RX800 and doin fine!

morgash

Golden Member
Nov 24, 2005
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Just wanted to let everyone know I recently (about a month ago) purchased a MSI RX800 128mb from ZZF because i needed an upgrade from my PCX5700 on the cheap. I knew i wouldnt get great performance but it was 109 bucks for a downclocked X800pro chip (opened it up and verified the chip). Amazingly this thing, at stock clocks (390/700) can run anything I throw at 1280x1024 which is exactly what I wanted. Even F.E.A.R. and COD2 with everything on cept soft shadows of course with 4x AA and 8x AF. Quite simply put i'm amazed and am very impressed with this "bargain bin" board. So if you are lookin for a great card for next to nothin go out and grab this one right now. I can even overclock this baby to X800 pro speeds with the stock cooler. You can see my OC'ed 3dMark03 scores in my Sig (only th V-card is Oc-ed btw, this damn VM board wont OC for ******). 8998 3dMarks non-oc'ed

Just wanted to let ya know,
Morgash
 

Keysplayr

Elite Member
Jan 16, 2003
21,211
50
91
Originally posted by: morgash
Just wanted to let everyone know I recently (about a month ago) purchased a MSI RX800 128mb from ZZF because i needed an upgrade from my PCX5700 on the cheap. I knew i wouldnt get great performance but it was 109 bucks for a downclocked X800pro chip (opened it up and verified the chip). Amazingly this thing, at stock clocks (390/700) can run anything I throw at 1280x1024 which is exactly what I wanted. Even F.E.A.R. and COD2 with everything on cept soft shadows of course with 4x AA and 8x AF. Quite simply put i'm amazed and am very impressed with this "bargain bin" board. So if you are lookin for a great card for next to nothin go out and grab this one right now. I can even overclock this baby to X800 pro speeds with the stock cooler. You can see my OC'ed 3dMark03 scores in my Sig (only th V-card is Oc-ed btw, this damn VM board wont OC for ******). 8998 3dMarks non-oc'ed

Just wanted to let ya know,
Morgash

I don't know where to begin, there are so many things wrong or missing from your post.
Namely, you didn't mention the version of 3Dmark and I'm guessing it's '03. And, what is your definition of "can run anything I throw at it?" I know your not running CoD at 1280x1024 4x8x and not viewing a slideshow. You must be in DX7 mode. And FEAR is undoubtedly making that card cry. I am barely able to play CoD2 at 1280x1024 4x8x in DX9 mode with my 7800GTX.

So, you may need to explain things a little further before your post convinces anyone to buy this card and expect to play everything in existence at 1280x1024 4x8x.

 

morgash

Golden Member
Nov 24, 2005
1,234
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ok let me specify.
1. Yes i did mention 3dMark version, in the end of the post and in my Sig.
2. COD2 is infact forced in DX9 mode at 1280x1024 (though since checking some of the more advanced options are set at normal/high instead of highest) and it runs at a very respectable 40fps. Though multiplayer i use 1024x768 because i get a little lag when i zoom in because the card has to render so quickly.
3. FEAR runs even better than COD2 though i do have shadows on Low as they seem to tear away at the 128Mb of video RAM.
4. I CAN turn everything on (again cept shadows) highest when i OC it to 800 pro speeds.
5. Another thing that's surprising is that this card uses DDR1 RAM and still manages to OC the mem by 200Mhz. I was really surprised by that.
6. Finally, ur 7800GTX should rip thru COD2 as long as soft shadows are turned off, no card out yet can run it well with THAT feature turned on.
 

nitromullet

Diamond Member
Jan 7, 2004
9,031
36
91
I call BS in FEAR

and CoD2

The cheapest card on these pages is in the $300 range, and some of those only manage to break 40 FPS in CoD2 and FEAR with no AA/AF...

Do you really think that those of us who spend hundreds of dollars on a video card are that stupid..? Do you think we would do that if we could just buy some bargain basement x800 card that runs everything fine with eye candy?
 

mwmorph

Diamond Member
Dec 27, 2004
8,877
1
81
Originally posted by: nitromullet
I call BS in FEAR

and CoD2

The cheapest card on these pages is in the $300 range, and some of those only manage to break 40 FPS in CoD2 and FEAR with no AA/AF...

