FAQ FAQ  Forum Search   Register Register  Login Login

GTX 280 VS 2x 3870's VS 2x 4830's

Post Date: 2009-01-09
 Post Reply Post Reply
Author
  Topic Search Topic Search  Topic Options Topic Options
JFuller092 View Drop Down
Groupie
Groupie


Joined: 04 Jan 2009
Online Status: Offline
Posts: 73 		  Quote JFuller092 Quote  Post ReplyReply bullet Topic: GTX 280 VS 2x 3870's VS 2x 4830's
    Posted: 09 Jan 2009 at 7:10pm
Well?
I could buy:
GTX280 -- $315
1gig
512bit
2200mhz memory
602mhz core
240 processing cores.
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814143141

OR

I could buy:
2x3870's -- $200
512 mb EACH -- 1gig
256 bit EACH -- 512 bit
320 processing units. EACH -- 640 units.
Unknown memory/core speeds.
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814102719

OR

I could buy:
2x HD 4830's -- $270
512 mb EACH -- 1gig
256 bit EACH -- 512 bit
640 processing units EACH -- 1280 units.
575mhz core.
1800mhz memory.
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814161267

The reason i post this is because i dont know what will pay off in the end if 2 3870's will get the job done on all the current games why spend the extra bucks.
Or on the other hand i could buy a GTX280 and know there wont be any problems with all current games and i can brag that i got one.
Or i could get 2 hd4830's which im pretty sure them running in crossfire would smoke a GTX280. But thats just me talking.

Also, keep in mind im trying not to go all out with my money, im not the richest fellow, i just need a new card and i actually need it as cheap as possible.
Back to Top
Dredoric View Drop Down
Senior Member
Senior Member

Email address used to purchase matched with forums account email.

Joined: 31 Dec 2008
Online Status: Offline
Posts: 121 		  Quote Dredoric Quote  Post ReplyReply bullet Posted: 09 Jan 2009 at 7:18pm
I can't give you a complete answer since I don't know enough about the 3780 or 4830 but a few things to keep in mind.
 
A gtx 260+ is cheaper than the gtx280 by a decent amount and it's nearly as powerful.
 
If you go the 280 or 260+ route then you could add a second of that card down the line.
 
Just thought they'd be good things to consider before you make your choice.
Back to Top
JFuller092 View Drop Down
Groupie
Groupie


Joined: 04 Jan 2009
Online Status: Offline
Posts: 73 		  Quote JFuller092 Quote  Post ReplyReply bullet Posted: 09 Jan 2009 at 7:23pm
This has crossed my mind, but 2 cards = 400 bucks no matter what card it is by nvidia lol, and if i wanted to run 2 i would need a new mobo, as mine is already crossfire supportive but not SLI.
Back to Top
Dredoric View Drop Down
Senior Member
Senior Member

Email address used to purchase matched with forums account email.

Joined: 31 Dec 2008
Online Status: Offline
Posts: 121 		  Quote Dredoric Quote  Post ReplyReply bullet Posted: 09 Jan 2009 at 7:44pm
Ah ok. Like I said I can't talk much about those particular Radeon cards but I'd almost go with the 260+ over the 280 just because of price (was going to go with 2x 260+ over 2x 280 if the 295gtx hadn't released).
 
With any luck one of the real experts will weigh in since I'm sure they'll know much more about those particular Radeons than me.
Back to Top
PatrickB View Drop Down
DS Veteran
DS Veteran

Email address used to purchase matched with forums account email.

