9800 gt sli vs higher-end gpu

J

jpl517

New Member
Hey, I'm sure this has been beaten into the ground in multiple threads, but I could not find my exact question so here goes:

I have an EVGA 9800 GT 1GB setup in a semi-gaming rig. I say semi because I do most gaming on the kiddie console, but still like to run graphics-heavy games on the PC (eg. Dragon Age, Crysis, etc.) since I am a self-admitted graphics snob.

My question is: Should I hunt down another 9800 for SLI, or should I grab one higher-end GPU? My max budget is around $300, but I'm fairly out of the loop as far as what's solid quality right now. Any tips/help is greatly appreciated.

My rig:
Intel Core2 Quad @ 2.6 (not OC)
750W PSU
6GB RAM (2x 2GB, 1x 1GB)
Asus P5N-T Deluxe 780i mobo
EVGA 9800 GT 1GB
500GB SATA, 750GB SATA drives (not RAID)
 
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jpl517 said:
Hey, I'm sure this has been beaten into the ground in multiple threads, but I could not find my exact question so here goes:

I have an EVGA 9800 GT 1GB setup in a semi-gaming rig. I say semi because I do most gaming on the kiddie console, but still like to run graphics-heavy games on the PC (eg. Dragon Age, Crysis, etc.) since I am a self-admitted graphics snob.

My question is: Should I hunt down another 9800 for SLI, or should I grab one higher-end GPU? My max budget is around $300, but I'm fairly out of the loop as far as what's solid quality right now. Any tips/help is greatly appreciated.

My rig:
Intel Core2 Quad @ 2.6 (not OC)
750W PSU

6GB RAM (2x 2GB, 1x 1GB)
Asus P5N-T Deluxe 780i mobo
EVGA 9800 GT 1GB
500GB SATA, 750GB SATA drives (not RAID)
Click to expand...

your best bet would probably be an AMD 6850. They are released tomorrow I believe.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/ProductList.aspx?Submit=ENE&DEPA=0&Order=BESTMATCH&Description=6850

here they are on newegg

I have no idea why the XFX one is 279...maybe a mistake? But they range from 179-279
 
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A few questions regarding the 6850: I have heard of people having issues when it comes to switching over from Nvidia to AMD/ATI, should I be concerned? Also, would my mobo support this gpu? I'm no whiz when it comes to the latest goings-on in the tech world, so I'm just uncertain what numbers I need to look for as far as compatibility with the mobo (eg. 780i mobo can only handle a card with DDR3 or some such thing). Finally, does it matter if I get PCIe 2.1 x16 or PCIe 2.0 x16? Thanks for the recommendation and keep them coming.

My rig:
Intel Core2 Quad @ 2.6 (not OC)
750W PSU
6GB RAM (2x 2GB, 1x 1GB)
Asus P5N-T Deluxe 780i mobo
EVGA 9800 GT 1GB
500GB SATA, 750GB SATA drives (not RAID)
 
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If you have an SLI board, you're probably better off grabbing one of Nvidia's 4xx cards. A GTX 460 will do fine.
 
hmm It does appear that only SLI works on your mortherboard. If you plan on adding another card in the future i'd go with a signle GTX 460 1GB edition over your 9800 for now.
 
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Thanks for the quick responses/suggestions. From what I've been reading in the new reviews on the 6850, it's a pretty good competitor to the GTX 460 both on price and performance, so I don't think I'll be missing out much by going with the 460 (1GB of course). Looks like it's time to do some shopping around, online and off. Thanks again.
 
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