512mb vs 256mb

[lolgloin]

I was curious how much of a performance increase there is going from a 256mb video card to a 512mb video card (gaming performance).

Also, there is a small selection of 512mb cards, will this change in the next few months to come?

 

[jdkick]

Search, this just came up recently.

In short, you need a fairly powerful GPU to make use of 512MB. If you're buying in the mid-range of cards then 256MB is sufficient. If you're looking to buy a higher end card then 512MB may be of use, but check the specs carefully and watch for 512MB @ slow frequencies vs 256MB at high frequencies.

 

[BassBomb]

i dont think it will change big time soon,

it depends on teh gpu.. AFAIK X1800 256 versions didnt show up yet, or X1900 with 256... so you cant compare 256 vs 512

on other hand you can with 6800U VS 6800U 512, which was a flop
and X800XL vs X800XL 512, which was also a flop
7800GTX VS 7800GTX512, was overpriced but obviosuly good increase in performance... it wasnt just added memory it was full overclock too

if u want to be the top of the top ur obviously gonna want something along the line of X1900XT 512mb, average people still stay with 256

 

[Demoth]

Vid card memory is what most gamers think determines the power of a card and thus this is what many card manufacturers advertise and stress when selling cheaper cards that you see displayed in Best Buy and the like, often for way over inflated prices.

I can't tell you how many of my friends, even computer tech people that work on networks, tell me they got a 256 or 512 meg vid card and thus think they have upgraded when actually they paid full price for almost no upgrade or took a step down. People see a 512 meg X1300 pro with a big '512 MEG!' sticker on it and think it will smoke their old 128 meg 6600GT by a huge margin. Just about all your card's power is determined by the card's engine. PCIe vs AGP, memory, brand, all that other stuff is very minor or in some cases non factors. Even at the top end, the 512 7800GTx was faster then the 256 7800GTx because of the faster clock and the extra RAM had a very minimal effect on overall performance.

Granted, as top end gets more advanced the extra RAM will come into play and within 2 generations, there will be a significant difference between 256 and 512, but only on a high end card that will use it. Putting 512 on a X1600 pro and selling it for $300 is simply smoke and mirrors at best, truthfully more like flat out deceit.

 

[OvErHeAtInG]

Originally posted by: Demoth
Granted, as top end gets more advanced the extra RAM will come into play and within 2 generations, they will be a difference between 256 and 512, but only on a high end card that will use it. Putting 512 on a X1600 pro is simply smoke and mirrors at best, truthfully more like flat out deceit.

For gaming, I agree completely. There is a reason to have up to 256MB just for 2D Windows things, with a 30" LCD. May there also be a use for 512MB VRAM for video editing and stuff?

By the way I was looking for AT's article on the GTX512, and it's gone!!! Anyway IIRC they underclocked a 512 to GTX levels and compared them - the GTX512 performed identically with a GTX, except in some really high settings there was a small difference. So basically a 512GTX I'm sure has a use for that much mem, as does the 1900XT. Anything slower than that, it's just not worth it.

 

[nitromullet]

Obvioulsy, you will need a core that can actually utilize the extra memory, but I was under the impression that the game itself dictates the need for more or less memory. Basically, a lot really big, high res textures require a lot a memory. As far as I'm aware, the only games that truely benefit from 512MB are BF2 and Quake4 @ ultra quality (maybe CoD2 as well). I would also imagine that some of the mod community's high res texture packs could also benefit form the additional memory as well.

 

[SpeedZealot369]

I've seen this question so many times.

Basically its only usefull in very powerfull cards. So 6200 1gb memory(I wish omg) will be slower then 6600gt 128mb