Which is better: 4850x2 or 4870?

[Ducttape]

I'm thinking about upgrading my GPU, and can't decide which would be better:

The 4850x2 http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814102813


or

The 4870 http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814102801


Anybody have a good opinion between the two?

 

[Munkypoo7]

Voted 4870

Both cards perform pretty much the same, and since the 4870 is cheaper, I'd get that one and save yourself a few bucks.

 

[blizbiggy]

I say 4870. Faster core clock, GDDR 5 memory, cheaper price

 

[Atten]

I'd say stay with a non X2 card. They are a little bit more consistent in performance, as the internal crossfire doesn't always scale very well.

That, and I can't find any good benchmarks of the X2.

 

[Ducttape]

Tom's Hardware - Benchmark Sum of FPS Benchmarks 1680x1050

This chart show the 4870 as second among all major graphics cards...but it doesn't list the 4850x2

 

[Vader]

I'd say the HD 4850 X2 but you can go wrong with either one.
The HD 4850 X2 is a bit better performance wise vs the HD 4870 but isn't as consistent as some games don't support dual video cards.

"Two Radeon HD 4850s in CrossFire mode will beat the dual-GPU GeForce 9800 GX2—and even put the hurt on the new, more expensive GeForce GTX 285...This is probably the best bang-for-the-buck pick in this month's recommendations and is a great card for an extremely low price."
Tom's Hardware

Use this if you need more help:
http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/geforce-gtx-radeon,2151.html

 

[Angeal]

4870 for sure,

Awesome, And i hope i can update my system to something like that

 

[Deimos]

4850x2 for sure.

-The 4870 has +125 core clock compared to the 4850x2
-The 4870 has 800 steam processors, the 4850x2 has 1600
-The 4870 has +60 memory clock compared to the 4850x2
-The fact that the 4870 has GDDR5 and the 4850x2 has GDDR3 is not a big deal, the memory on the card is not where the performance comes from, its the Core Clock and Stream Processors
-The 4870 is $40 more then the 4850x2

 

[Atten]

4850x2 for sure.

-The 4870 has +125 core clock compared to the 4850x2
-The 4870 has 800 steam processors, the 4850x2 has 1600
-The 4870 has +60 memory clock compared to the 4850x2
-The fact that the 4870 has GDDR5 and the 4850x2 has GDDR3 is not a big deal, the memory on the card is not where the performance comes from, its the Core Clock and Stream Processors
-The 4870 is $40 more then the 4850x2

You've got your stats on the cards correct, but, Crossfire scaling never averages 200%. Last I heard, the numbers were closer to 160% increase. In some games you'll see practically no increase in performance. Overall, the highs of the X2 are higher, and its lows are lower. The 4870 will give more consistent performance, although perhaps the average FPS / $ is slightly lower.

 

[spooky]

I will also add that you are wrong about memory not being a source of a video card's performance. GDDR5 > GDDR3. If that didn't matter, why did computer manufacturers even bother upgrading from the old 168-pin SDRAM's? LOL

 

[blizbiggy]

4850x2 for sure.

-The 4870 has +125 core clock compared to the 4850x2
-The 4870 has 800 steam processors, the 4850x2 has 1600
-The 4870 has +60 memory clock compared to the 4850x2
-The fact that the 4870 has GDDR5 and the 4850x2 has GDDR3 is not a big deal, the memory on the card is not where the performance comes from, its the Core Clock and Stream Processors

The streaming processors for the 4850 are 1600 from 2x 800 streaming processors. Gddr5 actually does 2x per clock and is twice the bandwidth as Gddr3.