Which Graphics Card to get?

Tommyd · 06 Nov 2009

I am ordering a new PC, and would like some advice on which graphics card to choose. The three I am considering (can afford) are:
1GB Nvidia Geforce GTS 250
1GB ATI Radeon HD 4870
1GB ATI Radeon HD 4850X2

Which card will give me better performance on max settings on a demanding game like GTA IV.
The rest of the system is as follows:
AMD Phenom II x4 @ 3.00GHz
4GB Corsair DDR3 RAM
1TB HDD

Gilly · 06 Nov 2009

4850*2
i think both then ati cards are better than the 250

gta4 is not that a demanding game gpu wise its more cpu dependant
(except it needs a whole lot of vram)

ive heard ,but not 100% sure that gta has some problems with *2 cards

smarteyeball · 06 Nov 2009

Tommyd said:

1GB ATI Radeon HD 4870
1GB ATI Radeon HD 4850X2

Which card will give me better performance on max settings on a demanding game like GTA IV.
The rest of the system is as follows:
AMD Phenom II x4 @ 3.00GHz
4GB Corsair DDR3 RAM
1TB HDD

Considering it's an AMD setup, I'd choose either of these two, but I'd lean towards the 4850x2 as it outperforms a single 4870.

Now for the bad news - You'll be able to get 'good' gameplay, but not at max settings for GTAIV

Tommyd · 06 Nov 2009

I was leaning towards the 4850x2 anyway, so I think I will get that one.
As for GTA IV, I dont really mind, I just picked it because I have heard its a demanding game.

One more thing, the total size of the 4850x2 is 2GB, right?

smarteyeball · 06 Nov 2009

No, unfortunately it does not work that way.

Tommyd · 06 Nov 2009

How does it work then?

smarteyeball · 06 Nov 2009

The memory is shared between the two GPUS.

blahman said:

Each GPU has its own memory dedicated to it, which is 1GB. However for Crossfire (and SLI) to work, the contents of the memory on each card has to be identical. That's why only 1GB of actual framebuffer is available, even though there is 2GB worth of RAM on the boards.