What graphic card to get?

[bbooiigg]

I'm wondering what graphic card to get. My budget is $250 max for the graphic card. I was thinking about the gigabyte radeon hd 7870 - http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814125418&nm_mc=AFC-C8Junction&cm_mmc=AFC-C8Junction-_-na-_-na-_-na&AID=10446076&PID=3938566&SID=

Heres my current setup:
PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant / Benchmarks

CPU: AMD FX-6300 3.5GHz 6-Core Processor ($129.99 @ NCIX US)
CPU Cooler: Cooler Master Hyper 212 EVO 82.9 CFM Sleeve Bearing CPU Cooler ($24.99 @ Newegg)
Motherboard: ASRock 970 Extreme3 ATX AM3+ Motherboard ($84.99 @ Amazon)
Memory: G.Skill Ripjaws Series 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($40.98 @ NCIX US)
Storage: Seagate Barracuda 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($64.99 @ NCIX US)
Case: Antec Three Hundred Illusion ATX Mid Tower Case ($49.99 @ Newegg)
Power Supply: Corsair Builder 750W 80 PLUS Bronze Certified ATX12V / EPS12V Power Supply ($69.99 @ Newegg)
Optical Drive: Lite-On iHAS124-04 DVD/CD Writer ($15.98 @ Outlet PC)
Total: $481.90
(Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available.)
(Generated by PCPartPicker 2013-01-23 22:34 EST-0500)

 

[ikes9711]

Go with either a...
HIS IceQ 7870
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814161404
Or a Sapphire 7870 Ghz
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814102996
The Sapphire being the better card but a little over budget or the HIS best bang for your buck

 

[stantheman123]

7870 is in your price range however if you spend a bit more
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814202006

$279 with rebate a 7950 sapphire

 

[ikes9711]

Also one other option is a 7870 Le it is basically a 7950 that is somewhat "crippled"
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814131484&nm_mc=OTC-pr1c3grabb3r&cm_mmc=OTC-pr1c3grabb3r-_-Video+Cards-_-PowerColor-_-14131484

 

[iceclock]

whats ur max budget?

 

[dudewitbow]

Im suprised the 2 above dodged the good card for ops price limit

This card is the 7870 LE, which is tahiti le, which is basically built like a 7950/7970, but has 2gb vram and the stadard 256 7870 bus. It performs better than a 7870, and under a 7950 for the price of 250$

edit: got post ninja'd

 

[bak0n]

Just picked up an XFX 7870 2GB for $240 and can max everything @ 1080P with an I5-3570k.

 

[stantheman123]

whats ur max budget?

He said 250. If he could maybie put 20-30dollars more he can get a 660ti or a 7950

 

[iceclock]

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814121660&nm_mc=AFC-C8Junction&cm_mmc=AFC-C8Junction-_-na-_-na-_-na&AID=10446076&PID=3938566&SID=

220$ and u get a 20$ mail-in-rebate card, best bang for bucks

 

[iceclock]

thats not the op someone named like the op -_-

 

[stantheman123]

Oh haha. woops. yea that $220 gtx 660 cant beat that bang for buck.

 

[iceclock]

what, the 660 stock matches a 7870 and overclocked is a beast.

unless ur agreeing with me ;D

 

[stantheman123]

Lol im just agreeing that its good bang for buck.. haha

 

[dudewitbow]

what, the 660 stock matches a 7870 and overclocked is a beast.

unless ur agreeing with me ;D

I actually disagree on 660 being able to overclock extremely well. On the release of the picairn family, the 7800 series were extremely well for the value due to their tremendous overclocking ability(from 15 to 40% core/mem) wheras on the 660 release, Hardocp went to go make the statement:

overclocking the new GeForce GTX 660 (GK106) is not as impressive as overclocking the GTX 660 Ti, GTX 670, or GTX 680 (GK104) video cards. In fact, it is downright miserable thanks to the low obtainable Power Target setting of +10% over the base power. It simply isn't enough to realize high overclocks of 1.2GHz or beyond. This is not ASUS' fault; ASUS has designed a very well built video card that keeps the GPU cool while overclocked.

I mean the 660 is a good card at stock, but it will not get much out of an overclock

 

[iceclock]

thats not true, ive seen 660s get to 1.2, so ur incorrect there my friend, also the 7800 series have micro-stutter issues and lack adaptive vsync.

 

[stantheman123]

Lets just settle on the 7950. When overclocked it can surpass than 7970/680. And with it being $279 On the sapphire dual fan model thats pretty nice imo

 

[dudewitbow]

thats not true, ive seen 660s get to 1.2, so ur incorrect there my friend, also the 7800 series have micro-stutter issues and lack adaptive vsync.

too bad the stuttering issue only happened with 12.11 which is fixed in 13.2 beta which releases in a bit

http://techreport.com/review/24218/a-driver-update-to-reduce-radeon-frame-times

As for Sli vs crossfire, Nvidia has the advantage of Adaptive vsync which is automatic. AMD cards have Radeon Pro which is manual but more effective

12.11 without radeon pro

Spoiler

12.11 with radeon pro

Spoiler

which basically makes radeon pro for more of the enthusiast people who want to maximize their experience by manually tweaking games

 

[iceclock]

radeon pro is an unofficial software not used or made by amd, still in beta stage, and not that great, used it and wasnt impressed, was liking the tweaks but the fake vsync sucked.

 

[dudewitbow]

radeon pro is an unofficial software not used or made by amd, still in beta stage, and not that great, used it and wasnt impressed, was liking the tweaks but the fake vsync sucked.

the problem is that is more of an opinion rather than a tested fact. regardless, the more flat the line is on frame time, the more fluid the gameplay is. It isnt "fake", radeon pro style vsync is called dynamic vsync. If you think that it isnt useful, then making the argument about frame time in the first place is not a plus then, as the statement is based on bias and not through testing means.

edit: i mean i have direct 1st hand experience with the 660(evga 2 fan version, the pricier one) and my 7850(not even 7870) picairns can clock much easier than 660s can.

 

[iceclock]

no i meant it doesnt feel like adaptive vsync, i know amd has vsync technology but doesnt feel as smooth and natural as adaptive vsync. something feels stuttery and buggy about it.

my best advice amd should hire the creator of radeon pro hes got some good ideas.