Fastest Single Core GPU?

Butch Nackley · Jan 13, 2009, 10:53 AM

Hi all

I am wanting to buy a new graphics card and want to get the fastest one currently out. I would like 1GB of ram on it.
The board I'll be using supports PCI Express 2.0 x16

I am ordering the following with the gfx card;
Corsair CMPUS-750TX power supply.
Gygabyte GA-EP45C-UD3R
E8400 CPU
Vista Ultimate 64bit

I already have;
G.Skill F2-8000CL5D-4GBPQ (2x2GB kit)
640GB Wetern Digital HDD
Xigmatek HDT S1283 cpu cooler
Sony DVD-RW DRU-830A

So, if you guys can let me know the fastest 'single' core gpu out right now, I will get get my order sent in today.

Thanks for the help

Zardon · Jan 13, 2009, 10:56 AM

285 GTX from nvidia. review up here shortly.

Butch Nackley · Jan 13, 2009, 11:50 AM

Thank You.

Newegg doesn't have the 285 listed, yet. I did find a MSI, a PNY and a Asus in stock at some other stores though. I have never used these stores before. One I had used before listed the PNY, but didn't have it in stock.

For now I will just order the other parts from Newegg and hopefully they will have the gfx cards in before too long. If they don't have any in a few days, I may try another store.

I am open to store recommendations that have the 285 in stock, if anyone knows of one they have used before and got good service.

nicnik · Jan 13, 2009, 12:41 PM

Single core or single card? Coz the fastest "one" card is prolly the gtx 295 right?

Zardon · Jan 13, 2009, 01:07 PM

well im guessing Butch doesn't want to have to deal with SLI or CF profiles...

Vikingod · Jan 13, 2009, 02:02 PM

Nice system you are building. Might I suggest however that, seeing as you're spending $500+ on a GPU, that you spend a few extra bucks and pick up a quad core processor. The Q6600 is pretty cheap and would probably perform just as well as the E8400, it can OC pretty well too (mine's up past 3.0ghz on a $25 cooler). Modern games, GTA4 for example, see huge benefits from the extra processors. I would expect other future titles to follow suit.

Just a suggestion.

Butch Nackley · Jan 13, 2009, 02:38 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by nicnik

Single core or single card? Coz the fastest "one" card is prolly the gtx 295 right?

Yes, I am planning to use one card and want a single core on that card. I have read about little problems with the multi core cards, so I decided to just go with a single core.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Vikingod

Nice system you are building. Might I suggest however that, seeing as you're spending $500+ on a GPU, that you spend a few extra bucks and pick up a quad core processor. The Q6600 is pretty cheap and would probably perform just as well as the E8400, it can OC pretty well too (mine's up past 3.0ghz on a $25 cooler). Modern games, GTA4 for example, see huge benefits from the extra processors. I would expect other future titles to follow suit.

Just a suggestion.

Thanks for the suggestion, but I don't think a quad will do me much good. It is my understanding that the games I play are not really using all four cores fully, but they do use dual cores. Since gaming is mainly what I use my pc for, I think (and it was suggested to me) the 8400 overclocked to around 4GHz will give me the best performance. I could be wrong though (as well as those that suggested a duo instead of a quad).
I do know more and more new games are starting to use all four cores now, but I am not playing any of them.
rFactor
Oblivion
IL2
FS9 and FSX
I have included in my order Fall Out 3 and Crysis. I imagine Crysis can use four cores, but the others don't. So it isn't something I need right now.
My next build will be more cutting edge.

Zardon · Jan 13, 2009, 04:31 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Butch Nackley

Thanks for the suggestion, but I don't think a quad will do me much good. It is my understanding that the games I play are not really using all four cores fully, but they do use dual cores. Since gaming is mainly what I use my pc for, I think (and it was suggested to me) the 8400 overclocked to around 4GHz will give me the best performance. I could be wrong though (as well as those that suggested a duo instead of a quad)..

Well actually while this is a common point I see on forums and in discussions I have to say that with a dual core you aren't giving yourself any futureproofing at all. There have already been instances of quad core giving benefits in gaming such as supreme commander and GTA4. I know GTA4 has been getting mixed reports on the quality of the coding, but I think its a decent indication of how things are going to change over 2009 and into 2010 in the gaming world - especially when more developers start farming out more AI intensive algorithms to the cores. This isn't even taking into consideration the fact that with a Quad core that the windows experience is much nicer all round.

I think you should reevaluate your system, and balance the CPU and GFX side of things a little more. You can easily save the money needed for a good quad core by opting for an overclocked 280 GTX which will drop in price when the 285 GTXs hit the scene.

