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192 posts

Master Geek


Topic # 97603 17-Feb-2012 15:53 Send private message

Hey guys,

I've got a little bit of a dilemma and was hoping to get some advice on what to do.
So here's the story. Around July last year I built my first gaming PC, the graphics card I bought for it was this one: http://pricespy.co.nz/product.php?p=807758

At the time the plan was to buy one 6950 then buy another down the line when I began to need a bit more power, which is now the case.
Unfortunately this model seems to be becoming obsolete and i haven't been able to find any of this model anywhere except Amazon but their website states that they can only ship this specific model to US address's for some reason.
So the plan was to buy another one of these now then in a few months time when I had a bit more cash available, buy a larger case and completely rebuild my current EK water cooling loop so that it accommodates for the two GPU's by using full cover blocks as well as back plates. (My current loop only cools my CPU). As well as this I'm planning on sleeving all the cables and doing a few other things to the aesthetics of my system because I've seen so many other amazing builds out there, that it's inspired me to do the same sort of thing.

Now I was hoping you guys could give me some advice as to whether I buy a different model of 6950 as long as the PCB is the same size and colour as my current one (The 6950 I'm using atm uses a 6870 PCB for some reason). I want it to be the same size so that I can use two of the same EK water blocks and back plates later on down the road, but if the stock cooler looks rather different that's not so much of an issue. Another option I've been thinking about is selling my current 6950 and buying two of another model of 6950 that EK sell blocks for or otherwise go for a single more powerful card such as a 7950 (this second option doesn't appeal to me as much as crossfireing two 6950's would usually give me much better performance than a single 7950 even though 7950's are around twice the price)

If you guys have any ideas or opinions let me know :)

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  Reply # 582897 17-Feb-2012 16:31 Send private message

What games are you playing at what resolution? Also what are the specs of the rest of your PC?

The reason I ask is it often depends on the game whether you will actually get any benefit from crossfire. Some don't benefit much at all others benefit massively.

Typically AMD develop and release profiles in a separate installer called Catalyst CAP that enable crossfire for new games. Notably recently BF3 and Skyrim didn't get crossfire profiles till weeks and even months after their release.

You may be better off with a single higher end card like the new 7970 3GB once it comes down a bit from it's "just released this month price level".

Alternatively Nvidia GFX 590 or 580 might offer the performance you want. 



192 posts

Master Geek


  Reply # 582915 17-Feb-2012 17:02 Send private message

Currently I play games like Skyrim (highly modded), Crysis 2 and Sims 3 @ 1920x1080, but once I get new card I'll look at running my games at 5760x1080. In terms of the rest of the specs I've got an i5 2500K @4.5GHz and 4GB RAM.

I know that a multi-card setup isn't always as compatible with games but to me, half of it is the aesthetics of the system aswell, hence why I'm planning on sleeving my cables etc. Plus I don't see the point in spending $800 on a 7950 for example (and possibly not be able to sell my current card), when I could spend around half that on another 6950 and usually get better performance.
Man I hate being fussy haha.

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