X800XL VS GF6800GT

[Hellcat61]

Im am about to upgrade my video card from a GF6800 128mb. I was looking at the GF6800GT and the ATI X800XL. I cant go above $320 so the Ultra and Pro cards are out.

 

My question is, which card is better suited to play FC? The 6800 has more pipelines than the X800. The ATI has a higher core clock than the GF, but lower memory clock.

 

Overall, it seems that the GF wins out the ATI, but there are a lot of happy ATI customers playing FC. Basicly, I need a no BS assesment of which card is better. I dont want fanboys bashing the other companies card, I need true, honest info.

 

thanks,

 

-Helk

 

PS: The ATI I would buy is a Sapphire.

[Guest Cali]

Look here http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16814127155

 

newegg.com has great prices!

[WhiskeyRomeo]

The performance is close enough that chosing between those cards is just matter of personal preference.

 

http://www.firingsquad.com/hardware/nvidia_geforce_7800_gtx/page16.asp

[BOPrey]

BFG GF6800 GT. I have one, and it comes overclocked already. On my AMD xp 2500+ oc to 3200+. With every thing high, and water, vis range set to mid, I'm getting around 28 fps average in a mission with two 25t firing missiles and 8 tanks on fire at the same time.

 

BTW. I have the 256m version of the card.

[Nate Dogg]

Either card is good, but if your already have a 6800, why do you want to spend that much money on goin up one step? Surely wait a while and let the market stablise from the recent release of 7800GTX cards and then decide what you want to do, i don't think the difference between a 6800 and a GT will be worth $300 right now

[4c Hajduk Veljko]

Either card is good, but if your already have a 6800, why do you want to spend that much money on goin up one step? Surely wait a while and let the market stablise from the recent release of 7800GTX cards and then decide what you want to do, i don't think the difference between a 6800 and a GT will be worth $300 right now

 

That would be my advise as well! Also, if you would want to see any noticeable fps increase, you would look for processor upgrade at the same time.

[Joe]

Both the 6800GT and X800XL have 16 pipes (the X800 Pro only has 12 pipes). The 6800GT will probably overclock better than the X800XL, but it really is a wash between the two; they are very close.

 

I too would hesitate to upgrade from a 6800.

[Hellcat61]

In hindsight, I wouldnt be upgrading. Unfortunately, I kinda promised my old card away to someone, and dont have the heart to recall it. One thing I do notice is the fact that the ATI's dont use Pixelshader 3.0. Not many games use it, Lock On is no exception, but its still somthing to think about.

 

-Hellcat

[S77th-GOYA]

For those who think the diff wouldn't be much going from a 6800, have you ever used one? I've got one and it really isn't better than my old 9800pro. Mainly because it doesn't OC nearly as well as my old 9800pro. Also, the 6600GT seems to be a better card than the 6800 in every test for LOMAC I've seen.

 

As for the original question, I'd go for the ATI. You get the benefit of the 5.6 drivers that make overcast much more playable, plus I think image quality is better with ATI. One warning about the x800xl, they run pretty hot. Or so I'm told.

[Hellcat61]

Will the 5.6 get my frames highter in Lomac? I would really like to try the ATI, but if there is no advantage in it, I may just go with the GT. Are there any real advantages in going with ATI by means of proformance? If they can squeeze out a few more FPS than an Nvidia, than I would definately go with them. They dont have the pixelshader 3.0 option, so I dont know if its worth the buy.

 

-Hellcat

[britgliderpilot]

Will the 5.6 get my frames highter in Lomac? I would really like to try the ATI, but if there is no advantage in it, I may just go with the GT. Are there any real advantages in going with ATI by means of proformance? If they can squeeze out a few more FPS than an Nvidia, than I would definately go with them. They dont have the pixelshader 3.0 option, so I dont know if its worth the buy.

 

-Hellcat

 

The only improvement that Cat 5.6 even claimed was in overcast conditions - and it's debatable to what degree it actually worked.

 

I've got an X800XL, and am happy with it - I think Lomac is more limited by my CPU than the card at the moment.

Anyway, running HL2 maxed isn't to be sniffed at . . . . . grin.

 

 

My X800XL isn't overclocking too well at the moment - running hot can be controlled, but it just doesn't like going much faster than it is at default.

 

I've also heard the "ATI Image Quality Is Better" story . . . . . shrug.