Alternatively we can help you with more options in here, or you can educate yourself in our review index for some other system builds to suit.

Welcome to the forum!

mike2h · Jan 13, 2009, 05:41 PM

from newegg- Newegg.com - EVGA 01G-P3-1280-AR GeForce GTX 280 1GB 512-bit GDDR3 PCI Express 2.0 x16 HDCP Ready SLI Supported Video Card - Desktop Graphics / Video Cards
gtx 280, $304 after rebate.
and i would defintely go quad core on the cpu.

Lowfat · Jan 13, 2009, 06:19 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by mike2h

from newegg- Newegg.com - EVGA 01G-P3-1280-AR GeForce GTX 280 1GB 512-bit GDDR3 PCI Express 2.0 x16 HDCP Ready SLI Supported Video Card - Desktop Graphics / Video Cards
gtx 280, $304 after rebate.
and i would defintely go quad core on the cpu.

that card was $100 cheaper 3 days ago on buy.com. It is hard to justify spending that much money now after seeing them so cheap.

DJ BIG T · Jan 13, 2009, 06:49 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by nicnik

Single core or single card? Coz the fastest "one" card is prolly the gtx 295 right?

thats not single core video card...

mike2h · Jan 13, 2009, 07:32 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Lowfat

that card was $100 cheaper 3 days ago on buy.com. It is hard to justify spending that much money now after seeing them so cheap.

iwent straight to newegg as that is were he is ordering from at the moment. trying to streamline. my bet is that proce at buy.com was an anomaly. couldnt find any 280 there for as cheap as the newegg deal.
not saying the price wont go down some more, just dont think it will go down that much. i tihnk its a good deal if u are wanting to put together a comp right now. ati cant match that performance at that price, especially for a single gpu solution. wich is what he wants...
really lookin forward to dh review of the new cards

the pricng vs perf on the 285 vs the 280 will be interesting. & should play an important part of op's choice.

Zardon · Jan 13, 2009, 08:09 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by mike2h

really lookin forward to dh review of the new cards

the pricng vs perf on the 285 vs the 280 will be interesting. & should play an important part of op's choice.

Yeah we are working on those, hopefully up within the next week (both 285 and 295 reviews).

lepel · Jan 13, 2009, 09:06 PM

I'd wait for the prices of the 285 on newegg. They will probably be around 400$ I think.

I don't know if they will be worth the extra 80$ over the 280gtx...

Butch Nackley · Jan 14, 2009, 12:27 AM

Hi again

lepel, you are correct about the price of the 285. The ones I found this morning were around 385-400 dollars.

You guys really are on top of things here.
Okay, the 280 might be a good choice. I found this on nVidia's site:
GTX 285, Fill Rate=51.8 billion, Max Mem Bandwidth=159 GB/s
GTX 280, Fill Rate=48.2 billion, Max Mem Bandwidth=141.7 GB/s
So the 280 isn't too far below the 285. I can wait a week or two to see how prices are affected once the 285 becomes more widely available.

I do appreciate your suggestions of a quad core. However, like I said, the games I mainly play simply work better on dual core. It isn't a matter of the price of quad cores, I was actually looking at them when I started planning this build. There are only a couple games coming out within the next year or so that I am interested in. Rise of Flight (probably will be best on dual core as it uses the IL-2 engine) and Storm of War (may be able to use quad fully). So I am really kinda set on the duo right now, because the MHz is what's important for the games I play. Down the road, if I find I need a quad, I can always get one then. But, I don't really plan for this build to be a very long term system anyway. I will probably build a new one sometime next year. By then new releases of rFactor, TES and other games will be coming. For me, that is when it will be time to go quad (or maybe even more) cores.

Thanks again for all your help.

mike2h · Jan 14, 2009, 12:49 AM

think you will be fine with either of those choices for cpu & gpu. gl & have fun!!!

Butch Nackley · Jan 15, 2009, 04:32 AM

Thanks again guys

I just ordered a XFX 285 from Newegg. $389.38 with shipping.

Bye for now

Butch Nackley · Jan 22, 2009, 04:37 PM

Hi again all

Again, thanks for helping me.
I got my 285 Monday and got everything together, windows installed, all updates and 64bit drivers.
Everything is running beautifully. I am very pleased at how well all my 'new' games run. Every setting on full and 1920x1200 resolution. Smooth as silk, This is with Fallout 3, Crysis, Far Cry 2 and of course, Flight Simulator X (which I was most concerned about how it would run). It defaulted to everything on full, except res was 1024x768. I changed it to native and set the frame rates to 25fps. It holds 25 rock solid, so I can probably set it to something like 30 or 32.