Joined: 19 Oct 2008
Online Status: Offline
Posts: 544 		  Quote PatrickB Quote  Post ReplyReply bullet Posted: 09 Jan 2009 at 9:38pm
Dont bother with 2 3870's. They come with 512mb of GDDR3 memory. Go with the Powercolor 3870x2, it has 1 gig of GDDR4 memory. I have one myself and I can play crysis on high settings at 1680x1050 with no lag.(System specs in siggy)
 
Personally I would go with This it will beat any of those other combinations with no problem at all. Might even beat 2x260's but maybe not 2x260 Core 216's.
Q9550 @ 3.4Ghz for now
Xigmatek Thor's Hammer
MSI P45 Neo2-fr
6gig 1066 Corsair Dominator
XFX Radeon HD 4890
PC Power&Cooling 750W
Seagate Barracuda 500Gb
Antec 900
Vista 64bit
Back to Top
paraguy1 View Drop Down
Groupie
Groupie

Email address used to purchase matched with forums account email.

Joined: 22 Aug 2008
Online Status: Offline
Posts: 340 		  Quote paraguy1 Quote  Post ReplyReply bullet Posted: 09 Jan 2009 at 9:51pm
I just said screw it and went with 3 gtx-280s Cool But I think DS has had my machine as much as meWinkIts going back again Monday for a heating problem and a strange problem when I added the 3rd GPU my 3D Admark score went way down instead of up Big%20smile
Back to Top
PatrickB View Drop Down
DS Veteran
DS Veteran

Email address used to purchase matched with forums account email.

Joined: 19 Oct 2008
Online Status: Offline
Posts: 544 		  Quote PatrickB Quote  Post ReplyReply bullet Posted: 09 Jan 2009 at 11:24pm

Paraguy maybe your PSU can't keep up. What wattage is your PSU?
Q9550 @ 3.4Ghz for now
Xigmatek Thor's Hammer
MSI P45 Neo2-fr
6gig 1066 Corsair Dominator
XFX Radeon HD 4890
PC Power&Cooling 750W
Seagate Barracuda 500Gb
Antec 900
Vista 64bit
Back to Top
SunfighterLC View Drop Down
DS Veteran
DS Veteran


Joined: 18 Feb 2008
Online Status: Offline
Posts: 1527 		  Quote SunfighterLC Quote  Post ReplyReply bullet Posted: 10 Jan 2009 at 12:30am

Here is a saying you should never forget when it comes to video cards:

 
ALWAYS go for the highest single card option you can afford.
 
SLI and crossfire are good, but they arnt an efficent use of money, and should only be used when you want a stop-gap in getting a newer better single card solution or you have too much money to burn.
 
If the price is the same, then always go for the single card.
 
Also keep in mind that video memory does not add up when you add a second card. 2 512mb cards in SLI or xfire = 512mbs of video ram, not 1GB. The same goes for the dual GPU single slot cards. The way SLI or xfire work is the limiting factor, the cards will not share their video memory with each other. So in fact that GTX 280 has more video memory then your other two choices.
E8500@ 4.03Ghz
XFX 790i Ultra
1000W Corsair HX
2 280 GTX EVGA FTW
4GB OCZ Reaper 1800Mhz
250-80-300GB VR HD
Logitech Z-2300 2.1 Speakers
Asus Xonar 7.1
Hanns-G HG 281D 28" HDMI Monitor
Back to Top
PatrickB View Drop Down
DS Veteran
DS Veteran

Email address used to purchase matched with forums account email.

Joined: 19 Oct 2008
Online Status: Offline
Posts: 544 		  Quote PatrickB Quote  Post ReplyReply bullet Posted: 10 Jan 2009 at 1:28am
This is true. But the dual GPU's make up for it. Either way though id say go with the 3870x2 or the 4850x2. The 4850x2 beats the GTX 280 anyway. Now the GTX295 thats a different story lol.
 
But the whole 512mb per card is true as well. But each card helps each other. Id rather have 2 cards working together than 1 single card. Just my opinion.
Q9550 @ 3.4Ghz for now
Xigmatek Thor's Hammer
MSI P45 Neo2-fr
6gig 1066 Corsair Dominator
XFX Radeon HD 4890
PC Power&Cooling 750W
Seagate Barracuda 500Gb
Antec 900
Vista 64bit
Back to Top
 Post Reply Post Reply

Forum Jump Forum Permissions View Drop Down



This page was generated in 0.0625 seconds.