Im probably going to upgrade my Graphics card upgrade, so whats out there now?

[Task Force]

Yep, Its that time of year again, Upgrade time. My 8800 has served me well (got it when they were still new) but I am thinking of replaceing it.

So what can y'all surgest? Myself I perfer Nvidia. Oah my budget is around 400 dollars.

[CaptainHaplo]

Well with that price tag your looking at either a ATI 5870 or a Nvidia 470. The 470 is faster than the 5870, and the 400 series is the first fully DX11 board from Nvidia.

The 480 is the fastest card out there right now (unless you go dual 5870's in a single board) - but its about $100 bucks more than you want to spend.

I'd have to recommend the 470 if you want to stay Nvidia. Everything about it screams.

[Task Force]

Thats what Im looking into. Anyone have any experience with EVGA?

(hmm, wounder if I can squease anougther 100 bucks out.)

[CaptainHaplo]

I hear they make decent boards - but never used one. Look at the warranty. Some companies (like BFG) offer a lifetime warranty - and stick to it. Go with that - and you know you have a future just in case.

[Task Force]

Yea, Thats what I have now (BFG) Ive read good reviews off newegg about the card/EVGA.
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...-550-_-Product

I was really supprised to find its only around 9 inches long. was supprised

[Arclight]

Ehr, I'd give the 470 and 480 a pass, to be honest... well, at least the 480. High power consumption, high heat, not exactly value for money (but that's business as usual with Nvidia). A 480 can suck up more Watts than a dual-gpu HD5970 (or GTX295), while being outperformed (by the Radeon).

Imho; not worth it at the moment. For Nvidia GTX295 remains the upper limit, or go with ATI.

Meanwhile let’s talk about the other factors: price, power, and noise. At $500 the GTX 480 is the world’s fastest single-GPU card, but it’s not a value proposition. The price gap between it and the Radeon 5870 is well above the current performance gap, but this has always been true about the high-end. Bigger than price though is the tradeoff for going with the GTX 480 and its much bigger GPU – it’s hotter, it’s noisier, and it’s more power hungry, all for 10-15% more performance. If you need the fastest thing you can get then the choice is clear, otherwise you’ll have some thinking to decide what you want and what you’re willing to live with in return.

Moving on, we have the GTX 470 to discuss. It’s not NVIDIA’s headliner so it’s easy to get lost in the shuffle. With a price right between the 5850 and 5870, it delivers performance right where you’d expect it to be. At 5-10% slower than the 5870 on average, it’s actually a straightforward value proposition: you get 90-95% of the performance for around 87% of the price. It’s not a huge bargain, but it’s competitively priced against the 5870. Against the 5850 this is less true where it’s a mere 2-8% faster, but this isn’t unusual for cards above $300 – the best values are rarely found there. The 5850 is the bargain hunter’s card, otherwise if you can spend more pick a price and you’ll find your card. Just keep in mind that the GTX 470 is still going to be louder/hotter than any 5800 series card, so there are tradeoffs to make, and we imagine most people would err towards the side of the cooler Radeon cards.

http://www.anandtech.com/show/2977/n...h-the-wait-/20

[Wolfehunter]

Originally Posted by Arclight

Ehr, I'd give the 470 and 480 a pass, to be honest... well, at least the 480. High power consumption, high heat, not exactly value for money (but that's business as usual with Nvidia). A 480 can suck up more Watts than a dual-gpu HD5970 (or GTX295), while being outperformed (by the Radeon).

Imho; not worth it at the moment. For Nvidia GTX295 remains the upper limit, or go with ATI.
http://www.anandtech.com/show/2977/n...h-the-wait-/20

Nvidia's last few drivers version are also bad. A lot of complaints on there forums and customer service. I would stick with ATI.. I'm a fan of nvidia don't get me wrong but lately last few months there stuff has failed badly.

I'm still waiting for my compensation on my burnt GTX280... But at least there working with DELL to send me a replacement... I just don't know what yet.

I'm using a ATI 5870 and it works great. some games it out preforms to GTX480's...

My ATI 5870 average idle heat is 38c and gaming is 56c..

My GTX280 was much higher. 47idling and 75c gaming..

Anyhow something to consider...

[AVGWarhawk]

Originally Posted by Task Force

Thats what Im looking into. Anyone have any experience with EVGA?

(hmm, wounder if I can squease anougther 100 bucks out.)

EVGA is all I ever purchase. I have had no issues with their cards. They have a great website and forum.

[Task Force]

Ya know im getting mixed reviews about the 470/80, some people are saying its great, and runs good, but takes alot of power. some say its a hunk of crap.

I wounder if there testing release cards, or pre release?

I myself havent had the greatest experience with ATI, last time I had one the fan died. and I had constant driver issues.

[AVGWarhawk]

I myself havent had the greatest experience with ATI, last time I had one the fan died. and I had constant driver issues.

This is why I steer clear of the ATI cards. The CCC was awful.

[CaptainHaplo]

I was initially a Nvidia guy (from the dinosaur S3d chips - hated voodoo's) with my first TNT board. Stuck with em for a while, then swapped to ATI for a while. Every single ATI board I have EVER had however, has had fan issues.

I swapped from by old 1650 pro to a GTX 260 and am very pleased.

The key for you is price vs performance vs comfort level.

If your ok with ATI - then your likely going to be better off going 5780 (though I though the 470's outperformed it - guess I was wrong). Otherwise - its the 460/480 ot a 295.

Last edition of toms had nothing but the ATI's in your price range....

[Task Force]

Yea, but I still am going for the 470/80, The one on newegg is about the same price my 8800 was when I got it.

[Arclight]

At least you won't need heating anymore.

Just to make sure; what PSU is in yer case?

[Task Force]

650 watt BFG, been needing to replace it, dont think it should make a clicking noise ocationaly anyway. lol

And ya know, Im really gonna look foward to this anyway, my 8800 overclocked can reach 70 C, so I guess 80 to 90 wont kill me. and like ya said, during the winter when the heater isnt working, I will be nice and toasty. not freezing my fingers off.

Too bad I cant cook eggs on it tho... some guy on youtube already tryed it, couldnt even get it to turn white...

[Arclight]

Well like stated, 480 draws more power than any dual-gpu card and even some dual-card setups. Imho that PSU is just enough... never thought I'd say it, but I'd recommend at least 650-700W to run that single, single-gpu card.

Seriously, imho, that thing is ridiculous.