VC can't decide

[Dragon]

$200 range Video Card.


560 Ti     or     6870



As much as this looks like I'm trolling, I'm not.  Looking for pros and cons or 2 very close in price and performance video cards.

Will be mounted to a GIGABYTE GA-Z68X-UD3H-B3 sporting an i5-2500k.


And.....go!

[715]

When I was looking at those two the 560 Ti was almost always a tad faster in game benchmarks but used quite a bit more power than the 6870 and therefore dissipated more heat (which is a problem for me as I live in the desert and only have swamp cooling).

[2bighorn]

http://www.hwcompare.com/8890/geforce-gtx-560-ti-vs-radeon-hd-6870/

[BaldEagl]

Well, in the Chevy vs Ford debate I'm just an Nvidia guy so I'm biased.

[olds442]

worried about heat? go with a HIS radeon 6870 the turbo version comes with a factory overclock.
My HIS radeon 6790 with a factory overclock of 900mhz core clock(same has stock 6970) and 1100mhz memory clock and the fan i quite and the temps stay VERY low highest ive gotten it to i think is around 140*F on furmark! also i live in florida. 

a freind of mine just switched to the same card as me (HIS radeon 6790 turbo) and he says it is faster than his 560 Ti.

this card form what i know can run BF3 on high and now with a little more CPU power (i overclocked) the little 6790 runs BF3 ultra on 40fps all day
dont be fooled by big numbers.

[Debrody]

The 6790 should run near 1500MHz even to get close to the 560Ti. Thats physically inpossible.

I would wait a couple months til the new generation video cards (ati 7000 series, geforce 700 series) come out and get a 6950 2GB from the same 200 bucks 

[skribetm]

check these out. 2GB HD6950 twin frozr iii's = low noise/cooler temps still under manuf. warranty.

[Debrody]

check these out. 2GB HD6950 twin frozr iii's = low noise/cooler temps still under manuf. warranty.

omg the prices are low there...
here in hungary the cheapest 6950 is 80K huf ~380-400 bucks... i was sooo happy with my 150 bucks 5830 in May...

bestest buy 

[MaSonZ]

The 6790 should run near 1500MHz even to get close to the 560Ti. Thats physically inpossible.

I would wait a couple months til the new generation video cards (ati 7000 series, geforce 700 series) come out and get a 6950 2GB from the same 200 bucks 

7000 series are already out 

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814102961

[Rob52240]

Who makes the two you're trying to decide over?

I tend to place a lot of weight based on who is making the cards in addition to the specs.  Not all videocards are created equally, even if they use the same chipset. 

I think it's just as important to get a card that will not only work, but keep working.

[715]

7000 series are already out 

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814102961

I'll take two for crossfire.  That'll be only $1120.   

[zack1234]

I have 550 ti boxed 

I use a 6970

I need it for ROF , for AH it's overkill.

[Bizman]

Dragon, one aspect to consider is the power efficiency. You might like to use the Power Supply Calculator to find out which one suits your existing system best. Remember, when comparing equally performing cards, the one consuming less power also runs cooler, thus producing less noise. A cooler card may also live longer: A 10 degrees rise in temperature will shorten the life span of capacitors to half.

[MaSonZ]

I'll take two for crossfire.  That'll be only $1120.   

if they werent so expensive I might consider one.... a single card is better then 580's in SLI I read somewhere if I recall correctly?

[skribetm]

bestest buy 

theyll probably be at ~$150 when the 7950's come out.
two of these is enough to run AH with everything maxed except 8k shadows.
@1440p/1600p panels or trifinity.