Upgrading from 9800 Pro to 6800 GS

[lordsaytor]

Right now the 6800 GS is selling for $215 at my local retailer.
I am helping someone upgrade their computer.

They have P4 2.4ghz
512mb (pc2700) ram
and a 9800 Pro

I am wondering if the 6800 GS AGP will be significantly faster than the 9800 Pro?

 

[Mloot]

If the GS unlocks all the available pipelines and vertex shaders, you basically have a 6800GT on your hands, which is a worthy upgrade over a 9800Pro.

 

[apoppin]

Yes, even if it doesn't unlock

 

[Kromis]

Hmm...I thought the AGP version of the 6800GS was bad? If you local retailer allows you to return opened items, you should go "borrow" the card and see if it works out for you.

 

[XJustMeX21]

Deffintly its a great upgrade basacilly 2x the perofrmance and newer features

 

[RossCorp]

darn straight......the 6800 gs is a very nice upgrade from a 9800 pro. I had an MSI rx9800 and just recently went with a BFG 6800 gs. At default speeds I could tell it was worth it even if it didn't unlock, which it did.

I have mine in the sig, and it runs like that all the time. I can get it to 422/1124 stably but that's pretty much my limit.

Still, 6800 Ultra for $290 cad after taxes, I couldn't have gone wrong, and I suggest you do it too!

 

[lordsaytor]

Very tough to find a new 6800 Ultra. I generally don't prefer to get used cards.

Now I never really ran benchmarks on my old 9800. But just by reinstalling BF2 and Call of Duty 2, I felt the huge difference. I kept the resolution still at 1024x768, but now I can turn on 4X AA, which I could never do without be completely lagged out.

 

[RossCorp]

I did record some benchmarks from before I got my new card.

My old MSI rx9800 oc'd to 414/716 got this in 03, 05, and 06 respectively: 6306, 2512, 808
My new BFG 6800 GS unlocked and oc'd to 400/1100 gets: 13375, 5809, 2769

I know you gotta take these kinds of numbers with a grain of salt, but believe me, the difference is very large and very noticeable!

I still play with 1024 as well, but the framerates are so much nicer, and you can have all/most of the eye-candy turned on.

 

[Fern]

Originally posted by: lordsaytor

I am wondering if the 6800 GS AGP will be significantly faster than the 9800 Pro?

Yep. I went from a 9800p (OC'd to XT speeds, faster actually) to my 6800GT (seems similar to a GS). A nice upgrade.

Bumping to his ram 1gig would be nice too. Will cut down on laoding times etc in many games. Won't help with frames though.

Fern