Advice on a 2nd 69502GB

[reignsupreme11]

hey all this is my system:


MSI P67A-GD80 B3 mobo
Intel 2500K CPU
2 x 4GB Patriot Sector 5 RAM
Sapphire 6950 2GB video card
Noctua C-14 Cooler
Corsair 750W PSU
OCZ Agility 3 120GB SSD (boot)
Seagate Barracuda 7200.12 500GB HDD
Windows 7 Home
Azza Solano 1000 Case
24" monitor

when i built this system about a year ago i got a crossfire mobo to allow me to CF in the future. the 6950 2GB is an excellent card and has performed very well. i know this system is fine for almost anything atm, but i feel i could future proof this for many years by adding a second graphics card. the reason why i am considering doing this now is because the radeon 6950s are now older models and may be replaced soon. in addition, i have a 100$ gift certificate to my local computer store where a Sapphire 6950 2GB is being sold for 230$, what i deem to be a very good price. i'm a little out of the market loop: should i purchase this now or wait to see if prices keep falling and take a slight risk that they may be off the market in a month or 2?

thanks in advance!

 

[ram1009]

Over clocking and multi GPUs are what I consider wasteful/false economics. You simply don't get what you pay for. If you're looling for bragging rights then by all means proceed.

 

[xtreme5]

indeed, adding another will make your pc much stronger and faster...

 

[iam2thecrowe]

+1, get it now before they are gone.

 

[reignsupreme11]

Over clocking and multi GPUs are what I consider wasteful/false economics. You simply don't get what you pay for. If you're looling for bragging rights then by all means proceed.

not looking for bragging rights or anything? why do you think it is not economical? this would make my net cost about 550$ for the 2 6950s after tax. if i had bought a 550$ card originally (gtx 580) it would not perform as well.

 

[ilysaml]

In addition, the scaling of CF/SLI sometimes reach 100% so you get double the frame rates. HD 6950s in CF almost perform very close to HD 6990. You have got a great CPU so you shouldn't experience any scaling issues so go for it.

I expect the price of HD 6950s fall in the next 2 years or closer like what happened with the GTX 400 series, right now the GTX 480 is sold for $200.

 

[reignsupreme11]

all good advice, however, is there anybody in the who has more market information than the average consumer. i am curious as to when the 6950s may not be sold anymore and if they are likely to go down in price anymore. i can only guess based on previous cards in the market, but does anybody have something more concrete

 

[ilysaml]

No and you can't guess. Really you can't.
Nobody imagined the 480s to be stocked with this amount and that price.

 

[Deemo13]

Crossfire with those cards would be insane. Since I cannot Crossfire (m-ATX) I decided to go and flash the card to unlock the shaders on it. Its basically like a 6970 now. I know this is more than irrelevant, but I thought I would say something.

 

[reignsupreme11]

i suppose these cards started with an MRSP of about 350$. i bought one a year ago for about 290. i suppose 230$ would be a steal especially since they may not be on the market much longer.

 

[yialanliu]

No point in predicting the future. Sometimes when things become rare, they go back up in price, not further decrease in price. So I'd just buy now to be safe.

 

[randomkid]

i suppose these cards started with an MRSP of about 350$. i bought one a year ago for about 290. i suppose 230$ would be a steal especially since they may not be on the market much longer.

And you got the $100 gift certificate. What are you waiting for?

 

[sunnk]

just go for it goodluck.

 

[coozie7]

WHAT ARE YOU WAITING FOR CRAZY MAN GET IT!
EVEN MURDOCK'S REACHING FOR HIS CREDIT CARD AND HE DOES N'T EVEN HAVE A COMPUTER!
You see, B.A. thinks it's a good deal too, so why not get on the jazz and make the plan come together?
THAT'S WHAT I SAID, FACEMAN!
Look, just calm down B.A., and drink this nice refreshing milk...
THANKS HANNIBAL!

 

[reignsupreme11]

thanks for all the help i'll buy it today or tomorrow. i can't really choose a best answer because most are pretty similar. i want to give it to coozie7 for making me laugh

 

[coozie7]

Go ahead, make my day
All joking aside, though, we're all glad to have been of help, it's why we contribute, so enjoy the new setup, mate.

 

[reignsupreme11]

Best answer selected by reignsupreme11.

 

[coozie7]

@ Greghome: Yes, it's a Hurricane Mk2c from the Battle of Britain Memorial Flight.