Upgrading gpu to gtx 590 or radeon hd 6990. Help.

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alrobichaud

alrobichaud

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Nov 9, 2011
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Hi. So I have decided it's time to upgrade. I have read benchmark review after benchmark review as well as various customer reviews from sites such as newegg about both cards. As far as customer reviews go, I have read a lot of customer reviews where 590's were DOA or died shortly after first use. I realize that this is unlikely to happen but I have not read a single customer review where the AMD card has arrived dead or died a short time later. These facts are important to me because one of my options is a used PowerColor Radeon HD 6990 for approx $600. The Radeon HD 6990 and GTX 590 new are the same price at the local computer shop...$749.99. I know that AMD is soon coming out with the 7000 series and Nvidia should not be too far behind so please don't tell me to wait until the new year. As far as performance goes, benchmarks like 3dmark11 give a better score to the hd 6990 and in real world gaming tests both cards edge each other out depending on the game being tested.

This link http://www.bit-tech.net/hardware/graphics/2011/03/24/nvidia-geforce-gtx-590-3gb-review/2 gives all of the details about the architecture of both cards. In some areas AMD is better and in some areas Nvida is better.

So my options are new for 749.99 plus applicable taxes(13% in Canada) for a total of approx $850. Used, i can pick up a PowerColor Radeon HD 6990 for $600 and the best deal on a gtx 590 used is $700 which. If I was going to pay $700 used I would just purchase a new one instead but the $600 dollar used price tag on the AMD card has me interested.

Does anyone have any real world experience with either one or both of these cards. I would like to hear from you.

Thanks
Al
 
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Really next week? I had a conversation with one of the guys at the local computer shop yesterday and he said he expected to start seeing some new product early in the new year but he did not an exact date. Anyway, I've been looking for months and finding either one of these cards used is very difficult and when you do they are always close to the new price. That is why the $600 dollar AMD card has me interested. So what I am really interested in is real world experience but thanks for the input.
 
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go with amd 6990 because it has more vram than 590 otherwise they both perform neck to neck.
 
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As a side note about the HD6990, here is a quote from one of the techradar reviews:

'Yup, the Radeon HD 6990 has the dual-BIOS functionality that came with both the Radeon HD 6970 and HD 6950. This time around though it's being used to keep to the power restrictions set by the PCIe bus.

The primary positioning, the default setting you'll see retail cards set at out of the box, restricts the Antilles GPUs to 830MHz core speeds.

That's only slightly quicker that the cores of the Radeon HD 6950 at 800MHz.

As well as limiting the core speed that restriction also means the power draw is limited to 375w, the theoretical maximum power draw possible with a single card. Each of the two 8-pin PCIe power connectors the Radeon HD 6990 needs to run delivers 150w per plug and the PCIe slot itself is capable of delivering another 75w itself.

This adds up to the 375w total.

That primary BIOS setting is read-only, but the second chip is able to be flashed with a new ROM should you wish. At launch the switch will be covered with a warning sticker and you'll have to accept all responsibility for anything that occurs under the second BIOS setting.


Why so serious?


Well, this is what we mean by the card being designed for 450w. Having the GPUs running at the 880MHz core speed the Radeon HD 6970 has its chips running at means the HD 6990 draws a significant amount of power outside the standard PCIe limits.

And you're going to need to make sure you've got a hefty PSU, and one that delivers a solid, stable level of juice to the motherboard and card to enable it to run happily at that overcooked speed.

AMD is likening this dual-BIOS, Antilles Unlocking Switch to its Overdrive software in the Catalyst Control Centre, calling it a 'hardware Overdrive option''.

So what I am wondering is how well it will perform overclocked on the ASUS Rampage Extreme III? This board has two Molex plugs next to the PCI-e slots which are supposed to be used when multiple gpu's are installed to make sure enough power is getting to the PCI-e slots. It's almost like this motherboard was made for this card.
 
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I really don't feel like waiting for a new series to come out which I expect to be very expensive and largely untested. Maybe a few months after the release (who knows when that will be) when the bugs are worked and a lot of benchark testing has been done I would consider looking into this but I have waited long enough and I expect the AMD card will still be relevant for years to come. I have already decided that I am going to get the current top of the line cards whether it be Nvidia or AMD and I would like to find one used to save a lot of money. I have been looking for months and I have not seen a used 6990 or gtx 590 for as low as 600 so I am still leaning towards this. It would be great to stay on top of the technology curve but it took a bit of convincing my wife that spending 6 or 7 hundred on a video card is not a stupid idea let alone close to 1000 after taxes and shipping.
 
