Which hd38xx to go for with my system?

[alexp999]

Hi,
I am looking at possibly upgrading my Gfx card over my Bday in the next month or two. I am trying to decied between a:

HD3850 256mb DDR3 ~ £100
HD3850 512mb DDR3 ~ £120
HD3870 512mb DDR4 ~ £140

<- It would be going into my current system

Now my monitor goes upto 1440x900 but I also play on my TV @ 720p
My games:
Half-Life 2 - Original, EP1, EP2. Funny thing with this game, original and EP1 runs fine with all settings on max but for EP2 I have to turn anti aliasing off completly to get playable framerates? Also when I turn the torch on in EP2 my framerate drops from 60(VSYNC) to 30(exactly 30 like a vsync at 30!).

EVE Online - With the new GFX engine. I have most settings on max but I have to have no AA or AF and vsync can be on, but for some reason like HL2 EP2 when lights start shining the fps drops to exactly 30?! how bizarre!!! I also have to have bloom off on this game and lowest shadow quality.

Rollercoaster tycoon - All settings on max but with only lvl 1 AA and it still struggles with alot on the screen.

Ghost Recon Advanced Warfighter -All settings maxed but it only just holds a playable framerate and struggles with lots on the screen, i.e the very beggining, lol! (approx 20fps as you jumpout the plane)

X3 Reunion - Havent got this running atm and havent had a chance to work out best quality to FPS ratio.

I would also like the scope of being able to play other games as I get them, like crysis, bioshock etc.

I would like to get my current games to run on max if poss, I am basically trying to decide which would be best for my current system, i.e do i need 512mb or 256mb, would the 3870 be bottlenecked by my sytem?

Any thoughts, comments, welcome,

Cheers.

[Wile E]

512MB is a must for newer games, even at 1440x900. While the 3870 wouild be slightly bottlenecked, it will still perform better than the 3850. I say get the 3870, if you can afford it. It's a little more future proof resistant than the 3850 as well.

Any particular reason you're only shopping ATI? An 8800GT is also a good choice, if it's in your price range, and it's faster than all of the above mentioned cards. If it's out of range, I understand.

[alexp999]

512MB is a must for newer games, even at 1440x900. While the 3870 wouild be slightly bottlenecked, it will still perform better than the 3850. I say get the 3870, if you can afford it. It's a little more future proof resistant than the 3850 as well.

Any particular reason you're only shopping ATI? An 8800GT is also a good choice, if it's in your price range, and it's faster than all of the above mentioned cards. If it's out of range, I understand.

It is out of my range really, also the HD38xx use less power and I cant afford a more expensive gfx card and a new PSU to cover the power requirments.

Thanks for your comment tho. Just out of interest which bit of my system would you say is the biggest bottleneck (other than gfx car atm, lol!)

[Tatty_One]

Your monitor resolution will allow you to play many games on 256MB of GDDR but IMO 512MB is preferrable without a doubt, especially in DX10 games seeing as you mentioned Crysis so my recommendation out of ATi would be the HD3870 512MB, but, rather than spend £140, if you are prepared to wait 7-10 days, just spend £130 on this excellent pre-order deal at scan, a friend of mine e mailed them first before he ordered for an estimated delivery and they said 7 - 10 days:

http://www.scan.co.uk/Products/ProductInfo.asp?WebProductID=707460

But still for less than your £140 you can get a Powercolor "Extreme" version from Overclockers UK on "this week only", this card looks nice! and has GDDR4..... Ohhhh and it is in stock!

http://www.overclockers.co.uk/showproduct.php?prodid=GX-079-PC

[alexp999]

Your monitor resolution will allow you to play many games on 256MB of GDDR but IMO 512MB is preferrable without a doubt, especially in DX10 games seeing as you mentioned Crysis so my recommendation out of ATi would be the HD3870 512MB, but, rather than spend £140, if you are prepared to wait 7-10 days, just spend £130 on this excellent pre-order deal at scan, a friend of mine e mailed them first before he ordered for an estimated delivery and they said 7 - 10 days:

http://www.scan.co.uk/Products/ProductInfo.asp?WebProductID=707460

But still for less than your £140 you can get a Powercolor "Extreme" version from Overclockers UK on "this week only", this card looks nice! and has GDDR4..... Ohhhh and it is in stock!

http://www.overclockers.co.uk/showproduct.php?prodid=GX-079-PC

Hi thanks for your post, only problem is that I have read reviews on those powercolors and apparently the fan can be very niosy, I would also like a card that vented out the back. Thanks for the links tho.

