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New Card: Does a 6850 even make since?


rh535

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I thought i would have a new computer by now, but i decided on studying aboard instead. Because of this i was looking at just upgrading my GPU to hold me over for a year. I should have upgraded earlier, but like i said i thought i would have a new rig by now. I also wont use this card in my new rig next year. This card is just to hold me over. I currently have a eVga 8800 GTS 320MB. I was looking at a new 6850 or 6870. My monitor resolution is 1680 x 1050.

 

Budget: Under $175

 

 

My Specs:

 

Mobo – Asus P5W DH Deluxe

CPU – Intel Core 2 Duo E6400 Conroe 2.13GHz : Running at 2.30

GPU - EVGA 320-P2-N817-AR GeForce 8800GTS 320MB 320-bit GDDR3

Memory - Patriot Extreme Performance 2GB (2 x 1GB) 240-Pin DDR2 SDRAM DDR2 800 (PC2 6400) & Another set of name brand memory (2 x 1GB)

Monitor - SAMSUNG 226BW Black 22" 2 ms

Hard Drive - Western Digital Caviar Black WD1001FALS 1TB 7200 RPM 32MB Cache SATA 3.0Gb (I have 4 of these)

Keyboard – Microsoft Sidewinder X6

Mouse – Logitech G5

PSU – OCZ 600w

 

Games I play / want to play:

 

Battlefield 3

Saints Row 3

Mass Effect 3

 

Questions:

 

1. With my monitor resolution and CPU would a 6850 even be worth the money?

 

2. If not(1st Question), what would be the best card for me?

 

Thanks

rh535

 

 

BTW: I was looking at these cards

 

SAPPHIRE 100314-3L Radeon HD 6870

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814102948

 

SAPPHIRE 100315L Radeon HD 6850

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814102908

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Okay before you worry about if the new card makes since there is a simpler question to ask and answer, do your games need it? What I mean is do you get the play experience you want from your system right now? To many people rush to upgrade because there is something new, but by simply waiting until there is a real need you can get more value for your money. 

 

<div><br></div><div>Also there is the issue of your base system, there is not really a lot of horse power there and moving to a new video card might give you a little bump but would likely be bound by the base platform not having enough horsepower to really push newer equipment.</div><div><br></div><div>If your games are running well right now do not bother with upgrading and save your money toward the new system, I think you will  be happier.</div>

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Okay before you worry about if the new card makes since there is a simpler question to ask and answer, do your games need it? What I mean is do you get the play experience you want from your system right now? To many people rush to upgrade because there is something new, but by simply waiting until there is a real need you can get more value for your money. 

 

<div><br></div><div>Also there is the issue of your base system, there is not really a lot of horse power there and moving to a new video card might give you a little bump but would likely be bound by the base platform not having enough horsepower to really push newer equipment.</div><div><br></div><div>If your games are running well right now do not bother with upgrading and save your money toward the new system, I think you will  be happier.</div>

 

 

Battlefield 3 and Saints Row 3 struggle. Battlefield 3 is barely playable and Saints Row can't be played. Anything within the next year like Mass Effect 3 will probably be unplayable.

Edited by rh535

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Well I've got a E4300 running at 2.7GHz, which is probably similar to you CPU and I am pretty sure I'm CPU limited. (Also I have an 8800GTS 320 like you). Playing games the CPU often sits at 100% load so I am not getting a new card until I replace everything.

 

To check just leave the task manager going while you game and then tab out, you'll get the last 30-60 seconds worth of load and that'll give you an idea whether it is the CPU holding things up.

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I've got a Gigabyte HD6850 and I can run most games on fairly decent settings at 1920x1080. I haven't played battlefield 3 in a while but I think I had everything set to high (not ultra) and was getting about 30-40fps. Skyrim on ultra has been running well though with the HD texture pack it does start chugging for 30 or so seconds when I enter a city but then It goes back to normal. I played Mass Effect 1 and 2 on maximum settings with no trouble and Mass 3 will be using the same engine as 1 and 2 so there shouldn't be any trouble running that on max. At your resolution a HD6850 would work brilliantly.

 

Just avoid the Gigabyte HD6850 OC version which I have. It has different programmable voltage controllers that no program knows how to control so I cant increase the voltage for a higher overclock. Other than that its a good card. Fan is pretty much silent below 40% and on 60% fan speed and full load the temperatures are in the 60-65oC region.

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you will definitely see gigantic leaps in performance if you switch to that gpu.

i myself usually run my core 2 (albeit quadcore) on sub 2ghz speeds and hardly ever notice any difference in games, except for GTA IV (very cpu dependent). sure for bf3 i would suggest bumping you frequency as much as possible within reason. you might be able to reach 3ghz :evilgrin:

on you system as it stands you will probably see a 20% fps loss on a 6850 if you look at the average reveiw scores, but if you would go with a higher end card it would be even more severe. but if you reach for 3ghz that loss could be as little as 5-10% instead.*

 

i would definitely do it, since you could give your system life for another 1-2 years on low/med graphics**

 

* these numbers will of course vary from game to game, but just to give you a picture of reality of upgrading older systems.

** guessing of cource, but most games will have minimum requirements for a 2.5GHZ dualcore until the next generation consoles finally come out.

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