FROM GREEN TO RED......

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2MEKEE

33 posts

Geek

#32441 17-Apr-2009 10:09

howz it

Im thinking about taking the plunge and switching from Nvidia to Ati GPU's as Ati have some great cards at the moment and are more in the affordable price Bracket .

ive got my eye on the XFX 4850 model or if something can suggested for around the $400 mark

ive got a couple of questions a bout Ati cards:

1) How is Ati's driver support ( ive heard they have a bit of a bad reputation for driver support compared to nvidia)

2) Ive heard rumors that Ati cards are sometimes not able to run certain games GTA4 is an example

and just as a matter of interest what would the 4850 be equivalent in nvidias range

specs:
8800gt
e8200 @ 2.66 can oc to 3.2
22" 1680/1050 monitor

cheers

"There is the known and the unknown. In between are the doors" - Jim Morrison

eXDee

4033 posts

Uber Geek
+1 received by user: 1070

Trusted

#207638 17-Apr-2009 16:35

My HD4850 runs GTA4 as good as the next card. GTA4 is just a really really badly made game on the PC, its hardly optimized at all so runs bad on everything.
HD4850 = 9800GTX+

paradoxsm

3000 posts

Uber Geek

Trusted

#207642 17-Apr-2009 16:59

GTA4 on the pc is an utter dog of security bullsh*t, you can't mod it, you gotta be logged in to Windowslive and Rockstar Social club, you have to have IE, Flash, and a whole bunch of unnessesary stuff installed just to play it.

The codes had to register "online" and of course that failed.

Got it all installed, everything registered and running but the game just won't start, no error, no logfile... no support....Waste of money, tried 3 different PC's, finally ran on the third machine but ONLY with a cracked EXE. Time to hit the Torrents and see if that one will install. >:-(

On to the topic of ATi, I have always had a great run with ATi products but often games are optimised for nVidia, In many cases I have had a cheaper ATi product trounce the optimised nvidia the game was built for (far cry was an example) it gleamed on the radeon.

2MEKEE

33 posts

Geek

#207682 17-Apr-2009 20:22

howz it

Yeah i already have GTA4 and have done already 60+plus hours,love the game but know exactly what your talking about,buy the way i use a cracked EXE as well its the only way around the BS but still have to start game via social club ,seems like Rockstar focused on protecting there product rather than creating another classic ,shame.but anyway i digress.

What sort ot FPS are you getting with an 4850? on gta4 with my specs (see first post) normal play no missions or action just cruising round, i get an average of 28fps. and can slow down 19fps when thing heat up (poor 8800's they are at there lifes end :(

Thats good news about the drivers and playability/compatibility of Ati cards (will what and see what other opinions are posted as well),atomic mag have given this card a pretty good rating and rap.

"There is the known and the unknown. In between are the doors" - Jim Morrison

paradoxsm

3000 posts

Uber Geek

Trusted

#207702 17-Apr-2009 23:16

Should have been a bit more in depth with my reply.

It worked on an nVidia 8600GT The game runs about 20-30 frames per second on this card though the CPU in that this machine was rubbish. (Celeron 1MB cache) The game would excecute on a 7600GT but the craphics were totally messed up (unplayable)

I ripped the game to bits and enjoyed the music and graphics, had to get something for my $100. I'm still modding and playing San Andreas every other day and have had great value from it.

I'll get a PS3 or xBOX for games from now on after this and the last game (Half-Life Source) had far too much security junk forcing me to get "secondary" versions that I can play and modify easily, shame I can';t play Mouse-Keyboard with the consoles though.

Tzleren

30 posts

Geek

#207731 18-Apr-2009 09:49

Definitely consider the 4870 over the 4850, or you could consider voltmodding that 8800gt if the warranty has already expired (800/1700/2000 at 1.3v under air is doable).

2MEKEE

33 posts

Geek

#207801 18-Apr-2009 17:10

hey

@Tzleren,
those are some massive increases,under air ,are you sure? id imagine there would be a fair bit of heat from doing those speeds.prob is i have my GPU OCed at the moment ( 700x1000 ) mild i know but i had heat and crashing issues when playing certain games ( example, far cry 2).

but your right i shouldve considered the 4870 as well (good call ) ill look into it,thx

cheers

"There is the known and the unknown. In between are the doors" - Jim Morrison

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Tzleren

30 posts

Geek

#207819 18-Apr-2009 18:43

2MEKEE: hey
those are some massive increases,under air ,are you sure? id imagine there would be a fair bit of heat from

800 is definitely doable under some quality air cooling - 864 or so under water, 2000 mem I quote in DDR ofc - and that's about as far as those qimonda memory chips will go (what you have at the moment). Under load those cards will reach 80º+ with stock cooling, at 1.3v 800/1700/2000 and an HR03GT+fan load was approx 64º.

A quality soldering iron with a fine tip is a must, and a magnifying glass. The 7900gs is also a great card to voltmod, and you can pick them up really cheap nowdays. Something to consider anyway before you shell out $400+

ticallista

24 posts

Geek

#207927 19-Apr-2009 14:26

$400 for a 4850 is a lot.

Go for a 4870. A new one is around $400 or less.

If you are lucky, you can get a good second-hand one one from Trademe but make sure it still has warranty and is well-looked after.

I had a 8800gt and then moved to a 4870. Very happy.

Adamal

544 posts

Ultimate Geek

#207952 19-Apr-2009 16:44

Wow. $400 for a 4850 is HEAPS!

For that sort of money, you can get one of these:

http://www.xpcomputers.co.nz/views.asp?hw_id=4265

Which I've touted on here as being a great card, which it is. I've had no trouble with mine. Runs cooler, faster and quieter.

2MEKEE

33 posts

Geek

#207972 19-Apr-2009 18:01

hi

Lol soz there seems to be a bit of confusion im not gonna pay $400 for a 4850,no im prepared to spend $400 on a GPU if its gonna be worth the extra bang for buck

Is 1 gb of ram worth the extra $$ im mean im playing HD resolutions but not 1080p
plus im only running XP on 32bit i presume the 4870 1gb is pci-e 2.0. So am i right in saying that i wouldnt be getting the full benefit of 1gb of ram? So the 512mb would do the job (so to speak)

@ticallista

Im very interested in your story, if you dont mind could you plz answer a few questions .

What are your specs?

What sort off FPS your getting on the latest FPS (GTA4,Farcry 2,Fallout 3, even the stalker series )(of course if you have them).

What is your impression of Ati's driver support? and general playability/compatibility with games?

How many pins does the card have in the s-video connection?

Have you connected up your PC to an HD TV?

@Tzleren

Mate i dont have the skills or knowledge to preform what you have suggested. But thanks anyway

cheers

"There is the known and the unknown. In between are the doors" - Jim Morrison