2nd 4850 vs GTX260/4870 or a E8400

[revogamer]

So i already bought a 4850 but now im deciding on my next upgrade, i got a P35 mobo, so i can do xfire, just slightly limited, i have a E6400 atm, so i could upgrade to a E8400 or Q6600.. or sell my E4850 and get a GTX260 or HD4870 1gb when there released, or get a second 4850, wat do you think?

- my E6400 runs fine at 3.8Ghz, so im not sure on cpu upgrade, i game at 1920x1200 and i can run The Witcher, Cod4, assassins creed etc max settings fine with one 4850, so new graphics? or. focus on getting a better hard drive and/or power supply etc cause i only have a 160gb barracuda.

[Ensamvarg]

If your 4850 runs everything you like at high settings with a nice playable FPS, then I personally don't see the need for the second 4850, though crossfire would be quite nice with those cards! Why don't you invest in a nice Raptor X or VelociRaptor? And then maybe a bigger drive for storage?

[adamsleath]

yeah sit on the graphics til all the other cards some out...dude.
4x slot might be a bit limiting...cfwise
i need another hdd; i'm thinking WD 640GB. cheap as chips not too shabby speedwise either.
of course raptors are fast.

[Arkangyl]

You pretty much just said your computer runs everything you want it to just fine. I'd hold the money until you need to upgrade (when prices drop a bit). Maybe upgrade the other components like you said (HD, PSU).

That said, there are some 4850 Crossfire reviews out there, results vary so it'd have to be your call. With the second PCI-E slot at only 4x, while not affecting things that much, it might stifle your gains a bit. Also a single card would probably be better since there still are scaling issues with CF & SLI.
As for the CPU, going to a 8400 you stand to gain maybe 200-300 mhz? maybe up to 4.4ghz if you're lucky. But unless you're going for xCore benchmarks it's probably not the best use of money. Only go quad-core if you multi-task.

[Eniqmah]

I say put that money in your retirement fund or your kid's college fund and stop wasting it on computer crap. Alternatively, mortgage your house and buy a GTX280.

[xMrBunglex]

running CF on a P35 motherboard will give you more than a slight handicap. don't do it. CrossFire on X38/48 or don't do it at all.

[minaelromany]

running CF on a P35 motherboard will give you more than a slight handicap. don't do it. CrossFire on X38/48 or don't do it at all.

Exactly :)

CF with P35 is a waste of money for the second card and upgrading to X48 would be a very bad idea since new socket for Nehalem is coming out soon

My advice is : to get other hardware that you really need and if your graphics card is slow , sell it and get the best cost/performance "single" card