7950 instead of 670.

[Xarick]

I asked this on another site, but want ananders opinions.

I bought this:
http://www.amazon.com/Galaxy-GeForce...=galaxy+gc+670

$378 and then there is the MIR for $40 off and then $150 in credits for FTP games I don't play.

At the time I ordered it (a few weeks ago) I did minimal research to find the best Nvidia card I could afford which was the galaxy. I have a 5850 which for the most part runs just fine, but early on I had driver issues and poor filtering quality in AF (which still exits, because it is a hardware thingy), so I went straight green.

After ordering I find that AMD is doing way better, the 7950 is $50-60 cheaper and OC awesome (though my 5850 never went beyond 810/1100 despite how awesome everyone elses did). Plus AMD comes with one game I want to play.

So the card is here unopened and I can't decide if I want to send it back or not and get an AMD card to OC. There is so much fighting between the two camps it is hard to get an honest unbiased opinion.. maybe there isn't one..., but it gets the point you want to just say.. screw it.. I am gonna run my 5850 for one more year.

I want the best image quality with the most compatibility. I need my card to last 3 years.

$340 really pushed past my budget, but figured i could make $75 or so selling my 5850.

So.. spend $5 to send it back to Amazon and order a 7950.. or just be happy... and hope in 6 months I'm not totally hosed (with the release of the refresh or Nvidia game issues like tombraider becoming more prevalent).

 

[MeldarthX]

Depends really;

Either card is going to be nice; but if you're looking to save some - send it back buy 7950; get two games still as the reloaded is still going on......

If you're torn about it; means you're regretting spending that much. But either card is going to be nice in your system.....

You'll just get more out of the 7950 after overclocking..... If you don't want to overclock....keep it...

I hope this helps

 

[xylem]

Save the $$ and get a 7950 if you are settled on this generation of cards, IMO, if budget is a primary consideration. You aren't exactly in a bind for performance at the moment, having a 5850, but the 7950 prices are in a sweet spot right now; Added performance from next-gen cards will command a premium, and your 5850 will depreciate further, offering less in terms of an expense recoup.

 

[p_monks33]

I think the galaxy 670 is a great card, the cooler on it works very well and is extremely quiet. I moved from two 7970's to two Gtx 660's and don't regret it at all. The 7970 was a good card, but I had some driver issues specific to my particular application. If it weren't for those few items I wouldn't mind having my 7970's back. I would personally keep the 670 and save the time of returning it and sit back and enjoy some games.

 

[notty22]

What about the rest of your computer, (cpu)and what resolution? Those 2 cards will give you a huge performance increase, if your rig is current.

I could not sit on a new card for weeks without using it? If this is about money, then return it new.

 

[chimaxi83]

670 is a great card, especially if you're not really looking to overclock. If you are though, and the AMD bundle has a game or games you want, then an AMD card is the way to go. Only if you are going to overclock though because at stock speed, the performance is definitely lacking.

 

[WaTaGuMp]

7950 is just a better value right now.

 

[Xarick]

Im upgrading to this summer the rest of my rig to haswell.
It isn't as much about the money.. as I hate spending too much and getting less(i.e. I don't want to spend more only to find myself fighting bugs and getting worse performance.
plus the 2gigs vs 3gigs worries me.
Im at 1080x1920 err.. otherway
I don't mind overclocking my gpu as long as I don't have to play with the voltage.. the added heat and noise isn't usually worth the OC.

 

[cmdrdredd]

670 is a great card, especially if you're not really looking to overclock. If you are though, and the AMD bundle has a game or games you want, then an AMD card is the way to go. Only if you are going to overclock though because at stock speed, the performance is definitely lacking.

This is good advice too. The 7950 is really only faster when overclocked. Also, not all cards will overclock to the levels plastered on the forums.

For a single card either solution is really good for everything up to 1080p.

 

[WaTaGuMp]

Im upgrading to this summer the rest of my rig to haswell.
It isn't as much about the money.. as I hate spending too much and getting less(i.e. I don't want to spend more only to find myself fighting bugs and getting worse performance.
plus the 2gigs vs 3gigs worries me.
Im at 1080x1920 err.. otherway
I don't mind overclocking my gpu as long as I don't have to play with the voltage.. the added heat and noise isn't usually worth the OC.

