x850XT or GeForce 6800 Ultra?
 

Hey guys. For christmas i am getting a new gfx card, and am certainly going to the top end of the market! Just wondering which of the two cards above i should purchase? What are the pros/cons of each? Which is better (if you could, plz give evidence; ie: benchmarks, etc)? And prob my most important one, which is more overclockable (sorry if thats not a word :confused: ), and what heatsink and fan to also buy?

any comments will be greatly appreciated, and thx in advance :D

Re: x850XT or GeForce 6800 Ultra?
 

I would personally go for the ultra. ATI is legendary for releasing painfully small numbers of the X800 models, and I wouldn't be suprised if the X850 released to little to no availability. The ultra will most likely be cheaper as well. Finally, while I'm not sure, the X850 may only be released in pci-e (PCI express), though I'm not totally sure. In the end though, it's your choice. The ultra will perform better in some, the X850 in others.

Re: x850XT or GeForce 6800 Ultra?
 

i know that i can get a hold of an x850XT so that is not a problem. As for PCI-E, if it was only PCI-E then i couldnt just pop it into a normal PCI slot in my PC (not where the old 1 was, i want 2!) could I? As for "The ultra will perform better in some, the X850 in others" could u plz explain the ways that each excel?

thx for the reply mate :D

Re: x850XT or GeForce 6800 Ultra?
 

PCI slots are completely different from PCI-E slots, it is impossible to stick a PCI-E card into a PCI slot. Overall, the ultra performs better in OpenGL applications, and the X850 in DirectX9. However, it really comes down to how each game is coded. Where are you going to get the X850XT from , if you do?

Re: x850XT or GeForce 6800 Ultra?
 

I am pretty sure that pci-e is different than a normal pci slot. Pci-e has a higher data transfer rate. Check your motherboard or computers manual before you buy a graphics card to make sure it is compatible. you wouldnt want to gt it for christmas and not to have it work.

Re: x850XT or GeForce 6800 Ultra?
 

My local PC store said they could order me in a X850XT post haste, and because it is better in DX9 i might sway towards it, unless ofcourse its PCI-E, cos i only have PCI!

@dark_omen, i sure wouldnt want to get it and have it not work! but im positive that 6800's are PCI so it should be sweet!

Re: x850XT or GeForce 6800 Ultra?
 

Ok, first of all, the X850 is out of the picture unless you want to buy a new motherboard, they are pci-e only. A pci-e (pCI express) video card will not work in a regular PCI slot. Unless your motherboard is very old, it probably uses the AGP interface. That is the interface that the 6800 ultras use(pci-e is coming though!). Finally, a word to the wise. If you are getting a computer around now, I highly recomend going for an AGP system unless you are planning on using and not upgrading for a long time. AGP 8X is just as fast as PCI express at the current moment, and a lot cheaper!

Re: x850XT or GeForce 6800 Ultra?
 

ATI does perform better better in DX9 games but not by much now that Nvidia has their 65 drivers out, both cards are now designed for DX9, I would go AGP 6800Ultra, name one game that will use the full bandwidth of pci-e.

you need to a few months for that

Re: x850XT or GeForce 6800 Ultra?
 

ok, soo X850XT is out of the question, but looking at some benchmarks of the X800XT PE (plat. ed.) that card seems to be quite a match for the GT Ultra, just wondering wether anyone hasthe X800XT PE and how it is?

Re: x850XT or GeForce 6800 Ultra?
 

As far as I'm concerned, the X800XT PE was never released to the public.