Qs about 9600pro...

[AMDBarton2500]

I just bought the ATI 9600pro and was wondering what you guys think about this card.

I hear its not as good as 9500pro...is that true and in what ways....

What can I do to increase its performance without sacrificing reliability etc....how overclockable is it....can I get it to 9500pros specs?

Also what can I use to get a 3D score...Im new to all this...sorry guys.

TIA

 

[sandorski]

Great video card. It is a little slower than a 9500 Pro, but you get an improved core with Shader enhancements, a smaller process core which runs cooler, and it's a decent overclocker.

 

[Corporate Thug]

some OC very well, i have one that does 500/700 easy

 

[Blastman]

When the 9600pro came out it was about ~10% slower than the 9500pro so a lot of people were somewhat disappointed that ATI was replacing their midrange card with a slower one. In the latest round of benches the 9600pro seems to be doing better. In THG?s 9800XT review the 9600 pro was faster than the 9500 pro in 5/9 game benches ... (1024x768)?

UT3 ? ? ? ?
Wolfenstein ET ... ... ? 9600 ? faster
Tomb Raider AOD ?
X2 Rolling Demo ... ... ? 9600
C&C Generals Demo ?
Warcraft III ... ... ... ? ? 9600
Freelancer Demo ... ... ? 9600 ?(95 wins at higher resolutions)
MS Flight Sim 2004 ... ... 9600
BF 1942 - SW WWII ?

In the latest 5950/5700 Firingsquad review the 9600pro was equal to the 9500pro ?

Nascar ? ? ? ? tie
IL-2 ? ? ? ? 9600
Q3 ? ? ? ? 9500
UT3 ? ? ? ? tie
SplinterCell ? 9600
Tomb Raider ? 9500

I like the 9600pro because it consumes a lot less power/runs cooler than the 9500pro and the latest benchmarks seem to indicate that the 9600pro is either closing the gap to the 9500pro or running as fast. It could be the drivers updates are helping the 9600 more here or the 9600 is doing better in some of the newer games.

 

[AMDBarton2500]

Do I load the CD driver that comes with in the box or should I use ATI website to find drivers.....any issues.....anything to watch out for???

 

[Bateluer]

Originally posted by: AMDBarton2500
Do I load the CD driver that comes with in the box or should I use ATI website to find drivers.....any issues.....anything to watch out for???

Depends what drivers came with the CD. I'd shy away from the Cat 3.8s until they clear up the issues surrounding them. Try and find the Cat 3.7s, they work great for my 9600 Pro.

With my P4 2.4C, under 3Dmark2k1 I score a little over 10k, and a little over 3k in 3dm2k3. 🙂

The .13micron process the 9600 Pros are made on is highly overclockable. As shady06 said, they can hit 500/700. If it was my card though, I would be putting on some beefier cooling than just stock if I was going to run at those speeds.