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Overclocking the cards properly mean we need to look elsewhere for software and although ATI supply Overdrive within the driver it does not allow us to crank the card to the maximum speeds we can achieve. We used the combination of MSI Afterburner and AMD GPU Clock tool which means we can enhance both clock speeds and increase the fan speeds of the card.
We got great overclocks with the Powercolor card and while it didn't quite reach the same levels as the Sapphire, they are still very impressive. We achieved a 140mhz overclock on the core and a 150mhz overclock on the memory giving an effective 4800mhz. The temperatures of the card rose by 9c under load which is still less than the reference card at default clock speeds.
As we mentioned earlier we wanted to try S.T.A.L.K.E.R. Call Of Pripyat again once we worked out the maximum overclocked speeds. We had issues getting a smooth gameplay experience at the pre-overclocked speeds, but after we cranked the cards to the redline we can see that HD5870 speeds are in our grasp. The game went from being a little juddery to perfectly smooth. Sure, temperatures rise a little but for this kind of improvement its worth it.
Thats a sweet ass card, almost all the HD5850s overclock like hell, mine hits 850 and 1200 ram too 🙂 and its reference, gets a bit hot though
great review, covered all the bases. I agree HD5850 is much better than GTX465. cheaper too which I cant believe
The problem I have with ATI cards, no matter how good they are, is the drivers. I know they are meant to be better than 2 years ago, but I will never forget the issues I had with my media center and infinite loops. never again.
I think the cooler is actually quite ugly, Saapphier card looks much better
good price, but id still rather go for the 5870 and overclock that. can get some good overclocks with those cards too. its only £80 more I think.
excuse english, anyone have france retailers with this in stock?
Fermi is still good, I hate the way people knock it all the time. its very fast – GTX465 is great value
@ Terry – what world are you living in? GTX465 is slower, hotter, more expensive than the HD5850. why would you buy it ?
Temperatures are really good actually, seems a better deal than the Sapphire. what about noise? I dont see any ratings? louder or quieter than Sapphire?
whats the noise like? is it acceptable when overclocked?
Good review, like the card. good price too
Still dont see a need to upgrade from my last gen card. im happy with 8800
Seems quite dear still, I like the 5770, but I dont game at 1920x or 2560x . I might add another 5770 to my system though, crossfire anygood ?
Quality review – you are certainly pumping them out lately Z man.
Wouldn’t touch this make, they seem very generic far east, not a european supported brand.
prefer sapphire, even for the £20 more. better cooler, better company, I would think.
Actually you guys are wrong – most of these cards are all made by the same handful of companies in the far east, then ‘farmed’ out to the various companies we buy them from. All basically made by the same people. I have had powercolor boards in the past, never had a problem. Dont be so narrow minded
another great review.