Do you really think that those of us who spend hundreds of dollars on a video card are that stupid..? Do you think we would do that if we could just buy some bargain basement x800 card that runs everything fine with eye candy?


well for fear, turning off softshadows will make your performance rocket.
cod2 is suspect, but i'm guessing both games are probably at medium settings or thereabouts.
 

SPARTAN VI

Senior member
Oct 13, 2005
803
0
76
Originally posted by: mwmorph
Originally posted by: nitromullet
I call BS in FEAR

and CoD2

The cheapest card on these pages is in the $300 range, and some of those only manage to break 40 FPS in CoD2 and FEAR with no AA/AF...

Do you really think that those of us who spend hundreds of dollars on a video card are that stupid..? Do you think we would do that if we could just buy some bargain basement x800 card that runs everything fine with eye candy?


well for fear, turning off softshadows will make your performance rocket.
cod2 is suspect, but i'm guessing both games are probably at medium settings or thereabouts.

First, when did COD2 have an option for softshadows?

Second, if he's running FEAR with 4xAA/8xAF, as he claims, softshadows on/off wont make a difference. You cannot enable softshadows with AA on.

As for proof, take screenshot of your FEAR benchmark. Max, Min, Average and the FPS distribution.
 

morgash

Golden Member
Nov 24, 2005
1,234
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okies will do :) got work in about 20 mins so i should be able to post it after i get off tonight. tomorrow mornin at the latest. As a side note, i'm not tryin to start a huge debate here, i just wanted to lay down a friendly hint to those who might not wanna blow 300 or more bucks on a vcard when ya can a get a what i would consider a pretty good one for 100. No reason to get all uppity about it.
 

SPARTAN VI

Senior member
Oct 13, 2005
803
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You never specified what resolution and settings you're running FEAR at (other than 4xAA,8xAF low shadows).
 

morgash

Golden Member
Nov 24, 2005
1,234
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0
hehe 1280x1024 sorry, tho only in singleplayer and like COD2 there is some fairly good lag when zoomin in and out, but for some reason almost none during normal gameplay. again like CoD2 in multi i crank it back down to 1024x768 dont want any embarrasing lag kills. another thing to rmember is that i do OC this card to x800 pro specs when i play. dont know if i mentioned that.
 

toyota

Lifer
Apr 15, 2001
12,957
1
0
Originally posted by: SPARTAN VI
You never specified what resolution and settings you're running FEAR at (other than 4xAA,8xAF low shadows).
he said 1280x1024 for everything.
 

morgash

Golden Member
Nov 24, 2005
1,234
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off to work. wont be able to respond til midnight central time. have a good day everyone :)
 

morgash

Golden Member
Nov 24, 2005
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also, what i think all of you will find MOST impressive is that it plays Baldur's Gate 1 at 640x480!!! With everything ON!!! now tell me which vcard rules. No lag at all
 

nitromullet

Diamond Member
Jan 7, 2004
9,031
36
91
Originally posted by: mwmorph
Originally posted by: nitromullet
I call BS in FEAR

and CoD2

The cheapest card on these pages is in the $300 range, and some of those only manage to break 40 FPS in CoD2 and FEAR with no AA/AF...

Do you really think that those of us who spend hundreds of dollars on a video card are that stupid..? Do you think we would do that if we could just buy some bargain basement x800 card that runs everything fine with eye candy?


well for fear, turning off softshadows will make your performance rocket.
cod2 is suspect, but i'm guessing both games are probably at medium settings or thereabouts.

Ok....

http://www.anandtech.com/video/showdoc.aspx?i=2575&p=4

but, an X1800XL, which is just a tad bit better than the OP's card pulls 50 FPS with no AA/AF with soft shadows disabled @ 1280x1024, and that's with an FX-55... Add 4xAA/8xAF (still no soft shadows), and the fps drops to 32.

After re-reading his posts, I think what he's referring to isn't actually "soft shadows", but just shadows in general. Not sure that that means... Maybe it only renders some of the shadows. I'd like to see a screenshot.
 

nitromullet

Diamond Member
Jan 7, 2004
9,031
36
91
Originally posted by: morgash
okies will do :) got work in about 20 mins so i should be able to post it after i get off tonight. tomorrow mornin at the latest. As a side note, i'm not tryin to start a huge debate here, i just wanted to lay down a friendly hint to those who might not wanna blow 300 or more bucks on a vcard when ya can a get a what i would consider a pretty good one for 100. No reason to get all uppity about it.