In the terms of the 7950, overclocking is proving to be WELL worth it.

 

[cmdrdredd]

In the terms of the 7950, overclocking is proving to be WELL worth it.

Many 7950s are voltage locked now and I've seen some that weren't that would not go very far. It's basically a lottery.

 

[WaTaGuMp]

Many 7950s are voltage locked now and I've seen some that weren't that would not go very far. It's basically a lottery.

Never any givens when overclocking, we both now that.

 

[Rvenger]

Many 7950s are voltage locked now and I've seen some that weren't that would not go very far. It's basically a lottery.

Just the recent gigabyte I believe. All AMD reference PCB based models should have voltage adjustment.

 

[BallaTheFeared]

I went with the 7950 over the 670 for these reasons:

1. Overclocking
2. $300 vs $360 at the time of purchase
3. I felt it would be eaiser to move two games instead of gift cards for 3 f2p
4. Bitcoins - dying as it might be it's still something or it might be if I can make any lolz
5. I can run hybrid PhysX
6. If you get a decent card it's compeitive with the 670 performance wise, win some lose some
7. Cooling at price points, AMD has poor reference - pretty much don't even sell it anymore
8. Overall cost/performance favors the 7950, to a degree I couldn't ignore
9. Drivers have progressed considerably since release, and with each major flaw AMD has been decently quick to address it

I don't think you can go wrong with either choice, it wholly depends on what you value. For me personally that's perf/$ and overclocking potential. I really like PhysX, but as stated you can still have it with a mod.. You will have to factor that into your costs, but a single 670 imo wouldn't have enough rendering power to do both anyways for me personally.

Nvidia has a decent reference design, it can get louder than aftermarket but it doesn't require good case airflow either. Cost of quality fans that push air properly while remaining quiet are not cheap. Overall it really will depend on what you value and how much weight you put on the pros and cons for each choice -trust me they each have their own.

 

[cmdrdredd]

Just the recent gigabyte I believe. All AMD reference PCB based models should have voltage adjustment.

A search pulls up threads on the sapphire vapor-x being locked and the XFX cards too. I don't know if all models are that way from XFX though.

MSI TF3 still looks like a good bet and has a great cooler.

 

[badb0y]

If your going to play the games it's well worth it to buy the AMD bundled card. In terms of power both of those should provide a really nice experience but at current price points the Price/performance ratio is really good with AMD cards.

 

[Zanovar]

Prices, 7950 every time it seems.

 

[Rvenger]

A search pulls up threads on the sapphire vapor-x being locked and the XFX cards too. I don't know if all models are that way from XFX though.

MSI TF3 still looks like a good bet and has a great cooler.

I stand corrected for XFX. Forgot about them.

 

[24601]

Kepler overclocks just fine.

http://www.xtremesystems.org/forums/showthread.php?284014-KGB-Kepler-BIOS-Editor-Unlocker

As a matter of fact, the bigger problem is the locking of voltages and using the crap non-reference boards (For AMD/ATi) on the new (August 2012 and newer) pcbs on basically every manufacturer other than MSI.

If you're buying ATi/AMD 7xxx, you MUST buy MSI now if you want to overvolt.

Hilariously, with the Nvidia Bios Unlocker and the fact that the manufacturers MUST use reference PCBs means that EVERY SINGLE KEPLER is a perfect overclocker (as long as the cooler on it is good).

Obviously for bitcoins and such ATi/AMD wins every time though.

<-= Sucker that's stuck with a locked XFX 7970 Black Edition that ends up performing worse than unlocked 7950 MSI card. (Can only do 1025 core 1725 memory on locked voltage)

 

[aaksheytalwar]

if you don't want to overvolt then the 7950 is worse.

 

[Xarick]

What about image quality and color quality. Who wins.. what is the difference.
One thing that bugged me when moving to the 5850 was the way AMD handled shadows back then.
Are they identical now?

 

[raghu78]

670 is a great card, especially if you're not really looking to overclock. If you are though, and the AMD bundle has a game or games you want, then an AMD card is the way to go. Only if you are going to overclock though because at stock speed, the performance is definitely lacking.

