Palit 8800GT 1gig

[airhendrix13]

I've read a few reviews, but they all contrdict eachother, plus idk if they are very trustworthy sites.

Anybody have experience with one?

Thanks

 

[thilanliyan]

Don't bother. Most reviews I've seen don't show much difference...that's why I got the 512mb version instead. Plus the new ATI cards are coming out and should be faster for a bit more money.

 

[airhendrix13]

Yeah I've been reading up on the 4850. Unfortunetly, I have a Nvidia 680i board and crossfire isn't an option. So I would like to stick to Nvidia to save money. Would going Crossfire justify the cost?

 

[ghost recon88]

The 680i board you have there still has some value, probably $100-120. I would sell both the 680i and 8800GT, then get a Maximus Formula or P45 board.

 

[error8]

Originally posted by: airhendrix13
Yeah I've been reading up on the 4850. Unfortunetly, I have a Nvidia 680i board and crossfire isn't an option. So I would like to stick to Nvidia to save money. Would going Crossfire justify the cost?

If you are thinking of "upgrading" from your 8800 GTS 640 mb to a 8800 GT 1024 or 512 mb, don't bother. The difference in performance doesn't worth the trouble.
Also, the 1 gb card doesn't worth the money over the 512 mb one, since there is very little to no difference in games.

My advice is just to wait for the 4850, which seems to be way faster then the 8800 gt ( lets hope so) , or you can also get the 4870 later ( rumored for 8th July ). Crossfire or SLI never worth the money in the mid range segment, only if you want to have the best performing system out there and spend a fortune for something like 2 X 280GTX.

 

[happy medium]

The performance of a 4850 (I gather so far) is = a 8800gts 512 (g92) which you can get for 146.99$AR. So no the 4850 is not the best deal.
2-8800gts 512mb in sli are faster then a gtx280 for under 300.00$

 

[error8]

Originally posted by: happy medium
The performance of a 4850 (I gather so far) is = a 8800gts 512 (g92)

Oh, come on , it has to be faster then that.

 

[airhendrix13]

Thanks for the advice guys! I guess I'll wait and see what happens with AMD's new GPU's and then decide.

 

[Denithor]

The reviews are out, basically 4850 = 9800GTX but sells for nearly $100 less. Makes for a fairly easy choice.

 

[taltamir]

Originally posted by: error8

Originally posted by: happy medium
The performance of a 4850 (I gather so far) is = a 8800gts 512 (g92)

Oh, come on , it has to be faster then that.

it is actually a 9800GTX performance... which is a slightly OCed 8800GTS 512 with tri-sli capability.

Your best deal would be to SLI 2x 8800GT or 2x8800GTS 512.

Now the 4850 would have been the better deal if you didn't already OWN a board... but you loose too much on selling for it to be worth it on your setup.

 

[PalitGuy]

The value of 1GB on a card is more about what it will be able to do in the future than what it does today. If you can find one for not much more than a 512MB version AND you plan on keeping your card for a while it's not a bad deal.

The only reasonable example of that now is with Age of Conan. The extra memory allows you to extend your high-res draw distance out a bit further than if you don't have it without as much framerate drop as a 512MB version of the same card.

It's not a massive difference but neither is the price delta. As new games come out that better utilize larger memory spaces this benefit will become more apparent.

Which leaves you with the idea that if you aren't going to have your card through the period in which new games will be releasing, may as well save a couple bucks and go with the 512MB version.

1GB does not "future proof" your card. It would be more accurate to say that it may extend the useful lifetime of yhour card depending on the games you play.

As has already been stated, I don't think it would be a smart upgrade from an 8800GTS 640MB.

 

[taltamir]

Originally posted by: PalitGuy
The value of 1GB on a card is more about what it will be able to do in the future than what it does today. If you can find one for not much more than a 512MB version AND you plan on keeping your card for a while it's not a bad deal.