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According to this link http://www.tomshardware.com/news/AMD-Radeon-HD-7000-GPU,14309.html the 7970 performs 1.5 time better than the 6970. Apparently, an overclocked 6990 beats out 6970's in cross fire according to techradar since the 6990 has almost exaclty double the componentry of a 6970. The rumoured price of a 7970 is 549.99 but that remains to be seen. I am not sure if I beleive AMD would release a new series of cards that are cheaper and outperform the hd6990 only 10months after it's release. It just seems to me that from a company standpoint they would have spent way too much money on R&D and on existing products to throw it all away like that. If the 7970 does out perform the 6990 I would expect the price to be higher.
 
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just wait and see unless your current rig has exploded just wait a bit and then be confiedent you made the right decisions, and while a 6990 has twice the components, its rarely twice as fast due to crossfire limitations
 
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So i have been reading more leeked reviews on the new architecture and they are apparenlty releasing the 7990 around March of 2012. If it happens the leaked price is supposed to be the same as the 6990 at its release. So do I wait another 3,4,5, or more moths a pay $800,$900 or more for the best of the best or stick with my original idea? It's looking like I will get the 6990 for less than the 600 that i originally thought i was going to pay. It will be closer to 500 which is making my decision a lot easier.
 
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I agree with you but back to what i had already posted which is that apparently the 6990 is better than a pair of 6970's in crossfire due to crossfire limitations and that the 7970 has approx 1.5 the performance of the 6970 which says to me that if anything I should wait for the 7990 to come out. So the deal is going to expire very soon so pick up a 6990 for a little over 500 or wait till sometime next year for the 7990 and hope it doesn't cost a fortune. My rig has not exploded but I just hate to pass up a good deal
 
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Chances are if you wait you'll find a lot of the current enthusiast cards on sale as people will be dumping them for the newer next gen cards. I'd wait if I were in your position. The upgrade itch is a powerful thing, patience is key. You'd get the benefit of seeing how the newer cards run AND more than likely cheaper top tier current gen cards by sticking it out a month or so...
 
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You have to remember that you are looking at the ultra-high-end cards here. Those things become "obsolete" (as in no longer being the best card, or becoming overpriced relative to the next generation) VERY quickly. Companies know that for people buying such cards, price is not an object, so they price them very high. So yes, it's totally possible--even likely--that the 79xx series will blow the 6990 out of the water on a price/performance metric.

What's very likely from the leaked information is that the power consumption and heat will be a lot lower. That would be enough to make me want to wait. Dual 6970s in crossfire or a single 6990 are beastly, but they are not efficient and therefore not very OCable. With better heat management, the 79xx should be more tweakable too, which helps you on your performance per dollar.
 
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Firstly 2 6970's outperform a 6990.
Secondly I would take the 6990 over a 590, performance is basically even but it offers better flexibility and the extra VRAM shows at higher resolutions and its cheaper.
Third, the 7970 is set to be released priced at the 6990 mark, will it be faster? Almost certainly no. So will buying the 6990 now be a waste? not if you can get it for $600 imo. The 7000 series is due for release in a few weeks, if the price on your 6990 holds until then why not wait as others have mentioned to see the benches? The prices should hopefully fall significantly after the early adopters have their feed and by mid-year might be more competitively priced if you can wait that long. No doubt the 7990 will offer the best performance but it's unlikely it will retail for less than $1000 at launch and you may be waiting a while.
 
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I am trying to decide which new GPU to buy at the moment, and I have heard the 7970 is due as soon as the 22nd of December?!

I wanted to buy the 580 admittedly and not the 590 or 6990, but even so, wait a little longer and see what benchmarks can actually be achieved by the 7970? You may be pleasantly surprised?!

I am the most impatient person where having the money in my pocket to spend on anything, never mind a new GPU, but as I have already said, I am going to show some restraint for a change, and then make an informed decision and get the best bang for buck I can possibly afford.
 
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10% performance increase over the 6970 and $100 more, u mad bro? Then two 580's on one board should be emperor right? Get the 6990 son but your better off waiting for the 7970!!
 
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Hmm I think I started something here that could go on for a while. The 6990 is actually going to cost me closer to 500 than 600. Anyway, crossfire 6970's are the same aside from a faster clock frequency. The 6990 has an overclock switch that bumps up the clock to the same as the 6970 but you need to be able to provide 450W to a single pci-e slot which is why it comes with a stock frequency that is slower. With the 6990 overclocked how can it be beat by sli 6970's? Please provide a benchmark link to back this up. I have been wrong in the past and I will admit it if I am. If both setups were the same I would take the single card over a crossfire setup.
 
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