ati cards sandwiched together. im completely new to all this but im being reeallyy picky on it ;p also, do the ati cards also have an integrated "ageia" feature ?

Yeah, you can always expect more problems with multi GPU cards.
And no, PhysX is Nvidia only . ( 8800 series and up )

gsymeoni · 01-07-2009, 23:35 | posts: 15 | Location: Cyprus

also how is the hd4850x2 better since it has similar clock speeds to the gtx260? by the way, wow, thanks for the fast replies, guru3d will be my home from now on

EDIT: talking about the OC'd gtx260 i linked

UnrealGaming · 01-07-2009, 23:52 | posts: 2,385 | Location: Serbia

Quote:

Originally Posted by gsymeoni

also how is the hd4850x2 better since it has similar clock speeds to the gtx260? by the way, wow, thanks for the fast replies, guru3d will be my home from now on

EDIT: talking about the OC'd gtx260 i linked

In games that support crossfire, 4850x2 will beat any single GTX260, but also with the right CPU power. With a bad cpu, bottleneck could be a big problem for multiple GPUs

gsymeoni · 01-08-2009, 00:02 | posts: 15 | Location: Cyprus

yeah i know, but im getting an i7 920 which is pretty good :0 so it seems im being edged towards the hd4850x2. fair enough ;p but what about encoding for example? does it support some cuda-esque feature?

gsymeoni · 01-08-2009, 00:20 | posts: 15 | Location: Cyprus

i've pretty much decided then (unless you manage to change my mind

) , i think i'll go for the hd4850x2 ;p i'll let you know soon ;p

UnrealGaming · 01-08-2009, 00:24 | posts: 2,385 | Location: Serbia

Quote:

Originally Posted by gsymeoni

yeah i know, but im getting an i7 920 which is pretty good :0 so it seems im being edged towards the hd4850x2. fair enough ;p but what about encoding for example? does it support some cuda-esque feature?

CUDA is Nvidia only. Don't think ATI has any kind of software similar to CUDA, yet.

UnrealGaming · 01-08-2009, 00:30 | posts: 2,385 | Location: Serbia

Ofcourse if you would like to have PhysX and CUDA you can always go with 2 9800GTX+ in SLI. Which will probably perform even better then 4850X2. Since SLI is slightly better supported in games.

gsymeoni · 01-08-2009, 00:30 | posts: 15 | Location: Cyprus

but still in terms of brute power the hd4850x2 is the winner, right?

gsymeoni · 01-08-2009, 00:34 | posts: 15 | Location: Cyprus

sorry, didnt see your post there

im afraid sli isnt quite that friendly to my pocket right now, so thats not an option, but still, you're probably right ;p

UnrealGaming · 01-08-2009, 00:38 | posts: 2,385 | Location: Serbia

Quote:

Originally Posted by gsymeoni

but still in terms of brute power the hd4850x2 is the winner, right?

vs 2 9800GTX+ in SLI ?
No. Raw power is about the same. But 2 9800GTX+ in SLI will perform better 4850X2 in most cases, since SLI is slightly better supported in games.

UnrealGaming · 01-08-2009, 00:48 | posts: 2,385 | Location: Serbia

Quote:

Originally Posted by gsymeoni

sorry, didnt see your post there

im afraid sli isnt quite that friendly to my pocket right now, so thats not an option, but still, you're probably right ;p

The price of 2 9800GTX+ should be about the same as 4850X2. Both around 300$ i think.

gsymeoni · 01-08-2009, 00:49 | posts: 15 | Location: Cyprus

i see what you mean, wish i could do it, but i only got 2 specific choices

the oc'd gtx260 and the 4850x2.. out of those two, which would you recommend comparing from an overall point of view?

UnrealGaming · 01-08-2009, 00:59 | posts: 2,385 | Location: Serbia

Quote:

Originally Posted by gsymeoni

i see what you mean, wish i could do it, but i only got 2 specific choices

the oc'd gtx260 and the 4850x2.. out of those two, which would you recommend comparing from an overall point of view?

There are lot of deciding factors. But, lets make it simple. If you are gaming at 1680x1050 or higher go with 4850x2 .

gsymeoni · 01-08-2009, 01:07 | posts: 15 | Location: Cyprus

what if im gaming at 1280x1024?

UnrealGaming · 01-08-2009, 01:12 | posts: 2,385 | Location: Serbia

Quote:

Originally Posted by gsymeoni

what if im gaming at 1280x1024?

For 1280x1024 , GTX260 is definitely enough and you will have some more features like PhysX ... and lower overall probability of issues that may hunt multiple GPU cards.

Ofcourse if you plan on getting some higher res monitor soon then go with X2

gsymeoni · 01-08-2009, 01:41 | posts: 15 | Location: Cyprus

i think ill stick to the ati card

who knows, maybe ill get a new monitor in the future ;p thanks for the help everyone!

The Fallen · 01-08-2009, 21:34 | posts: 1,182 | Location: Canada

I'm not sure if you'll be able to put up with the noise level of the 4850 x2, from what I've read it's quite loud

goodald · 01-08-2009, 22:13 | posts: 100

2 cards will be more demanding (power wise) than a single one. Make sure you have the wattage/amperage to handle it.

I have a 4870x2.. Ati's drivers make it difficult to know when both are doing something. Some games don't even support crossfire (if you play any older ones) or don't support it well. It's difficult/impossible to force antialiasing in games that Ati deems shouldn't support it. Ati releases drivers monthly - that can be good and bad - if a new release doesn't work well for a game you have, you'll have to wait another month for a possible fix unless it is added via a hotfix. Proper support for new games always seems to come sometime after a game is released which can be frustrating.

Nvidia's drivers have profiles for most games, these settings can be tweaked and even overridden. It's much easier to get AA/filtering and such where you want it to be. If you ever add a second card you can see the gpu balancing as well. Physx isn't really a consideration unless you have 2 nvidia cards. If you only have one card and you turn it on (for one of those rare games that support it) you'll probably lose fps as the card has to do but graphics and physics work. You can, however, dedicate a second nvidia card to handle physx if you desire - even a cheapo 9600 would be fine. Still - Physx is still a gimmick that is not well supported. Nvidia releases drivers all the time.. Some good, some bad. It can be a hassle to figure out which is the "best" one for your particular setup and games but at least you have a number of drivers to choose from. Game support generally seems included (and updated frequently after) launch of new games.

You're using a low resolution so really either choice is fine.

Personally, If I had to do it again I'd have bought a 280 over a 4870x2. My Ati's been more stable than the 9800gtx it replaced (nv used to give me some bluescreens) but the performance and driver support for multi gpu cards is hit or miss. I don't feel that I'm getting $500's worth.

I'd go with the 260 and keep it simple.

sykozis · 01-08-2009, 22:21 | posts: 13,506 | Location: US East Coast

If either card is going to be installed in the system listed in your specs, you're going to have problems with bottlenecking. Also, according to your specs you're using WinXP...so, unless you upgrade to Vista or Win7 when it's released....Dx10 or Dx10.1 won't effect you at all as Dx10 won't work with Vista anyway. Of course, with Dx11 coming in Win7....Dx10 cards will be outdated anyway. Unless all that's been said about Dx11 is true and it will have a software mode to allow Dx9 and Dx10 cards to run it, in that case...a Dx10.1 would be of benefit as Dx11 is supposed to be an expansion of Dx10.1. But to avoid problems at any rate....you'd be better with the GTX260 as it's single GPU and people have been constantly complaining about problems with ATI's 8.12 Catalyst drivers and multi-gpu solutions.