Hey guys, so I am thinking of upgrading my PC with a GTX480 but I was wondering how it is?
 
I am running a 850 PSU, would I have to upgrade?
 
Also, is it worth switching to ATI? I got my PC mainly for 3D vision so I would be missing out on that fantastic feature.
 
Thanks for the help!
 
Current specs -
 
 .Intel i7 920 @ stock
.GTX260
.UD5
.6gb DDR3 ram (1600mhz)
.Noctua NH-U12P-SE2 All-In-One CPU
Cooler
.Western Digital 1TB, Caviar Black,
SATA-II, 7200RPM, 32MB Cache 

First of all, what are your current specs and what types of games do you play (850 PSU is fine for GTX 480 though btw)? 
 
ATI has Eyefinity, Nvidia has 3D and PhysX, it depends on what you want. I'm not sure that 3D is feasible in most games at the moment since you have to halve your framerate...you also know that you require a 120hz monitor and a 3D kit as well right? 

What's your current specs?  Also, what graphics card are you currently using? 
Could be overkill. Also, if you've been using Nvidia, stick with it. Suddenly switching, especially on the same computer, could be a slight annoyance that takes some getting used to. Mainly the settings stuff.

" First of all, what are your current specs and what types of games do you play (850 PSU is fine for GTX 480 though btw)?  ATI has Eyefinity, Nvidia has 3D and PhysX, it depends on what you want.  "

" First of all, what are your current specs and what types of games do you play (850 PSU is fine for GTX 480 though btw)?  ATI has Eyefinity, Nvidia has 3D and PhysX, it depends on what you want. I'm not sure that 3D is feasible in most games at the moment since you have to halve your framerate...you also know that you require a 120hz monitor and a 3D kit as well right?  "

Dude... I envy your predicament. I gotta unload this pair of NV 9800gtx+'s before I can even consider what card to replace them with.  I'm gonna say 'yes' out of jealousy, regardless of whether or not you truly need it.
 
If not for my current motherboard's 16x 2-slot SLI capabilities, I would go with ATI again for the cost to frames ratio. The only ATI card I ever owned was a 9800pro i bought for Half-Life 2 and it was the longest lasting card I owned as far as performance went.
 
Eyefinity is a triple screen solution similar to Matrox's triple header thing. One screen for your focus and two screens for your perhipheral vision.
 
 If only you could combine eyefinity with 3dvision...

" Dude... I envy your predicament. I gotta unload this pair of 9800gtx+'s before I can even consider what card to replace them with.  I'm gonna say 'yes' out of jealousy, regardless of whether or not you truly need it. "

" @NekuSakuraba: Eyefinity is an ATI API that allows you to set up triple monitors or more for almost any game.   If you are looking for 3D, then the choice is obviously Nvidia. A GTX 470 is better value for money but a GTX 480 will have the muscle to play more games in 3D. Remember that in 3D, you halve your effective framerate in order to display the image buffer through each lens.   If you really want 3D and high end performance now, and you don't care that much for budget, then go ahead with the GTX 480. Personally I would wait for a die shrink, since the launch cards are the first generation of a new architecture, and are relatively hot and power hungry. Fermi shows tremendous scalability however and will greatly benefit from future fabrication optimizations, which may arrive sooner than later.  "

" I'm not certain if you can adjust quality settings for each monitor but I'm 99% sure that you can't.  "

" @NekuSakuraba: ? 99% of Windows XP games should work on 7 with no problems. Failing that, right click-->properties, set the compatibility version to Windows XP SP2, and check the box for run as administrator. Some niche games such as "7 Wonders" (ironically) may not run on Windows 7.  "

" @NekuSakuraba: That's odd, if it runs on Vista it should run on 7.  "

" @Geno said:

" @NekuSakuraba: That's odd, if it runs on Vista it should run on 7.  "

Here, if you can find out if/how it works on Windows 7 I will give you anything you want O__O "

" @NekuSakuraba said:

" @Geno said:

" @NekuSakuraba: That's odd, if it runs on Vista it should run on 7.  "

Here, if you can find out if/how it works on Windows 7 I will give you anything you want O__O "

Well, it's on a list of Windows 7 Compatible games. Also, speaking out of personal experience with close to 300 PC games, I've yet to have any trouble running any of them (except 7 Wonders, a small casual game from MumboJumbo). Even the X-COM games and Commander Keen (20+ year old DOS games) run without a hitch. All other problems that I've heard of have been fixed by setting compatibility to Windows XP SP2 and running as administrator, as I have described above.  "

"I was on gog.com and I really want to play Postal 2 but it does not support Windows 7 D: "

@Geno:

" @Geno said:

" @NekuSakuraba said:

" @Geno said:

" @NekuSakuraba: That's odd, if it runs on Vista it should run on 7.  "

Here, if you can find out if/how it works on Windows 7 I will give you anything you want O__O "

Well, it's on a list of Windows 7 Compatible games. Also, speaking out of personal experience with close to 300 PC games, I've yet to have any trouble running any of them (except 7 Wonders, a small casual game from MumboJumbo). Even the X-COM games and Commander Keen (20+ year old DOS games) run without a hitch. All other problems that I've heard of have been fixed by setting compatibility to Windows XP SP2 and running as administrator, as I have described above.  "

 I have found that gog.com are working on compatibility with Windows 7, even though they say it is not compatible is there a chance of it working the way you have said or not? "

      AMD has updated its Direct3D (Quad buffer support) driver to enable 3rd party middleware vendors such as iZ3D to output stereo L/R images at 120 Hz (60 Hz per eye)"

http://blogs.amd.com/play/tag/3d/

ATi can support 3D as well. 

"
"ATI Catalyst™ support for 3D Stereoscopic glasses

      AMD has updated its Direct3D (Quad buffer support) driver to enable 3rd party middleware vendors such as iZ3D to output stereo L/R images at 120 Hz (60 Hz per eye)"

http://blogs.amd.com/play/tag/3d/

ATi can support 3D as well. 

"

" @MrKlorox:No, it wont support 3dVision( i assume) because its made by nvidea  "

It's more of a ATi vs Nvidia price war thing again. Nvidea have their own (expensive) piece of kit and ATi offer the API's thus letting you choose your own 3D "type". 

Personally I think your GTX 260 should hold fine, no need to upgrade yet.
 
Although if you have extra cash there's no reason not too, you won't see to much of a performance increase unless your running benchmark programs or something.
 
Either way rock on bud

I know 30 frames isn't alot, however with 40 frames it's smooth and acceptable, if it's halfed, you just need to get like 80 frames before your nvidia 3d vision if that's what you want. Honestly you already have a good foundation from your rig to build on. Like geno said, the gtx470 is better value, however if money isn't a problem and you want power, go for the gtx480, it runs hot, so you need to have good case fans and stuff. It's the most powerful single gpu on the market right now if we aren't talking about dual gpus videocards.

No you shouldn't go with a 480. It runs too hot, takes too much power for what it does. I also have a 260 and can run anything out there today very well. The 480 is an overpriced, power hog of a card that doesn't fill a need. Wait until games require more horsepower and the new gen of cards have slimmed down a bit. 

I would also suggest for you to skip this gen of video cards since your GTX 260 is good enough for now.  
 
But.. If you have the money to burn go right a head !