The only reasonable example of that now is with Age of Conan. The extra memory allows you to extend your high-res draw distance out a bit further than if you don't have it without as much framerate drop as a 512MB version of the same card.

It's not a massive difference but neither is the price delta. As new games come out that better utilize larger memory spaces this benefit will become more apparent.

Which leaves you with the idea that if you aren't going to have your card through the period in which new games will be releasing, may as well save a couple bucks and go with the 512MB version.

1GB does not "future proof" your card. It would be more accurate to say that it may extend the useful lifetime of yhour card depending on the games you play.

As has already been stated, I don't think it would be a smart upgrade from an 8800GTS 640MB.

There are several games today that require that much. They are just rare... but rare or not they exist TODAY.

Also, SLI or CF increases the amounts needed.

 

[PalitGuy]

Which other ones are you thinking of? I don't count Crysis personally but other than that?

 

[taltamir]

crysis doesn't take that much AFAIK, there is oblivion (with super high quality textures mod) and a few others I can't remember off of the top of my head...

Anyways, the question is.... what are the chances she will be playing such a game... and on an 8800GT...

BTW, I hear the 4850 now come with a rebate.

 

[themisfit610]

Outside of gaming there are a few scenarios where 1GB of RAM help....

I do a lot of video encoding, and one of the filters I use runs totally on the GPU. Filtering 2 streams of 1080p video in real-time uses a lot of video memory, and 512mb cards usually start to choke at this rate. Having a full 1GB helps a lot.

~MiSfit

 

[PalitGuy]

I don't suppose you would be willing to quantify that would you?

I'm not a big video guy and I would love to have some kind of benchmark I could post.

 

[thilanliyan]

Originally posted by: themisfit610
Outside of gaming there are a few scenarios where 1GB of RAM help....

I do a lot of video encoding, and one of the filters I use runs totally on the GPU. Filtering 2 streams of 1080p video in real-time uses a lot of video memory, and 512mb cards usually start to choke at this rate. Having a full 1GB helps a lot.

~MiSfit

Which encoding program is it that you use that uses the video card for filters?

 

[taltamir]

I have never seen an encoding program that uses the GPU aside from that highly experimental one for the GTX 280... do you perhaps mean DECODING program? also knows as a MEDIA PLAYER?

Cause I seriously doubt that will need 1GB of ram. or even 512MB for that matter.

 

[airhendrix13]

Okay, so I guess I'll stick with my GTS for now. I do plan on upgrading my CRT monitor to a 24" LCD. Would SLI'ing the my G80 be better than upgrading to something else with less memory in the future? I know higher resolutions and AA utilize a lot of memory.

 

[taltamir]

that is a difficult question to answer. Going to 24 inch LCD you are at 1920x1200 resolution. Most of today's games have enough memory at 512MB. Some few games go above (most notable, oblivion with the super textures mod supposedly takes 700+ MB), but obviously newer and newer games will require more and more vram.
You said SLI your G80, is that the 320MB or the 640MB version?

If it is the 320MB version then you would definitely see a benefit with a 1GB ram card for 1920x1200 play at high AA. Actually for that res with AA you probably want two 9800GTX+ in SLI or two 4850 in CF (or the 4870 or 4870x2 when they come out).
Again with 1 GB of ram per GPU. or be willing to turn down the settings and play with no AA on many games.

Then again, you might get GREAT performance from two 8800GTS 320MB in SLI at a very low cost (if you currently own one, own an SLI mobo, AND find an excellent deal on a used one on ebay or craigs list or whatever).

I am showing them on ebay at ~100$ a pop. So that could proove a cheap and easy upgrade assuming:
1. your mobo is SLI
2. Your psu is large enough
3. this is what you own and I got the model right.
4. your case has sufficient cooling and space.

