x850XT or GeForce 6800 Ultra?

[marceta]

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

[oenone]

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

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.

[marceta]

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.

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

[oenone]

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

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?

[Dark_Omen]

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.

[marceta]

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?

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!

[oenone]

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!

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 cardwill 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!

[rcrevolution]

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

[marceta]

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?

[oenone]

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?

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

[marceta]

check this out, it was released, and i think i might buy one! btw, which of the cards on this page is the best a) performance and b) value???

http://www.techbuy.com.au/search.asp?what=BeginSearch&page=1&fromSearch=1&srchCat=VIDEOCARDS_RADEON_SERIES&srchManuf=ALL&srchSortBy=2&srchQuery=x800XT+pe&min=%240.00&max=%240.00&srchNumRecs=20&rbSrchType=ALL&x=0&y=0

[marceta]

awww, crap! my ga-8Idml-C motherboard only has AGP4x support :( i know i can still put these cards in at 4x, but how drastic will the drop in graphic quality be?

[oenone]

At this current moment the difference won't be too bad at all. Even AGP 4X provides quite a bit of bandwidth It will run a tad slower on the more demanding applications, but nothing too significant. Also, those prices on that website are crazy! 700 USD for a X800XT PE is extortion! Again, there is a very good chance that none of these places actually ave the card. My Friend ordered it from one place that had it quoted as "in stock", only to recieve a message that essentially told him it was, in fact, out of stock. He tried other stores as well, with similar results. I highly recommend getting either the 6800GT (value) or 6800 ultra (maximum performance). Please note that you will probably need a more robust power supply for any of these cards, 500W would be the best!

[marceta]

the quoted prices are AUD! and that (i think) is actually quite reasonable, now that you know this, do u think its still bad value? Ill prob get a Ultra and save a little on the highest ATI cards (maybe even a GT if i want other upgrades)!

EDIT: power supply ey :confused: never knew anything (or actaully cared) about this, but know i must research into it! The more Watts the higher the bill ey? also, how do i find out what my current supply is?

[oenone]

First off, yes did know they were in AUD... 950 or so AUD comes out to about 700 USD... which is completely ridiculous. They are overcharging you 200-150 USD! To run an ultra with decent stability a 480W PSU is recommended, though 500W would be better. Again, the X800XT PE is literally nonexistant. Look for a price of 470-510 USD when buying the 6800 ultra. If you can, go for one of the Gainward or BFG ones, they are very good manufacturers. The BFG ones come factory overclocked as well!

[marceta]

well we get ripped of ridiculously here for hardware and i really doubt i can get one for 470-510US :( :( :( the only place i can find bfg is ebay and they are cheap but im not getting it off ebay!

[rcrevolution]

ok the 850XT good luck if you find it for under $800, not to mention upgrade your mobo, the X850XT pe newegg has them for $550 and they are out of stock 90% of the time. the ultra is a good card, but at that price a GT is better.

Now I know Im gonna have people freak out but read this corectly, the Gt does not perform better then the Ultra, but $100-$150 for that little of a performance difference the Gt is worth it way for then a Ultra.

[marceta]

ok the 850XT good luck if you find it for under $800, not to mention upgrade your mobo, the X850XT pe newegg has them for $550 and they are out of stock 90% of the time. the ultra is a good card, but at that price a GT is better.

Now I know Im gonna have people freak out but read this corectly, the Gt does not perform better then the Ultra, but $100-$150 for that little of a performance difference the Gt is worth it way for then a Ultra.

Although i know that GT is worse than Ultra, how much? IE. frames per second difference in games (i know every game is coded different but a rough guess will be fine)

[rogue-monkey]

You can expect a difference between 3 and 30 fps on most newer games... it really depends on the settings. For example, if you played half life 2 with a low resolution and no AA or AF there would be a very small gain with the ultra. On the other hand, if you were playing it with a much higher resolution, with AA and AF enabled, you can expect some very significant performance increases.

[marceta]

hmm, maybe ill just go Ultra because technology wont catch up to it that quickly and im going to have SLI on my new PC!