• We’re currently investigating an issue related to the forum theme and styling that is impacting page layout and visual formatting. The problem has been identified, and we are actively working on a resolution. There is no impact to user data or functionality, this is strictly a front-end display issue. We’ll post an update once the fix has been deployed. Thanks for your patience while we get this sorted.

5900 Ultra or 5900

F

fsstrike

Senior member
I dont know which card to choose, the 5900U 128mb or 5900 128mb. Is the U a lot better? I plan on overclocking which ever i get.
 
There are tons of benchmarks for you to compare the difference in performance with the difference in price, including quite a few on this very site. My short answer would be no, but your budget and needs may be different.

Remember than ATi's and nVidia's next-gen cards should be available April/May, and they're supposed to be more than twice as fast as current cards like the 5900 and 9800. That may make you think twice about shelling out $300+ now, but a ~$200 5900/XT shouldn't be too bad an investment.
 
5900 is better. You can overclock it to 5900 Ultra speeds. The extra 128MB of RAM on the 5900 Ultra is useless unless you play games at 1600x1200 4xAA 8xAF, and even then, finding a game who has large textures is a little difficult.
 
5900. The extra $100 hardly gets you any more performance.

Originally posted by: VIAN
5900 is better. You can overclock it to 5900 Ultra speeds. The extra 128MB of RAM on the 5900 Ultra is useless unless you play games at 1600x1200 4xAA 8xAF, and even then, finding a game who has large textures is a little difficult.
Click to expand...

Holy fvck, talk about a 180. VIAN goes from "you must get a 256mb card!!" to "the extra mem is worthless" ..wtf?
 
Neither. You should get a 5800....
Nah. Just kidding. 5900NU is "bang for buck" best buy now in nVidia line up.
 
If you're open to kinky things, then a 9800 Pro would demolish both.

Holy fvck, talk about a 180. VIAN goes from "you must get a 256mb card!!" to "the extra mem is worthless" ..wtf?
Click to expand...
My initial arguement was that it had some benefit. Just recently - about one week ago, I came upon other benchmarks that showed that 256MB of RAM would only make a difference it you had 4xAA on. You could have 1600x1200 2xAA 8xAF and you would be good using 128MB. At that point 4x AA might make little difference to the IQ anyway, so I decided it was useless - just an overexpensive luxury.

9800 Pro is the most powerful card in the market right now. If you overclock it to XT speeds, then it will be even more worth it. Performng close to a 450 dollar card, when you only paid 200. Feels good. Some people have even overclocked past XT capabilities - delivering Break Neck performance.
 
Originally posted by: fsstrike
I dont know which card to choose, the 5900U 128mb or 5900 128mb. Is the U a lot better? I plan on overclocking which ever i get.
Click to expand...

check out this thread in the hot deals section on how you might find a 5900 ultra inside a 5900se box. there are a few of them out there, so check closely when you go to purchase. if you dont find one, go ahead and spring for the SE anyway. it's 179 at Frys right now (in Austin).
 
VIAN, the 9800 pro even if it IS overclocked to XT speeds is not the "most powerful card on the market right now" Because you could always overclock an XT past what a 9800 pro would overclock to. The absolute best value/performance card is the 5900 non-ultra, for now.
 
Originally posted by: Rollo
The absolute best value/performance card is the 5900 non-ultra, for now.
Click to expand...
I don't agree with this. With the 9800 Pro $199 local retail at Best Buy, it beats the 5900NU at ~$200
Click to expand...

Agreed, the 9800 pro is currently a better value. And if you don't want to wait for the rebate, just spend an extra $10 and get it from newegg.
 
IMO, a $210 9800P is a better price/performance argument than a $200 5900. You more than make up the $10 with generally faster AA+AF performance.
 
I dont know which card to choose, the 5900U 128mb or 5900 128mb. Is the U a lot better? I plan on overclocking which ever i get.
Click to expand...
at this point, i don't know if i'd get either, even tho i have a 5900nu and think it's a great card. a month ago i would've said @ $160 the 5900nu was the best bang for the buck available, but with those non-existant now, and the fx series of cards actually going up in price (even the xt/se are like $180 now), the 9800 pros dropping, and the next gen cards right around the corner, i'd probably wait, but if i had to get something, i'd get a 9800 pro. if you'd really rather have an nvidia, i'd wait.
If you're open to kinky things, then a 9800 Pro would demolish both.
Click to expand...
wow.. from a fanboi of one camp to a fanboi of another... although i suppose that if you consider -10% to +20% performance depending on which game you're running and what settings is "demolishing", i guess 'fanboi' wouldn't apply.. 'delusional' would be better 😛
I don't agree with this. With the 9800 Pro $199 local retail at Best Buy, it beats the 5900NU at ~$200
Click to expand...
well, i would disagree with 5900nu @ $160 (which is what i paid), however i'd have to agree at this point as there's barely any 5900nu's left... i think the least expensive is a bit over $200 for a pny; they all seem to be xt/se's at this point. at the same price or near the same price, the 9800p is the better value.

still, this close to the new cards coming out, and the rumors of the two-fold or better performance increase, it just might be worthwhile to hold out just a bit longer...
 
You must log in or register to reply here.

TRENDING THREADS

Back
Top