Best Graphics Cards For The Money: January 2012 (Archive)

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The Boost is just a firmware update, nothing hardware related. Just because a card isn't actively advertised as having the newer firmware doesn't mean it doesn't have it or can't be patched. This Sapphire 7950 doesn't have the Boost in its product name, but the product details says it's there. It's also $220 ( $200 after rebate. )



Wow, so your entire recommendation comes down to a single test of a single game at a single resolution of a modified card versus a stock one? Yeah, that's comprehensive...



Brand preference can also mean manufacturer: Asus, Gigabyte, MSI, Sapphire, XFX, etc. Each will throw their own spin on cooling, chip binning, overclocking, warranty, etc.


Typical troll. Stating baseless absolutes while leaving out any sort of details or specifics. Please tell me what are these "well-known, often useful, occasionally awesome, and ... forward-thinking" exclusive features of nVidia? And I suppose you don't consider Radeon's superior GPGPU power a feature? What about their game bundles right now, is that too rubbish? Only blind fanboys use blanket absolutes.

Ok, I'm done feeding the trolls.
 
There's an advantage to not baiting trolls, and not trolling, which are that it avoids a trip to the penalty box. Just something to keep in mind for future reference.

In any case, I have run both AMD and nVidia, so I have no inherent brand preference. I am currently running all AMD though, because I was bitmining, something nVidia doesn't do worth squat. Otherwise, I'd probably rather have the PhysX, as at least one of my [older] games uses it. Although I don't have a 120Hz monitor, my understanding is that nVidia's 3D implementation is a little better than AMD's. But then AMD has had some better game bundles lately; so back and forth it goes, with valid reasons on both sides.
 


Never claimed to be immune to it. 😉 But it does bother me when some people spout nonsense as fact since other, less-informed readers, may take it, assume it's truth, then pass it on. I reply to the bait now and then ( without flaming, ) in the hopes I help a tech-neophyte avoid a big mistake.
 
Wow, you didn't actually just call me a troll, did you? And you expect me or others to spoon feed you information that is a priori given and well-understood common knowledge?

By the way, name-calling, besides being immature, goes against the Tom's Hardware Rules of Conduct, thus taking me one more step towards Panopticon status. Thank you very much, sir, for your participation.
 
I see the AMD 7970 GHz Ed. is on the same tier as the Baby Titan the GTX 780 that is ridiculous. I'm sorry I think the 7970 GHz Ed. should be around or below the GTX 770, it is in NO way on par with the GTX 780. That shows a very unrealistic AMD bias in that chart. Doesn't anybody review this chart before it's posted?
 

Then don't participate in trollish behavior like making blanket, ignorant statements with absolutely no backing to them, to which your response is essentially, "Well you must be a child, since this is so well-known and established," once again dodging any specifics ( which I'll answer for you: yes, CUDA is a pretty nifty feature for the graphics/video professionals that can actually use it, but PhysX is largely smoke & mirrors IMNSHO. Saying AMD offers absolutely nothing is beyond ignorant though as they've been working to establish an open GPGPU standard for anyone to program to, not just those that want to pay CUDA royalties. ) And really, such a response could be inferred as insulting and name-calling since you're basically saying I'm an ignorant simpleton, begging for facts, and can't have the faintest idea of what I'm saying. Such a thing would also break the rules of conduct, no? So yay, I could report abuse on your post as well, should I care about working toward another pointless badge.

More to your discredit, you respond with, "Don't you know who I am?!?" ( BTW, your first link only works for you, you need to post something like this for others to see your public profile. ) No, I don't know who you are, and you don't know me. If you really were such an important and respected member on the forum, why not reply with something far less confrontational, rather than demanding respect? Do you think to impress me with your forum badges? Are they supposed to be indicative of anything other than epeen?

Onus and mods, sorry if this is out-of-line. I don't take well to self-important braggarts. Feel free to edit/delete as necessary.
 


Uhm, who you talking to?
 
 

It's an inaccurate chart and tons of people complain about it. The 7970 GHz being on the same tier as the 780 is one of the more egregious examples, but in any case you shouldn't expect the chart to ever be accurate in every way. It's too one-dimensional and not even sufficiently fine-grained. It has nothing to do with AMD bias since their actual recommendations clearly don't value the 7970 GHz as if it had similar performance to the 780.

If they wanted to show AMD bias they could just recommend AMD across the board, at least in the current situation where AMD has just made a series of price cuts across most of its lineup.
 
Bottom line, Red, you overreacted in a very ugly, name-calling way that puts a tarnish on whatever your point was supposed to be. And as usual when someone starts to get personal, it only ends up shining a spotlight right back onto themselves.

My comment:
"Nvidia's suite of software exclusives are well-known, often useful, occasionally awesome, and unique in a forward-thinking way."

Could hardly be considered trollish behavior or a set of blanket statements, except that I may have overestimated the knowledgebase and temperance of the audience. That statement still accurately describes the list of Nvidia software exclusives, listed below for your information.

