Need advice on 7870

[nonewsgoodnews]

I need some advice on which card to get. I traded in my ac psvita to amazon and got $200. I want to use it to get a new card. Only restriction is that I have to buy from amazon.

I don't want to spend more than $250.
I'm looking at the 7870. I want ati because I want the game bundle.

Which do you guys think is the best?

Sapphire $205
http://www.amazon.com/Sapphire-DL-DVI-I-SL-DVI-D-PCI-Express-11199-19-20G/dp/B00A2J4ROE/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1367952912&sr=8-2&keywords=7870

HIS $220

http://www.amazon.com/HIS-Mini-DiplayPort-Express-Graphics-H787Q2G2M/dp/B007HYIRES/ref=sr_1_6?ie=UTF8&qid=1367952973&sr=8-6&keywords=7870

There is also a 7870 xt for $259. Is it worth the extra cost? Would you get something other than 7870? I'm going to be playing at 1080p.

Thanks for all suggestions.

 

[slomo4sho]

The Sapphire for $190 after rebate is the best choice.

 

[bigpinkdragon286]

The 7870 based on the Tahiti core is faster, and worth the little bit more in cost.

PowerColor $249.99
http://www.amazon.com/PowerColor-DisplayPort-PCI-Express-AX7870-2GBD5-2DHPPV3E/dp/B00AO35AXU/ref=sr_1_1?s=electronics&ie=UTF8&qid=1367954217&sr=1-1&keywords=7870+myst

 

[nonewsgoodnews]

How much better performance is that power color card? It's worth the $50 price difference?

 

[AnonyMews3]

The 7870XT is based off the 7900 chip. In theory it is basically a 7930. It's pretty powerful.

 

[slomo4sho]

The 7870 XT/LE provides roughly 10% more performance while consuming nearly 50% more power.

 

[nonewsgoodnews]

What about heat? This will be in a htpc case. This case:
http://www.amazon.com/Cooler-Master-Elite-361-RC-361-KKR350/dp/B007W4XJZK/ref=sr_1_6?ie=UTF8&qid=1367954791&sr=8-6&keywords=Cooler+master+htpc

I'm upgrading from 7770

 

[bigpinkdragon286]

Temperature should be reasonable in that case. I rarely get into the 70's with the card I linked to.

 

[nonewsgoodnews]

http://www.techradar.com/us/reviews/pc-mac/pc-components/graphics-cards/sapphire-radeon-hd-7870-xt-1130535/review

This article makes me want the xt. Gonna order something tonight. Thanks guys.

 

[bigpinkdragon286]

Here's how Tom's summed it up in their review of the 7870 Myst:

http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/tahiti-le-7870-7930-benchmark,3401-7.html

It boils down to performance vs power usage. Slomo4sho is spot on with higher power usage, but on a personal level I consider that a reasonable trade-off for the better performance.

 

[slomo4sho]

Here's how Tom's summed it up in their review of the 7870 Myst:

http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/tahiti-le-7870-7930-benchmark,3401-7.html

It boils down to performance vs power usage. Slomo4sho is spot on with higher power usage, but on a personal level I consider that a reasonable trade-off for the better performance.

For a while, the XT/LE was at the same price or cheaper than 7870s. Currently, it demands a premium. Personally, an extra $50 and a 50% increase in power consumption(not to mention the added heat) isn't worth the 9-10% performance increase.

 

[bigpinkdragon286]

Actually, I wouldn't say the 7870 LE's are demanding a premium so much as this just shows how the standard 7870's have fallen out of favor and the LE's are being purchased enough to keep the prices from dropping. The prices haven't spiked, just haven't come down yet. Likely just the free market at work.

"Worth" is relative, and as such, I understand you find the LE version of the 7870 to not be worth purchasing over the 7870, but hopefully you can also understand that I respectfully disagree, and I do find the LE version worth purchasing over the non. I don't have a problem with the heat. I don't have a problem with the power. I don't have a problem with noise. I haven't found any of those things to be excessive, in any regard, and I enjoy better performance, and that's before any overclocking.

