HD 5850 in x-fire or save for 6xxx?

[sakage.shinga]

Hi guys,

I currently have a single XFX Radeon HD 5850 1GB card running my games, and I'm a little tempted to try out cross-fire by getting a second card. Assuming I can get the card for ~$150, will it be worth it for playing games like Battlefield 3 and Skyrim? Or should I save my money and get a 6xxx card in the near future?

Thanks!

[NineLives]

save for a 6870 as getting a 6950 or 6990 is really not worth it. The power difference is so little for an extra 100 dollars between each card. Also I have crossfire 5770's the microstutter hurts my eyes and it is totally not worth it.

[sakage.shinga]

Originally Posted by NineLives

save for a 6870 as getting a 6950 or 6990 is really not worth it. The power difference is so little for an extra 100 dollars between each card. Also I have crossfire 5770's the microstutter hurts my eyes and it is totally not worth it.

So the 6870 is a good upgrade from my 5850 even though it also has 1gb memory? Will I notice gaming performance improvements in games like Battlefield 3?

[techman95]

yes. i recently bought a 6870 and my improvement over my cousins 5850 is very noticeable. for instance the frames drops are not nearly as bad as the 5xxx series ( hes so jealous ) and plus xfx has really been competitive with their stuff lately, i got my reference 6870 for 180 without mail in rebate from newegg with shogun2

[Dr_BenD_over]

I wasn't terribly impressed with my short term trial of dual 5850's and I won't even get into how much of a PITA Crossfire can be.

[BootlegUsher]

It seems like crossfire is a good idea if you have the cash to buy two cards right off the bat. This whole idea of buying one now and waiting till the price drops and buying another one just doesn't seem to pan out. By the time the price actually drops significantly there are new cards with better features that will do more FPS than Xfire 5850 anyways.

[maverick_brent]

what resolution?

im a firm believer and supporter of the 6950, and i disagree with the other poster that the 6950 isnt worth the extra 100 bucks, especially if you get a card that can be unlocked (hold debate on the performance gains there) modding the card is just cool :P

and as far as bf3 goes, i can accurately say that the 6950 will do just fine ;)

[maverick_brent]

Originally Posted by BootlegUsher

It seems like crossfire is a good idea if you have the cash to buy two cards right off the bat. This whole idea of buying one now and waiting till the price drops and buying another one just doesn't seem to pan out. By the time the price actually drops significantly there are new cards with better features that will do more FPS than Xfire 5850 anyways.

agreed, i have been "planning to crossfire" since i purchased my radeon 4850...and by the time the prices are right, i can buy a better single card for about the same money, less the sale of my old card.

[sakage.shinga]

If I do end up getting either card (6870 or 6950), I will definitely sell my 5850. How much do you guys think I can get for it on HWC?

[_dangtx_]

anything less than a 6950 is a nono

save you game at lower resolutions