Also i have been looking on Guru3D and there doesnt really seem any difference between the 512mb 3850 and 3870, is it just the games/drivers are not harnessing the power of the 3870 yet?

http://www.guru3d.com/article/Videocards/472/

Cheers.

[alexp999]

Hi thanks for your post, only problem is that I have read reviews on those powercolors and apparently the fan can be very niosy, I would also like a card that vented out the back. Thanks for the links tho.

Also i have been looking on Guru3D and there doesnt really seem any difference between the 512mb 3850 and 3870, is it just the games/drivers are not harnessing the power of the 3870 yet?

http://www.guru3d.com/article/Videocards/472/

Cheers.

K, take that back, lol, just looked again, got the colored bars mixed up, there is a difference between 3850 and 3870, lol. Thought it was a bit odd. :rolleyes:

[tigger]

My 256mb card has no trouble on none of my games,i only game at 1440x900 too.

[Tatty_One]

I did try to hold myself back origionally from saying (because you only mentioned ATi), if you were happy to go with 256MB you would be better off getting the 8800GT 256MB version which is well within your price range.

[alexp999]

I did try to hold myself back origionally from saying (because you only mentioned ATi), if you were happy to go with 256MB you would be better off getting the 8800GT 256MB version which is well within your price range.

Okay, so what do people think?

ATi HD3870 512Mb GDDR4

vs/or

NVIDIA 8800GT 256Mb GDDR3

Any benchies?

Cheers.

[alexp999]

Okay, so what do people think?

ATi HD3870 512Mb GDDR4

vs/or

NVIDIA 8800GT 256Mb GDDR3

Any benchies?

Cheers.

Actually, forgot my own reason, lol, I was sticking to ATi cus of the lower power requirments of the HD38xx, apparently they only use about 100w.

[Tatty_One]

Okay, so what do people think?

ATi HD3870 512Mb GDDR4

vs/or

NVIDIA 8800GT 256Mb GDDR3

Any benchies?

Cheers.

HD3870 512MB FTW!!!! :)

[alexp999]

HD3870 512MB FTW!!!! :)

Thanks, I have also looked and according to System Requirments Lab all the new games, like bioshock, crysis, company of heroes, etc, say that my system is capable under the recommended section, apart from the gfx card (obviosuly, lol!) but it does say that they all need a 512mb card.

So last thing,
is it worth the extra £20 ($40) getting the 3870 over 3850?

Cheers.

[Grings]

yes, in many 3850 reviews (including the ones on tpu) they dont seem to overclock much further than the 3870's speed, obviously some will, but its a risk that i would be wary of taking.
most likely the chips are speed-binned, so 3870's use the better performing chips (though obviously, as with any hardware, they make more 3850's than they make lesser performing chips, so some will clock perfectly well, its just a risk thats all)

[tigger]

I'd say it is.I only got my 3850 256mb to use for a month or two,to see whats on the horizon as it was so cheap.Its mUch better than the 1950pro i took out.I mite wait till the new nv cards come out and get a new gts when the prices drop.

Edit-the only reason the 3850's dont oc as high as the 70 is the vgpu on the 50 is lower than the 70 in 3d mode.With the vmod on my 3850,i've had the core upto 840 no sweat,and theres more in it.

[trog100]

one big thing that never seems to get a mention.. the new cheapo 8800gt 256 cards are not simply 256 versions of the original.. they have been dumbed down..

nvida are now selling a "name"..

the vent out the back of the case 3870 512 card is the best all round bet.. the cheaper 256 850 would do the job if money is really tight..

the HIS vent out the back ice cooler overclocked 850 512 card is very nice thow.. OC/UK have them.. very nice looking pretty blue things as well..

trog

[alexp999]

one big thing that never seems to get a mention.. the new cheapo 8800gt 256 cards are not simply 256 versions of the original.. they have been dumbed down..

nvida are now selling a "name"..

the vent out the back of the case 3870 512 card is the bet all round bet.. the cheaper 256 850 would do the job if money is really tight..

the HIS vent out the back overclocked 850 512 card is very nice thow.. OC/UK have them.. very nice looking pretty blue things as well..

trog

I know what you mean, blue would look better in my case too, red could look out of place, lol

This one?:
http://www.overclockers.co.uk/showproduct.php?prodid=GX-089-HT

Anybody got any idea how better they are? I.e temps?

