6870x2/GTX 580 and i5 2500k

[GideonP]

Sorry about the vague title, but I'm building a system and wondering if a stock i5 2500k at 3.3GHz would bottleneck a 6870x2 (for team Green it's slightly faster than a GTX 580)? Parts are already bought and being shipped so don't recommend changing

And yes I know it's easy to OC this chip but if I'm going to OC, I'll be going all out and even buying water cooling, I get obsessed really easy with PCs and last time I was OCing my set up I spent nearly 3 weeks of non-stop work perfecting every little setting in BIOS for CPU and RAM.. don't want to go through that again! So if it won't be a bottleneck, I really don't want to OC if not needed

 

[Jaydip]

How much is 6870x2 is costing u?

 

[aaksheytalwar]

I would prefer the 580 oc irrespective of cost, but I wouldn't buy a 580 for more than $270-280 new and $210-220 used.

 

[GideonP]

I would prefer the 580 oc irrespective of cost, but I wouldn't buy a 580 for more than $270-280 new and $210-220 used.

I'm not asking which is better. Please stay on topic

 

[Jaydip]

No it wouldn't bottleneck a 6870x2

 

[Face2Face]

I assume you will be playing @ 1080P or above. At those resolutions you will not see much of a bottleneck with a stock 2500K.

 

[aaksheytalwar]

Although an overclocked 2500k might help in some situations, there is no harm getting either card with a stock 2500k as most of the times you will do okay

 

[Don Karnage]

I've heard drivers are a nightmare for that 6870X2 card

 

[GideonP]

I've heard drivers are a nightmare for that 6870X2 card

Where'd you hear that? Seeing as it's no different than just two separate 6870's. It uses the exact same drivers from AMD and it's the same chips, just on one board.

But to be honest I really do regret getting that card instead of a single card like a 580. I haven't received it yet but I just remembered about microstuttering and how it's prevalent in CF/SLI setups. I used to have 2x 8800GTs and I do remember microstuttering and that it drove me nuts. Had to sell the cards. I really do hope it's different this time :'(

I got it used so it's not like I can just return it to the store if I don't like it. I'll have to lose money by selling it, plus losing on shipping costs. I'm already a cheap bastard so that suck. Oh well, tomorrow or the day after I'll find out for sure. It was $50-70 cheaper than a used 580, that's why I jumped on it, after seeing a lot of really great reviews/benchmarks, and none mentioned microstuttering (but then again not everyone notices it and I doubt these reviewers really do anything more than have lunch while letting the benchmark loops run, not like they actually play games with them).

 

[Face2Face]

Where'd you hear that? Seeing as it's no different than just two separate 6870's. It uses the exact same drivers from AMD and it's the same chips, just on one board.

But to be honest I really do regret getting that card instead of a single card like a 580. I haven't received it yet but I just remembered about microstuttering and how it's prevalent in CF/SLI setups. I used to have 2x 8800GTs and I do remember microstuttering and that it drove me nuts. Had to sell the cards. I really do hope it's different this time :'(

I got it used so it's not like I can just return it to the store if I don't like it. I'll have to lose money by selling it, plus losing on shipping costs. I'm already a cheap bastard so that suck. Oh well, tomorrow or the day after I'll find out for sure. It was $50-70 cheaper than a used 580, that's why I jumped on it, after seeing a lot of really great reviews/benchmarks, and none mentioned microstuttering (but then again not everyone notices it and I doubt these reviewers really do anything more than have lunch while letting the benchmark loops run, not like they actually play games with them).

I hope you do like it. Micro-stuttering seems like hit or miss. Two 6870's is still a very potent force in the GPU world. I plan on getting another 6870 down the road or selling mine and going 7850 or GTX 660. Anyway, I think you will be pleased - It's a rare card at least

 

[superccs]

The 2500K OC's without requiring upgraded cooling. Think of it as an under binned 4Ghz processor.

 

[jacktesterson]

I've heard drivers are a nightmare for that 6870X2 card

card is no different than any other crossfire setup