If this is your first visit, be sure to check out the FAQ by clicking the link above. You may have to register before you can post: click the register link above to proceed. To start viewing messages, select the forum that you want to visit from the selection below. |
|
|
Thread Tools | Display Modes |
#1
|
|||
|
|||
6800GT vs. X800Pro...with an eye to the future
Hey y'all,
I'm reentering the gaming world after a long hiatus. How long? I'm replacing a 2xP2/300, 384mb, Voodoo3, AWE64 rig! I'm going to ask the same question that everyone is these days, but hopefully a little more intelligently than "DudE! My mOm say she'll h00k me up with eItheR. Which iZ da bizzy-b0mB?" I've been reading everything I can, and I have some very specific questions (the answer to many of which will be "only time will tell" I suspect). I'd appreciate logical and informed responses (what? On Usenet?). The email address herein is legit (after you remove the obvious), if you prefer to stay out of the fray. The new rig is an Athlon XP 3200+ with 1gb DDR400. This is not up for debate. The price was *very* right and it's already purchased (~$225 for CPU, cooler, case, motherboard, 400w power supply, tax and shipping). I'm not very interested in overclocking anything. The question is which $400 GPU to put in it, the 6800GT or the X800Pro, if I'm planning to have this box as long as I did my last. Availability is not an issue...I happen to have both cards right here in front of me (an ATI and a PNY, both still in cellophane) . Yes, I *am* a bitch. So, with *only* the X800Pro and 6800GT in mind... Performance: We've all seen the Doom3 benchmarks. Big whoop...this is not the only game I'll be playing. On the other hand, a great engine will get a lot of reuse. Is it realistic to believe that ATI will a) be able to, and b) choose to fix the OpenGL performance of the X800Pro. Or is it a) crippled by its 12-pipeline architecture and lack of Shader 3.0 support, and/or b) doomed at birth by the promise of a near-term declocked 16-pipe card (the so-called X800GT)? And in the other camp, plenty of benchmarks show the two cards pretty much neck and neck in DirectX games today, with perhaps a slight advantage to ATI. Will 9.0c (and its Shader 3.0 support) change much? How important is Shader 3.0 support really? Noise: Anybody with real world experience with both? I understand the 6800GT is loud. I spend my days in climate-controlled server rooms, so a little machine whirr ain't no big thing. On the other hand, the rig will be left on pretty much all the time in a very open-architecture house. Will I hear it in the next room? Hacks: Not that I'll be jacking around with my $400 toy any time soon, but it's widely reported that BIOS flashes are a poor man's upgrade. As I understand it, the chipsets that don't pass muster to be part of an XT / Ultra PCB are then tested to lower (ie: Pro / GT) standards. So the probability of flashing actually improving anything depends on how 'broken' the individual GPU is? Furthermore, my X800 is probably not a VIVO version, which I understand means it is not flashable to an XT regardless? Whereas all GT's are capable? Has anyone actually performed a flash on either of these cards? What else bears consideration? I've got a couple weeks to make a decision and I know they're both great cards. Nor am I particularly loyal to (or vengeful against) either manufacturer. Thanks for any and all input, Dookie |
Thread Tools | |
Display Modes | |
|
|
Similar Threads | ||||
Thread | Thread Starter | Forum | Replies | Last Post |
Good fan upgrade for XFX 6800GT PCI-E? | Dax | Overclocking | 1 | February 17th 05 08:55 AM |
GA-7DXR+ and Leadtek 6800GT | Vu | Gigabyte Motherboards | 2 | September 25th 04 04:34 PM |
ALLARD ON THE FUTURE OF XBOX - PART TWO | Zackman | Ati Videocards | 2 | April 13th 04 07:40 PM |
Interesting thing At CD Freaks - Register article 12x and 16x DVD writers near future and double sized DVD writables - two layers | Alceryes | General | 1 | November 4th 03 03:08 PM |
Future Mark sets the rules ? You guys catch this? | JAD | Ati Videocards | 2 | September 27th 03 05:30 AM |