Cheers.

[trog100]

way better than the single slot stock ones.. i have seem one in the flesh so to speak.. thye realy do loook the bees knees.. the only temporary downside is OC/UK have the same pretty blue 3870 one this week only special offer for only 4 quid more..

having said that.. OC/UK are known for useing stock pics.. the blue 870 HIS one might be the original HIS red one like i have.. he he he

trog

ps.. this is the 850 512 one i meant by the way.. u linked to the 870 one..

http://www.overclockers.co.uk/showproduct.php?prodid=GX-088-HT&groupid=701&catid=56&subcat=416

[Silverel]

If you can find it for a good price the Visiontek 3850 come's OC'd to 700, and can hit 3870 speeds without sweating. Dunno what prices are for you over there though...

[GTX]

u would better get the 8800 GT :)

[alexp999]

u would better get the 8800 GT :)

What a 256mb 8800gt? over a 512mb 3870?

[alexp999]

K, I have decided to go for the HIS IceQ version of the 3870.
Couple of reasons, its blue so will fit in well with my case (not the main reason, lol), it has a higher performing cooler and the cooler does not have the slots in it just before the rear vent that allows the hot air to "seep" into the case and not out the back! :confused:

But I just wanted to ask, what is the difference between the IceQ and IceQ Turbo, seems bit of a gimmick to me, couldn't I just set OC speeds myself?

Cheers.

[erocker]

K, I have decided to go for the HIS IceQ version of the 3870.
Couple of reasons, its blue so will fit in well with my case (not the main reason, lol), it has a higher performing cooler and the cooler does not have the slots in it just before the rear vent that allows the hot air to "seep" into the case and not out the back! :confused:

But I just wanted to ask, what is the difference between the IceQ and IceQ Turbo, seems bit of a gimmick to me, couldn't I just set OC speeds myself?

Cheers.

Can you show me links of the 2 different cards?

This (http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814161217) is the one I'd get!

[alexp999]

Can you show me links of the 2 different cards?

This (http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814161217) is the one I'd get!

IceQ:
http://www.hisdigital.com/html/product_ov.php?id=364

IceQ Turbo:
http://www.hisdigital.com/html/product_ov.php?id=363

For me in the UK there is a price difference of about £30 ($60)
It looks like the same card but I am assuming that the Turbo has a bios with higher clock values, so surely i can do that myself with ati overdrive and save myself thirty quid?

Cheers.

[WhiteLotus]

i just ordered a 3850 512 of ebuyer for £114

if arrives soon i can let you know the performance on X3 as i have that game

[alexp999]

i just ordered a 3850 512 of ebuyer for £114

if arrives soon i can let you know the performance on X3 as i have that game

That would be great thanks!

[WhiteLotus]

not a problem at all

[alexp999]

Okay so any ideas? Is turbo pointless?

But what I also wanted to ask, has there been a way found for enabling aa and hdr in eve online with ati cards?

Cheers.

[ShadowFold]

What ever you do get a HIS IceQ version the coolers rock!

[trog100]

the ice turbo at 850 core speed is unusual.. its either fed a little more voltage than normal or caries cherry picked chips.. they dont have any thow which is the snag.. they have been on pre-order for a while..

the normal 3870 cooler is okay no real advantage with the ice cooler.. the normal 3850 cooler is weaker there is an advantage with the ice cooler..

something is special about the HIS 3870 turbo card.. no normal 3870 will run those speeds and be guaranteed stable.. 850 core out pf the box is quite an overclock compared to the usual 777 reference boards..

trog

[ShadowFold]

heh I have my HD 3850 IceQ at 777mhz core 44c full 100% load on Crysis all high.

[alexp999]

heh I have my HD 3850 IceQ at 777mhz core 44c full 100% load on Crysis all high.

Is that DX9 or 10?

Cheers.

[ShadowFold]

Is that DX9 or 10?

Cheers.

All high is DX9, All Very high is DX10.

[alexp999]

All high is DX9, All Very high is DX10.

Thats a pretty big OC for a 3850, is it just clock changes, i.e no volt mods?

