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HD 5850 crossfire or one HD 5970?

25K views 28 replies 22 participants last post by  Slayem 
#1 ·
Two HD 5850s are slightly cheaper than a single HD 5970 while two HD 5870s are much more expensive than one HD 5970. Since the HD 5970 has a dual GPU there is the problem with micro stutter and I would need to invest in a big tower to fit that huge card in. I really can't decide.

So either Two HD 5850 in crossfire or a single HD 5970 or maybe even a single HD 5870 and add a cheaper priced one later?

The computer will be a build around a core i7 920 with at least 6gb RAM.

Thanks.
 
#4 ·
My vote goes for the 5970, it's right smack in the middle of 2x 5850's and 2x 5870's in terms of performance. Fastest card in the world son.....hell yeah


Also micro stutter would be a problem any time you have a multi-gpu setup, regardless of whether or not its all on one pcb (card) or two pcb's
 
#7 ·
hd5970 is the best choise
 
#9 ·
no, its just a minor problem with all multi-gpu setups. its not simply limited to the 5970
 
#13 ·
In terms of performance 5970 will be a bit faster but only about 1-2fps in most games. 160SP don't make as much difference as many people think. Also the 5850 run a bit cooler because they are 2 cars so they will overclock a bit more and ending up faster then HD5970. Personally i would get a 5970 because when you are ready to sell it you will get like 300$ but for the 5850 you would be lucky if you get 250.
 
#14 ·
Quote:

Originally Posted by ZealotKi11er View Post
In terms of performance 5970 will be a bit faster but only about 1-2fps in most games. 160SP don't make as much difference as many people think. Also the 5850 run a bit cooler because they are 2 cars so they will overclock a bit more and ending up faster then HD5970. Personally i would get a 5970 because when you are ready to sell it you will get like 300$ but for the 5850 you would be lucky if you get 250.
Thats bad reasoning, here's why: the 5970 would be over $600 to buy right now. If he sold it for $300 he would be out $300 or more. If he got a 5850 and sold it even for $200, he would only be out $100
 
#15 ·
Will you just buy something already....
 
#16 ·
Quote:

Originally Posted by i7bigrig View Post
Thats bad reasoning, here's why: the 5970 would be over $600 to buy right now. If he sold it for $300 he would be out $300 or more. If he got a 5850 and sold it even for $200, he would only be out $100
Look at it this way. The 5970 no matter what lowest it will go is 350-400 even after 1 year. That will sell 275-300 used. A 5850 will go for 125-150 and will sell for 100$. Look at 4870 vs 4870X2. It cost more to get a 4870X2 then 2 x 4870.
 
#17 ·
Quote:

Originally Posted by ZealotKi11er View Post
Look at it this way. The 5970 no matter what lowest it will go is 350-400 even after 1 year. That will sell 275-300 used. A 5850 will go for 125-150 and will sell for 100$. Look at 4870 vs 4870X2. It cost more to get a 4870X2 then 2 x 4870.
Don't assume such a huge pricedrop for the 5970.
Fermi at the moment is nothing.
I don't expect them coming with anything beating the 5970 soon.

Demand is high.
Availability is lacking.
Prices will remain high.
 
#18 ·
What resolution are you gaming at? If you're just at 1680x1050 or 1920x1200 pickup a 5870 now, and xfire later when the price drops. You get plenty of performance for most anything now, and you have the perfect upgrade path for the future.

I really enjoy overclocking, and the problems getting the most out of the 5970's (VRM temps) kind of takes the fun out of that. Yes, it's not really an issue with actual games as of today, but in the future some games may stress just as much as the benches which are causing the problems. I'd be much happier personally getting xfire 5870s to see the max the chip can do.
 
#19 ·
I am at a similar dilemma as the OP. I would also like others input on this matter. I bought 2 HD5850 from Amazon when they were out of stock for approx $270 each (amazon is still out of these). Together its about $540. Right now, the 5970 are selling for about $650. The difference is over 100 so my question is do you guys think I should drop the 2 5850s and get a 5970 or wait? The 5970s are out of stock as well and I'm in no hurry.

I will be primarily be using it for gaming and in high resolutions, 1680 and above.
 
#20 ·
The question really depends on what system the OP has and his intentions/screen size/case really. CF 5850's will definitely stand their ground in every game out there if he runs them on an i7 rig, for example. So will a 5970. Bah. Conclusion: Doesn't really matter. Both setups kicks ass.
 
#21 ·
I went with two 5850's instead of the 5970.

Admittedly, price was my primary motivator (and in part the large amount of bad press the 5970 has received lately with respect to overclocking issues).

I also had 5870's in crossfire briefly but got rid of them and moved down to 5850's (recouping $300 in the process).

My logic is simple; I owned a pair of 4870X2's at one point and lost a large amount of money reselling them.

The 5850's are easier to resell down the road (if you want), and if you end up having other systems, they can be split into other builds.

Also in terms of performance, two 5850's or one 5970 are more than sufficient for pretty much any resolution at this point.
 
#22 ·
Personally I'd do the 2x 5850's. You can OC them more than a single 5970 and there is a bit of cost savings involved too. Only drawback would be watercooling both of them should you go that route. 2x 5850 is going to rip up any game you throw at it.. and realistically, you will probably be upgrading to the ATI HD6XXX series when that comes out anyhow. Even if something that kicks the crap out of Crysis comes out in the next yr or yr and a half, you will still get great performance out of 5850CF.
 
#25 ·
If I notice microstuttering, can I minimize/eliminate it?
Yes. By running the game at a setting where your graphics cards are able to output more than the monitors refresh rate (that is, the maximum FPS the monitors are capible of; the pixels on your screen can only change so fast) microstuttering is eliminated completely. Most monitors have a refresh rate of 60 or 70Hz, meaning you would need 70 or 80 FPS to eliminate microstuttering.
 
#26 ·
Yes, the 5850 crossfire is a good choice. A singe 5850 can max out metro 2033 completely with playable framerate (1080p, 4x aa, 16x af). That game was made for Nvidia cards, and it is also directx 11. It is the most beautiful game ever made to date. If 1 5850 can do that, and a sales rep told me crossfire increases performance by 70% typically, any directx 11 game with support to crossfire will be child's play.

Since directx 11 is very new and such an improvement, I'm guessing it will be out as long as directx 9 was, which was quite some time. It will also be the envy of all your console buddies. >:)
Have fun with your new pc!
 
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