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Test System:
- Intel Core i7 930 @ 2.8GHz
- Asus P6X58D-E
- 6GB Corsair DDR3 @1,333MHz
- Ikonik Vulcan 1,200W PSU
- Windows 7 Ultimate 64-bit
All the results below were taken at 2560x1600 and at the highest settings possible with 4x Anti-aliasing turned on.
As you can see below, the GTX 580 has the edge in pretty much any benchmark you care to throw at it.
Only the combined might of the GTX 460 in SLI trim and the more expensive HD 5970 are in any position to make the latest Nvidia card sweat. Even then, only in a few, older benchmark tests.
AMD's top card can manage a performance win in only one DirectX 11 benchmark and Alien vs Predator isn't a particularly striking example of DX11 implementation.
The distance the HD 5970 lags behind in Heaven and Metro 2033 is more telling.
In the legacy benchmarks, the twin GPUs and extra graphics memory of the HD 5970 and GTX 460 in SLI do give them the lead against the GTX 580, though. But each of those also have their drawbacks against the newer card.
Would you really want to pay more for the venerable HD 5970 just to have better performance in older games, but worse in future titles?
Unlikely.
The outgoing GTX 480, however, is resoundingly beaten across the board – on average by a little over 17 per cent over the eight tests.
We haven't included the figures for the now-defunct Radeon HD 5870, since it's been replaced by the new HD 6870. And we haven't included the latter's figures here, because they're nowhere near the GTX 580 in terms of placement or performance.
DirectX 11 Tessellation Performance
DirectX 11 Gaming performance
DirectX 10 Gaming Performance
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