To Ati or not to Ati !

[Popple2000]

Hey guys, question for ya'll.

I was running 2 GTX 460's in SLI until my trusty Gigabyte 460 let go the other day. 

That being said, I am now feeling the pinch with only 1 460 pushing my games now.

I have noticed a HUGE amount of Ati cards  - 280x, 290's( mainly what im looking at ) for sale on used sites all over the place for anywhere from 200-350$.

I have been burned by Ati in the past with their drivers and am nervous about venturing back into the red zone.

I come here not to start a red vs green debate but to find out if a used R9 290 for example would be ok to buy or should I just pick up a GTX 760 and wait for the 800 series from Nvidia to finally show it's face.

The main card I am currently looking at is a Sapphire R9 290 Tri-X OC, I would hope to get it in the 300$ range.

 

Thanks in advance !

 

[LionsGoMoo]

I would wait, but if you can't I would get the R9 290.

[CowsGoRoar]

They changed the name to AMD.

[Levent]

AMD. ATI lost its name years ago.

yup back in 2006

OP: even a single 280 or 280X is a great upgrade over your current sli setup 

[Popple2000]

They changed the name to AMD.

I am aware, however I can't seem to change my title

Plus this will get me more traffic from people coming in to correct me

[Bonsai99]

Plus this will get me more traffic from people coming in to correct me

You are truly Satan.

[dev893]

I would go with a 280 or 280X just stay away from reference cards if you can they were most likely used for mining and is why they are so cheap

[Enderman]

AMD, not ATI

Do not buy a used AMD video card because 90% of the time it has been used for mining.

There is a good chance it will fail in a couple years, if not in a couple months.

If you really want to risk $300 then go ahead, but you probably will regret it soon after...

[Popple2000]

You are truly Satan.

/highfive

[Askew]

this will get me more traffic from people coming in to correct me

 

son of a bitch that's why I'm here :angry:

[OriginalPromise]

Hey guys, question for ya'll.

I was running 2 GTX 460's in SLI until my trusty Gigabyte 460 let go the other day. 

That being said, I am now feeling the pinch with only 1 460 pushing my games now.

I have noticed a HUGE amount of Ati cards  - 280x, 290's( mainly what im looking at ) for sale on used sites all over the place for anywhere from 200-350$.

I have been burned by Ati in the past with their drivers and am nervous about venturing back into the red zone.

I come here not to start a red vs green debate but to find out if a used R9 290 for example would be ok to buy or should I just pick up a GTX 760 and wait for the 800 series from Nvidia to finally show it's face.

The main card I am currently looking at is a Sapphire R9 290 Tri-X OC, I would hope to get it in the 300$ range.

 

Thanks in advance !

I'll recommend AMD more than Nvidia. The AMD drivers got a lot better compared the ATI era. That 290 is a solid choice. Go for it.

[Popple2000]

son of a bitch that's why I'm here :angry:

no advice ?

[Askew]

no advice ?

 

Yeah sure, buy a brand new 280X and wait for 800 series before committing more cash.

 

The 280X is a great card and it's within your budget, I would avoid buying used AMD cards right now as a lot of people are still breaking obsolete mining setups and you could be looking at a card that's been overclocked and flogged for months on end at max load.

[CJPowell27]

http://linustechtips.com/main/classifieds/item/557-asus-r9-280x-dcuii-top/

or 780 http://linustechtips.com/main/classifieds/item/555-inno3d-gtx-780-reference/

[Popple2000]

Yeah sure, buy a brand new 280X and wait for 800 series before committing more cash.

 

The 280X is a great card and it's within your budget, I would avoid buying used AMD cards right now as a lot of people are still breaking obsolete mining setups and you could be looking at a card that's been overclocked and flogged for months on end at max load.

I thank you for your input

On the topic of the 280x - 200$ for a used Gigabyte 280x ( seller says his mining operation never happened so the cards are still new )

Would you still suggest to stay away from them ?  If I was going to buy a new 280x, would I be better off just buying a 760 and stay on team green ?