 

[nonewsgoodnews]

Ah still undecided. I'm going to look for bench marks

 

[slomo4sho]

Actually, I wouldn't say the 7870 LE's are demanding a premium so much as this just shows how the standard 7870's have fallen out of favor and the LE's are being purchased enough to keep the prices from dropping. The prices haven't spiked, just haven't come down yet. Likely just the free market at work.

When initially released, it was the same price as a 7870. If the 7870 has since dropped in price this product would would demand a premium over the 7870.

 

[bigpinkdragon286]

Links to plenty of reviews with lots of benchmarks on this thread:

http://www.overclock.net/t/1373543/official-7870-tahiti-le-xt-owners-club#

 

[nonewsgoodnews]

I think I'm going to go with the Saphire 7870 oc. From what I can tell the benchmarks are so similar it wont make much a difference. This pc is currently hooked up to a 23in 1080p monitor but there is a good chance it may end up in my living room with a 43in samsung plasma that is only 720p.

With the rebate the saphire is only $190. I may spend what I save on a new gaming mouse or some games. Thanks everyone.

 

[bigpinkdragon286]

Happy to help. 🙂 Glad we were able to help you make a better informed decision.

 

[nonewsgoodnews]

Thanks a lot. Oh I do have one more question I forgot about.
I have this power supply:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817139008

Can I safely put in a 7870? I would have to use an adapter since it only has one pcie connector.
The rest of the computer is a core i5 and 4gig ram and a SSD. Thanks. .

Edit:
I should also mention its about 4ish years old. Runs fine though.

 

[slomo4sho]

Thanks a lot. Oh I do have one more question I forgot about.
I have this power supply:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817139008

Can I safely put in a 7870? I would have to use an adapter since it only has one pcie connector.
The rest of the computer is a core i5 and 4gig ram and a SSD. Thanks. .

Edit:
I should also mention its about 4ish years old. Runs fine though.

I would recommend replacing it simply because it is 4 years old. PSUs lose their maximum capacity as they age so it would be optimal to replace it with a newer model.

 

[nonewsgoodnews]

I guess thats where the extra I saved from the other card is going.
I didn't even think about the power supply being an issue until I was reading about the 7870 on another forum.

Thanks again.

 

[slomo4sho]

I guess thats where the extra I saved from the other card is going.
I didn't even think about the power supply being an issue until I was reading about the 7870 on another forum.

Thanks again.

The CORSAIR CX600 is currently $38 after rebate.

 

[bigpinkdragon286]

Likely the 30 Amps on 12 V rail of your current power supply will be more than sufficient for the 7870. I seem to find numbers for the 7870 coming in under 15 Amps. Really can't say you need more without knowing the rest of the details.

Personally I tend to stick to power supplies I know that are working fine, before trusting my fate to a new one which could end up blowing within a month or two.

 

[nonewsgoodnews]

System has Core I5(Ivy Bridge), Asus p8 h61 mobo, 8gig ddr3, dvd burner, and a SSD.

Edit:
I think I bought this power supply about 4-5ish years ago. It was in a Phenom II x3 system most of the time.

 

[bigpinkdragon286]

Your processor is rated at up to 77 W depending which model i5 you have, your 7870 is rated at up to 190 W if you really get carried away with overclocking past GHz edition specs.

22.25 amps is what I get with those two running very inefficiently.

At 80% your power supply is going to give you at least 24 amps continuously, which should be sufficient to account for the rest of the components' power draw.

Newegg's power supply calculator is saying 464 watts, and generally manufacturers spec higher than what's needed for the "fudge" factor. You can even check for yourself here:

http://images10.newegg.com/BizIntell/tool/psucalc/index.html

I think you'll find your supply will handle your configuration just fine, but there's also no harm in buying the CX600 as recommended.

 

[nonewsgoodnews]

Funny enough amazon raised the price on the cards I was looking at today. 🙁
I went ahead and got the Powercolor Myst card. Made the choice a little easier to make but I wish I had got it while it was on sale. <_<

Thanks for the help guys. I also ordered the corsair 600w. I got it at amazon though because I have prime. Didn't want to wait when the card would already be here.