I have my cpu (e8400) at 3.7GHz right now and it is perfectly stable. I may try for around 4GHz soon. Temperatures are good now.

I haven't tried to overclock the gfx card yet. I have a feeling I could get the core near 700MHz, and maybe up the ram some too, but just haven't messed with it yet.
I want to monitor temperatures awhile before I try to oc it.

Anyway, thanks for the input. I'm glad I decided to ask my question here, because I was nearly 100% set on a twin core. I just didn't want the hassles that some have had with them. So, with your help I was able to make a great choice and I'm happy as can be

LOL, I didn't even know anything at all about the 285.

lepel · Jan 22, 2009, 04:49 PM

I'm glad you're happy with your card. Enjoy it!

Jan 13, 2009, 10:53 AM	#1
Butch Nackley DriverHeaven Junior Member Join Date: Oct 2008 Location: Hickory, NC USA Posts: 22 Rep Power: 0	Fastest Single Core GPU? Hi all I am wanting to buy a new graphics card and want to get the fastest one currently out. I would like 1GB of ram on it. The board I'll be using supports PCI Express 2.0 x16 I am ordering the following with the gfx card; Corsair CMPUS-750TX power supply. Gygabyte GA-EP45C-UD3R E8400 CPU Vista Ultimate 64bit I already have; G.Skill F2-8000CL5D-4GBPQ (2x2GB kit) 640GB Wetern Digital HDD Xigmatek HDT S1283 cpu cooler Sony DVD-RW DRU-830A So, if you guys can let me know the fastest 'single' core gpu out right now, I will get get my order sent in today. Thanks for the help __________________ Scuderia Ferrari Marlboro FIA Formula One World Championship

Jan 13, 2009, 10:56 AM	#2
Zardon DriverHeaven Founder Join Date: May 2002 Posts: 32,480 Rep Power: 179	Re: Fastest Single Core GPU? 285 GTX from nvidia. review up here shortly.

Jan 13, 2009, 11:50 AM	Thread Starter #3
Butch Nackley DriverHeaven Junior Member Join Date: Oct 2008 Location: Hickory, NC USA Posts: 22 Rep Power: 0	Re: Fastest Single Core GPU? Thank You. Newegg doesn't have the 285 listed, yet. I did find a MSI, a PNY and a Asus in stock at some other stores though. I have never used these stores before. One I had used before listed the PNY, but didn't have it in stock. For now I will just order the other parts from Newegg and hopefully they will have the gfx cards in before too long. If they don't have any in a few days, I may try another store. I am open to store recommendations that have the 285 in stock, if anyone knows of one they have used before and got good service. __________________ Scuderia Ferrari Marlboro FIA Formula One World Championship

Jan 13, 2009, 12:41 PM	#4
nicnik In the Land of Snow Join Date: Oct 2005 Location: London, UK Posts: 569 Rep Power: 46 System Specs	Re: Fastest Single Core GPU? Single core or single card? Coz the fastest "one" card is prolly the gtx 295 right? __________________ Follow Me on Twitter Battlefield 3 \| youtube \| TwitchTV

Jan 13, 2009, 01:07 PM	#5
Zardon DriverHeaven Founder Join Date: May 2002 Posts: 32,480 Rep Power: 179	Re: Fastest Single Core GPU? well im guessing Butch doesn't want to have to deal with SLI or CF profiles...

Jan 13, 2009, 02:02 PM	#6
Vikingod Int'l Fish Liaison Join Date: Jul 2004 Location: By the light of lamp I sit and type... Posts: 16,197 Rep Power: 112 System Specs	Re: Fastest Single Core GPU? Nice system you are building. Might I suggest however that, seeing as you're spending $500+ on a GPU, that you spend a few extra bucks and pick up a quad core processor. The Q6600 is pretty cheap and would probably perform just as well as the E8400, it can OC pretty well too (mine's up past 3.0ghz on a $25 cooler). Modern games, GTA4 for example, see huge benefits from the extra processors. I would expect other future titles to follow suit. Just a suggestion.

