| video card question Radeon 9800 or 9600? | |
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3th - Retired  |
important question: i was kinda set on the ASUS Radeon 9600 XT 128MB, but it looks like i could get a better performing card in the ATI 9800 Pro 128MB for maybe $10 more. anyone have any reasons why i shouldn't go with the 9800? backstory: don't read unless you're bored  i was just over at tom's hardware and saw that the Radeon 9800 Pro 128MB beats the 9600 XT 128MB in every gaming benchmark they have. and they seem to be available for the same price. now related to this is the manufacturer ATI makes them both for compareable prices, but ASUS only makes the 9800 Pro in a 256 MB. so how big of a difference does the manufacturer really make?_______________ this is the internet, be serious damn it! |
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Monteeeeeee - Nugget 
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u should get the ATI sapphire radeon 9200 256mb gfx card, i been using it for like 6 months now and its cool  very cheap too i cost me like 50 quid hehe im in england dont waste too much money on a GFX card _______________ If you add me to MSN, tell me who you are 
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3th - Retired 
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Quote: If you can pay the postage, it should be cheaper from www.aria.co.uk thanks for the link, but it's $60 MORE than the one i posted  _______________ this is the internet, be serious damn it! |
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(Jedi)Obi-JK - Student 
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I wonder with the new PCI-Express bus, if all the new games everyone wants to play, like Doom 3. If any of use using AGP graphics will be able to play at a good resolution, with the highest quality graphics. Just something to think about if you plan on upgrading in the near future. PCI-Express is "supposidly" going to replace AGP. _______________ Silent Bob (Kevin Smith): You know, there's a million fine looking women in the world, dude. But they don't all bring you lasagna at work. Most of 'em just cheat on you. -Steve (Obi) |
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Ataris - Milwaukees Finest 
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I use a 9700Pro and am most pleased.. the XT versions are kinda crappy, atleast they don't support the graphics engine used in the JK-series.. really buggy anyway.. PRO > XT imo.. but well.. it's your decision.. _______________ [ Honorable mentions: aph3x | Milamber | Bail Hope Belouve | Jaiko D'Kana | Rosered | JediEthic | Mike/JJ/TheKing | Kensei | Dane | Gradius | Thomas Skywalker | Pink Floyd | Setementor | Steinin | Odan-Wei ] [ Owner of: MetaDust's 500th comment! | Eica's 700th comment! | Pink Floyd's 666th, 999th, 1200th and 1337th comment! | DarkRyu's 400th comment! | Redeye's 1st comment! | Cow's 1111st comment! | Rufusan's 75th comment! | Wicek's 3300th and 3400th comment! | Dash Starlight's 2000th comment! | Piccolo's 3400th comment! | Takaru's 300th comment! | Senor Hat's 900th comment! | Rytandus' 4160th comment! | The first ever awarded, the original, the one and only, Catphin Award!!1 ] "Music expresses that which can not be put in to words but can not remain silent." |
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GHarris - Student 
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I'd recommend the 9800pro... and a 128mb version, at that. The price increases vastly for the 256mb model, and it's just not worth it.* A while ago, there were 64mb and 128mb versions of the geforce 3 (and also the geforce 4). The argument was that over time, when more demanding games came out, the 128mb versions would outperform the 64mb ones (and thus have a longer useful lifetime). Now that future has arrived, do the 64mb and 128mb versions perform any differently? Do they heck. The point here is that both cards will become obsolete at the same time, regardless of the amount of ram they have. *Unless you're planning on buying one of the 9800pros that can be softmodded to a 9800xt (but that's another story, and I'd assume you wouldn't be interested). _______________ Q: What do you call a man with bread and butter pudding on his head? A: Pudding Gentleman Type B! This comment was edited by GHarris on Jun 02 2004 09:58pm. |
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JamesF1 - Student 
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If you can pay the postage, it should be cheaper from www.aria.co.uk _______________ Website |
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3th - Retired 
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here's a link to the cheap Radeon 9800 pro: http://www.buyxtremegear.com/r9800pro128.html _______________ this is the internet, be serious damn it! |
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JamesF1 - Student
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I'd go with the 9800 Pro 128mb then, from all you've said in this thread. This is my third ATi card now, and I must say they're top-notch cards. BTW, the warranty won't be from ATi, it will be from the manufacturer of your card. In my case, this is 'PowerColor' _______________ Website |
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3th - Retired
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good point Koush, thanks _______________ this is the internet, be serious damn it! |
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koushka - Student 
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just to add something to make the decision more complicated: check out warranty issues with ati cards and the others, like what happens if it craps out on you or what not just to find what your getting into in case the worst happens I would get the best you can afford like doobs said. _______________ Faithful Padawan of {SKX}Dark Blade My profile pic is luke skywalker
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3th - Retired
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Quote: ...the 256mb offers very minimal performance gain over the 128mb version. i thought that was quite interesting too, as on some benchmarks you actually see the 128MB version slightly outperform the 256 _______________ this is the internet, be serious damn it! |
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Cyb - Student 
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If the difference is only $5 it seems like an easy choise between those two, being: take the 9800PRO. I myself would go for the 256Mb one, kinda for the same reasons as doobie. But don't do that if you are "only" going to get a 2600+ processor. If you're going for a 9800XT 256Mb you should just take a high and system for the other parts too, so get at least a 3000+. For a "mid-range" 2600+ processor a 9600XT 128 Mb video card looks like a good combi but once again if you can get the 9800PRO for only little more money I say take it ._______________ ~~ Love all, trust a few, do wrong to none! ~~ |
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JamesF1 - Student 
