Upgrading from Ti200 to GeFX 5600 or 5800 - is it worth it?

[jakobkraft]

A friend of mine is curious to know how much she would benefit from upgrading from a Ge3Ti 200 overclocked at Ti500 speeds to a GeFX 5600 or 5800. She doesn't care about playing at high resolutions or AA or aniso, just likes to see her games fast and smooth. I recommended an ATI 9700 but sadly, she has experienced much grief over former driver instability and has sworn off ATI permanently, so that's not a possibility.

She has money to burn (he stated bitterly) so doesn't care about the extra $$$, just wants to know if difference would be worth it, not in benchmarks but in actual gaming...thanks.

 

[Peter D]

could always go for a 5900 ultra extremely powerful, and no annoying fan of a 5800, plus it gets over 200 fps in quake 3 with lots of AA and AF, heh, happy hunting!

 

[hans007]

the 5600 is like $150 now. its supposedly faster than a ti4200 especially if you get the ultra whenit finally comes out with the new stepping and 700mhz ram.

 

[Pete]

If she has money to burn, I'd advise her to wait for the 5900, and buy either the 128MB or 256MB part--the former will be a better price/performance proposition, though 256MB will come in handy for texture-heavy games if you're playing at 1600x1200 with 4xAA.

The 5600 gained significant performance improvements with the latest FX drivers, so it's become a decent buy. Just try and make sure she gets one of the new ones Anand detailed in his 5900U review, rather than the older ones. The Tech-Report put out a review a day or two ago showing the gains the 5600 got with the new drivers, and compares it to a 9600P--you might want to take a look at it.

 

[Corporate Thug]

stay away from the 5800, waste of money. buy a 9700 pro instead

 

[JackBurton]

If I had money to burn I wouldn't get a 9700Pro. Get the 5900Ultra! Simply the best!