ati 5850 vs gtx 470

Not to change the topic, but I personally think you should go with a 5870 rather than the 5850... you get better performance of course but later on you can CF 2 5870's which almost goes toe to toe with a 480 and afterwards tri-cf the 5870's... I know its not what you had asked but... =)

Edited by Patrick_DS - 05 Jun 2010 at 4:13pm

^^ Gotcha ;) hope that little linky helps on your decision making....

single 5850 would be the choice, and it will overclock very well, if you want...  yes 2 5850's also do very well. lol

That techspot review seems funky. Most other sites show the GTX 470 between a 5850 and 5870. Heres a recent bench done by Anand on the GTX 465, but look at the GTX 470's frames:

http://www.anandtech.com/show/3745/nvidias-geforce-gtx-465/4

In most of those benchmarks the GTX 470 is on the heels of the 5870. If you can afford the extra 50$ I would grab the 470, it has higher minimum frames then the 5850 and it deals with increased AA better. 5850 is a great card but, if the extra $50 is in your budget I would go for the 470.

So Justin does this mean you still recommend the 5850? 

Problem with using actual gameplay is, its tough to replicate the same test. I think thats the strong side of benchmarks, while your actual gameplay experience may vary from a canned bench, even so, a canned bench is the most scientific form of testing. Trying to play 30min of BC2 and running fraps on 1 card, then doing it for the other won't give you fair/accurate results, simply because lots of diff things can happen in each of those 30min.

If you like Hardware Canucks, they also have a recent bench on the GTX 465:

http://www.hardwarecanucks.com/forum/hardware-canucks-reviews/32669-evga-geforce-gtx-465-1gb-superclocked-review.html

Again, pay attention to the GTX 470s numbers, for the extra 50$ it does seem like your getting a fair bit more performance, it does close in on the 5870 at times. Also note its minimum frames on the HC review.

I mean if Justin is able to find a way to use real gameplay and make it able to be exactly replicated for both cards then that would be stellar. However, you usually can get a ballpark of the cards actual gaemplay performance by looking at various reviews and getting an average. I like [H]ardOCP, AnandTech, and HardwareCanucks. But yeah, either way you can't go wrong, I just think spending the extra $50 is worth while in this situation, thats something you have to decide on a personal level. I also wouldn't worry about heat or power draw if all your looking at is a single GPU solution. Plus side with the 470 is, you can get it on EVGA, the card is covered under a lifetime warranty.

Hey once you get done testing out the 470 post some info on the forums if you could, I'd like to see that.  One thing I read I'm not sure if its right or not is that there is a lack of overclockability with the new fermi cards.

Don't let me stop you from ordering..If the budget is tight get the 5850. If the extra $50.00 comes easy get the GTX 470.. They both have their pros and cons but are overall very comparable. It is up to you to figure out if the GTX 470 is worth the extra $50.00 lol

I have helped out a few overclocking their cards.. Yes I would recommend using MSI afterburner for the beginner, and it is very easy.. I would be glad to help out.

I'm sorry did you say physx? Did you mean batman? lol

In all reality, if your going to spend the extra $50 don't let nvidias gimmick "features" win you over. If you go for the 470, you do so for the possible performance gain. It has had a generally good bench review, usually sits halfway between a 5850 and 5870. That will fluctuate depending on the game you play though. Thing is the 5850 is pretty much tapped out of its power already, card has almost a year on it. The GTX 470 out for a few months, given might see even more performance out of it with future drivers, I think the 5850 is at its peak at the moment. As far as driver performance goes.

So essentially, you ask yourself, is an extra $50 worth a bit more performance? (although its possible depending on your game, you will break even with a 5850) So its just a gamble you take with $50. At the end of the day though, the worst you can do with a GTX 470 is break even with a 5850, but if things go well, you will get more performance then it. So it's not really a huge deal, if your able to throw up the extra $50 go for it, if not don't. Can't go wrong either way.

Thanks guys for all the help! I'm going with the 470 just because it's the newer card and the drivers could probably evolve it 

Hey Justin did you get to test out that 470, because in the other thread you were calling it a turd and in this one you seem a bit more kind lol. Just wondering if you put some polish on it.

So do you think it would worth it to put a couple 470's on LC and push those bad boy's to the max?

Edited by Invader Mig - 12 Jun 2010 at 4:14am

yea not worth it when you could just get 1 480 for less

It matters the overclock, but if you push it, it does  get really, really loud. lol I have not tested power consumption, but I would guess at least 250 watts per card. since it is overclocked higher than a GTX 480..

In stock form it does perform ok, but it is just a sin to run something that powerful knowing that 50% more power is just sitting there begging to be used. lol

I really feel that it is hard to go wrong with the 5850 or the GTX 470..