Radeon 9600 XT: 128 mb or 256?

[chrislong]

Hi All
I'm looking at upgrading my vid card to a 9600 XT. I see that the 128 mb versions are pretty close to the 256 mb cards, price-wise. Any reason I should avoid the larger memory card, like some oddball performance hit? Or just go for the larger amount, since the prices are so close?

Thanks--

 

[jdw2]

Hey Chris. I would highly oppose getting a 9600XT right now. You can get a GeForce 6600GT 128MB for just a little bit more money and will be much faster. Here is a link for you : 6600GT

This card would also last you much longer and you can play the newer generation games with it.

 

[LTC8K6]

That's nearly twice the price, jdw2!

Chrislong, I would not bother with the 9600XT at all. It offers little performance boost over a 9600pro. I would get a 9600pro and overclock it. 256MB of memory is a waste of money and memory chips on any cards but the top end. If you decide to get a 9600pro, make sure you get one with 400core and 600 mem speeds. Anything less is not a true 9600pro.

I am assuming you can't afford a 9800pro or a 6600GT. If you can afford either of those two, they would be the least card I would get these days. I would only go with a 9600pro if I could not swing the 6600GT or 9800pro.

 

[chrislong]

Upgrading from a Radeon 7500. Not playing all the latest games. Currently play BF 1942 OK with the 7500, so this is a major improvement for me. Not interested in other cards, thank you. Only interested in an ATI family card.

So...since I'm not looking to upgrade to anything but the 9600XT, does the memory matter as far as performance is concerned?

"256MB of memory is a waste of money and memory chips on any cards but the top end." This means, I assume, that there are no downsides to getting a card with 256, if the price is essentially the same?

 

[LTC8K6]

The memory speed may be slower with the 256MB cards. It should be 600mhz for a 9600pro/XT.
If it only has 400mhz ram, which they typically do, it will be considerably slower than a 128MB card with 600Mhz ram.

As long as they haven't slowed down the memory or the core, I see no downside to having the extra ram.

A 9600XT should be 500mhz on the core and 600mhz on the ram.

 

[nick1985]

whats your budget?

 

[chrislong]

Well, I'm not adverse to buying used, so that's a tricky question. But I'm looking at maybe $135.00 tops, though I know I can buy a 9600 XT/Pro for less, used.

 

[nick1985]

Text

 

[SludgeFactory]

also see Hot Deals forum, there's a thread where you can buy certain 9600/9800 cards direct from ATI with coupon code and $50 trade-in discount.

 

[Blastman]

There are varying memory speeds on the 256MB 9600XT?s (the standard memory spec is 250 DDR although some cards have 290- 300 DDR, - 128MB cards are 300 DDR) so it?s better to get the 128MB card.

I have a 9600XT 128MB and it?s not really fast enough to take advantage of 256MB. If I knew the 256MB card had the faster 300 DDR and was only a few $ more than the 128MB model then there is no reason not to get the 256MB card -- I mean it doesn?t hurt to have more memory (128 vs 256) but, if you have to sacrifice some speed for it -- in this case it?s not really worth it.

The Sapphire 256MB 9600XT ? ?apparently? ? comes in 2 versions ?

Sapphire 256MB 9600XT ? OEM Bulk? 500/250 DDR
Sapphire 256MB 9600XT ? retail ? ? 500/300 DDR.

So some of the 256MB 9600XT?s have the faster 300 DDR but I?m not sure which ones. I would not trust Newegg completely when they post specifications on the cards -- many times they get it wrong. I'd just stick with 128MB on the 9600XT in any case.

 

[chrislong]

Thanks everyone--this has given me some real info to think about. I appreciate your input! Blastman, you hit my question square on the head. Thanks!

 

[Blastman]

The only time you need to think about a 256MB card is at 12x10 - 4AA/8AF or higher and a 9600XT won?t run too many games at those settings.

The 9600XT can most games at 12x10 or 10x7 if you want to use 8AF, or even 10x7 - 2AA/8AF.

Use Performance-AF if you use AF, you can get as much as a 20 -30% boost or more in some games over Quality-AF and the IQ is 98% as good as Quality.