8800GT or HD 3870

[KPC84]

I ordered the 8800GT because I don't plan to get a 2nd card in the future. I just want an upgrade to my 7600GT and figured one 8800GT would be more than enough.

But heres how I see the cards:

8800GT
- Pros: better FPS, one-slot cooler, perfect for 1 card upgrade
- Cons: more expensive, a bit less eye-candy

HD3870
- Pros: better picture, cheaper (cheaper 2 card configuration)
- Cons: 2 slot cooler, a bit less FPS

why is everyone saying that the new 512 8800GT isn't good for running in SLI? someone please explain that to me. it's got nearly the same specs as the first gen 800GTX but for less than half the price of that!

 

[StrangleHold]

8800GT will work fine in SLI. Its just the cost of 2 cards compaired to 1 upper end card. In SLI it depends on the game, some games dont improve at all where some are up to 80% gain and everywhere between.

 

[tuxify]

Here is what you want to do...

MOBO
EVGA 122-CK-NF68-A1 LGA 775 NVIDIA nForce 680i SLI ATX Intel Motherboard

Video Card (get 2 of these and run SLI)
EVGA 512-P3-N801-A1 GeForce 8800GT 512MB 256-bit GDDR3 PCI Express 2.0 HDCP Ready SLI Supported Video Card

that motherboard supports 8 gigs of ddr2 1200 ram, and has 2 true PCI-E 16X slots. that video card as almost the same specs as a first generation 8800GTX, and only costs $250. this means you could get two of these and run SLI for the price of one 8800 GTX.

it's an easy decision.

You're a dumbass. If you would've actually read the post I said that I needed a board that would support the Q9450, which the 680i doesn't. I also didn't say I wanted Sli... So telling me what to do without reading what I want is kinda dumb...


@ramodkk: I don't really see the 2 slot cooler being a con, because I kinda like having a bigger card. The 8800GT kinda reminds me of the 8600GTS, one slot cooler, which I really don't like. As for the FPS vs. Eye candy, I'd rather have a better picture quality over a few FPS. Once FPS is a problem in the future, I don't think those few extra are really going to make much difference.

I'm almost certain I'm getting the P35, unless a new board comes out that would change my mind, or someone presents a good argument to change it. The DS3R from Gigabyte only has 1X 16x, and that's what I want to get. If this is so, the 3870 would be my choice as of now.

 

[Ramodkk]

why is everyone saying that the new 512 8800GT isn't good for running in SLI? someone please explain that to me. it's got nearly the same specs as the first gen 800GTX but for less than half the price of that!

I meant that the 3870 is better for 2 cards because of the price, a 8800GT SLI configuration would cost about ~$550 US and an HD3870 Crossfire about ~$480 US