ATI HD4800 Review Thread

[Manicdan]

levish i dont understand, you go larger in screen with the same pixel quantity, so the pixels are larger and more obvious, unless you move the screen farther away and its all the same

i have a 26" at 1920x1200 and a classic 2900xt and only play at max res. i generally get 40-60 (vsync enabled) and for most games dont feel the need for any AA. if for some reason i cant quite handle that res, its probably my cpu that limits me so i reduce a few things that arnt that important to me, like shadows, until it is playable. i was able to play crysis at med/high at 1920x1200 and get about 15-40fps

[Isaac MM]

Is there any detailed review out there comparing GTX 280 in SLI and HD 4870 in CF? The review made my TweakTownhad no details at all, no AA/AF comparison and while the GTXs were overclocked the Radeons were at stock.

[Spawne32]

You have to find something equilibrate: you may have 50FPS, but the IQ is crap. Jaggies everywhere is sometimes worse than low FPS.

i come from a long line of jaggies, im used to it

[biohead]

You have to find something equilibrate: you may have 50FPS, but the IQ is crap. Jaggies everywhere is sometimes worse than low FPS.

i focus on dodging bullets more than counting jaggies. come on, a real gaming enthusiast doesn't nit-pick about eye candy.

[Chickenfeed]

Your bullets and weapons hit just as hard, regardless of IQ Its all subjective.

On the topic of 4870CF scores, seeing only E5800 gives me high hopes for the 4870X2. There are rumors that these cards are doing 7000 currently... and that was probably not even on a highly clocked system like the one posted above. If those numbers are true then the X2 scales extremely well, at least in Vantage.

[LowRun]

i focus on dodging bullets more than counting jaggies. come on, a real gaming enthusiast doesn't nit-pick about eye candy.

I like my headshots pretty

[initialised]

http://www.scan.co.uk/Index.aspx?NT=1-0-94-549-0
So far it looks like only 512MB cards are available except for the 1GB ASUS 4850.

4870 starts at £190, 4850 stars at £130.

The more 133tist stores are charging significantly more (as usual): http://www.overclockers.co.uk/produc...d=56&subid=939

We have them for £113 (4850) & £185 (4870) http://www.cyberpowersystem.co.uk/sy...crossfire_pro/ as part of a system build.

[y2kbos]

Pixmania have them in stock and cheap

HD4850 £111

http://www.pixmania.co.uk/uk/uk/1304...12-mb-gdd.html

HD4870 £185

http://www.pixmania.co.uk/uk/uk/1344...12-mo-gdd.html

[DefStar]

So I have never bought ATI before; Who generally makes a more reliable card and stands behind their warranty?

[Spawne32]

So I have never bought ATI before; Who generally makes a more reliable card and stands behind their warranty?

Nvidia = EVGA, BFG, and a few others

ATI = Sapphire, HIS, Diamond... etc

[DarkDisciple]

The only real standout on either side is EVGA, due to a good warranty, and their stepup program. I wish a company on the ATI side would offer something similar.

[SNiiPE_DoGG]

So I have never bought ATI before; Who generally makes a more reliable card and stands behind their warranty?

I have had great experience with HIS in the past but I hear visiontek has a lifetime warranty for its cards. Generally sapphire is the budget group of cards but I have friends who have found them reliable and overclockable

[adamsleath]

ha;
4xAA, even at 19x12 in my opinion...and at 19x12 on 20.something" viewable crt, dot pitch is quite 'dense'.
4xAA is optimal and minimum for me.
4xAA is suitable for 1280x1024 also...(@20.something")
im very jaggie sensitive
8xAA doesnt seem to do anything to my eyes, not even at 1280x1024 (which should make jags more noticeable vs higher res)
and 2xAA is better than none.
i hate jaggies, but i suppose jaggies have rights too
where's my 4870X2 ?

actually 19x12 with 2xAA is pretty good with my screen...and the only way to match this quality wood be with an l220x i reckon

[disruptfam]

this aussie e-tailer has a 4870 1gb listed,no price though but dated for JULY 8TH!

http://www.austin.net.au/ProductList...G/Default.aspx

[STaRGaZeR]

i focus on dodging bullets more than counting jaggies. come on, a real gaming enthusiast doesn't nit-pick about eye candy.

To actually focus on dodging bullets first you have to see who is shooting them. If he's too far, you won't see a $hit without AA. Anyway jaggies destroy my eyes. 2xAA absolute minimum at all resolutions, but I can't live without 4xAA at 1280x1024.

[iTravis]

To actually focus on dodging bullets first you have to see who is shooting them. If he's too far, you won't see a $hit without AA. Anyway jaggies destroy my eyes. 2xAA absolute minimum at all resolutions, but I can't live without 4xAA at 1280x1024.

So do you think 2xAA or 4xAA is enough for 1920x1200?

[STaRGaZeR]

2xAA minimum, 4xAA optimal (if the card can handle it and the game is not a slideshow of course )

[iTravis]

2xAA minimum, 4xAA optimal (if the card can handle it and the game is not a slideshow of course )

Thanks, good to hear that, hopefully HD4870 CF will solve the problem.

[Isaac MM]

Damn what a dillema, the price of these 4870's is so good, i don't know if i get a pair of those or a GTX 280, monster performance with lots of trouble or nice performance with no troubles? that's the question.

[Dangals]

this aussie e-tailer has a 4870 1gb listed,no price though but dated for JULY 8TH!

http://www.austin.net.au/ProductList...G/Default.aspx

I dug a little deeper and they do have a price - $379.50AU!!! which is only about $30-$40 more than the 512mb version....here I was thinking about getting a pair of the 512mb versions tomorrow, now I might wait for this....

they also have listed the 4870x2 for August no price though

http://www.austin.net.au/ProductList...G/Default.aspx

[adamsleath]

2x1gig 4870cf (or 4850's cf) vs 1g 4870X2

[disruptfam]

I dug a little deeper and they do have a price - $379.50AU!!! which is only about $30-$40 more than the 512mb version....here I was thinking about getting a pair of the 512mb versions tomorrow, now I might wait for this....

they also have listed the 4870x2 for August no price though

http://www.austin.net.au/ProductList...G/Default.aspx

nice find!!!

i'ma wait for the 1gb version,then.

[disruptfam]

2x1gig 4870cf (or 4850's cf) vs 1g 4870X2

what would win>??

[adamsleath]

well; according to my reading of all you prognosticators 2x 4870 1gig cf will win
in 3d mark benches anyway,
but i think 4870X2 will be the most cost effective multigpu option, particularly for those without a proper crossfire mobo

and 2x 4850 1gig cards in cf could be good too.

i seem to run out of vram in M2TW, with sporadic subsequent fps drops, and cpu is not maxed out at any point
although 4870x2 may prompt me to upgrade my cpu, as ive noticed cpu use can go as high as 90%(rarely however), on one of the 2 cores anyway.

http://www.tomshardware.com/news/nvi...-ati,5764.html
also, physx seems to be in ati's hand (as per another thread)

[emoners]

I have had great experience with HIS in the past but I hear visiontek has a lifetime warranty for its cards. Generally sapphire is the budget group of cards but I have friends who have found them reliable and overclockable

so HIS & Sapphire are the reliable brands? been sooo long since i owned an ATI card (probably the last one was still AGP). how about GeCube?