Is the GTX570 worth $50 over the GTX480?

Dougx1317

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I can get a GTX480 1.5GB for about $300, and a GTX570 1.25GB for about $350. Is the GTX570 worth the extra $50? I've found some sources that list the good and bad, but I wanted to get some more opinions on this. Does anyone have reasons why the GTX570 is or isn't worth $50 more?


http://www.guru3d.com/article/geforce-gtx-570-review/21
"So why would you go for a GTX 570 if you can find a GTX 480 cheaper you might wonder ? We'll there are several pros' and cons there. We are certain you can spot a GTX 480 as cheap as a GTX 570, but stock won't last long as the production on the GTX 480 has been halted. Now provided that you have good custom cooling we feel you'll gain more overclock performance than the GTX 570 as well.

Regardless of these facts we'd still recommend you to go with a GTX 570 as the power consumption is lower, the noise levels are well under control as well as heat levels. Overall the GTX 570 is the better card, but price performance wise in retail things might look different alright."
 

ionut19

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I would also pay the extra 50 for that card.
The fan is much more silent at load and the GPU temps are lower. Also the power consumption is lower.
gtx570 i say it is a really good choice.
 
As a current GTX480 owner, the only issue is fan noise. If you need whisper quiet, then the extra $50 is worth it. If you have some tolerance for normal, but noticable, computer noise during gaming only, then get the 480.

What type of 480 is it? If it is one with an aftermarket cooler, then that would be more compelling for $300.
 

Dougx1317

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I'm actually second guessing myself with the 5870 down to $225 after rebates and promo's and the 6870 at $230. Aren't these two only a little worse than the GTX570? The new cards and fluctuating prices make this a weird time to buy a card.
 
GTX570 @ $350 = 10-18% better performance, better drivers, quieter, better DirectX 11, better texture filtering, PhysX.

perfrel.gif
 

kg2010

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This is a no brainer the 570 all the way

That 480 is NOT $300, since it's NOT 30% off, it's actually $30 Off

$30 off w/ promo code VGAASUS480, ends 12/8

That 480 is actually $400

If I were you, I'd wait 'till next week for the 69xx series to be released, and let the price wars begin.



Taking a step back from the NVIDIA side of the fence, AMD’s own $400 HD 5870 is in a world of trouble when compared against this new Fermi powerhouse. It gets trounced at every resolution; especially the all-important 1920 x 1200 setting which is currently the “sweet spot” for many enthusiasts. If any of AMD’s upcoming HD 6900-series cards are priced at the $350 mark, they now need to outperform the HD 5870 by at least 30% with AA enabled to have any hope of competing against the GTX 570.

Source: http://www.hardwarecanucks.com/forum/hardware-canucks-reviews/38626-nvidia-geforce-gtx-570-review-22.html
 

Depends on your motherboard. The HD5870 is looking to drop prices even more quite soon, so you could get a crossfire setup for around $450.

Like a couple others have said, it'd be wise to wait. Dec. 15'th seems to be the agreed-upon release date for the HD6900 series.
 

ionut19

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As a second option to the gt570 someone else posted above to wait for the new cards from AMD and see the performance/price ratio.
If AMD releases better cards at the same price then that could be a better option.
 

Dougx1317

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Matto17secs: You said that the GTX570 had "better drivers, quieter, better DirectX 11, better texture filtering, PhysX" over the 5870. What do you mean by better drivers, DirectX 11, and texture filtering? I didn't know that there were different version of the same generation of DX11. And what does the texture filtering mean?

KG2010: Thanks for pointing out that mistake. That really makes the GTX570 the better and cheaper alternative.

If the GTX570 really is 17-32% (or even 10-18%) better than the 5870 at my resolution of 1920x1200, I think that the GTX570 just went to the top of my list. I will wait a week to see what ATI brings in their 6950.

Will the 'price wars' between GTX570 and the anticipated 6950 take time to equalize? Would it be unwise to make a decision on the ATI launch date of which card to go with? I'm trying to get a card by Christmas.
 

kg2010

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Getting a card on launch day is a mistake IMO.

You gotta see how things will play out after all the benchmarks and reviews are out, and if there are any issues with the new ATI cards.

Depending on what performance level the 6950 & 6970 come in at, Nvidia may have to react accordingly, or vice versa.

I'm sure the 570 has room to be priced lower if necessary. Getting a 570 @ $320 - $330 would be a pretty sweet deal.

When there's healthy competition like there is right now, the consumer wins, be patient.
 

It is well known and reported all over these forums that Nvidia drivers are more stable than AMD.

The new vapor chamber heatsink on the GTX570 gives it a very quiet sound signature. According to Guru3d and other reviewers, the 570 has a load noise of 40 dB, which is quieter than the majority of high end video cards, even those with custom heatsinks.
http://www.guru3d.com/article/geforce-gtx-570-review/9
http://benchmarkreviews.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=12845&Itemid=47

For DirectX 11, specifically, the Nvidia cards do a much better job of Tesselation. This is a key feature of DirectX 11 that will be used increasingly over the coming year and will prove to provide much more realism in games.
http://www.guru3d.com/article/nvidia-gf100-fermi-technology-preview/4

For texture filtering, there has been quite a bit of discussion lately over various "optimizations" used by AMD, which some call cheats, that help to pump up AMD performance numbers at the expense of image quality. This Tom's Hardware article sums it up:
http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/geforce-gtx-570-gf110-performance,2806-5.html
"For the time being, we're going to have to leave everything at default and point out the observed and confirmed image quality issue currently affecting Radeon HD 6800-series cards. This may or may not become a factor in your buying decision, but right now, the bottom line is that Nvidia offers better texture filtering, regardless of whether you’re one of the folks who can appreciate it."
 

kg2010

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And, don't forget CUDA, PHYSX, and hyper compute support.

You're gaming at 1080p, the 570 will play any game on high settings and pretty much everything enabled. If I didn't get a 470 a few weeks ago, I would definitely be getting a 570, since it has the perfect balance of sheer performance, and great price point.