6 series cards worth it? looking for a new card

I am currently searching for a new video card after finally setting some money aside and some birthday cash. A buddy of mine recently got a 5870 2gb card and consistently rubs it in my face since i have a 4870. I have been doing some extensive research on cards and just cant seem to find the best bang for my buck. I have only two requirements: it must be between $350-450 and be better than his 5870 (yes I know its silly). I do a lot of gaming at 1920x1080 and actually do need a video card. I am not getting one just for bragging rights....but the card needs to be noticebly better than a 5870. Ive been looking at the 6970, but it just seems overpriced when you look at benchmark and frame rates compared to the 5870. I currently play Bad Company 2. I am also considering crossfire or SLI (I have an 8x crossfire motherboard). I am open to Nvidia, ATI, and AMD. I have a power supply that is more than capable as well. Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated!!

 

I just upgraded to a 6970 from a 295GTX for under $400 (Canadian) brand new. Honestly I couldn't be happier. It's a fantastic card and I didn't feel like I broke my wallet (or credit card) in half. I game at 1920x1200 and can play BC2, which I just reinstalled because I got this card, at max everything no problem. I haven't experienced a slowdown yet. Mind you are systems are slightly different but you should be good to go.

 

The 6 series may not offer a massive performance jump over the 5 series but if you are buying a card now it is definitely the one you want to buy. It should perform better in heavily tessellated dx11 titles than the 5 series in the future.

 

Yeah it's worth it I had so many issues with my 460gtx stuttering low gpu usage and what not the 6950 fixed that

 

This isn't being very specific or even accurate. In truth bfbc2 in dx11 @ that resolution + max settings is not stable 60FPS with the 6970. FPS will drop to more around low 50's any time there is anything going on on-screen and if there is smoke or building blasts it can dip into the 30's or even 20's.

Myself i am not satisfied with the performance of this card or with AMD and their drivers alltogether. My next card will be Nvidia for sure.

 

hmm interesting. Ive also recently found out you can "unlock" the 6950. Should I consider this option??

 

Till now I have had no problem with my modest 6870 at 1920x1080. It runs everything I throw at it. Anyway, it is not faster than a 5870. Maybe the thread starter would like to buy two 6870's to improve the performance. I personally dislike multi-gpu setups though.

 

I would suggest a 6950 that you can unlock to a 6970 you want. $275-300 dollar cost at $400 dollar performance.

 

amen!

 

If i go the 6950 unlocking route, will I need an aftermarket heatsink or will I be ok with the stock one?

 

The stock ones work fine.

 

I am really considering a crossfiring 2 6950's. The 2gb version is about a $50 difference when u multiply it by two. will i really need two 2gb 6950's???

 

Really depends what games you plan, and what resolution and settings you want to use. If you want to run all your games at 1920x1200 or higher all maxed out then for some games you will need 2 cards to do that. Whether you actually "need" 2 however just depends on how willing you are to drop anti-aliasing lower in game settings in very demanding titles.

 

ended up getting a 6950

 

nice was it worth it

 

I just purchased a 6970 new :nerd: ebay though :3eyes: paid with pay-pal straight away will watch this close sellers probably not happy about the final sale price sniped right at the end :biggun:

Sapphire ATI AMD RADEON 6970 Graphics Card 2GB

Thought it would go for more sometimes that's what you get when you start at .01 cent.

no idea how it will go compared to my now dead 5770 but I've done the benchmarks with the old card I'll only be happy with a 2X increase in performance minimum.

Paid $336.65AU which is cheaper than anywhere else on for Australia too good to be true? :bang: :wanker: :bang: uke2: we will see.

 

6950 is best bang for buck, even w/o unlocking. Good purchase.

 

I got 2 6950's and unclocked them to 6970's and it works really well, BC2 is as smooth as silk and looks incredible. For just over 600 bucks it was a bargain with 6970 xfire performance.

 

Best bang for the money get a 6950 and flash it to 6970 anymore card than 6970 your cpu will start to hold it back.

 

Show me 1 "heavily tesselated game"....full screen/full scene tesselation, to my knowledge, isn't used in any games...