Go with AMD or get nVidia for the physx support?

L31mr0d

Ok I'm finally getting around to getting my main pc off the ground again. I'll be putting a rampage formula in as the motherboard I'm just looking for advice on what to use as the graphics card. Chances are I won't be going crossfire anytime soon (PS3 is eating up a lot of my gaming time) but I'd still like a single card solution that has a fair amount of grunt.

Last time I asked this question I was recommended to get the 4870. Has this changed?

Now with nVidia offering physx support as standard with its graphics cards is it worth just getting an nVidia card? Would it do me better in the long run?

Varkov

http://www.tomshardware.com/news/nvidia-physx-ati,5764.html

I wouldn't base the decision to buy a card on PhysX at all. Not when the possibilities of it being adapted for ATI cards anyway.

The 4870 X2 is the fastest single card at the moment, coming in at around the 400 euro mark. There's also the 1gig version of the normal 4870 coming in the next few weeks, if you game on a big monitor.

uberpixie

L31mr0d wrote: »

Ok I'm finally getting around to getting my main pc off the ground again. I'll be putting a rampage formula in as the motherboard I'm just looking for advice on what to use as the graphics card. Chances are I won't be going crossfire anytime soon (PS3 is eating up a lot of my gaming time) but I'd still like a single card solution that has a fair amount of grunt.

Last time I asked this question I was recommended to get the 4870. Has this changed?

Now with nVidia offering physx support as standard with its graphics cards is it worth just getting an nVidia card? Would it do me better in the long run?

down to your budget really:

€250 either the 4870 or the 260GTX

circa €400-450 280GTX or 4870 X2

Nvidia have really cut prices to combat ATI's push. Price difference is minimal now so it's really down to which company you prefer.

4870s are a good price but the 260GTX is a little faster in some games and is only a couple of quid more expensive.

Personally I went with a 4870 due to the amount of trouble/random blue screens I had with later Nvidia drivers for my 8800GTS 320mb. Nvidia can go jump this gen.
(I am also banking on the theory/hope that the 4870 will age more gracefully in comparison to the 260 GTX as all previous good ATI cards Vs their Nvidia equivelants)

Nvidia do better drivers than ATI my hole.

Physx support is not really there for me: by the time it is fully supported and makes a real difference I will be on a new card.

Plus the fact if your gfx card is supporting the physics as well as gfx you are going to get less frames in the game. It really will come down to how clever the devs are with their games if having the physx support on the gfx card actually makes a real performance increase or not.

But then again this is just an opinon and not future fact

yoyo

AMD, Nvidias new drivers are terrible

Nick

uberpixie

yoyo wrote: »

AMD, Nvidias new drivers are terrible

Nick

you're not bitter at all :-)

Just buy an ATI, my 4870 made me feel better

Nvidia have been pretty bad for shafting anyone with a 8800GTS 320mb/640mb though. Last nvidia driver I had that worked was a 169.25:eek:

yoyo

uberpixie wrote: »

you're not bitter at all :-)

Just buy an ATI, my 4870 made me feel better

Nvidia have been pretty bad for shafting anyone with a 8800GTS 320mb/640mb though. Last nvidia driver I had that worked was a 169.25:eek:

I was a nvidia fanboy until these current drivers, even disabling physx (who needs that crap) my pc still has display driver has stopped responding or my monitor looses signal? TBH I would buy a ATI card right now, but need more pc games coming out to justify it, and yeah it seems its only us with nvidias "weird" 320mb/640mb 8800gts's" who are being royally f--ked over

Nick

uberpixie

yoyo wrote: »

I was a nvidia fanboy until these current drivers, even disabling physx (who needs that crap) my pc still has display driver has stopped responding or my monitor looses signal? TBH I would buy a ATI card right now, but need more pc games coming out to justify it, and yeah it seems its only us with nvidias "weird" 320mb/640mb 8800gts's" who are being royally f--ked over

Nick

Yeah well god is obviously punishing you for being a dirty fanboi .
Remember the 7950GX2 and how quickly support for that evaporated.....

TBH I have had issues with both Nvidia and ATI drivers in the past. This is why I always chuckle when I see some moron claiming Nvidia make better drivers than ATI.

ATI were dire at one point but they really upped their game. Nvidia seem to have dropped the ball more than ATI recently regarding drivers especially in cutting of support for cards less than 2 years old!

I would seriously consider replacing your card sooner rather than later if the running of the card is stopping you playing games/enjoying them.

True replacing the gfx card this early is a "waste" but if it improves the enjoyment you have playing games and reduces the urge to throw the pc out the window when it blue screen playing a game, for no good reason other than the driver is rubish:they it really isn't a "waste":eek:

At least waiting means you are in line for any price cuts and the 4850X2...