Back to Square 1 - New Graphics Card for New Gaming Build

[samuelspark]

Hey guys. You guys know how I was going to get a GTX 560 Ti, but then I decided on a 6950 as it had 9 more FPS on BF3 in the review done in Tom's Hardware. However, the new graphics cards for the money article said that the two cards are tied. SO....... I need help picking a card. Best Bang for Buck at 1080p. $250 is the max. I may do some overclocking (if performance isn't good enough or is at reference speeds). Thanks! I need exact models and a link.

 

[amuffin]

Wait until the 560ti's get upgraded?

 

[samuelspark]

Wait until the 560ti's get upgraded?

Are you talking about the 560 Ti OEM? They're actually worse than the regular Ti.

 

[Warmacblu]

amuffin is talking about the GTX 560 Ti that is supposed to receive some more cores, placing it between the GTX 560 Ti and the GTX 570. If I were you, wait at least until the end of December to make up your mind. There is bound to be some nice sales on both the GTX 560 Ti and the HD 6950. Either card is great and you will be satisfied with how either of them perform.

Keep an eye out for MSI variants. Their Twin Frozr II/III cooler is one of the best.

 

[amuffin]

Are you talking about the 560 Ti OEM? They're actually worse than the regular Ti.

*facepalm*

 

[gnomio]

The GTX 560 Ti and the Radeon HD 6950 1GB trade blows, with one of them being either as fast, a tad slower or a tad faster than the other depending on the game. Overall, the Radeon HD 6950 1GB has a very slight advantage performance wise,
http://www.guru3d.com/article/radeon-hd-6950-1gb-vs-geforce-gtx-560-ti-review/18

Geforce GTX 560 Ti performs almost on par with the Radeon HD 6950 1GB and costs $20 less.

Also, the Geforce GTX 560 Ti has a reputation for being a card with a lot of overclocking potential and this particular Gigabyte card, with its dual fan cooling system, has enough cooling to accommodate quite a bit of overclocking without sounding like a turbo jet.
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814125401&nm_mc=AFC-C8Junction&cm_mmc=AFC-C8Junction-_-na-_-na-_-na&AID=10440897&PID=3067296&SID=

 

[scopey86]

If they'll be announcing an upgraded 560 ti soon you're better off waiting until end of december like Warmacblu is saying. I personally hate waiting however and am an nvidia fanboy, but I'd reccomend the 6950. If in the future you decide to get a second card I've heard that 6950s in xfire will outdo 560 tis in sli. Also, certain models of the 6950 can be unlocked to 6970s (think it was the dirt edition or something). So for the price they have a lot more potential, plus if you decide to upgrade later you can expect better gains in xfire.

 

[G6ET1987]

IMO, for a single card setup I think the 560Ti is the better choice, however if you plan going multi GPU then the 6950.

 

[fb39ca4]

6950. You have a [quite good] chance of unlocking the disabled shader cores and essentially having a 6970 on your hands.

 

[amuffin]

6950. You have a [quite good] chance of unlocking the disabled shader cores and essentially having a 6970 on your hands.

not really, amd started preventing this from happening. But there are a few models that still unlock but they are a lot more expensive.

 

[FtsArTek]

not really, amd started preventing this from happening. But there are a few models that still unlock but they are a lot more expensive.

On that note - most Sapphires and Powercolors can unlock.

 

[G6ET1987]

Isn't it only the Sapphire Toxic version that unlocks and that is due to the switch they come with? costs more, but would be a good choice if you can afford it.

 

[gnomio]

Look at a picture of the card. If on the PCI-e connector stands Amd then it can be unlocked. If there stands anything but Amd on it then it can't be unlocked

 

[samuelspark]

What do you guys think about the new 28nm cards to come out soon? My mobo has a pci-e 3.0 slot.

 

[nonnac7]

Pci-e 3.0 will not be utilized unless you get the new ivy bridge coming out. No one knows how the new 28nm cards will perform. December is the time frame ATI is releasing the cards(on paper) the general masses will not probably get cards until Jan timeframe.

 

[FtsArTek]

PCI-e 3.0 will probably be useless for a while to come, because no cards can maxx out the bandwidth of a PCI-e 2.0 x16. Most can't even max x8.