ATI 6990 or 5970 + 5830

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solo_2101

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Well im back for more... :wahoo:

so... What you Ladies and Gentlemen think...

I have a ATI 5830... if I get a ATI 5970. I could use crossfire... total 4320 Stream Processing Units...hmmm

or should I go for ATI 6990 which has newer technology but only 3072 Stream Processors, of course my ATI 5830 will be unusable... no crossfire...?
 
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I, like the others fail to see the reason for the massive output of money for a 22" resolution. This is silly, you simply don't need an HD 6990. If you read the "best video cards for the money" article you would see what people mean about "beyond reason."
It is simply not logical to spend that kind of money for driving a small monitor like that. Even with a triple monitor setup, an HD 6970 would be fine.

Crossfire with an HD 5830 is likewise not advisable as you'd be limited by the slower card. The 5830 has never been a favorite of enthusiasts, its not really close to the 5850 in performance and overpriced to boot.

Here's the article...
http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/best-graphics-card-gaming-performance,3042.html
 
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I have a two monitor set up... and all 22 inches...3360x1050 sometimes... how ever for gaming most of the time I just use 1 because i don't like the division of the monitor... there is a extra 22 inch somewhere that im not using because my 5830 only has two dvi outputs
 
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Wait...so you're saying you have three 22" monitors? Can somebody provide some clarification on using 3 monitors with eyefinity Radeons. Do the screens need to be Display Port? If so, then I guess he can always crossfire instead.

If you game on a single 1680x1050 (size doesn't matter, just resolution), then a single Radeon 6950 1GB will meet all of your needs VERY well. Sell your 5830, get one of those, and you'll have $400 more in your pocket than you were intending to. I suggest you wait for November sales to buy.

Although the Phenom II x4 955 isn't the best CPU out there, so long as it can handle the game in the first place, it could handle crossfire. You can do that down the road. Just make sure it's OC'd.

PSU: Ultra x4 1050W? Wow...that's a nice PSU. I'd have just picked up a Corsair TX750 and saved $150 then bought a 5870. In fact, I'd still try to sell it and pick up something cheaper and then have more money in my pocket.
 
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oh yes....
but at with a 5830 at 5040x1050 games lag...
and then if you throw FRAPS on top of that......

that why im asking 5830+5970 or a 6990?
 
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oh im not worry about the CPU, running Crisys, only uses 25-50 percent, usually i set the affinity to only two cores
 
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For newer games, like Deus Ex: Human Revolution, you'll want all 4 cores and an overclock. I can show you some benchmarks of the bottlenecking (they're on Tom's Hardware).

Oh, I definitely and not suggesting triple monitors on a 5830. But triple on dual 6950 2GB's should work well.
 
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What you should do is just pick up another 5830 and Crossfire them. It would cost you about 105 or maybe cheaper with rebates, This seems like the only reasonable thing to do at the moment. I would be a good match for your resolution.
No move you can make right now for 100 bucks will give you a better gaming experience.
 
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A 5970 and 6990 are both dual GPU cards. Using 1 card by itself you are already using crossfire, just as an all in one card. Therefore adding a 5830 to it would 3 way crossfire.

Regardless, what everyone else is saying is true. Unless you are going to be using multiple monitors then both are overkill.
 
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two of these are faster than a 6990 by a considerable margin while being quieter and cooler
 
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A 5870 and 5830 in crossfire would be the exact same as 2x 5830 in crossfire because the cards operate at the speed of the slowest card in the setup. So you could get a 5830, 5850, or 5870 and it would function as a 5830 regardless.

Again though, by the time you factor in scaleing, crossfire 5830's will only be slightly ahead of a single 5870, and likely perform very close to a single 6970 depending on the title. (5xx0 series cards don't scale as well in crossfire as the 69x0 series cards do)
 
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Getting a second 5830 is not anyone's preferred recommendation--largely because 5000 series cards don't scale that well in crossfire, but also because people kind of hate the 5830's flaws. However, it is the most cost effective solution IF you don't sell your 5830.

I think you should try to get the single 6970 for $203, since it's regularly $300 and try to sell the 5830 for $90 or so.
 
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Three monitor setup? You'll need more than two 5830's. I don't know if a signle GTX 570 could quite handle it (not close to high settings on a lot of games) and it's a well established fact that a 6970 outperforms the 570 at extreme resolutions--although Hawx 2 will still favor the GeForces. But if you're playing a bunch of games and not just Hawx 2, then a 6970 will go further on 5040x1050.

But really the only way you play on all three with decent settings is dual 6950 2GB's or 6970's.
 
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