Jan 13, 2009, 05:41 PM	#9
mike2h DriverHeaven Extreme Member Join Date: Nov 2002 Location: norcal Posts: 6,483 Rep Power: 91 System Specs	Re: Fastest Single Core GPU? from newegg- Newegg.com - EVGA 01G-P3-1280-AR GeForce GTX 280 1GB 512-bit GDDR3 PCI Express 2.0 x16 HDCP Ready SLI Supported Video Card - Desktop Graphics / Video Cards gtx 280, $304 after rebate. and i would defintely go quad core on the cpu. __________________

Jan 13, 2009, 09:06 PM	#14
lepel HardwareHeaven Senior Member Join Date: Nov 2008 Location: Belgium Posts: 552 Rep Power: 41 System Specs	Re: Fastest Single Core GPU? I'd wait for the prices of the 285 on newegg. They will probably be around 400$ I think. I don't know if they will be worth the extra 80$ over the 280gtx...

Jan 14, 2009, 12:27 AM	Thread Starter #15
Butch Nackley DriverHeaven Junior Member Join Date: Oct 2008 Location: Hickory, NC USA Posts: 22 Rep Power: 0	Re: Fastest Single Core GPU? Hi again lepel, you are correct about the price of the 285. The ones I found this morning were around 385-400 dollars. You guys really are on top of things here. Okay, the 280 might be a good choice. I found this on nVidia's site: GTX 285, Fill Rate=51.8 billion, Max Mem Bandwidth=159 GB/s GTX 280, Fill Rate=48.2 billion, Max Mem Bandwidth=141.7 GB/s So the 280 isn't too far below the 285. I can wait a week or two to see how prices are affected once the 285 becomes more widely available. I do appreciate your suggestions of a quad core. However, like I said, the games I mainly play simply work better on dual core. It isn't a matter of the price of quad cores, I was actually looking at them when I started planning this build. There are only a couple games coming out within the next year or so that I am interested in. Rise of Flight (probably will be best on dual core as it uses the IL-2 engine) and Storm of War (may be able to use quad fully). So I am really kinda set on the duo right now, because the MHz is what's important for the games I play. Down the road, if I find I need a quad, I can always get one then. But, I don't really plan for this build to be a very long term system anyway. I will probably build a new one sometime next year. By then new releases of rFactor, TES and other games will be coming. For me, that is when it will be time to go quad (or maybe even more) cores. Thanks again for all your help. __________________ Scuderia Ferrari Marlboro FIA Formula One World Championship

Jan 14, 2009, 12:49 AM	#16
mike2h DriverHeaven Extreme Member Join Date: Nov 2002 Location: norcal Posts: 6,483 Rep Power: 91 System Specs	Re: Fastest Single Core GPU? think you will be fine with either of those choices for cpu & gpu. gl & have fun!!! __________________

Jan 15, 2009, 04:32 AM	Thread Starter #17
Butch Nackley DriverHeaven Junior Member Join Date: Oct 2008 Location: Hickory, NC USA Posts: 22 Rep Power: 0	Re: Fastest Single Core GPU? Thanks again guys I just ordered a XFX 285 from Newegg. $389.38 with shipping. Bye for now __________________ Scuderia Ferrari Marlboro FIA Formula One World Championship

Jan 22, 2009, 04:37 PM	Thread Starter #18
Butch Nackley DriverHeaven Junior Member Join Date: Oct 2008 Location: Hickory, NC USA Posts: 22 Rep Power: 0	Re: Fastest Single Core GPU? Hi again all Again, thanks for helping me. I got my 285 Monday and got everything together, windows installed, all updates and 64bit drivers. Everything is running beautifully. I am very pleased at how well all my 'new' games run. Every setting on full and 1920x1200 resolution. Smooth as silk, This is with Fallout 3, Crysis, Far Cry 2 and of course, Flight Simulator X (which I was most concerned about how it would run). It defaulted to everything on full, except res was 1024x768. I changed it to native and set the frame rates to 25fps. It holds 25 rock solid, so I can probably set it to something like 30 or 32. I have my cpu (e8400) at 3.7GHz right now and it is perfectly stable. I may try for around 4GHz soon. Temperatures are good now. I haven't tried to overclock the gfx card yet. I have a feeling I could get the core near 700MHz, and maybe up the ram some too, but just haven't messed with it yet. I want to monitor temperatures awhile before I try to oc it. Anyway, thanks for the input. I'm glad I decided to ask my question here, because I was nearly 100% set on a twin core. I just didn't want the hassles that some have had with them. So, with your help I was able to make a great choice and I'm happy as can be LOL, I didn't even know anything at all about the 285. __________________ Scuderia Ferrari Marlboro FIA Formula One World Championship

Jan 22, 2009, 04:49 PM	#19
lepel HardwareHeaven Senior Member Join Date: Nov 2008 Location: Belgium Posts: 552 Rep Power: 41 System Specs	Re: Fastest Single Core GPU? I'm glad you're happy with your card. Enjoy it!