My leaning towards amd atm is simply due to the pricing of their used cards.

 

Thanks again.

[Popple2000]

http://linustechtips.com/main/classifieds/item/557-asus-r9-280x-dcuii-top/

or 780 http://linustechtips.com/main/classifieds/item/555-inno3d-gtx-780-reference/

Thanks for the links !

[Altecice]

AMD, not ATI

Do not buy a used AMD video card because 90% of the time it has been used for mining.

There is a good chance it will fail in a couple years, if not in a couple months.

If you really want to risk $300 then go ahead, but you probably will regret it soon after...

 

hey this is probs not accurate, I doubt a card thats been used for mining is going to fail any more than a card that was used for gaming.

[Askew]

I thank you for your input

On the topic of the 280x - 200$ for a used Gigabyte 280x ( seller says his mining operation never happened so the cards are still new )

Would you still suggest to stay away from them ?  If I was going to buy a new 280x, would I be better off just buying a 760 and stay on team green ?

My leaning towards amd atm is simply due to the pricing of their used cards.

 

Thanks again.

 

You sound like you'd be happer with the 760 and if that's the case go with that.

 

To be honest the fact that he has mentioned mining is suspicious, unless the card is new/sealed I don't believe him.

[BiG StroOnZ]

I thank you for your input

On the topic of the 280x - 200$ for a used Gigabyte 280x ( seller says his mining operation never happened so the cards are still new )

Would you still suggest to stay away from them ?  If I was going to buy a new 280x, would I be better off just buying a 760 and stay on team green ?

My leaning towards amd atm is simply due to the pricing of their used cards.

 

Thanks again.

 

A used R9 290 or 280x is going to perform better than a 760. If you're looking at a 280x might as well look at a 290 because the 290's are pretty cheap. If you want to be sure of a working card, buy one off a forum like this or here: http://www.overclock.net/f/14779/video

[Buckley]

I've bought 2 290x's from eBay, both of which were used to mine. I had issues with one but sapphire took care of it ($20 RMA fee since it was 2nd hand) but the one I'm using now is a beauty. They're reference too just make sure they come with the manufacturer warranty if you do buy one 2nd hand

[Enderman]

hey this is probs not accurate, I doubt a card thats been used for mining is going to fail any more than a card that was used for gaming.

Yeah it is.

A consumer graphics card is meant to be used in a consumer PC playing consumer games. Not running 24/7 at 100% load doing massive calculations for months or even years, at temperatures above 80C.

MANY people have bought these used AMD graphics cards and experienced artefacting several months after purchase, or have their GPU just die. I think it's not worth the risk...

[Popple2000]

You sound like you'd be happer with the 760 and if that's the case go with that.

 

To be honest the fact that he has mentioned mining is suspicious, unless the card is new/sealed I don't believe him.

Well, depends if I had any of the driver/memory/heat issues with the amd cards i've been reading about I suppose.

He said that they have been opened but only for testing to make sure they worked ( im sceptical since he got them in January ) 6 months seems like a long time to sit on 30 cards.

[Popple2000]

A used R9 290 or 280x is going to perform better than a 760. If you're looking at a 280x might as well look at a 290 because the 290's are pretty cheap. If you want to be sure of a working card, buy one off a forum like this or here: http://www.overclock.net/f/14779/video

Thanks for your input and link

[Popple2000]

I've bought 2 290x's from eBay, both of which were used to mine. I had issues with one but sapphire took care of it ($20 RMA fee since it was 2nd hand) but the one I'm using now is a beauty. They're reference too just make sure they come with the manufacturer warranty if you do buy one 2nd hand

Thanks for the tips !  Did Sapphire give you any trouble having not been the initial purchaser ?

[Buckley]

Thanks for the tips ! Did Sapphire give you any trouble having not been the initial purchaser ?

Nope not at all! Really simple too. Same process except there is the $20 processing fee. Other than that very very good service!