I do still think these are well-known, or at least some of them should be well-known to the majority. They are certainly unique. Adaptive VSync is what I had in mind as a forward-thinking solution to an age-old problem. Geforce Experience could also fall into that category. And I realize that not everyone has this experience, but every so often something happens in a PhysX game where you can't help but say, "wow, that was cool".

Nvidia Software Features: PhysX, Adaptive VSync, TXAA, FXAA, Geforce Experience, forced Ambient Occlusion, Transparency Antialiasing, and Shadowplay.


But still no one has filled in the blank...

AMD Software Features:
 


Good show, 17s - this made me lol.

To attempt to fill in the blank... TressFX runs 10% better on GCN maybe? And DirectCompute lighting?

Adaptive Vsync won me over last year, and GeForce Experience won me over even more this year. So happy I went green.
 
If I had not been mining, I would likely have stayed / gone green. That nVidia cannot mine was, unfortunately I'd say, a dealbreaker for them. I'd rather have the PhysX for the few times I might appreciate it.
I think preference also depends a lot on where your budget is. Until recently, if you wanted a wider buss than 128bit, on a budget you had to go AMD for the HD6790 or HD6850. OTOH, if you had lots of money to spend on graphics, IMHO nVidia was the better choice, for reasons that finally became clear when FCAT was released. I'd also seen earlier, side-by-side video reviews in which a single nVidia card was smoother than a single AMD card (in Skyrim, one of my games; so I took note of it).
If you're spending $350 or more on a graphics card though, I can't see as either brand is going to disappoint, unless you did no research at all and bought the wrong card for a specific application (e.g. an outlier game, or something like bitmining).
 


Comment pls

http://www.anandtech.com/show/7103/nvidia-geforce-gtx-760-review/17

 
here is a more recent review of a 7950, there final conclusion is taht it beats the gtx 760.
http://benchmarkreviews.com/1787/xfx-radeon-hd-7950-black-edition-fx-795a-tdfc-video-card-review/11/

and here is another showing them in a dead heat.
http://www.legitreviews.com/amd-radeon-hd-7950-w-boost-versus-nvidia-geforce-gtx-760_2227/13

but the amd is now $50 cheaper than the 760.

here is one more that is just a split screen running the metro, tomb raider ect. benchmarks and showing fps. they are very close in every way except price. the below video is by eurogamer

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R0g4CHq11fk

like I said earlier I am a nvidia fan but i will not pay extra
 
Sure you can argue which is best, but overall I think the current market is a win for anyone who's in the market for a GPU. Honestly, GTX760 or HD7950 - most people will be good either way.

I ended up with a HD7970 for about $315 after rebates. Only thing that makes me mad is I wish I could have waited longer for the price to drop even further. I'm happy with the purchase though.
 

MLAA, EQAA, Eyefinity, better OpenCL performance, HDAO, and so on.
 


Yeah, I couldn't think of anything, either. 😉

Nvidia has the equivalent of each of these, even superior versions, IMO. And did AMD just come out with injectable HDAO in the past few months?
 
Enough is enough. Both offer a variety of features and versions of features of differing perceived value to different people. Anyone who spends top dollar on a graphics card should be pleased. We should probably leave it at that; I've been a little busy at work to be playing whack-a-troll.
 
all i know is i got a dinky little 7770GE for $84; gotta say that was hands down the best $84 spent on a gpu ever. The power in that little card is mindblowing.

GPU tech has come a very long way, it used to be you'd have to spend $250+ on a gpu that can play most the modern titles on ultra. That you can get that for $84 now days is just plain kick ass. Before making that purchase i would have preferred an nvidia, my old 9800GT was the best gpu i've ever owned. I was leary because of the amd driver horror stories. However, now i've got this little ah heck, i've got to say it's an extremely high quality card. Dead silent, very powerful, lots of overclock headroom.

Really, i don't think you can buy a bad card these days. Unless you're bitmining or have some other unique software requirement you'll be very happy with any gpu you get. Right now i'm salivating at the thought of getting a 7950 for less then $200 seems like the steal of the century to me. Shame i don't have the need for it, or the cash but i must say that's an insane value. I look forward to seeing how much lower prices get.
 
I agree
the price vs performance ratio is amazing compared to the old days especially the AGP days.
I spent $300 on a EVGA 660Ti 2gb SC and at 1920x1080 it will be viable for a while
I dont game much any more but it will max out BF3 with every bit of eye candy turned on plus FXAA at 60 FPS or so
I have been tempted to get Bioshock Infinite because I loved Bio 2 but not sure if I would play it enough to justify cost but would be a great test to max that out completely
also having the option to SLI another 660Ti later on when needed is nice
we are in a Golden Age of GPUs and hardware in general
you can get a Samsung 840 Evo 1tb for $650 USD or so
I also got a 7770 in a second rig which I got cheap and is amazing for the money paid
Memory prices are rising but still compared to the old days memory is dirt cheap
I got a Antec High Current Gamer series 750w CF/SLI certified 80 percent for $70
i could keep going but us builders are very fortunate right now
 
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