2 x 5770 vs. 1 x 6870

-BigMac- said:

Hi guys.
I have a Mac Pro 2010 quad 2.8. Upgraded to 16gb ram and using 27" ACD.
Currently have the ati 5770.

I'm wondering what will be better to have. Buy an extra 5770, or buy the new generation 5870 (6870 or 6970? the names are confusing)

Perhaps a few advantages/disadvantages for each?
I play a fair few games, edit large PS files and work with lots of videos.

Thanks a lot

Click to expand...

OSX won't benefit from having 2 cards other than being able to use more displays. In terms of performance, I understand that the 6870 is on par with the 5770 so no use changing. The best of the bunch is still 5870.

Hello,

The next-gen 5870 is the 6970 (stupid convention change), and it's not playing well with OS X so far. The 6870 may be slightly faster than the 5770, but not worth the upgrade IMO.

Loa

-BigMac- said:

Hi guys.
I have a Mac Pro 2010 quad 2.8. Upgraded to 16gb ram and using 27" ACD.
Currently have the ati 5770.

I'm wondering what will be better to have. Buy an extra 5770, or buy the new generation 5870 (6870 or 6970? the names are confusing)

Perhaps a few advantages/disadvantages for each?
I play a fair few games, edit large PS files and work with lots of videos.

Thanks a lot

Click to expand...

The main advantage of getting another 5770 would be for gaming in Windows, although the performance would be roughly what you would get from a single 6870.

Unless you really need it now, I would hold off for the Mac Pro refresh – as was mentioned in another thread, it shouldn’t be long and there should be new cards and the price of the 5000 series should come down at that time.

*edit* To put the Windows gaming into context, this review - http://www.legitreviews.com/article/1445/12/ - has benchmarks for a number of cards, including a 5770 running alone and a couple in CrossFire mode. The latter gives performance around a single 6870, as I say – whilst the 6870 will trounce a 5770.

As ActionableMango said, the 6870 is very close to the 5870 (and the 6870 Black Edition even more so). As well as lower power consumption than the 5870, it’s a lot cheaper and offers the most bang for your buck – but unless you’re keen to upgrade now, the MP refresh should be soon.

6870 is faster than 5770. I don't understand what those other guys are talking about. In fact, most benchmarks show 6870 is nearly equal to or only slightly slower than the 5870.