The time has come....

[Slaymate]

The Radeon 5870 is the fastest single processor graphics card on the planet, ( people will dissagree, but it is ) so a 5870 is the right choice. id reccommend at least a 750 watt PSU, or higher if you plan on getting another 5870 down the road.

This is wrong, plain and simple. Best Price/Performance, Power Consumption and Heat may be an issue for some and it may not be an issue for others. The Fastest is the Fastest regardless of how much it costs or how much power it uses. The GTX 480 is the Winner now and it will keep getting a little faster for the next few driver releases.

With that said I'm sure ATI has their Evil little eyes working on something new or improved.

 

[Sean W.]

I thought the 480 had 2 processors...?

 

[Fat.Clown]

I thought the 480 had 2 processors...?

you thought wrong

 

[Graham]

anyone know of any good alternative sources for the 5970? I'm toying with the idea of the 5970 costing $200 less than 5870s in crossfire and saving myself money down the road...

 

[Slaymate]

(2) 5870's will perform slightly better than a single 5970, plus it easier to keep (2) 5870's cool.

 

[Graham]

(2) 5870's will perform slightly better than a single 5970, plus it easier to keep (2) 5870's cool.

I went ahead with the 5970.... yeah it's not as well performing as 2 5870s, but it's $200+ cheaper and i think the HAF 932 is keeping it plenty cool. I have had no issues so far and a couple days usage! Plus, a year or two down the road with a second 5970, should be set.... for god knows how long.

 

[Sean W.]

dude nice u got a 5970!!! congrats on that, you have the fastest GPU on the planet. do u know if it can fit in your case? its 13 inches long...

 

[Druid]

I went ahead with the 5970.... yeah it's not as well performing as 2 5870s, but it's $200+ cheaper and i think the HAF 932 is keeping it plenty cool. I have had no issues so far and a couple days usage! Plus, a year or two down the road with a second 5970, should be set.... for god knows how long.

Oh man that card will 60 frame Crysis on Enthusiast @ 1920x1200. It's such a drool. Sooo much money though!

 

[Graham]

dude nice u got a 5970!!! congrats on that, you have the fastest GPU on the planet. do u know if it can fit in your case? its 13 inches long...

Yeah, went to the mechanical drawing in the specs off of HAF's website and it has 319 mm of clearance, which is good for for the 309 mm 5970 length. I even fit cables going to the optical/hard drives behind it without blocking the air intake.

HAF 932 is without a doubt my choice case after research... 3x 230mm fans are mind blowing.... 5970 still gets hot but according to GPUz it has not gone nearly as hot as the GTX 480.

Oh man that card will 60 frame Crysis on Enthusiast @ 1920x1200. It's such a drool. Sooo much money though!

I have not gotten a chance yet, but I played BF:BC2 last night 1920x1200 with everything maxed ( 4x MSAA, 16x AF, HBAO enabled, etc) and it was butter smooth, never going below 60 fps....

I have to say, it was a lot of money, but definitely worth it.