6800GS or x800GTO2?

[DarkKnight69]

Please tell me which and why.

i am leaning toward a GTO2 cuz of the apparantly 100% unlock rate to x850XT PE. Gimme thoughts please!

 

[imhungry]

The GTO2 unlocked and overclocked will be faster, but right now I have a couple x800GTO / GTO2s and I want a 6800GS purely because they're fairly close in speed when it's all said and done.

but the killer for me is the lack of digital vibrance and gamma on the ATI cards...
I'd say that when you hit a max overclock it'll be close to..

6800GS = 6800Ultra OC
x800GTO2 = x850xtpe OC

 

[rmed64]

6800GS because its shader model 3.0

 

[Munky]

A gto2 if you want the fastest card $200 can buy and arent afraid of flashing a bios and oc'ing. A 6800gs if you dont want to unlock pipes or if you think the card will be fast enough to play future games with SM3 eye candy (which I seriously doubt).

 

[DarkKnight69]

SM3 is useless now.

i am not afraid of breaking anything. According to the NCIX forums, many ppl are getting theirs and they are reading as having 16 pipes already. If that is the case, Ill go with the GTO2. I dont like Nvidia drivers on BF2 and Planetside!

 

[Sonikku]

SM3 is hype.

The GS can't be overclocked as far as the Connect3d GTO or GTO2 (GS is overclocked from it's original design to begin with, the GTO series is actually underclocked)

X850XT > 6800 Ultra

Seriously though, if you're not overclocking the GS has the better stock speeds of the two.

 

[Sunrise089]

Originally posted by: DarkKnight69

i am leaning toward a GTO2 cuz of the apparantly 100% unlock rate to x850XT PE.

Looks like you're making the right choice.

 

[kyparrish]

I bought the XFX 6800GS earlier from Newegg, $195 one day sale, comes clocked @ 485/1100 instead of 425/1000. Hopefully it will go even higher too

 

[CKXP]

Originally posted by: kyparrish
I bought the XFX 6800GS earlier from Newegg, $195 one day sale, comes clocked @ 485/1100 instead of 425/1000. Hopefully it will go even higher too

just got mine today, it's running @500/1180. to core will go to 550mhz, but the memory tops out @1210mhz. i ran 3Dmark05 with these clocks 540/1200 and scored 6405

 

[kyparrish]

Originally posted by: CKXP

Originally posted by: kyparrish
I bought the XFX 6800GS earlier from Newegg, $195 one day sale, comes clocked @ 485/1100 instead of 425/1000. Hopefully it will go even higher too

just got mine today, it's running @500/1180. to core will go to 550mhz, but the memory tops out @1210mhz. i ran 3Dmark05 with these clocks 540/1200 and scored 6405

stock cooler? How's the noise? Done anything else, like apply Artic Silver 5 instead of the stock paste? I've got so many questions

 

[CKXP]

stock right now 44-45c idle/ 60-61c load, the fan is kinda loud, but i'm so used to using a NV silencer.... which i'll be installing tomorrow.

 

[beggerking]

I would say go with 6800GS, at least it uses shader model 3.0
performance wise it should be comparable. I would say x800GT2 is a little faster and overclocks better.

but shader model 3.0 is NOT a gimmik! its a necessary graphic element in today's standard..IT DOES MAKE A DIFFERENCE

 

[CKXP]

the 6800GS PCIe is probaly the fastest 12pipe card on the market right now, but it is still slower than an unlocked x800GTO2. the only serious advantage i see for the 6800GS is the option to go SLI for less than $400. a 6800GS SLI can easily compete with the higher-end cards.

edit: SM3 is nice to have to..

 

[RussianSensation]

6800Ultra = 425/1100 ==> 16x425 = 6800 fillrate
6800GS = 425/1000 ==> 12x425 = 5100 fillrate
6800GS needs to be clocked at about 565 on the core just to match 6800Ultra, nevermind overclocked Ultra.

So let's see how it X850XT PE (which speeds X800GTO2 will easily achieve) compares to 6800Ultra:

Far Cry 1280x1024 4AA/16AF - 62.5 (+25%) vs. 50.0fps
Splinter Cell 1280x1024 4AA/16AF - 46.1 (+14%) vs. 40.5fps
FEAR - 1024x768 4AA/16AF - 51.0 (+27.5%) vs. 40.0fps
Call of Duty 2 - 1024x768 0AA/0AF - 40 vs. 36.9fps
Battlefield 2 - 1600x1200 4AA/16AF - 52.3 (+22%) vs. 42.9

I doubt you'll be able to get 565 on the core for 6800GS, but X800GTO2 might actually exceed 540/1180 x850xt pe speeds. However, you should know that if you play OpenGL games, esp chronicles of riddick, AOE3, pacific fighters and other games that benefit from Nvidia's hardware, 6800GS is a better choice. Otherwise it seems the ATI card might age slightly better as more shader intensive games arrive.

 

[Munky]

Originally posted by: beggerking
I would say go with 6800GS, at least it uses shader model 3.0
performance wise it should be comparable. I would say x800GT2 is a little faster and overclocks better.

but shader model 3.0 is NOT a gimmik! its a necessary graphic element in today's standard..IT DOES MAKE A DIFFERENCE

Although sm3 can enable more eye candy, do you think a 6800gs is fast enough to use it? In the link you posted, B&W2 has the same IQ in sm3 as sm2.1, and in AOE3 the IQ is better, but what about the performance?
http://www.xbitlabs.com/articles/video/display/games-2005_4.html
The only playable resolution on a 6800gt is 1024x768, and that's without AA or AF. Once you add AA the performance literally drops in half, and the 6800gt is even slower than the x1600xt. If anyone really wants to play with SM3 eye candy, I'd strongly advise getting a 7800 series card or x1800/x1900.