HD 7950 boost at stock speeds matches GTX 670. just max out power control to +20% to avoid clock throttling. its well known that HD 7950 is 3 - 6% slower than HD 7970 at same clocks. the Tahiti chips are faster than the Keplers clock for clock. so you need a 100 - 150 mhz higher clock on the Nvidia Keplers to match the AMD Tahiti chips

to give you an idea of overclocked performance a

HD 7970(1150 mhz) >= HD 7950(1200 mhz) >= GTX 680(1250 mhz) >= GTX 670(1300 mhz)

 

[bluesquare07]

HD 7950 boost at stock speeds matches GTX 670. just max out power control to +20% to avoid clock throttling. its well known that HD 7950 is 3 - 6% slower than HD 7970 at same clocks. the Tahiti chips are faster than the Keplers clock for clock. so you need a 100 - 150 mhz higher clock on the Nvidia Keplers to match the AMD Tahiti chips

to give you an idea of overclocked performance a

HD 7970(1150 mhz) >= HD 7950(1200 mhz) >= GTX 680(1250 mhz) >= GTX 670(1300 mhz)

Can you show proof that the 7950 boost at stock speeds matches the gtx 670? at stock speeds, it is more comparable to a 660ti, as displayed here http://techreport.com/review/23981/radeon-hd-7950-vs-geforce-gtx-660-ti-revisited. There's a reason why the boost was released. The 670 is a better card, OP. You're much better off with the 670 than the 7950. Also, the 670 you have will be very similar to 680 speeds without touching a thing. It is the faster card, with better drivers. Nobody in this thread would recommend the 7950 over the 670 at the same price point. If the 60 dollar difference is that important to you then by all means get the 7950. But you won't care for the $60 difference when you experience the difference.

 

[ICDP]

Can you show proof that the 7950 boost at stock speeds matches the gtx 670? at stock speeds, it is more comparable to a 660ti, as displayed here http://techreport.com/review/23981/radeon-hd-7950-vs-geforce-gtx-660-ti-revisited. There's a reason why the boost was released. The 670 is a better card, OP. You're much better off with the 670 than the 7950. Also, the 670 you have will be very similar to 680 speeds without touching a thing. It is the faster card, with better drivers. Nobody in this thread would recommend the 7950 over the 670 at the same price point. If the 60 dollar difference is that important to you then by all means get the 7950. But you won't care for the $60 difference when you experience the difference.

If the OP did not intend to overclock then the GTX 670 is a better though more expensive card. In this case the OP does intend to overclock and even if he gets a 7950 that only does 1075 core OC it will match a stock GTX680 for significantly less money. At 1150-1175 a 7950 matches a GTX 680 at 1200-1230 core clock, I know this because I tested it myself. It should also be remembered that for the same price as a GTX670 you can purchase HD 7970 edition which is faster.

A HD 7950 is cheaper than GTX670/GTX680/HD7970 and when OC potential is taken into account it is every bit their equal. So why spend more for equal performance?

 

[Eureka]

Never any givens when overclocking, we both now that.

If there are no givens, maybe you shouldn't be recommending people to buy something based on overclocks only.

Truth be told, I've had both a 670 and a 7950, and in terms of performance, the 670 was smoother. No need for overclocks, ran cool and never crashed. Had this weird shadows glitch though.

The 7950, does overclock, and is extremely fast when it does get overclocked, however it's not stable in every game. Crysis 3, for example, requires me to lower my overclock by around 100 MHz to be stable. In DOW2, it keeps crashing when overclocked. Not to mention, you're not likely to get the same overclocks everyone else is getting. Mine, at 1.25V, hits the limit around 1100/1500 for true stability. The "average" that some users have been hawking around here is a 1200/1575 overclock, which you'll see isn't that average after all.

No, the 7950 is not as fast as the 670 when both are clocked. The 670 is definitely a nice experience... you plug it in, and just play without worrying about heat or overclocking. The 7950, of course, does offer you the opportunity to overclock. Not to turn you away from the 7950, I think mine was a good buy, but do beware that there are a lot of sheep on this forum that like to regurgitate what they hear.