Actually, yes there is a reason to get "uppity" about it. Here's why: A lot of people (including myself) use the web and message boards to make buying decisions. While I won't disagree that it's probably possible to play all the games you mentioned with the card you are referring to, it is doubtful that it can be done at the resolution and the level of eye candy you are describing... So, IMO, your post is not a friendly hint or useful, but uninformed and misleading. Honestly, I don't think that you are trying to be deceptive, but maybe you have the games configured lower than you think or you are expressing how the game is configured incorrectly to us... I'm really not sure, but seeing as how none of the professional benchmarking sites support your conclusion, I hope that you can understand why someone would call you on this.
 

mwmorph

Diamond Member
Dec 27, 2004
8,877
1
81
Originally posted by: nitromullet
Originally posted by: mwmorph
Originally posted by: nitromullet
I call BS in FEAR

and CoD2

The cheapest card on these pages is in the $300 range, and some of those only manage to break 40 FPS in CoD2 and FEAR with no AA/AF...

Do you really think that those of us who spend hundreds of dollars on a video card are that stupid..? Do you think we would do that if we could just buy some bargain basement x800 card that runs everything fine with eye candy?


well for fear, turning off softshadows will make your performance rocket.
cod2 is suspect, but i'm guessing both games are probably at medium settings or thereabouts.

Ok....

http://www.anandtech.com/video/showdoc.aspx?i=2575&p=4

but, an X1800XL, which is just a tad bit better than the OP's card pulls 50 FPS with no AA/AF with soft shadows disabled @ 1280x1024, and that's with an FX-55... Add 4xAA/8xAF (still no soft shadows), and the fps drops to 32.

After re-reading his posts, I think what he's referring to isn't actually "soft shadows", but just shadows in general. Not sure that that means... Maybe it only renders some of the shadows. I'd like to see a screenshot.

well shadows off in genraal jsut uses shadowmaps(sorta like texture) thisway no shadows are rendered and it looks alright, but any shadows on players and npcs would probably look like circles under their feet.
 

nitromullet

Diamond Member
Jan 7, 2004
9,031
36
91
well shadows off in genraal jsut uses shadowmaps(sorta like texture) thisway no shadows are rendered and it looks alright, but any shadows on players and npcs would probably look like circles under their feet.

I imagine that is what he's using to make FEAR playable on that card. I don't think that just disabling soft shadows would do the trick.
 

morgash

Golden Member
Nov 24, 2005
1,234
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0
ok two things to add b4 i go to sleep.
1. I win typo of the year award and can now understand what all the fuss is about. All my games are running at TWOx AA/8xAF not 4xAA/8xAF. 2x runs butter smooth but 4x looks like a damn powerpoint presentation. Sorry for the mistake
2. Shadows are in fact turned off. I just got done reading an article about the performance hit of "soft shadows" so for some reason i kept typing that.
Hope these 2 things clear up some confusion.
Can't really tell the diff in 2xAA and 4xAA anyway thats why I never cared when i saw the card couldnt pull that off.
Again sorry for the typo
 

morgash

Golden Member
Nov 24, 2005
1,234
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card gets around 9000 marks in 3dMark03 stock and 10114 is the average OC'ed. Though i've gotten all the way up to 11k if i OC it heavy, card gets 2 hot at that speed tho. 10.1k marks is with the card at x800pro speeds
 

apoppin

Lifer
Mar 9, 2000
34,890
1
0
alienbabeltech.com
Originally posted by: morgash
card gets around 9000 marks in 3dMark03 stock and 10114 is the average OC'ed. Though i've gotten all the way up to 11k if i OC it heavy, card gets 2 hot at that speed tho. 10.1k marks is with the card at x800pro speeds

No i meant .. . 3-dee mark Oh FIVE;)

3DMark05

 

morgash

Golden Member
Nov 24, 2005
1,234
0
0
haha sorry i'm a dumbass, lemme download that and run it real quick. never tried it b4