Graphics Thinking of going crossfire

Discussion in 'Hardware' started by Ending Credits, 6 Jun 2009.

  1. Ending Credits

    Ending Credits Bunned

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    Well sincethe 4870 as positively dived in price and I'm considering using this PC for the next two years or so I think it's slightly underpowered (would really like to be able run Far Cry 2 at max and see 30-40fps).

    Could people tell me about their experiences with crossfire and if it's worth it at all (is the microstuttering noticable?).

    Specs in my sig.
     
  2. pimonserry

    pimonserry sounds like a party.

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    You've got the 1GB version! Why are you complaining! :p

    Assuming it's overclocked, and seeing you have a 64-bit OS, I see no reason not to. If not, overclock it! You should get some more FPS out of FC2, it ran well on mine on top settings at 1440x900 (DX9 was smoother than 10 though).

    The only thing stopping me is that I chose as 32-bit OS (I'll wait til Win7 now) and I need to raise some cash.

    :thumb:
     
  3. crosshair

    crosshair It's life Jim but not as we know it

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  4. Ending Credits

    Ending Credits Bunned

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    It's £100 more than getting another 4870. Can you crossfire a 4870 witha 4870X2?
     
  5. crosshair

    crosshair It's life Jim but not as we know it

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    Even if you could you wouldn't benifit from triple Crossfire. A single 4870X2 is better than 2 X 4870s.
     
  6. docodine

    docodine killed a guy once

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    Yeah, you can, and it should theoretically give you the performance of three 4870s. Practically though, you will see a performance boost over two 4870s, but not much greater. If you want to stretch, 4870 + 4870X2 Crossfire should work pretty well. 4870X2s are pretty cheap now anyway. You can also crossfire a 4890 with the 4870, or a 4850X2 even, but Crossfire with similar cards works a bit better.
     
  7. crosshair

    crosshair It's life Jim but not as we know it

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    Dodgy. Dreadful bang per buck ratio. Minimal gains for maximum outlay.
     
  8. IDave

    IDave What's a Dremel?

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    Why would he want to buy a 4870x2 when he already has a 4870? Surely the performance gain over two 4870s in crossfire is not worth all the extra cost?

    If i'm missing something then feel free to educate me, but i'm in a similar position so was also wondering if a second 4870 would be a good idea. Notlooking for a whole new card tho.
     
  9. flame696

    flame696 Terminating People Since 1980....

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    well i have just bought another 4870 to 1gb for £120 to use in crossfire i will let you guys know if i have just wasted my money or if its really worth it. Should be delivered latest tuesday
     
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  10. crosshair

    crosshair It's life Jim but not as we know it

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    A 2Gb HD4870X2 costs £240 from Scan, two 1Gb 4870s costs £274 from Scan. Two GPUs on one PCB in one PCI-E uses less bandwidth than two GPUs on two PCBs in two PCI-Es. So it's not only cheaper, but faster.
    It also uses less power at idle, less cables from the PSU, allows more room in the case and has the possibility of future upgrades. (Not that you'd want to, quad Crossfire, like quad SLi, offers limited gains).
     
  11. IDave

    IDave What's a Dremel?

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    Ok lets try that again.....

    He already has a 1Gb 4870.

    You are saying it is cheaper for him to discard that and buy a 4870x2, than to buy an additional single 4870 and crossfire it?

    Am i missing something?
     
  12. crosshair

    crosshair It's life Jim but not as we know it

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    No, I'm saying that's what I would do. I'd sell my single 4870 and buy the X2. But then I wouldn't have bought a single 4870 in the first place...
    It's all academic really, the smart move would be to wait 'til the 5000 series comes out. Altho' it may be a while before they release a X2. Personally I wouldn't buy anything other than a X2 card.
     
  13. Frohicky1

    Frohicky1 Awaits his moosey fate . . .

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    Another thing to thow into the melting pot, the 4870X2 is a bee atch to cool, but two 4870s would be easier to slap decent heatsinks onto :)
     
  14. crosshair

    crosshair It's life Jim but not as we know it

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    True, but mine has twin fans, one for each GPU with seperate heat pipes. It's also a three slot cooler so the fins are deeper, and all the air is sucked directly off the card via two 120mm case fans.
     
  15. Frohicky1

    Frohicky1 Awaits his moosey fate . . .

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    Oh yeh, yours is the Gainward triple slot :D probably does a better job than the stock leafblower.
     
  16. crosshair

    crosshair It's life Jim but not as we know it

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    He knows his onions, that man...:baby:
     
  17. Ady6UK

    Ady6UK Feck Off

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    Hopefully Arctic Cooling will get their thumbs out of their arses (asses for our U.S brethren) and get this on the market:

    http://www.quietpc.com/gb-en-gbp/products/vgacoolers/ac-acc-xtreme-4870x2

    I've got the Accelero Extreme GTX280 fitted to my GTX 275 and it does a fantastic job :thumb:
     
  18. crosshair

    crosshair It's life Jim but not as we know it

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  19. Ady6UK

    Ady6UK Feck Off

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    I saw a review on a pre-production one somewhere (I can't remember where) and it performed very well. I first saw this around the end of March this year and its still not hitting the shops yet.
    Lets hope it rears it's head soon.
     
  20. earlydoors

    earlydoors Minimodder

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    I think another 1GB Hd4870 would be a good investment if you're willing to put up with the extra noise, heat and power consumption. I see a decent boost to your gaming performance if you're gaming at 1920x1200/1080...however I'm not sure about the rest of your system and whether there might be a CPU - or other - bottleneck...

    Anyway, for your viewing pleasure I found some Far Cry benchies which include HD4870 1GB Xfire

    [​IMG]

    Full article can be read here (HD4890 v GTX 275)

    What's the thermal and noise performance of this cooler like in your system - and your other impressions?

    Thanks
     

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