Also I didnt think a 73Mhz OC was that much in relation to the 3870's? People in the sticky for 38xx OC's have got upto 900+.

Just a thought,

Cheers.

[jammy86]

I did try to hold myself back origionally from saying (because you only mentioned ATi), if you were happy to go with 256MB you would be better off getting the 8800GT 256MB version which is well within your price range.

Wow! Fanboi alert!!!! The 256 8800gt is wank. the 3850 is better at everything, just about.

JAmes.

[ShadowFold]

Thats a pretty big OC for a 3850, is it just clock changes, i.e no volt mods?

Also I didnt think a 73Mhz OC was that much in relation to the 3870's? People in the sticky for 38xx OC's have got upto 900+.

Just a thought,

Cheers.

I dont even know how to volt mod so.. the people who have theres at 900+mhz have volt modded and are insane :p

[alexp999]

I dont even know how to volt mod so.. the people who have theres at 900+mhz have volt modded and are insane :p

Still that pretty good for unmodded, its 109Mhz above a normal 3850, so 73Mhz isnt asking much for a 3870 with the IceQ cooler is it?

Cheers.

[ShadowFold]

Still that pretty good for unmodded, its 109Mhz above a normal 3850, so 73Mhz isnt asking much for a 3870 with the IceQ cooler is it?

Cheers.

Yea I know its awsome. I cant go any higher tho or I get the black screen of death.

[trog100]

Also I didnt think a 73Mhz OC was that much in relation to the 3870's? People in the sticky for 38xx OC's have got upto 900+

forums are full of bullshit.. the average 3870 wont run gaming stable much over 830 core..

mine has been volt modded it still dosnt run gaming stable at 900 core..

course the real problem with giving sound advice is its drowned by misinformation and bullshit..

my contribution to this thread is now over.. fighting the bullshit is a fools errand.. he he he

trog

[alexp999]

Yea I know its awsome. I cant go any higher tho or I get the black screen of death.

Might be bios/driver capped, just looked at your system specs and they are not far off mine. What sort of performance do you get in games and on what settings?

Cheers.

[ShadowFold]

Might be bios/driver capped, just looked at your system specs and they are not far off mine. What sort of performance do you get in games and on what settings?

Cheers.

Pretty much everygame on high at 1440x900 30+ fps

[alexp999]

Pretty much everygame on high at 1440x900 30+ fps

That include stuff like crysis and bioshock too?

Cheers.

[Wile E]

That include stuff like crysis and bioshock too?

Cheers.Not maxed. Not at all. The 3870 is still the best bet.

[alexp999]

http://www.ebuyer.com/product/136384

Price/performance simply unbeatable. remmeber that they give free delivery when compared to otehr etailors.

I saw that one and thought the same, and I would get it if it didnt have that cooler on it. Apparently it is noiser than the normal cooler and I dont like the way it leaves the heat lingering in the case, I would much rather have a cooler that vents stright out the back of the pc.

Cheers tho.

[wolf]

i still have a HIS Radeon 9800Pro 128m Ice-Q, and the coolers rocked back then, imo its between HIS and Sapphire, and if you get HIS make sure its Ice-Q

both the 3850 512meg and 3870 are great value so whatever you can afford..

[alexp999]

Thats because the normal cooler is dead silent with automatic fan control. The zerotherm fan is on 100% all the time so its audible. Put the stock cooler on 60-100% and youll hear a jet take off.

Fair point but as i say, I dont like how the cooler doesnt vent out the back, otherwise it would proably be the card to get.

[Tatty_One]

Wow! Fanboi alert!!!! The 256 8800gt is wank. the 3850 is better at everything, just about.

JAmes.

Lol, My next door neighbour has both the 256MB 8800GT and the 512MB HD3850, they perform quite similarily in Crysis because the 3850 has the extra memory but most games he is getting between 15 and 25 more FPS and in 3D Mark 2006 he only gets a meer 3,600 points more!.......but of course, feel free to think the 3850 is better than everything, ohhhhhh on one other thing, I have two HIS HD3870's here........so how can I be a fanboi? :D

Edit: I should have added that he games at 1280 x 1024 so it might well be that in higher res the 3850 beats it.......dunno.

