Which Video Card for $350 budget

[Birk]

I'm just curious as to which video card you guys would choose for your build if you had a budget of ~$350

Currently mysetup includes

i5 2500K
P8Z68-V Pro/Gen3
8gb ram
850watt PSU

My thoughts are either 6970 or 570 but I'm not sure which brand to go with and I'm open to other options. I'll be playing the current higher end games.

Thanks guys!

[Pabz0r545]

It's really up to you. I think they perform right on par with eachother. One might slightly beat the other in certain situations. Your nvidia lovers will obv say green team and your AMD lovers will say red team!

I chose the 6970. I've always had radeon cards and they've served me well. I'm sure the 570 will serve just as well though.

[dandelioneater]

my vote is on whichever one you can get a better deal on. They are so close performance wise and Drivers are a non issue with single card setups IMO. The 6970 comes with a backplate i think, unlike the 570.

[GT7R]

Personally, up to 1900X1200 get the 570, any higher res - 6970.

[Pabz0r545]

Originally Posted by GT7R

Personally, up to 1900X1200 get the 570, any higher res - 6970.

I'm curious why? Can you explain why it is better for the lower res?

[NightRain]

Originally Posted by Pabz0r545

I'm curious why? Can you explain why it is better for the lower res?

6970 has more video memory. I tried a 570 with 1920x1200 and using games with high texture packs I ran out of memory quickly (ie Fallout 3, Oblivion, etc). If you use AA you'll run out of memory too. BF3 is a great example with 1GB or 1.25GB isn't enough. I returned the GTX 570 and bought a MSI HD 6970 Lightning and I'm so much happier. I considered a GTX 580 but didn't think it was worth the extra money and I was looking at 3GB versions.

I have since added a second card and overall I'm very happy. I saved a ton of money compared to buying two 580's and other than a few driver issues here and there they work extremely well. I'd vote for 6970.

[Birk]

I think it would work but would my motherboard (P8Z68-V Pro) fit 2 of these?
NCIX.com - Buy ASUS Radeon HD 6970 DirectCU II 890MHZ 2GB 5.5GHZ GDDR5 2XDVI 4XDISPLAYPORT HDMI PCI-E Video Card - ASUS - EAH6970 DCII/2DI4S/2GD5 - in Canada

[AkG]

Barely. That card is a THREE slot beast. So it will basically fill up all but the top x1 slot. Also....your temps will be less than optimal with the top card as there will no be much room between its fan intakes and the top of the other gpu card....and maybe the bottom as one as well depending on case.

[NightRain]

Originally Posted by AkG

Barely. That card is a THREE slot beast. So it will basically fill up all but the top x1 slot. Also....your temps will be less than optimal with the top card as there will no be much room between its fan intakes and the top of the other gpu card....and maybe the bottom as one as well depending on case.

+1. I'm not a fan of three slot cards because they leave no space between the cards for cooling. Look at a two slot design. I use these cards.

Newegg.ca - MSI R6970 Lightning Radeon HD 6970 2GB 256-bit GDDR5 PCI Express 2.1 x16 HDCP Ready CrossFireX Support Video Card

I have a different motherboard but the same slot configuration.

[Arinoth]

That Asus DirectCU II is an ABSOLUTE PIECE OF CRAP. I bought two of them and low and behold bolth of them developed fan rattling syndrome. Then one of them decided to stop taking fan speed directions and would random run at 100%. Turns out the fan control wire had gotten loose from the connector, what the hell?

If I were you I'd go with the GTX 570, better driver support plus physx. I've run 6970s, though it was in crossfire where their drivers aren't as smooth as nvidia.