Bottlenect the GTX 295?

[siddsm]

I am planning to buy an Asus GTX 295, along with a Seasonic M12 700w PSU.

I currently have an AMD 64x2 6400+ processor with 8gigs of ddr2 800 ram, ATI 3450, running windows 7 rc 1.
I usually use one of those programs which closes all unwanted background apps while gaming.

My rig will be connected to a 40" LCD Tv, more like a HTPC setup, and will be used mainly to watch movies (bleh!!) and play games at 1920X1080 resolutions.

I would also like to turn on some of the eye candy features in the game, (like motion blur, etc) and use 2AA along with 8AF.

I want to get a decent playable frame rate (50-60) while playing my games.

Some of the guys are telling me that my processor is going to bottleneck the GTX 295, and its of no use buying the card. They insist, that with my current config, the GTX 295 will work like a GTX 260 instead

Do you think my processor is too slow to work with my graphics card and give what I want out of it? Or if you want to suggest me a different graphics card, a brief reason about your suggestion would be helpful.

Thanks in advance.

 

[shubham1401]

Yes the CPU will bottleneck the card.Though it depends on the game also.Some run nice with duals and some like GTA4 kick their butts.

But you can change the proccy anytime.

Overall I would suggest you to wait a few days cuz ATI 5XXX series will be out soon.They will perform better than 295 and so you will get more for your money.

 

[siddsm]

hmm.. i would usually play action/fps games. sometimes simulations (MS:fs)
for games like gtaiv, i would usually use my ps3 or the xbox360.

i am kinda waiting for the ati s to launch their series as well. Am out of country right now, so gonna be making my purchase around 1st week of october.

Wouldn't the new ati 5xxx series get choked by my processor?

And also, correct me if am wrong, isn't gaming considered as just one application, hence utilizes just one core of a multi core processor?

 

[Kari]

some games support dual cores, but anything above 2 still quite rare... but multicore support is the future lol

and when the hd5xxx series comes out, it will lower prices on pretty much everything else, gtx295 included

 

[baracubra]

Yeah deffinitely bottlenecked, you'd be much better off going with an i5...you don't need anything above that (unless the 58xx does miracles)...
heres a link showing how games are GPU limited nowadays:

http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/core-i5-gaming,2403-6.html

 

[darkvine]

damn that is going to be one hell of a bottleneck.

And weather or not games support full 4 cores it will still open up the bottleneck of the GPU.


I would suggest you get a GTX 260 core 216 or get a new CPU to go with that 295.

 

[siddsm]

hmmm, i could rather go for the 4890, costs cheaper than the gtx 260, and performs better than it as well.

getting a new processor (intel) is gonna cross my budget i guess, since i need to get an intel mobo for it too.

i have around AU$950 to spend.
and this is where I get my stuffs from:
http://www.msy.com.au/Parts/PARTS.pdf

By the time I decide to buy a graphics card, I think the 5xxx series should be launched, but again, I would be bottlenecked with a high end 5xxx card until i change my processor :|

Can you guys suggest any AMD processor that should complement the GTX295?

 

[shadow187]

The Athlon 64x2 is a socket AM2 CPU, and all the phenoms are AM2+/AM3. No idea if AM2+ fits in AM2.

 

[siddsm]

my motherboard supports AM2+/AM3 processors.

 

[shubham1401]

If thats so... You should get a Phenom 2 processor and a 5XXX card.
Otherwise a 4890 will be ideal.

 

[siddsm]

so the phenom II x4 955 be a good deal? even if i decide to plan to get on the 295 later?

 

[darkvine]

hmmm, i could rather go for the 4890, costs cheaper than the gtx 260, and performs better than it as well.

getting a new processor (intel) is gonna cross my budget i guess, since i need to get an intel mobo for it too.

i have around AU$950 to spend.
and this is where I get my stuffs from:
http://www.msy.com.au/Parts/PARTS.pdf

By the time I decide to buy a graphics card, I think the 5xxx series should be launched, but again, I would be bottlenecked with a high end 5xxx card until i change my processor :|

Can you guys suggest any AMD processor that should complement the GTX295?