Just checked a review,the GT beats the 3850 in most at 1280 x 1024, once you turn up the res in some the 3850 wins although not in all. If you count them all up at all the res shown....I think you will find it's a win to the 256MB GT! :)

http://www.legitreviews.com/article/607/7/

[WhiteLotus]

http://www.ebuyer.com/product/136384

Price/performance simply unbeatable. remmeber that they give free delivery when compared to otehr etailors.

thats the one i ordered - stock is going fast!

[WhiteLotus]

Lol, I dont know what planet you come from but it's not "planet reality" :p.....my next door neighbour has both the 256MB 8800GT and the 512MB HD3850, they perform quite similarily in Crysis only because the 3850 has the extra memory but in every other game he is getting between 15 and 25 more FPS and in 3D Mark 2006 he only gets a meer 3,600 points more!.......but of course, feel free to think the 3850 is better than everything, ohhhhhh on one other thing, I have two HIS HD3870's here........so how can I be a fanboi? :D

lol you owned him good

[Tatty_One]

lol you owned him good

Not really, I amended my post as I thought it may be taken as a bit confrontational......although it was not intended that way, I posted a review, the 3850 does win in some, but across the board the 256MB 8800GT does win more. ;) Although personally, in DX10 IMO 512MB is a must.

[alexp999]

Lol, My next door neighbour has both the 256MB 8800GT and the 512MB HD3850, they perform quite similarily in Crysis because the 3850 has the extra memory but most games he is getting between 15 and 25 more FPS and in 3D Mark 2006 he only gets a meer 3,600 points more!.......but of course, feel free to think the 3850 is better than everything, ohhhhhh on one other thing, I have two HIS HD3870's here........so how can I be a fanboi? :D

Edit: I should have added that he games at 1280 x 1024 so it might well be that in higher res the 3850 beats it.......dunno.

Just checked a review,the GT beats the 3850 in most at 1280 x 1024, once you turn up the res in some the 3850 wins although not in all. If you count them all up at all the res shown....I think you will find it's a win to the 256MB GT! :)

http://www.legitreviews.com/article/607/7/

Know what you mean with 8800gt vs 3850, thats why I cant wait to get my 3870 :D
But the only thing with that review you have posted is that it compares a stock 3850 and stock 3870 with a XXX edition, i.e OC'd version of the 8800gt, so those comparisons aren't overly fair.
That aside, nice review site, have been looking for somewhere that pitched a range of ati and nvidia cards.

Cheers.

[Tatty_One]

Know what you mean with 8800gt vs 3850, thats why I cant wait to get my 3870 :D
But the only thing with that review you have posted is that it compares a stock 3850 and stock 3870 with a XXX edition, i.e OC'd version of the 8800gt, so those comparisons aren't overly fair.
That aside, nice review site, have been looking for somewhere that pitched a range of ati and nvidia cards.

Cheers.

Yeah didnt notice that, however as with the 3850....there is still a pretty fair amount of overclocking headroom in the card, by neighbour has both of his overclocked, I think his 3850 is at 755 and his 8800GT is at 770mhz.

[alexp999]

Yeah didnt notice that, however as with the 3850....there is still a pretty fair amount of overclocking headroom in the card, by neighbour has both of his overclocked, I think his 3850 is at 755 and his 8800GT is at 770mhz.

Nice, cant wait to get mine, and push that a bit too! Will be first time I will have a PC capable of playing latest games! :D
And not falling over with HL2 EP2 when I turn on the flashlight, lol!!! :roll:

[alexp999]

How come on that review u posted, the nvidias do amazing with bioshock compared to the ati's then it is the opposite for crysis??? :wtf: :confused:

[tigger]

I bet that xxx gt wont beat my 3850 oc'd to 840core and 1010ram. :p

[ShadowFold]

Get the HIS HD 3870 IceQ if you can afford it

[Wile E]

I bet that xxx gt wont beat my 3850 oc'd to 840core and 1010ram. :pBet my GT OCed to 775/1050 does. lol. :p

[Makaveli]

pwnage!

[Tatty_One]

I bet that xxx gt wont beat my 3850 oc'd to 840core and 1010ram. :p

Bet it will in 60% of everything at 770 core and 1050 memory :p

[Tatty_One]

I bet that xxx gt wont beat my 3850 oc'd to 840core and 1010ram. :p

ohhhh and I bet my 8800GTS 512mb @ 835 core and 2100 on the shaders will...........;)