• Hardware

  • Radeon HD 4870 (2GB version) or the Geforce GTX 260?

And this is for an average size screen. No big-ass LCD, so the resolutions are going to stay fairly normal.

So which would you recommend based on the FPS, heat, and memory?
Benchmarks show better FPS for HD 4870. Look here:
http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/radeon-hd-5770,2446-7.html

On the other hand, I've always been an Nvidia guy and I never had any problem with any nVidia VGA.

Watch out however from the marketing campaigns, especially in Lebanon, that give high importance to video memory. Excessive VGA memory does not improve gaming performance. You may gain a couple of FPSes on very high resolutions (which is not a need in your case since your screen is not huge).

I recommend you get the 1 GB version. You'll be paying extra for the 2 GB wihout using a single byte of them in any game.

Hope this helped.
They seem to be very equal. One card is better in a game, while the other is better in another game.

Please post the resolution you will game with, the games you will play, and the power supply you have.

I will give you a definite and precise answer. Also try to get the prices of both.
sin wroteBenchmarks show better FPS for HD 4870. Look here:
http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/radeon-hd-5770,2446-7.html

On the other hand, I've always been an Nvidia guy and I never had any problem with any nVidia VGA.

Watch out however from the marketing campaigns, especially in Lebanon, that give high importance to video memory. Excessive VGA memory does not improve gaming performance. You may gain a couple of FPSes on very high resolutions (which is not a need in your case since your screen is not huge).

I recommend you get the 1 GB version. You'll be paying extra for the 2 GB wihout using a single byte of them in any game.

Hope this helped.
It did. Thanks. Although the store I'm getting them from does not have the 1 GB version. And since the cards are around the same performance (the 1GB and the 260), when the store is selling the 2GB version at the same price as the 260, it is obvious which one to take, right?
Xsever wroteThey seem to be very equal. One card is better in a game, while the other is better in another game.

Please post the resolution you will game with, the games you will play, and the power supply you have.

I will give you a definite and precise answer. Also try to get the prices of both.
The resolution is the standard screen resolution, 1366 x 768. I might play shooters. But most of all I'll be playing strategy games and RPGs. And I've got 300W of power.
I've switched choice, guys. It's now the HD4890 (2GB) against the GTX 275. Hehe. :)
sin wroteWatch out however from the marketing campaigns, especially in Lebanon, that give high importance to video memory. Excessive VGA memory does not improve gaming performance. You may gain a couple of FPSes on very high resolutions (which is not a need in your case since your screen is not huge).

I recommend you get the 1 GB version. You'll be paying extra for the 2 GB without using a single byte of them in any game.

Hope this helped.
So True !! i ask my freinds what VGA you have to see if a game would work on their system and they tell me : "it is so powerful 1GB" :P
and with vista your ram are shared with the Vram
Tako_400 wroteThe resolution is the standard screen resolution, 1366 x 768. I might play shooters. But most of all I'll be playing strategy games and RPGs. And I've got 300W of power.
your resolution is basic , I have a weaker VGA and i play with greater res, but you need to upgrade your 300W Power Supply for sure.
the ATI HD4890 1GB uses 222W when idle and 317 with Crysis DX10 enabled . The GTX275 has lower power consumption when idle (187W) but greater power when fully used with Crysis (364W) (numbers taken form Bit-tech.net)

Testing both cards with Crysis on max, DirectX10, 16XAF, 4XAA, 1680*1050 these are the results: GTX275 36.9FPS average (22 Lowest) ATI Radeon HD4890 1GB 31FPS (17 Lowest) So performance very close !!!

Idk witch Version of the GTX275/HD4980 you will get but those where the basic versions of both cards, any other version will have a slightly better performance
GN90 wrote
sin wroteWatch out however from the marketing campaigns, especially in Lebanon, that give high importance to video memory. Excessive VGA memory does not improve gaming performance. You may gain a couple of FPSes on very high resolutions (which is not a need in your case since your screen is not huge).

I recommend you get the 1 GB version. You'll be paying extra for the 2 GB without using a single byte of them in any game.

Hope this helped.
So True !! i ask my freinds what VGA you have to see if a game would work on their system and they tell me : "it is so powerful 1GB" :P
and with vista your ram are shared with the Vram
Tako_400 wroteThe resolution is the standard screen resolution, 1366 x 768. I might play shooters. But most of all I'll be playing strategy games and RPGs. And I've got 300W of power.
your resolution is basic , I have a weaker VGA and i play with greater res, but you need to upgrade your 300W Power Supply for sure.
the ATI HD4890 1GB uses 222W when idle and 317 with Crysis DX10 enabled . The GTX275 has lower power consumption when idle (187W) but greater power when fully used with Crysis (364W) (numbers taken form Bit-tech.net)

Testing both cards with Crysis on max, DirectX10, 16XAF, 4XAA, 1680*1050 these are the results: GTX275 36.9FPS average (22 Lowest) ATI Radeon HD4890 1GB 31FPS (17 Lowest) So performance very close !!!

