from 9800 pro to 6800Gt... what a delusion !!! | Forums

[Jasko76]

So, tit for tat, which one is better - 6800GT or X800Pro? (I play a lot of car and FPS games in addition to PF)

You got me interested in upgrading my 9800Pro now!

[indylavi]

Jasko76, depends on your CPU and RAM. Also how much money you want to spend. My girlfriend is currently using my old Radeon 9800 Pro and she can run every game (new games as well) on max settings fine. The 9800 Pro is still a fast card. Of course there are always faster but the real question is do you want to spend so much money to update your card now unless you card is seriously strained by the games you play.

[LuckyBoy1]

<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><font size="-1">quote:</font><HR>Originally posted by Jasko76:
So, tit for tat, which one is better - 6800GT or X800Pro? (I play a lot of car and FPS games in addition to PF)

You got me interested in upgrading my 9800Pro now! <HR></BLOCKQUOTE>


Well, it's a mixed bag at this point. If you want the unusable water 3.0 that remains in any practical sense unusable no matter how good your CPU and RAM is, you get an nVidia card as long as you've got the power supply (even more critical than a x800 needs, but both need solid power).

If overall looks, especially at any eye candy levels is your thing, then you get ATI, but there are currently driver prblems with just some computers. Will your computer be one of them? who knows, it's a cr@p shoot. Yet even most people with the problems find ways to manage it and find they like the ATI card better... these are reports from those with access to both the best nVidia and ATI has to offer. On top of that, it's nbot exactly like nVidia doesn't have, to a lesser extent in this game driver issues as well.

I absolutely love my Sapphire built ATI x800XTPE card. I've water cooled the GPU and put OCZ copper bga RAMsinks on the memory all powered by an OCZ 520 watt power supply and have it running reliably at 587.25/587.25 and with my rig, I can run eye candy high in prefect with real coops that have thunderstorms going on with AAA everywhere and AI and whatnot and still not have the frame rates bottom out too much on me in the real world.

[Jasko76]

I've got an A64 3000+ and 512 Mb RAM, but that will be doubled soon. I also have a 550 W PSU so that should do it.

LB, yes, eyecandy is my thing, I don't mind sacrificing a few fps for better graphics. It
s just that I've checked a couple of reviews and in most cases X800Pro is handily outperformed by 6800GT.

Should I simply skip this generation of gfx cards as my 9800Pro, truth be told, works very well in every game I've thrown at it yet?

A year and a half ago when I bought R9600Pro to replace the bismal FX5200, I woved never to go nVIDIA again, but recent driver issues and GeForce's slight performance edge have made me think again. I would love to have another ATi card, but as I'm not a fanboy I don't mind switching camps. I just want to have the best card.

[LuckyBoy1]

1) Do yourself a favor and never take a vow to go fanboy this way or that ever again. Technology changes like the wind and the only thing driving it to a better purpose is our ability to judge this stuff in a rational manner. That being said, I share your and many other people's confusion as to what is best. I feel confident that if we report the driver issues, it will get solved. Unfortunately, this community has allowed a few typing terrorists to rule and many driver issues will fester longer as a result. The worst part of it is some of these typing terrorists are mods around here. I don't count steve v as one of them, but he doesn't live in a vaccum either, so there is only so much he can do. A couple of idiots have complained that he's sheltering me from a much deserved permanent ban... this is rediculous. The man wouldn't p!ss on me if I was on fire. At the same time, he's going to do as he feels is best. All the mods here... even the one's I'm currently whiningg about have a thankless job that leads to them having no good deed to go unpunished!

I recently posted instructions so the average user could properly report these problems. I was rewarded by being called a fool, an alarmist, a nVidia fanboy even though my last four video cards were all ATI. I posted a thread asking to discuss whether or not the CAB files... and I don't even have a clear understanding of what a CAB file is, might have something to do with it. I explained in my thread that the title of the thread had more to do with my confusion as to what a CAB file was than anything else. Still, it created this emotional response by a few, vocal idiots who blasted me for even discussing the issue outside a cumbersome and long ATI sticky thread at the top of this forum. I wanted to discuss it in a seperate thread as an isolated part of even possibly being part of the issue before messing up the ATI thread with the issue. My reward was ridicule and no cooperation from anyone here. I tried bumping up the threads just once a week in other forums to spread the word so more people would report driver problems properly. My reward was to have the threads locked.

How many times have I come into a thread and responded to someone who disrespected a nVidia TI series card and defended that card? How many times have I badmouthed the 9600 cards which are in my opinion, more marketing than substance? It gets discouraging to see people blast me when I have always just wanted to understand the issues and explore what is best rather than prop up a particular belief system. I run a Intel CPU, yet I'm telloing everyone for gaming to go AMD now. Why?... because it works!