The gtx260 core 216 is about the same as the 4890. (At least before the last ATI driver update, not sure about now) the "core 216" is a different version with more stream possessor then the standard one that first came out.


however I would suggest getting a phenom II x4 955 and a VERY good aircooler so that you can overclock it hell out of it, then you will be all set. Even with the 295. That should be good with the ATI 5000 series as well, though can't be sure of that till they come out. You might bottleneck the 5000 but not to badly I wouldn't think.

 

[siddsm]

The gtx260 core 216 is about the same as the 4890. (At least before the last ATI driver update, not sure about now) the "core 216" is a different version with more stream possessor then the standard one that first came out.


however I would suggest getting a phenom II x4 955 and a VERY good aircooler so that you can overclock it hell out of it, then you will be all set. Even with the 295. That should be good with the ATI 5000 series as well, though can't be sure of that till they come out. You might bottleneck the 5000 but not to badly I wouldn't think.

that was quite helpful, thanks.
this is the case I have currently.
http://www.thermaltakeusa.com/Product.aspx?S=1308&ID=1819

Plus my room stays pretty cool. I can always get an aftermarket cpu cooler to open up the limits of OCing as you suggested.

Now I just need to be sure that the gtx 260 these guys are selling are the new stock with core 216.

 

[JofaMang]

The 295 is overpriced, especially if the leaked benches are to be believed, the 5xxx cards will outperform a 295, with less heat, less power draw, and less money. I wouldn't purchase a 295 right now, even if money was no object, just for this reason.

 

[siddsm]

yeah, am out of country right now, and returning back around the 1st week of Oct. So gonna hold my horses on making any purchases right now. Thanks for the advice guys.

 

[JofaMang]

Good luck! By the time you get back the new cards will be on the street, and you should have some more reliable information to go on in making the decision. I am sure you will enjoy whatever you decide on, as all options are powerful. 😀

 

[siddsm]

thanks for the help jofamang
i ll post in here once i buy my card, and how its performing

 

[obsidian86]

i have seen an amd 955@3.5ghz bottleneck the gtx 295 infinity

 

[darkvine]

Yeah that is why I said good cooler. Even the i7 920 bottlenecks it some. That's just the way it goes I guess.

 

[siddsm]

i have seen an amd 955@3.5ghz bottleneck the gtx 295 infinity

i hope you guys know that am upgrading from an ATI 3450. I think I ll still be bowled over and overwhelmed with a bottle necked gtx295 😀

But yes, if I do buy a card, I would like to use it at its full potential. Gonna follow the advice you all have given here.

 

[obsidian86]

well if you want a good upgrade get an 790x/gx board an phenom 720/955 and a good cooler with a 4870/4890 and some 4gb ddr3 ram with a 550 watt corsair psu if you sticking to one graphics card or the 750 watt corsair for future crossfire setups in an antec 300/900 case or coolermaster 690/haf 922 case and you will be set

 

[siddsm]

after buying the nokia n97 recently, am only left with a little more than AU$950 to spend on my upgrades.

I already use a Thermaltake V9 case.
http://www.thermaltakeusa.com/Product.aspx?S=1308&ID=1819

And the $950 would be spent on this shop:
http://www.msy.com.au/Parts/PARTS.pdf

a new board, the card, the phenom, and ddr3 rams, though sounds amazing, but gonna stretch my current budget 🙁

 

[obsidian86]

lol seems aussi sites don't like south africans but ok how bout the phenom 550 with the ati 4850 and a 770 board with 4 gigs ddr3,nokia ripped you off i got my sonyerricson satio for the same price and much better

 

[siddsm]

lol 😛
the phenom x4 955 costs $269
the gigabyte MA 770T UD3P mobo costs $115
the 1gig Gigabyte 4850 costs $175
the 4gigs of ddr3 ram would cost around $100

totals to $659. hmmm :| thats quite a nice option.

and I kinda like nokia gonna sell the n97 off as soon as the n900 launches tho 😛
am off to sleep now..nd gonna get wet dreams of 100+fps on the recent games 😀

 

[obsidian86]

well dont forget the psu and try an get a 4870 1 gb it will give you some eye candy