Idk witch Version of the GTX275/HD4980 you will get but those where the basic versions of both cards, any other version will have a slightly better performance
Woah. Wait, how do I find the power supply sent to my PC? Is it on the specs of the PC model? I might have done something wrong. :D
It's the metal box thingy usally on the back of the case with the fan and where the power cable is plugged to your case. You should open you case and view the specifications.
I think it should be at least +20 A on +12 V field. Also, your new VGA will not fit on an old PSU, your VGA will probably need extra power from the PSU through a new cable standard (forgot the name of that one).

Bottom line, you need a new PSU.
sin wroteIt's the metal box thingy usally on the back of the case with the fan and where the power cable is plugged to your case. You should open you case and view the specifications.
I think it should be at least +20 A on +12 V field. Also, your new VGA will not fit on an old PSU, your VGA will probably need extra power from the PSU through a new cable standard (forgot the name of that one).

Bottom line, you need a new PSU.
It should. My board is pretty new. It's in the SG45H7. Came out a couple of years ago.
It's not about being "new". You can always find new 300 PSUs, because they're cheaper and they can run business computers quite well.
But to play games on the new VGA, you're going to need a minimum of 600 PSU.

Don't say I didn't warn ya :P
sin wroteIt's not about being "new". You can always find new 300 PSUs, because they're cheaper and they can run business computers quite well.
But to play games on the new VGA, you're going to need a minimum of 600 PSU.

Don't say I didn't warn ya :P
Alright. I'll check up on that ASAP. Thanks for the heads up.
Make sure you get a PSU that is of good name (Antec, Thermaltake, Enermax, PC Power & Cooling), and is 500 W at least. As sin said, you need to make sure you have 20A on the +12 V rail and a 4-pin connector for the card.

Never go cheap on a PSU ! It can damage all your parts if it is not stable enough.
Aww, crap. This is just what I needed. Anyways, so I went up on the support list of my PC (http://au.shuttle.com/support_list03.jsp?PI=1131) and looked up what I could get. According to the website, I can't get a card a Radeon stronger than the 4770. I was looking at the 4870, but it wasn't on the list. So my question to you guys is: Is that due to the size of the card or the power supply? I'm hoping the power supply, because I can get a good one quickly, right?

This is much harder than I though, but thanks for all your help so far.
Post your specific PC model so that I can check with that link you sent. Your CPU could be weak and it will bottleneck the card for example. It could also be because of the PSU as you said. Another possibility is size. Look up the 4870 X2's dimensions and measure inside your case and see if it will fit.

Note that if it says that you can run the 4770, then that means you do have the 4-pin connector for the video card since the 4770 requires it.
Yeah I never thought a CPU can bottleneck a GPU until I learned it the hard way.
I've got a geforce 250 GTS (equivalent to 9800GTX+) running on a Pentium D.
I got around 7000 points on 3D Mark 05 where I should get around 15 000.
Still better than the 2000 I used to get using my 7600GT mind you.

But believe me, you will need a good CPU to be able to take full advantage of your GPU power. Mine is running at half the real power!
you need to keep in mind that nearly everything that passes through the computer in info and calculations MUST pass into the CPU and if the CPU is slower than the GPU its normal to have some drawbacks since all the calculations must be done by the CPU before being sent to the GPU......
Xsever wrotePost your specific PC model so that I can check with that link you sent. Your CPU could be weak and it will bottleneck the card for example. It could also be because of the PSU as you said. Another possibility is size. Look up the 4870 X2's dimensions and measure inside your case and see if it will fit.

Note that if it says that you can run the 4770, then that means you do have the 4-pin connector for the video card since the 4770 requires it.
The model was in the link I gave you. It's the SG45H7. However, the site does not specify if the card restrictions are due to size or power supply. So that is my problem. I'm calling RightClick now. I don't know if you know it, but they sold me the Shuttle and most of their PC's are Shuttle's. So I'll call them and see if they can expand my power supply.


But as for the matter of the size, you want me to literally open up my PC and measure if the cards fit?
The resolution is the standard screen resolution, 1366 x 768.
The VGA's you're choosing from are overkill for such a low resolution.
A GTS 250 1Gb should be more than enough imo.
surfer12 wrote
The resolution is the standard screen resolution, 1366 x 768.
The VGA's you're choosing from are overkill for such a low resolution.
A GTS 250 1Gb should be more than enough imo.
I know. I got that a few times. But I just want to invest in a good card now and not have to for another year or year and a half.