[solidus_snake_636]

Ok, I know that the 8800 GTS would kill the 8600 GTS, but I was wondering something about actually playing a few games.

I want to know how well 2 8600's would perform playing BF2142 and F.E.A.R.
I know that these cards will MOST likely not play Crysis at HIGHEST settings, but I want to know how well those things would perform with those games I just said.

My monitor's resolution would be 1440x990.

Please help because I can get the 8600's for way less than the 8800, but I want reasonable performance for them.

 

[Cody1174]

I think there is a similar post and 2 8600's werent too hot and 8800 was better. Why not get the 8800?? and later when you have the cash you can Sli 2 8800s.

 

[stargate125645]

A single 8600GTS will play FEAR and BF2142 just fine. You will probably have to use medium-high settings but I bet you will get well over 50 fps continuously, probably more. You honestly won't need two in my opinion. If you want to play DX10 games at maximum resolution, then two 8800GTSs might even have trouble so I wouldn't buy two 8600GTSs for that reason, either.

 

[ramairmustang]

Go with the single 8800

 

[Boris4ka]

Quote:

Originally Posted by solidus_snake_636 Ok, I know that the 8800 GTS would kill the 8600 GTS, but I was wondering something about actually playing a few games. I want to know how well 2 8600's would perform playing BF2142 and F.E.A.R. I know that these cards will MOST likely not play Crysis at HIGHEST settings, but I want to know how well those things would perform with those games I just said. My monitor's resolution would be 1440x990. Please help because I can get the 8600's for way less than the 8800, but I want reasonable performance for them.

Ok, I know that the 8800 GTS would kill the 8600 GTS - yes it will, and it will if it's in SLi too.

 

[Crazy9000]

THe 8800gts should be cheaper then two 8600, and is a much better idea.

 

[solidus_snake_636]

well i already have to like BEG my mom to get me the 8800...and I was hoping to save a little money with the 8600's. But since the 2 8600's would get way to hot, and I want to overclock my processor(AMD Athlon 64 X2 4000+ Brisbane 2.1GHZ) like CRAZY, I think I should get that 8800, but now this will cost me about 950 bucks all together with a nice monitor.

Also about the person that said the 8800 gts would be cheaper than the 2 8600 gts's, you are wrong because on TigerDirect.com, I can get the 2 cards for about 60 bucks cheaper than an 8800 gts.

 

[Boris4ka]

Quote:

Originally Posted by stargate125645 A single 8600GTS will play FEAR and BF2142 just fine. You will probably have to use medium-high settings but I bet you will get well over 50 fps continuously, probably more. You honestly won't need two in my opinion. If you want to play DX10 games at maximum resolution, then two 8800GTSs might even have trouble so I wouldn't buy two 8600GTSs for that reason, either.

I can play BF2 completely maxed with my system getting 45+ fps and not dropping during heavy firefights, so why would a single 8600 play it on med-high only?

 

[stargate125645]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Boris4ka I can play BF2 completely maxed with my system getting 45+ fps and not dropping during heavy firefights, so why would a single 8600 play it on med-high only?

Both FEAR and BF2142 are more graphics intensive than BF2, so I was erring on the side of caution.

 

[raven117]

I play bf2 maxed out with 16af and 8q AA @ 60-70 avg fps drops to around 40 in worst case scenario. But if you can get teh 8800 go for it. Fear is also maxed with soft shadows,4AA,4AF my avg fps is around 50 but thats prolly cause of my p4. But my monitors resolution maxes out at 1280x1024.

 

[Stillhouse]

Unless you can get a very good deal on the 8600GTS x2 it likely wouldn't be worth it.

 

[solidus_snake_636]

Thanks for the fast replies guys.

Also, If there are any mod packs for the games that would tweak settings, I would be willing to factor those into the cards because I am going to install them all anyways.

Also Stillhouse- I can get the 8600's for 60 bucks cheaper than the 8800, I guess that isn't too big of a deal...so I think I am probably gonna get the 8800.