 

Something I found useful was the comparison of the X800XL to the 6800 Ultra, here:

 

http://www.cdrinfo.com/Sections/Reviews/Print.aspx?ArticleId=13690

[firesoldier845]

A lot of it depends on what resolution you want to run LOMAC at. Plus you need a fast CPU. Even the most expensive vid card is going to choke if your CPU isn't fast enough.

 

A lot of the more expensive vid cards are only better at high resolutions, so if your going to run at 1024X768 or even 1280X1024 then the mid range cards are fairly decent.

 

I've got a really nice top end system and vid card and even my computer struggles in the larger missions with a lot of units involved in the mission. FWIW, don't believe the crap you read about people saying they run this game with everything maxed out and get awesome fps even over the large cities. It's b.s. - and be careful of the video card fan boys that are gonna tell you that brand X is better than brand Y. It's a hard decision Nvidia or ATI, they are both good cards and each one is better than the other at certain games. Just check out the hardware sites and look at the benchmarks and see what brand is better at most of the games YOU play. I've gone back and forth between ATI and Nvidia depending on who has the best bang for the buck in most of the games I play. Right now I have a 6800 Ultra only because it has better fps in LOMAC and IL2 3.0 pixel shader support-and those are my main games. Wait a few more weeks if you can cause ATI is coming out with a new card too that has PS 3.0 support. Everything I have read says ATI new card is going to be better than Nvidia new card. The new cards will probably drop prices on the current ones and more than likely they will have new cards that are mid priced budget cards so you can get X800 or 6800GT performance for even less than today. Remember too, those expensive top end cards are going to be a complete waste unless you have a fast CPU to pair it with. If you had to buy right now though I would recommend 6800GT only because of PS 3.0 support and it seems to edge out ATI in LOMAC and IL2 sturmovik. But I don't think your going to see that much improvement over the 6800 plain. But really, if you can wait a few more weeks I think you will be happier with a new ATI or new Nvidia card or you can get the X850 or 6800GT or Ultra for even cheaper then now. cheers

[Dudikoff]

Will the 5.6 get my frames highter in Lomac? I would really like to try the ATI, but if there is no advantage in it, I may just go with the GT. Are there any real advantages in going with ATI by means of proformance? If they can squeeze out a few more FPS than an Nvidia, than I would definately go with them. They dont have the pixelshader 3.0 option, so I dont know if its worth the buy.

-Hellcat

 

Take the 6800GT but from some better known trademark (Gainward, Leadtek,..). Not only is it faster by default, but it overclocks much better, too. X800XL is built in 0.11 um process which doesn't overclock well (I doubt you'll get even 450 from the standard 400; you'll need 500 to reach the equivalent of an X800XT which is on par with 6800U). On the other hand, EVERY 6800GT from a decent manufacturer will reach at least 6800U clock levels of GPU/memory. I have a plain Gainward 6800GT, but you might opt for GS (even better core overcolock) or GS GLH editions (has 1.6 ns memory so it should go higher as well) if they're not too expensive. I'd also take NV Silencer from Arctic Cooling with it but that depends on how quiet your system/preference is..

[Conuk]

buy the gt and overclock it to Ultra settings - and save a few quid... ( my BFG works @ ultra speeds with lock on no problems.....)

[TDBONE1]

i like my X800XL

i stayed with nvidia upto the GF4 line but it seams when ati brought the ati9700 pros i just loved ati then

i havent tried any of the 6800/7800 series cards and it dont really matter to me as mt atis 9700,9800,9550 (nice OC card) and even this X800XL i just catn really complain

i love the AA not taking big perf hits

 

one thing about nvidia though (its good for open gl games and linux)

nvidia and linux just love eachother

 

i had a chance the other day to trade my ATI X800XL in (less then 30days since i bought it) for same exact price 6800GT OC (and a free game for $49.00) but i just didnt want to do it (i read alot of reviews and comparisons) and from what i read X800XL wins out over 6800GT OC

 

BUT if that card can be put in SLI then i would prob get that card if i had a PCI X mboard

 

if you have a new PCI X mboard i would definately get nvidia for the SLI

[Guest EVIL-SCOTSMAN]

Gainward? meh 6800gt jus died and on there forums a lot of ppl complaining about them. I was happy with mine til it died so i dunno what other ppl were complaining about but there forums are full of ppl not to pleased with them cards...