Slow 6600gt?

[xcelr8]

I'm looking for advice. I went from a 9800pro to an xfx 6600gt. According to the anandtech article on this card, the agp version shoudl deliver 133fps in cs:source. However, I'm only getting 85fps in source at 1024x768 and medium texture settings, whereas with my 9800pro oc'd to xt levels i was getting 91fps. I'm running the 67.02 detonators. Also, I now score 3050 in 3dmark05 when the 9800pro only scored 2378, this is why I don't understand source being slower. Any and all help is appreciated.

 

[imverygifted]

i dont have a 9800pro, but if its running hl2 in direct x 8 it'll have a better frame rate than a 6600gt in direct x 9, also i imagine the 9800pro might be better for hl2 than the 6600gt just because hl2 runs better on ati cards in general

 

[BobDaMenkey]

Also take into consideration that you're running old drivers, and the fact that your other specs on your computer may not be equal to the test bed.

 

[xcelr8]

What are the newest drivers? originally i installed the 66.93 from the nvidia website but saw these were recommended. The 9800pro was running source in directx9 also, and I realize that my computer may not be equal to the test setup, however the test setup 6600gt outperformed the 9800pro by roughly 30% I believe, while my 9800pro is outperforming the 6600gt at the same chip and ram speeds. With my athlon xp overclocked to 2.3ghz and the 6600gt, the 9800 with cpu @ 2.0ghz was faster by 5 frames.

 

[xcelr8]

Does anybody else have any suggestions? Or does anybody else run this card, xfx 6600gt, on an athlon xp o/c who could tell me their fps in the source visual test?

 

[daveybrat]

how fast is your processor?

 

[xcelr8]

I have an athlon xp mobile 2400+ running at 133*15=2ghz. I run it like this b/c i can keep the fan speed down adn quieter. However, this new 6600gt is so loud i might boost it to 200*11.5=2.3ghz. However, even at 2.3 with the 6600gt the card is still slower than the 9800pro was with the chip at 2ghz.

 

[Yossairian]

When you switched cards, did you use driver cleaner to remove all the old ATI drivers? I have heard of that causing problems when switching brands.

 

[xcelr8]

No, I will try that. The reason for all of this questioning is that my 3dmark05 score improved by ~800pts (from 2300-3100) while my fps in hl2/cs:source have actually gone down by roughly 10% with the 6600gt.

 

[Yossairian]

I get 159.96 at those settings with that card. I am not sure how much of that relies on the CPU, so it may be apples&oranges. Its running on a Winchester @ 2400MHZ 1GB of Ram running 1:1.

 

[SrGuapo]

While the 6600gt is better overall than a 9800 Pro, HL2 runs much better on ATI cards in general and that could cause the "problems". Do you have any other games to test out, preferably OGL, such as Unreal Tournament or Doom3? Your increase in 3dmark also hints at this. the card is working fine, ATI card are just better in the Source engine...

 

[xcelr8]

I don't have any of the benchmark numbers written down from doom3 for the 9800, I'll put it back in tomorrow and test. However, I just ran timedemo1 at 1280 and medium I got 49.2fps, at 800x600 and medium I only got 57.2fps. This difference seems much smaller than it should be. These values were achieved clocking the 6600gt to 550/1000.


My Rig
abit nf7-s rev2
athlon 2400+ @ 133x15=2ghz
2x256mb ram @ 354 8-3-3-3
DVD-RW & DVD-ROM
XFX 6600gt @ 549/1000

 

[xcelr8]

Is there any chance that somehow, since doom3 and hl2 were installed with the 9800pro in the system, the games setup files did something for ati cards and are missing somethiing for nvidia? Also, Yossairian, if you check this thread again, you are saying you get 159.96 fps in the source test at 1024 and medium settings with the 6600gt?

 

[Pete]

My suggestion is to download Anand's Half-Life 2 demos and compare your scores to those of the A64 downclocked to something closer to your CPU's level in Anand's latest HL2 article. (The demos are linked early in the article, IIRC.)