Still, even with all the evidence that I post and provide information completely free of charge for the promotion of the game even to people I don't like, I'm still shouted down. If I point out that the current ATI driver problems seems to involve the full mission builder, I am said to be disrespecting Oleg. What nonsesnse! He's NOT a God, but a good, but tempermental man who's got a dynamite game going! If I say the problem can spread form an unnaffected computer by way of coops I'm called an internet alrmist. I've been told I simply am not installing correctly even though at stock speeds I've installed everything just once from a fresh reformat job. I've been told "only a few stupid people" are having these problems even though most quietly go off and e-mail me privately and confess they too are having trouble.


I guess in the end, on most of this I'm IBTM!


2) You say you are good to go right now. Ok, so why the thought of an upgrade? Here's the good news. Upgrade the RAM first. Which RAM should you get? Call Joe at www.magnum-pc.com for the best answer. You have a good foundation for a new vodeo card in that AMD rig if, and only if you get the majic Gig of RAM.

Good luck in deciding which way to go. Reading reviews won't help because the review guys don't want to anger those who send them the cards to review. Also, try finding reviews, much less good ones that relate to this game or the current hardware we use and how the upgrade would affect it.

[indylavi]

Jasko, honestly if you aren't having any problems with your 9800 I'd hold off. I'd save the money you'd upgrade with and then save a little more so when ATI's new card comes out you can buy it. I did buy a 6800 for Pixel Shader 3. However, I design 3d models for drug compaines so I actually have a REAL use for PS3. Most games don't however. It's a technology that looks great but is still too demanding on PC's to be truely effective in gaming..... That is so far. If it aint broke don't try to fix it I say Again a newer card will be faster but if you aren't having any real issues with your current one then a new one won't help much. You'll see some performance increase but you just have to ask yourself if slight increase is worth the money now or hold off and spend the money for a real performance increase

[Jasko76]

Indylavi

No, i don't have any issues with my card, any at all, inspite of it being insanely overclocked. I think you are right - I'll wait and upgrade later! What I WILL upgrade now is ram, I think a gig of ram will do me more good than a new video card.

LB

Well, I for one appreciate what you are doing around here. You've helped me a number of times, just by reading your advice to other people. I can't believe they want you banned! I agree, we have a few mods that shouldn't have the power to decide around here (like removing the beautiful Corsair from my sig ). I'm not calling any names here, but if a person that cares for other people around here gets banned for being enthusiastic, then they can ban me to. If I wanted to live under cencorship, I'd move to China or Iran or some other cozy place.

LB, thanks for your advice, it's as welcome as always! I'll see what I can do about that "majic gig" and keep the 9800Pro as long as it runs or something radically better comes around.

[LuckyBoy1]

I appreciate the comments. In defense of the mods, I think they do an overall good job around here, it's just that I'm against them on this one issue of discussing the ATI driver problems outside the ATI sticky thread or spreading the word on how to report problems properly to ATI.

While I'm at it, seeings how I was childish enough a few days ago to tell crazyivan1970 in the chat of HyperLobby to stuff his offer of joing a coop he was hosting, I'll take this time to apologize. So we don't agree on this one, does that make him a bad man? I think not and I need to grow up a bit on this issue at least!

Even if you don't live in the States, call or e-mail Joe at www.magnum-pc.com to get the best advice as to what RAM is best for you, not me or the man behind the tree! RAM, other things as well, but RAM especially is funny by lot number and he has a good grasp on how well each RAM works specifiacally to this game as well as many other applications by lot number. Does this mean he can guarantee you will test out as well as he does? NO!... but the good news is that RAM purchased from him takes 95% of the variables out of the equation, so I say get it from him regardless, but in the end, it's entirely up to you.

Get the right RAM for you and then see how well you are doing. By the time you are done fully tweaking your RAM settings, maybe all this driver issue stuff will be settled. Either way, you need the RAM to put you on a solid foundation to take advantage of any video card upgrade regardless on what you decide.

[Bearcat99]

I think I said this earlier in this thread..... but I am running a XP3200,1.5GDDR400,Antec430WPSU,6800GT256 OCd... and I went from a 9800Pro 128. I was always a fan of ATI and I went to this card because I could get it for a good price (Almost 50% off)... was it worth it? So far not really.... I get white caps but I get frames so low that it is moot. I am trying different drivers .. but after this I will never buy another Nvidia card again. I am even thinking of selling this one. Perhaps with a better CPU I could better utilize the card... but on my rig.... it is nice but I expected better... much better.

[Jasko76]

Thanks Bear! You've just said the right things to make me realize that 9800Pro is not half bad and that my next card will probably be from ATi!

LB, I'll check with Joe. Problem is I live in Sweden so for starters, calling him is not an option. I'll mail him.
Second problem is that we have to pay 25% import taxes on everything we order outside EU . That makes ordering stuff from US a costly proposition. Hopefully he will be willing to recommend me which RAM to get and I'll try to get it here.