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Quite true d00bs, but (and there's always a but), with the mid-range GFX cards, the RAM speed is not as high as the high-range GFX cards. Therefore, as the speed of the RAM is limited, the 256mb offers very minimal performance gain over the 128mb version. _______________ Website |
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doobie - Jedi Council 
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probably, but my point was more general... if you're gonna drop the kind of money you have to drop these days to get computer parts, you might as well get something that will last you as long as it can, instead of constantly having to make incremental upgrades to keep up with even the current midlevel... it's up to you though, it's all about your finances and what you can afford _______________ -Academy Leader/Dictator/Defeater of DJ Sith and JACen Solo in the JAK+ Tournament -I do think it (the JA) will help convert dozens, maybe hundreds, to the dork nation... --me |
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3th - Retired
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thanks for the advice doobs. so you think having the 256MB of texture memory will make all the difference for HL2 and Doom3? _______________ this is the internet, be serious damn it! |
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doobie - Jedi Council
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ah yes, but i give you 4 words that are reasons to get the 256 meg version... Doom 3. Half-Life 2. if you're planning on getting either of those monster games, i'd try to save up for the big mama instead of getting the incremental current-generation upgrade. or do what i do and only upgrade every other generation, make sure your investments are adequately utilized _______________ -Academy Leader/Dictator/Defeater of DJ Sith and JACen Solo in the JAK+ Tournament -I do think it (the JA) will help convert dozens, maybe hundreds, to the dork nation... --me |
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3th - Retired
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thanks for the clarification james and the 256MB version is like twice as expensive for almost NO improvment in the benchmarks. granted you'll see performance gains in things like image scrolling in photoshop and the amount of game textures you can load, but i don't think anyone is pushing the 256 mark at all yet. and the point of getting this is to play JK3 all nice and pretty and still be able to enjoy some of the new generation games (although not all maxed out). like HL2 _______________ this is the internet, be serious damn it! |
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(Jedi)Obi-JK - Student 
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For the "best" hardware reviews goto http://www.hardocp.com/ I used to go to tom's hardware also, but this site is better. Also it depends on why you want this card. 1.) Be able to run JK3 at 1600x1200 with all the highest graphic settings. 2.) Just as long as you can play JK3 with no lag? _______________ Silent Bob (Kevin Smith): You know, there's a million fine looking women in the world, dude. But they don't all bring you lasagna at work. Most of 'em just cheat on you. -Steve (Obi) |
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JamesF1 - Student
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Quote:
Quote: Verdict Get the 9800 ONLY if you get the XT version. Otherwise stick with the 9600XT. even though the 9800 Pro scores 30% better than the 9600XT on gaming benchmarks?  Well, I mean, yeah, the 9800 Pro IS better than the 9600XT, BUT, what I meant is - if you have the money available, get the 9800XT. _______________ Website |
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manta - Student 
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Definitely go with the 9800 Pro. And I would splurge and go for the 256. The 9800 Pro is better than the 9600XT, hands down. |
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3th - Retired
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well at the AnandTech site the cards they reccomend for mid-range systems were both radeon. so i don't know if you were trying to make a point or not i used to be a big nvidia fan, so much so i talked my dad into buying stock 2 years ago (bad timing i might add.) anyway...i just keep hearing a lot of good things about radeon. if you can find a better deal than the ATI radeon 9800 Pro right now let me know. i can get it shipped for $170, but it's OEM, which i think means card only, no manual etc. check it: http://www.pricegrabber.com/search_getprod.php/masterid=704418/ vs. the ASUS Radeon 9600 XT for $166 (although you can get a Gigabit or Sapphire version for $20 less) http://www.pricegrabber.com/search_getprod.php/masterid=2411009/ now that i go back and look at the AnandTech site more, i am building a system very close to what they recommend for mid-range. (so far...Abit NF7-S (2.0) mother board, athlon 2600 processor) so yeah let me know what you come across. as you can see i love to talk about this stuff _______________ this is the internet, be serious damn it! |
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Drathir - Student 
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Why radeon? Have you researched all of the cards yet? http://www.anandtech.com/ read some reviews and tell me what you find . I'm building my own comp, maybe we could discuss parts sometime? -Star _______________ Where we ask the question, "Is real life really stranger than fiction, or is fiction about real life being stranger than fiction stranger than real life being stranger than fiction?" Ow. -Paradox Lost Want to read my slowly in progress webcomic? -TCTI |
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3th - Retired
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Quote: Verdict Get the 9800 ONLY if you get the XT version. Otherwise stick with the 9600XT. even though the 9800 Pro scores 30% better than the 9600XT on gaming benchmarks? _______________ this is the internet, be serious damn it! |
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{RH} ReaperXIII - Student 
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I have a R9600 XT, I like it just fine. I would have gotten the 9800XT but moneh sucks. _______________ Master of the almighty BOGONE! (tm) No one can stop me now, unless you stand right in front of me. |
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JamesF1 - Student
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Well, if anything, I'd go with the 9800, BUT I'd take the XT model if you can. It has a significant performance gain over the Pro. But the Pro has a minimal performance gain over the regular 9800. So I'd take either the 9600 XT you were planning on, or go for the 9800 XT. www.ati.com <--- look on there, there's quite a decent amount of info on speeds of the different 'versions' of the 9800 (and the 9600 for that matter). Verdict Get the 9800 ONLY if you get the XT version. Otherwise stick with the 9600XT. _______________ Website |
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