Although, if I were you, rather then spend 100$ on a second 8800GTS 320MB. I would sell mine for 100$, and add 100$ to get a 200$ 4850 or a 9800GTX / GTX+... 1GB of ram, and it is plenty faster single card solution, and you can always SLI it in the future (but again, not likely, SLI and CF has never, ever, been an upgrade path, it is a method of getting more today).

The end result is spening 100$ either way... but your power consumptions is better (that does translate into very real money saving). You have more future resale value, fresh new warranty, and most importantly... you get a lot more performance without being dependant on SLI drivers and its problems, in a nice single GPU package.

 

[airhendrix13]

Thanks for the response taltamir. I have a 640MB 8800GTS. The only thing that worries me about going the ATi route is if I do eventually want to go Crossfire, then I'll have to buy a whole new motherbaord plus another card. With the pricing of the new Crossfire boards ($200 and up) and the 2 cards, this could cost me between $500 - $700.

I ran a bench yesterday to see how well my 8800GTS ran Crysis at Very High settings. I averaged around 25FPS at 1152 X 864 resolution, which I considered pretty damn good for what I have.

So here are a few questions:

1) Will adding another 8800GTS 640MB card run me at 1900 X 1440 at atleast 25FPS on Very High settings?

2) If not, is it really worth the money to switch to ATi over nVidia especially consider I already have a 680i board?

3) I understand that most games don't utilize more than 512MB of VRAM, but wouldn't putting the resolution up and turning on AA push it over 512MB and make it worth having the extra VRAM?

4) Any benchmarks for the 9800GTX+ yet compared to the 4850 / 4870?

Thanks again!

 

[themisfit610]

GTS320 SLI = fail.

Not enough RAM / bandwidth to handle high resolutions / AA - which is the _only_ reason to do SLI.

Single 8800GT / 4850 / 9800GTX FTW

~MiSfit

 

[Throckmorton]

The only games I have had use more than 512 were Oblivion with mods, and BF2. BF2 only went up to like 550mb. So 640 is enough IMO.

 

[dds14u]

Originally posted by: airhendrix13
Thanks for the response taltamir. I have a 640MB 8800GTS. The only thing that worries me about going the ATi route is if I do eventually want to go Crossfire, then I'll have to buy a whole new motherbaord plus another card. With the pricing of the new Crossfire boards ($200 and up) and the 2 cards, this could cost me between $500 - $700.

I ran a bench yesterday to see how well my 8800GTS ran Crysis at Very High settings. I averaged around 25FPS at 1152 X 864 resolution, which I considered pretty damn good for what I have.

So here are a few questions:

1) Will adding another 8800GTS 640MB card run me at 1900 X 1440 at atleast 25FPS on Very High settings?

2) If not, is it really worth the money to switch to ATi over nVidia especially consider I already have a 680i board?

3) I understand that most games don't utilize more than 512MB of VRAM, but wouldn't putting the resolution up and turning on AA push it over 512MB and make it worth having the extra VRAM?

4) Any benchmarks for the 9800GTX+ yet compared to the 4850 / 4870?

Thanks again!

There is really nothing wrong with sticking to a single card solution. A lot of people like to "leave the option down the road" to SLI...but usually by the time they do that there's better single cards out there and you can just upgrade that way. If you are really looking for the best performance...wait a few weeks. The 4870 is promising. If you really want an extreme card you can consider the GTX 280 or even the 4870x2.

To answer your question 4). I personally don't think you should wait on upgrades on last gen cards like the 9800GTX+. They are just adding tidbits onto old architecture. It may beat out the 4850 by some margin, but I highly doubt that it will beat out the 4870. Reason being, I don't think Nvidia would have wasted a lot of time developing the 9800GTX+ when they are also releasing a newer generation.

 

[taltamir]

i agree with dds...

there is really no point upgrading from what you have to a 9800+.

It is either a G200, or a 4870... or even a 4870x2...
Depending on their cost, performance, and when they come out...

Also, remember that you can resale used hardware on ebay and regain a good part of its current value.