Are all Radeon 8500 LE's equal?

[lambasa]

I've looked around but I cannot get a straight answer. I've seen some 230MHz, some 250MHz, and most don't say. How do I know when I am ordering. I see some "built by ATI" and others only "powered by ATI," again most don't say who the real manufacturer is. Do all LE's get the same speed RAM? 4ns, 3.5ns???

I am looking to buy a 128MB 8500 LE that is most likely to be a good overclocker. Any suggestions?

P4 2.5GHz
1.25GB PC800 ECC
Intel 850MV
Radeon DDR
Win2000

 

[engall]

Ok,"built by ATI " ,That means the real manufacturer is ATI!
"powered by ATI" ,That means the real manufacturer is not ATI,only the chip is made by ATI.

 

[engall]

If you have enough money,why not buy ultimate video card -------ATI RADEON 9700????

 

[max105]

You should stick with the Built by ATI cards. I've heard of problems with the Powered by ATI ones.

 

[lambasa]

Any ideas on memory speed? I've heard some LE's come with 3.3ns RAM. Are those the ATI one? offbrand? Does 64MB vs. 128MB make a difference in regards to what RAM is on the board?

Thanks for the help.

 

[lambasa]

If you have enough money,why not buy ultimate video card -------ATI RADEON 9700????

I wish, but I don't have the money. I always by video cards a generation behind when I can spend <$100. I just couldn't see spending $350 on a card that will cost $120 the next year. I am upgrading for UT2003, I don't think my Radeon will cut it will all the eye candy.

 

[kmmatney]

I'm in the same boat. I have a $70 Radeon LE which I need to upgrade in the near future. My Radeon LE was "powered by ATI", but I've had no trouble with it. I flashed the Bios so that its now basically a standard Radeon DDR board now, running at the higher Radeon clockspeed.

The board I'm looking at is the $109 128 MB Radeon 8500 LE. It seems like the $20 price difference in going to the 128 MB board is worth it.

I'll probably wait until the 9700 comes out and see where the prices stand then. I may even go for a Ti4200 if the price approaches closer to $100.

 

[The Dancing Peacock]

I have a Hercules 8500LE 128mb. It's powered by ATI, but Hercules is reputable, and the card has been solid, definitely better than my voodoo3 3000

Not sure what the speed of the RAM is. Haven't looked yet. It was $99 at Fry's, no rebate.

 

[rbV5]

Are all Radeon 8500 LE's equal?

Straight answer: No

 

[Ranger8P]

The best you can do is to get a retail ati Radeon 8500LE.

First, the cards built by ATI themselves have the best quality. So srtick with ATI. Secondly for best performance avoid the whitebox. OEM, whitebox, and powered by ATI supposedly have a slightly lwsser voltage than the ATI retail cards. The retail cards with better voltage have better overclocking capability.

Also, I think the ATI Retail cards are the ones with 3.3ns ram. You can't be sure of the ram in non ATI Radeons. Some have 4ns, some 3.5. with 3.3 you should easily be able to get 300 Memory.

Also, supposedly the new Catalyst drivers radically improve performance. In some games by as much as 50%.

Finally you can get the retail 128 Radeon 8500LE at mwave for $105. I've seen white box for 109 and 105 too, but go with retail.

 

[Hector13]

Finally you can get the retail 128 Radeon 8500LE at mwave for $105. I've seen white box for 109 and 105 too, but go with retail.

Ranger8P, the best I see at mwave is 113 + about 9 for shipping for the "GAMEPACK" edition (here). Does anyone know of a better deal?

 

[PepperBreath]

Wow. They actually went up in price. I bought a Radeon 8500LE 128mb for $105 at mwave.com

When you click on the "Details" link, it says that it's "Powered by ATI" although the picture is of a "Built by ATI" card. It is retail though. I'm just hoping it's a true ATI card. If not, I hope I can clock it successfully to 8500 speeds.

 

[Ranger8P]

Yeah, Mwave went up in price, bummer.

We're discussing this at the hot deals forum. So head there. As of now, the best deal seems to be from buy.com. You can get a Radeon 8500 le for 114 with a 10 dollar off coupon. Also, you get free shipping and a free gamepad. I'm going to order one, but save the gampad to give as a christmas gift. Head over to the hot deals forum to find the links.

 

[Instan00dles]

There is 2 different 8500le's:
8500le (250\250) core/mem speeds
8500lele (230\230) core/mem speeds

I just got a built by ati retail 8500le and it comes with 3.6ns ram. I heard new ones came with 3.3 so if that is true I guess the one Igot has been sitting on the shelf for awhile.

 

[PepperBreath]

Good God! The Radeon 8500LE that Mwave.com is selling is a genuine ATI! The product discription said it was "Powered by ATI" but it is in fact a genuine 8500LE ATI.

 

[engall]

lambasa

How much is ATI R8500 LE(built by ATI) in your country? 100 US dollars?

 

[1313]

Buy.com ATI Radeon 8500LE 128MB DDR gamepack retail $113.95 shipped with free Nostromo gamepad

>>>ATI Radeon 8500LE Game Pak : Ships with FREE Belkin Nostromo N50 Game Pad!

Our Price: $123.95

Powered by the RADEON 8500LE GPU and 128MB of DDR memory, RADEON 8500LE delivers remarkable 3D gaming and graphics performance. This card features TRUFORM...<<<<


This seems like a bargain, good DVD, good 2D, multiple monitors, TV out, decent gaming, DirectX8 support, good looking graphics and AA for $113.95.

Guess what I did?

I ordered one of these 8500LE 128MB with a $10.00 off $99 buy.com coupon. $113.95 with free shipping and a free Belkin Nostromo Gamepad.

email me at vailchalet2 on my aol account for a link to the coupon

This is the retail gamepack 128MB 3.3ns DDR.... should be a great deal, includes some games rumored to be Counterstrike, maybe Half Life , and Q3...I'm not certain on the games included but you get the idea.