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Is the 9800 pro worth $88 more than the 9800 np?

T

Thawk

Member
Newegg pricing:
Sapphire 9800 np $272
Sapphire 9800 pro $360

Is the performance difference worth the $88? Please let me know your thoughts ASAP, I'n gonna drop coin today.
Thanks!
 
Hi,
It depends.
The PRO will be better at AA and AF, just. But the non pro, is just as good.
The problems with the non-pros, is that they dont often OC very well. At all. You be lucky to hit the same clock speeds as a 9700pro with it.
If you can afford the 9800pro, then get it, if you are wondering if you should save up more for the pro, then dont, the 9800np is still a good card.
 
Mwave pricing:
9800 np $255
9800 pro $339

I'd say stay away from the none pro. It's too much money for what it lacks. It's slower than the 9700 pro in most cases I think.
 
Originally posted by: Thera
It's slower than the 9700 pro in most cases I think.
Click to expand...
True.
It is slower than the 9700pro in some cases, but it does handle shadows better, which`ll make it slightly faster in shadow intensive games, such as Splinter Cell & Doom3.
 
Depends on the memory chips on the np. If the same or similar to those on the Pro, a bios flash makes it a Pro.

Did this to a 9700np that I got that had the same Samsung chips as the Pro. Flashed = instant Pro + money in jeans.
 
Monarch Computer...
Powercolor 9800 Pro $334 + free shipping.

Cash feeling warm in pocket... must resist. 🙂
 
Originally posted by: bunnyfubbles
Isn't the 9800 the same as a 9800 Pro but with lower core and memory clock speeds?
Click to expand...

Yes, but sometimes they use slower memory chips, so even if you do overclock, you won't be able to hit the same speed as the Pro version.
 
It should be, though manufacturers *may* use lesser-quality parts on the cheaper card--at $300 retail, though, I doubt it.
 
Best Buy seems to have them, and they are available at various locations online. Just look around. I was considering one, but it looks like I'll have enough for the 9800 pro or an FX 5900 (only for the NVidia name...I know the pro is faster)...
 
Originally posted by: NYHoustonman
Best Buy seems to have them, and they are available at various locations online. Just look around. I was considering one, but it looks like I'll have enough for the 9800 pro or an FX 5900 (only for the NVidia name...I know the pro is faster)...
Click to expand...

The silly thing is that buying it at Best Buy is pretty much like buying a 9800 Pro online... $300 + tax ($18-$25) is pretty much what a cut-rate reseller will charge for a full-fledged 9800 Pro.

Why not hit our own FS/FT forum? I hardly shop elsewhere now.
 
Allstarshop has the 9800 in stock at ~$255 shipped. IMHO, you can't beat that with a bat.

Alright, you could, but then you'd be out $260 and some top-end 3D.
 
I went with the pro and bought it from newegg. I might of saved shopping around but I bought other things at newegg as well so it is easier this way. Also, newegg is a solid online store. Thanks for all of your input.
 
Originally posted by: Thawk
I went with the pro and bought it from newegg. I might of saved shopping around but I bought other things at newegg as well so it is easier this way. Also, newegg is a solid online store. Thanks for all of your input.
Click to expand...

Sweet. After looking into it for you I ended up buying one also. 😀
 
Originally posted by: Pete
Allstarshop has the 9800 in stock at ~$255 shipped. IMHO, you can't beat that with a bat.

Alright, you could, but then you'd be out $260 and some top-end 3D.
Click to expand...

Yep, I ordered their 9800np from allstarshop last night. They offered free ground shipping, but I opted for overnight to get it in my hands today! Woot!!!

Now, the real question is: Do any of the tweak programs work with a 9800np?!?! We shall see...
 
The core is exactly the same as the pro version with its "smoothvision 2.1" , so any mention that AF and AA perform differently with a non-pro compared to the pro is bull sh*t. You can overclock the non-pro's core to 400+ if you wanted too, except you will be lacking with the 300 Mhz limited memory. That is no big deal, since 300 Mhz for res's other then 12 x 16 is plenty for frame buffering.

I went out and made a impulse decision in buying a 9800 at Best Buy. Should of waited because I could of bought a pro version for 40 dollars more on newegg. That is 2 tanks of gas now in NJ.
 
I got one of the Sapphire np's from newegg. It came with Samsung 3.3ns memory, but so far I have had it clocked up to 430 core and 370. It runs totally stable through 3dmark2001 and 3dmark2003 without any artifacts or corruption.
 
I've found the 9800np locally for $400 compared to the pro for $515. (canadian)

I'm leaning towards the non-pro myself.
 
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