 

[cKGunslinger]

Originally posted by: beggerking
I would say go with 6800GS, at least it uses shader model 3.0
performance wise it should be comparable. I would say x800GT2 is a little faster and overclocks better.

but shader model 3.0 is NOT a gimmik! its a necessary graphic element in today's standard..IT DOES MAKE A DIFFERENCE

It is a gimmick when used in low-end/mid-range cards like the 6800GS. You'll probably find yoursef turning off shadows completely with that card, not attempting to display them being reflected off of transparent water waves.

I'm making the same comparison as you, OP, and must say that I'm going to get the x800 GTO2 when the time comes.

 

[BlindBartimaeus]

I got the second cheapest GTO2 on newegg with the highest reported overclocks. I am running 575/600 with the stock cooler. I am getting about 6720ish on 3dmark05. The GS will suck in comparison. Yes SM3.0 is big but you can only get those benefits if you have more horsepower than is available with that card. Don't get me wrong...it is an OK card but if your GTO2 unlocks...no contest. Unless of course Doom3 and Quake 4 are the only games you play. If Valve and FarCry are your butta...there is no choice.

 

[beggerking]

Originally posted by: munky

Originally posted by: beggerking
I would say go with 6800GS, at least it uses shader model 3.0
performance wise it should be comparable. I would say x800GT2 is a little faster and overclocks better.

but shader model 3.0 is NOT a gimmik! its a necessary graphic element in today's standard..IT DOES MAKE A DIFFERENCE

Although sm3 can enable more eye candy, do you think a 6800gs is fast enough to use it? In the link you posted, B&W2 has the same IQ in sm3 as sm2.1, and in AOE3 the IQ is better, but what about the performance?
http://www.xbitlabs.com/articles/video/display/games-2005_4.html
The only playable resolution on a 6800gt is 1024x768, and that's without AA or AF. Once you add AA the performance literally drops in half, and the 6800gt is even slower than the x1600xt. If anyone really wants to play with SM3 eye candy, I'd strongly advise getting a 7800 series card or x1800/x1900.

you are right, SM3.0 is only valuable if its playable.
but there are games that run well with SM3.0 turned on here

 

[Cookie Monster]

A 6800GT is alot faster than the X1600XT.

Plus what monitor are you using. LCD go for the GS, CRT go for the GTO2.
GS can be OCed to 6800 ultra OC performance depending how good the core is.
The GTO2 can be unlocked but it lacks S.M 3.0. (Well S.M3.0 is just icying on the cake really).

I would stick with 6800GS, because prey, and Qyake wars is coming out. It favors the 6 series than the X series. Unless you play BF2, FC grab the GTO2.

 

[Wreckage]

The 6800GS will give you better performance out of the box. Your results can vary widely as far as overclocking\unlocking a GTO2. You of course can also overclock a GS.

The GS will also give you the benefit of SM3.0, HDR & Purevideo not to mention the ability to get a lifetime warranty.

 

[evolucion8]

There's no effect that SM 3.0 do that SM 2.0 cannot do, SM 3.0 is about performance, because of longer shaders, but it comes with a penalty, longer shader means that it must use Dynamic Branching, a hard to implement feature due to the nature of the Floating Point Data used in DX 9. So better SM 2.0b Longer Shader, Static Branching than SM 3.0 even longer shader, Dynamic Branching and Huge Performance Impact. About the Age of Empire Game, the graphics implementation is just pure marketing crap. The SM 2.0b was able to do all those effects, and by the way is not SM 2.1.

 

[Powermoloch]

Originally posted by: imhungry
The GTO2 unlocked and overclocked will be faster, but right now I have a couple x800GTO / GTO2s and I want a 6800GS purely because they're fairly close in speed when it's all said and done.

but the killer for me is the lack of digital vibrance and gamma on the ATI cards...
I'd say that when you hit a max overclock it'll be close to..

6800GS = 6800Ultra OC
x800GTO2 = x850xtpe OC

lol :roll:

 

[lbhskier37]

If you play Pacific Fighters SM3 isn't a joke. And the 6800GS is fast enough to run with the SM3 effects turned on. But I guess not everyone plays Pacific Fighters exclusively like me

 

[Cookie Monster]

Originally posted by: Powermoloch

Originally posted by: imhungry
The GTO2 unlocked and overclocked will be faster, but right now I have a couple x800GTO / GTO2s and I want a 6800GS purely because they're fairly close in speed when it's all said and done.

but the killer for me is the lack of digital vibrance and gamma on the ATI cards...
I'd say that when you hit a max overclock it'll be close to..

6800GS = 6800Ultra OC
x800GTO2 = x850xtpe OC

lol :roll:

Actually thats true. I guess its because of 7800GT PCB. A stock GS (425/1000) is slightly faster than a 6800GT. The GS can also be OCed around 500/1200ish, easily reaching 6k in 3d mark 05. Hence it being as fast as a 6800 ultra OC.

 

[kmmatney]

Originally posted by: imhungry
The GTO2 unlocked and overclocked will be faster, but right now I have a couple x800GTO / GTO2s and I want a 6800GS purely because they're fairly close in speed when it's all said and done.

but the killer for me is the lack of digital vibrance and gamma on the ATI cards...

The ATI cards have gamma adjust - that's the slider graph for each color. There are also enough adjustments to get the same effect as "Digital Vibrance". When I replaced my 6600GT with the X800GTO2, I also noticed the lack of digital vibrance, but played around with things to get an equivalent image.