In search of the ultimate Radeon HD

I have been buying parts here and there when I save up enough money, and I saved the best for last. I am looking for a good video card (I should say two good video cards for CrossfireX) under $250 each ($500 max total).

I do a little gaming (COD mostly), some Photoshop CS3 work (at most 200 layers per project), and will be using it to watch Blu Ray through my television.

*NOTE* In talking to some friends of mine, I realize it's blasphemy to prefer HDMI over DVI, but I will be connecting through my HDTV and HDMI is easier. I further realize that my hardcore gaming friends want to hurt me for investing the money I did into a system that won't be overclocked much or used for intense gaming, but hey, I had the money and love building.

My system so far:
CASE: Thermaltake Armor+ VH6000BWS Full Tower
MOBO: ASUS Crosshair IV Extreme
CPU: AMD Phenom II x6 1100T
CPU COOLER: Thermaltake CLP0575 Frio OCK CPU Cooler
PSU: EVGA Classified SR-2 100-PS-1200-GR 1200W
RAM: CORSAIR Vengeance 16GB (4 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 (8-8-8-24)

Any ideas for a good CrossfireX video card for my future system? I appreciate the input.

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Since you'll only be at 1920x1080 at most on a HDTV and only gaming a little, I would recommend just going with a more powerful single GPU like a HD6970 or GTX570 (GTX580 would be overkill). I would also dump that PSU for a lower wattage, better quality one like a SeaSonic or Corsair.

Be sure to tell your friends that HDMI = DVI in video quality, but HDMI can also pass audio

Well, you could ask for a current gaming rig before you bought however you shouldn't have problems with 6950 CF on that system anyway.

DVI can also pass audio but only on PCs i think.

Word of caution: COD Black Ops has horrible crossfire support. I see frame rates drop still to the low 70's with my setup. I would personally go for a single powerful card and look to crossfire down the road.

Tokae said:

Word of caution: COD Black Ops has horrible crossfire support. I see frame rates drop still to the low 70's with my setup. I would personally go for a single powerful card and look to crossfire down the road.

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Don't skimp on a good setup just because COD sucks.

6870 xfire at just $199 each would more than fine for 1920x1080. Two in xfire are a lot faster than a single GTX580 and cheaper too.

ChaosInMind said:

Don't skimp on a good setup just because COD sucks.

6870 xfire at just $199 each would more than fine for 1920x1080. Two in xfire are a lot faster than a single GTX580 and cheaper too.

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+1 to that! I was just warning him about black ops..

CHUDmac said:

*NOTE* In talking to some friends of mine, I realize it's blasphemy to prefer HDMI over DVI, but I will be connecting through my HDTV and HDMI is easier. I further realize that my hardcore gaming friends want to hurt me for investing the money I did into a system that won't be overclocked much or used for intense gaming, but hey, I had the money and love building.

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HDMI is DVI. The signal is electrically absolutely identical. HDMI simply 'splices' some digital audio onto the signal. Also, HDMI is much better for connecting to a TV as all the newer video cards can output sound to your TV this way. If you have a home theater with an HDMI receiver, you can get great sound running video card > receiver > TV with all HDMI cables.

As far as overclocking, you really should. You have one of the best AM3 socket boards that is actually designed for it, and it's really not hard to do. You have an unlocked CPU. Just increase the multiplier until it wants voltage, give it some more voltage, and repeat until it's going as fast as it's willing to go. Grab yourself a decent heatsink and get cookin'.

Graphics card wise, if you want ATI, you can get 2 6950s for $250 each. Make sure to get a reference PCB (search the forum if you don't know what this means lots of explanations with pictures).

If you get reference 6950s you can (usually) unlock them and make them as fast as a 6970.

I love the 6950 I got and is the ideal card for the OCer since, well if you get a reference card and can still unlock them its a free upgrade to a 6970

Saw the PSU your sporting as someone mentioned it above. Wow... You did you get a good deal on this and thats why you went with it?

Give you an idea my main rig below runs 400-420W at the wall including monitor, routers, phone system out of my UPS. This is typical gaming load, OC'ed. Toss in another GPU looking another say max 175W with the 6950's. My PSU is highly overkill for my system and really haven't stressed it for anything in years.

Tokae said:

+1 to that! I was just warning him about black ops..

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I have a constant 120-180fps in COD black ops with crossfire 6970 at max settings.

I should come clean: the specs of my rig are subject to change. The ones listed on my original post were the ones I was planning on buying, but due to certain factors (such as my failure to realize the TT Frio OCK CPU Cooler ran on a 3-pin and my mobo has a 4-pin connection, and the PCI Express slots for video cards on my motherboard are not lining up with the removable metal brackets on the back of my motherboard tray, specifications are rapidly changing).

Right now, I have:
Thermaltake Armor+ VH6000BWS full size tower
Asus Crosshair IV Extreme motherboard
AMD Phenom II x6 1100T CPU
Cooler Master V6 GT CPU Cooler
16GB (4 x 4GB) Kingston HyperX Blu DDR3 1600 (PC3 12800)

I still need a power supply and a video card (or two).