6950 vs 6970?

[blandstreetbloom]

Ok, im hoping to get a new rig in time for the release of bf3/skyrim in november (thats gonna be an insane month ) . There are several questions i need to ask relating to my gpu-
1. Will the 6950 be able to handle these games full spec, with AA/AF and all the shiny stuff? I will be playing at 1080 x something (not sure of the exact dimensions of my tv) If not, will some simple overclocking help?
2. Is there any point trying to get a 6950 with the intention of unlocking anymore?
3. Could I overclock a non-reference 6950 like the twin frozr II/III, which has improved cooling, to meet or even surpass the stock core/memory clocks of the 6970, which would obviously render unlocking pointless?
4. If anyone knows about trends in gpu price drops, how much could I expect the 6970 to drop by november?

Other Specs will be (hopefully):

AMD Phenom II X4 965 OC~ 4ghz with ASETEK 510 LC
4gb Corsair XMS3
ASUS M4N68T-M V2 NF630A
1TB SATA-III hdd

5. Im not sure what PSU i would require for this setup - would 750w be ok?

 

[mrface]

1. Yes it would be plenty and get all the frills
2. You can possibly flash the 6950 with 6970 bios to improve OCing.
3. Again, I would research the flashing of the 6970 BIOS on the card, a lot of information there.
4. Not sure on that one as it mostly depends on what other manufacturers are building or pushing out(when a better card or new line is produced, the normal retaliation is to drop the price of your current line.)
5. 750 w be more than sufficient for the build as long as you keep an eye on what you plan on doing overclocking-wise.


Hopefully this helps, good luck, and cheers.

Ask away if you have anymore questions.

 

[blandstreetbloom]

thanks mrface,
I understand that many 6950s do not successfully unlock or flash- is it worth the hassle when I could just oc with stock BIOS for similar results? And you say that a 6950 with stock clocks would be sufficient anyway.

 

[swifty_morgan]

over clocking or bios flashing the 6950 is a waste of time as things sit right now. the card has more potential stock than people realize...especially at 1080p..... or they read an article and think it's the right thing to mention when giving advice. the hardware you have will never push the card so i wouldn't worry about it either.......

 

[mrface]

swifty is correct. It isnt really necessary. What you are running will not push it too far anyways, however, I was just answering youre questions.

My personal 6950 is bios flashed to 6970 bios and works fine, however; nothing that I do requires that sort of ability. [/shrug]

 

[blandstreetbloom]

ok so the 6950 stock will be able to handle them without a sweat?

 

[mrface]

oh yes, it will be able to.

 

[blandstreetbloom]

is it vital to have the 2gb of vram? if not, then i could get a one of those superoc 560s for the same price - would you recommend this?

 

[mrface]

I wouldnt say that it is vital per se, however, I would (strongly)recommend having it.

 

[panacuba]

I do recommend you to get a 6950 Twin Frozr II/III, but do not unlock them(they cant be unlocked anyway), theres a different method for getting the performance of a 6970 in one of those cards.

You just need to change the bios for one with the unlocked cores only, easy to find on the net.

send a pm to this user http://www.tomshardware.com/forum/profile-527370.htm he will help you