Nvidia or AMD and driver overview?

[orangecat]

So I'm thinking of going AMD but it's all up to the drivers for me I don't care for PhysX and I don't have a 120HZ monitor nor do I want one. So how are the AMD drivers anyone got some pictures to share or any problems to tell? Also I can't figure out how to find out what's latest or not.

[EChondo]

If you aren't familiar with AMD's drivers, then you won't know their numbers for new versions.

The drivers listed from new to old are...

-13.2(To be released, next week, beta)

-13.1(WHQL)

-12.11(Beta)

-12.10(WHQL)

-12.9(Beta)

-12.8(WHQL)

and so on...every odd number on the 12.X drivers are beta drivers and it looks to be switched on the 13.X drivers. Also, AMD stopped using the 12.X name because it's a new year and 2013, so "13.X" drivers.

As far as driver problems go, I have had a MSI 7870 for some while now, it worked fine until the 12.8 drivers and then I had terrible GPU utilization, but it got fixed with the 12.10 drivers and have been fine ever since. Also, AMD is finally fixing their frame latency issue that the 7000 series has been plagued with, which is coming next week in the 13.2 beta drivers.

Other than that, I love my 7870 and I am actually getting a second one this week for crossfire and testing purposes! Definitely worth it, well, in my eyes :D

Also, to find the most latest drivers, go here: http://support.amd.com/us/gpudownload/Pages/index.aspx

Just fill in the correct information and it should send you to the latest driver page for that series of GPUs.

[orangecat]

What is faster then a 460GTX like 660Ti performance I want 660Ti or better performance but I don't understand their marketing.

[EChondo]

What is faster then a 460GTX like 660Ti performance I want 660Ti or better performance but I don't understand their marketing.

I'll list the GPUs that you should look at against the other brand;

7970GHz Edition vs. GTX 680

7970 vs. GTX 670

7950 vs. GTX 660ti

7870 vs. GTX 660

7850 vs. GTX 650ti

7770 vs. GTX 650

7750 vs. GT 640

If you get the 7950, you can get GTX 660ti performance AND the 7950 overclocks A LOT more than what a GTX 660ti could. You could also get a 7870 and overclock it to reach GTX 660ti levels.

So 7950 most likely.

To see what should go against what, look at the prices. The price for a GTX 660ti is around $300 and that is what it costs for a 7950, so you should be comparing a 660ti and a 7950.

[Kev]

AMD has dumped a lot of resources into their Drivers. They are on par or better then Nvidia's now.

[killerx525]

The current drivers are pretty good in my experience!

[Lolipop]

What is faster then a 460GTX like 660Ti performance I want 660Ti or better performance but I don't understand their marketing.

I'll list the GPUs that you should look at against the other brand;

7970GHz Edition vs. GTX 680

7970 vs. GTX 670

7950 vs. GTX 660ti

7870 vs. GTX 660

7850 vs. GTX 650ti

7770 vs. GTX 650

7750 vs. GT 640

If you get the 7950, you can get GTX 660ti performance AND the 7950 overclocks A LOT more than what a GTX 660ti could. You could also get a 7870 and overclock it to reach GTX 660ti levels.

So 7950 most likely.

To see what should go against what, look at the prices. The price for a GTX 660ti is around $300 and that is what it costs for a 7950, so you should be comparing a 660ti and a 7950.

More like:

7970 vs. 680

7950 vs. 670

7870 vs. 660ti

7850 vs. 660

7770 vs. 650ti

7750 vs 650

Radeon HD vs GTX

[RailfanS]

The AMD 13.1 drivers are very good. I've been gaming with them for most of the day. My 7870 maxed out (60 FPS, my monitor refresh rate) borderlands, portal, portal 2, and half-life 2 all on max setting (yeah I know, my games are old). I was also getting 35-40 FPS on max setting in Metro 2033, which is about a 10 FPS improvement over 12.11. Also if you go with AMD I would recommend staying away from Sapphire 7870's, alot of people are having hardware problems with them. They have a habit of "blackscreening" at random intervals durring gaming, which requires a restart. I'll have to RMA mine eventually, and hopefully I'll get a fully working replacement. It is an awesome card when it works right though.

[EChondo]

What is faster then a 460GTX like 660Ti performance I want 660Ti or better performance but I don't understand their marketing.

I'll list the GPUs that you should look at against the other brand;

7970GHz Edition vs. GTX 680

7970 vs. GTX 670

7950 vs. GTX 660ti

7870 vs. GTX 660

7850 vs. GTX 650ti

7770 vs. GTX 650

7750 vs. GT 640

If you get the 7950, you can get GTX 660ti performance AND the 7950 overclocks A LOT more than what a GTX 660ti could. You could also get a 7870 and overclock it to reach GTX 660ti levels.

So 7950 most likely.

To see what should go against what, look at the prices. The price for a GTX 660ti is around $300 and that is what it costs for a 7950, so you should be comparing a 660ti and a 7950.

No, Lolipop you do price vs. price. I have no idea why you posted that. Why buy a 670 when you can buy a 7970? Or why buy a 660ti when you can buy the 7950? Is it because you're an Nvidia fanboy and think that higher performance vs. lower performance is how you treat things?

[Warrax]

This is from personal experience with both brands over 10+ years: AMD/ATI drivers are much better than in the past but they still have occasional issues in some games, specially old games. Nvidia doesn't have that problem, I actually very rarely had issues with Nvidia drivers.

[orangecat]

So 7950 for next GPU upgrade?