Plus I think I wanna make my friend jealous by getting it, and then after I start work, I'll get another and then he'll really be jealous.^_^

 

[Boris4ka]

Quote:

Originally Posted by stargate125645 Both FEAR and BF2142 are more graphics intensive than BF2, so I was erring on the side of caution.

I can max 2142 also. I can max FEAR but @ 1024x768 and w/o AA.

 

[solidus_snake_636]

Boris - are you using an 8800 or an 8600...or two 8600s?

O nvm, I looked at your specs, unless you have another card and haven't updated?...

 

[stargate125645]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Boris4ka I can max 2142 also. I can max FEAR but @ 1024x768 and w/o AA.

Yes, well 1024x768 is a bit smaller than the resolution he's using, and much smaller than the one I play at.

 

[solidus_snake_636]

O wow, I thought he wrote 1280x1024.
LOL.

Yea Boris, Stargate is exactly right, I'm not gonna buy a graphic card on which I can only play BF2 at 1024x768 with full settings.

 

[iandh]

Definitely the 8800GTS... but for just BF2142 and FEAR the $100 8600GT is more than sufficient.

... http://www.overclock.net/2462896-post1.html

A single OC'ed 8600GT plays FEAR [email protected] 50+fps on my rig... if you are only going to be playing BF2142 and FEAR and have no other concerns getting either GTS (especially the 8800) is a total waste of money.

If you want future proof, get the 8800. If you want to go cheap right now, and already have an SLI mobo, then the 8600GT is a good upgradeable route... mostly because they are already dirt cheap, and by the time you decide to add a second card they will be even cheaper.

I sold my 8800GTS 640mb and downgraded to an 8600GT for financial reasons, and I am not the slightest bit sorry that I did. I truly feel I got more of my money's worth for the 8600. If you have even the slightest doubt about the 8600GT's capabilities, thoroughly read my post linked above^^^

 

[stargate125645]

With my old X1900XTX, I could play FEAR maxed out at 1680x1050 with reasonable framerate (greater than 30). The 8600GTS is not quite as good as the X1900XTX, so I wouldn't expect to be able to do the same but to get close, hence my estimate. By maxed out I mean that AA and AF are turned up as high as possible, by the way, so my estimates are going to be lower than those who don't consider "maxed out" to include the highest AA and AF possible.

I don't think SLI anything is worth the money right now in the 8-series cards, because you either have to spend a butt load of money to get only acceptable framerates, or you can spend a little money on a lower-end card (such as the 8600GTS) and play most games maxed out, except perhaps the newest ones. This is why I have an 8600GTS, and am waiting to see what the future offers, at which point my 8600GTS will become the backup GPU. People can argue that getting an 8800GTS would be good for futureproofing, but given how crappy DX10 games are performing right now even on the highest-end system, I don't see how that statement can be justified. When I see a single card getting 30+fps with everything maxed out on the newest DX10 games, I will accept a future-proof label.

 

[solidus_snake_636]

O hahaa... I actually read that post.
Good to hear that the 8600 is a pretty good card from a "non-statistical" point of view..lol.

but I actually want to be future proof, because I also my play World in Conflict or Company of Heroes...and for sure Quake Wars. So I guess I will have to stick to the 8800 GTS, and I'll SLI after I have enough money and the price for it goes about 150 dollars down.

This way I won't have to worry about not being able to play anything for a decent while.

Thanks for the help.^__^

 

[Boris4ka]

Quote:

Originally Posted by solidus_snake_636 O wow, I thought he wrote 1280x1024. LOL. Yea Boris, Stargate is exactly right, I'm not gonna buy a graphic card on which I can only play BF2 at 1024x768 with full settings.

No no I can play BF2 and 2142 MAXED, FEAR is the one I can only play on 1024x768. And an 8600 is better than a 7600 anyways. I was just making a point that an 8600 won't be as weak as some people think.

Get an 8800.