Next Gen - AMD/ATi or nVidia?

cregser

I'm researching for a new PC but am not impressed by Crossfire/SLi vendor lockin and the need for current gen GPUs to double-up to adequately perform in DX10. By adequate I want to play at 1280x1024 @ high eye-candy settings with NO slowdown. Slowdown and turning stuff off kinda gnaws at the back of my brain when I'm trying to enjoy a game.

So the question is: Will next gen GPUs need to double-up and if so, who do I go for? nVidia or ATi? The conspiracy theorist in me says they'll do whatever they can to nudge you down the Crossfire/SLi path.

If was to buy a new gaming rig now I'd go for cheap quad core (as modern games get choked by GPU first), future proof mobo (x38/780i), decent ddr2 memory, a whopper psu but a relatively cheap gfx card - say HD3850. It'll do for now but would definitely need a next gen card to finish off. But I'm not willing to wait till March-ish when new cards typically hit the market.

My dilemma is that I currently prefer the look of the x38 chipset (fsb speed, cheaper, mobos with DDR2 and DDR3 support, good reviews) but see nVidia as the potential leaders in the next gen GPUs. AMD are currently playing catch up on too many fronts.

So I'm stuck... or I gamble. Any opinions?

Azza

I'd wait till Febuary an invest Nvidia new high end card the 9800 series.
AMD/ATI have effectively withdrawn from the high end GPU market next year. There only going to release low and mainstream parts but no new high end stuff effectively ensuring Nvidia keep the performance crown. The closest ATI can muster with a high end card is dual core version of the the current HD3850. If Nvidia can lower the price of its mainstream stuff AMD/ATI could be even worse shape than they currently are.

SLI is not worth it very few games see enough of an advantage to justify getting it and Crossfire is poor still thanks to fewer games that support it. Occasional games will run worse in crossfire. That applies even more so to Nvidia's 3 way SLI systems

You will see better performance from a single new generation of graphics card than 2 of the last.

RoyalMarine

take the 8800gtx.
costing an average of 500 euro.

it will handle almost anything apart from crysis @ max.

if you sli 2 of them, then you end up paying over 1,000 euro.
but you only get maybe a max of 30% increase.

so basically, dont waste money.

if you want something NOW, for best buck then go buy the new 8800gts 512mb.
http://www.komplett.ie/k/ki.aspx?sku=343610

this will last you a year if not more on the latest and greatest.
http://www.gpureview.com/show_cards.php?card1=544&card2=548

uberpixie

cregser wrote: »

I'm researching for a new PC but am not impressed by Crossfire/SLi vendor lockin and the need for current gen GPUs to double-up to adequately perform in DX10. By adequate I want to play at 1280x1024 @ high eye-candy settings with NO slowdown. Slowdown and turning stuff off kinda gnaws at the back of my brain when I'm trying to enjoy a game.

SLI/crossfire is of no use to you if you wish to game @ 1280 x 1024.

SLI/crossfire only come into their own at extreme resolutions much higher than what you are on.

Just concentrate on getting one good card.

TerrorFirmer

If you're gaming at 1280x1024, even the 3850 would play any game at max settings bar Crysis, which is a major exception to the way games are playing right now. You don't need to look at next gen, and especially not paired next gen, for such a low resolution...you don't even have to look at high end current generation.

An 8800Gt or the new GTS would be far more then you'll even need at that resolution...again, bar Crysis.

IamMetaldave

HavoK wrote: »

An 8800Gt or the new GTS would be far more then you'll even need at that resolution...again, bar Crysis.

Havok, I play Crysis at full whack on my 8800GT at 1280 x 1024, so it's possible

cregser

I agree that SLI is overkill for current games. Unreal 3 looks fine and COD4 looks OK here but hardly blistering here. Everything else should be grand. Maybe I'm putting too much emphasis on Crysis alone (I don't even really want to play the game). But I do see it as glimpse of the near future and I like building a PC that'll last. I got nearly 3 years out of my current one (well for the last year I've had to lower settings). But it's clear I won't get the same millage this time around.

That gpureview.com site looks handy RoyalMarineComm. I find it hard to justify €500 for a 8800GTX card that'll need an upgrade in a year. My 6800GT was a great bargain at the time. The 8800GT and new GTS have the same feel about them but not quite.

Dave Eyesclosed wrote: »

Havok, I play Crysis at full whack on my 8800GT at 1280 x 1024, so it's possible

I'm not an avid over clocker though. Looking at these results and these, the frame rate looks cack. I would want 50fps average to ensure it never ever drops below 25-30. As I said, slowdown irritates me. I remember trying to play HaloPC on an FX5600 256MB :eek:. Don't want that experience again! I should add that I also like to use 4xAA (would settle for 2xAA) and seem to be physically incapable of telling the difference between 0xAF and 16xAF! In pixels alone, 1280x1024x2AA is the same as 1920x1200x0AA.

I'm flicking between 8800GTS/8800GT and to a lesser extent the 3870. Your SLI endorsements have swayed me towards the x38 chipset with the next gen's 8800GT equivalent as an upgrade. I didn't realise Crossfire\SLI was so not worthwhile. But I did read somewhere that the new CrossfireX will scale something like 1.75, 2.75 & 3.25 which looks good for 2 out of 3 cases.

Hopefully the new cards will piss through DX10/Crysis.

IamMetaldave

cregser wrote: »

I'm not an avid over clocker though. Looking at these results and these, the frame rate looks cack. I would want 50fps average to ensure it never ever drops below 25-30. As I said, slowdown irritates me. I remember trying to play HaloPC on an FX5600 256MB :eek:. Don't want that experience again! I should add that I also like to use 4xAA (would settle for 2xAA) and seem to be physically incapable of telling the difference between 0xAF and 16xAF! In pixels alone, 1280x1024x2AA is the same as 1920x1200x0AA.

1280x1024x2AA 's exactly what I have mine set to.. Admittedly, any higher on the AA and the game turns into a slide show.. But for the most part I think it looks super and plays great. I'll get some fps readings and see what it says.