Your CPU may be limiting your VST numbers, and the 9800XT may be slightly more efficient with a slower CPU. Have you tried benching VST at a higher res, like 1280 or 1600?

 

[Yossairian]

Originally posted by: xcelr8
Also, Yossairian, if you check this thread again, you are saying you get 159.96 fps in the source test at 1024 and medium settings with the 6600gt?

Yep I have the exact same card you do. I just ran it again, and got 157.

Running it on all high and relfect world with 2x 2x I get 127fps, and 4x 4x I get 110fps. All at 1024x768. ( vsync off )


The card is running 550 / 1100, but if I remember correctly from the original OC it only added about 3-4 FPS.

 

[Gentle]

Is your refresh rate set for 85hz?

Gentle

 

[xcelr8]

My refresh rate is set to 60hz, I have a samsung syncmaster 712n lcd monitor connected with the vga-dvi converter. Also, I have vsync turned off. Yossarian, if you have the time and wouldn't mind, could you possibly bench in source with your chip clocked down to 2.0ghz? Also, are your nvidia driver settings at defaults, as far as the quality/performance settings for direct3d?

 

[Yossairian]

Sure I can check it out tonight at 2GHZ and throttle the card back to 500/1000. Yes, all the video driver quality etc settings are at default ( except clock speed ).

 

[Yossairian]

Ok here ya go:

For reference:
3200+ on a Nforce3 (neo plat 2 )
1GB ram running at 1:1
XFX 6600GT stock speeds,
67.02 Det drivers.
1024x768 res

Running the chip at 1600mhz

Medium/Low quality, no AA/AF=104.61
All high quality, reflect world, 2X/2X= 78.75
Same but with 4x/4x= 67.24

Running at stock speed, 2000

Medium/Low no AA/Af=134.28
All high, reflect world, 2x/2x=111.59
same, but 4x4x=95.69

1280X1024
Low/med no AA/AF=119.49
All high, reflect world 2x/2x=72.05
same 4x/4x= 40.02

Is there any way you can try a fresh windows install, on a spare hard drive maybe ? The only thing I have seen cause me that big of a framerate hit was not having the AGP bridge driver installed, but I think that would show up in your 3dmark as well.

Unfortuantely I dont have a 9800pro to test against. I upgraded from a 9600XT, and I can tell you the 6600 whomps it bad, even in ATI friendly HL2. But I know the 9800 pro is a tier or 2 above that card as well.

At any rate, good luck.

Yos

 

[xcelr8]

Thanks for checking that out and doing all of that work. I put my 9800pro back in and benched and then the 6600gt and benched with that, i got 91.80 compared to 87.37 respectively. This was at 1024, medium and high settings and reflect world, no aa/af. I'm thinking more and more that it's not the card, but my chip just can't push it hard enough. From some reviews i read recently, an a64 at 2.0ghz is much faster and benches much higher than an athlon xp at 2.0ghz. It still seems odd that 3dmark scores so much better though, but i think i'm going to just accept this and continue to try and sell my 9800pro. This weekend, when I have more time i may try a format to see if that will make any difference. Again, thanks for all the work you put in Yassairian.

 

[cruzer]

I heard some manufacturers disable the onboard temp sensor, is that true? I would like to be able to see the temps just like a 6800 card would do....

 

[DAPUNISHER]

Originally posted by: cruzer
I heard some manufacturers disable the onboard temp sensor, is that true? I would like to be able to see the temps just like a 6800 card would do....

The XFX 6600GT provides the same temp features my BFG 6800GT did.

 

[rogue1979]

A 2GHz Athlon will limit both the 9800Pro and the 6600GT. The main bottleneck problem is the 133MHz fsb you are running. You mentioned a 200MHz fsb possible, this would make a huge difference, plus the 2400+ mobile should be able to hit 2.2GHz without radical air cooling.

200 x 11 for 2200MHz vs 133 x 15 for 2000MHz will make a large difference in your benchmarks for either video card, but at the first setting the 6600GT should make noticable gains over the 9800 Pro.