X1950XT vs X1950XTX

[Pinchy]

The question: Is it worth it?

Before i start: PLEASE dont lean me towards another product (such as the R600). I need to get this card soon, as i am building a comp for a friend, yet he cant really afford much. So, if this all goes through, im gonna give him my X1950 PRO, and i'll pay the difference for the X1950XT/XTX. So basically, no non-existant cards :) (Well cards that wont be out soon)

Anyways, the X1950XT is $350 for a 256mb, HIS brand, with the crappy stock cooler (Like the X850 cards heatsink).

The X1950XTX is $490 for a 512mb, MSI/Sapphire brand, with the stock cooler. (It looks pretty good, is it really?)

Yeah, so its like a $140 difference. Worth it? (The only diff i can see is GDDR4 vs GDDR3)

Im also looking at the 8800GTS, which is $420 for the 320mb, although its nvidia and i got a crossfire mobo, so im not *really* looking at that.

Anyways, what do you guys think :D?

(I might even upgrade myself to an E6600 from E6400 :))

[DrunkenMafia]

Hey Pinchy

I reckon the X1950xt card is plenty good enough for now (put a VF900 on it), it will be a bit of a step up from the pro as well.

It would keep you going till at least the end of the year, then you can buy one of those "non existent ati cards" (surely they will be out by then)....

BTW where did you see X1950XTX for $490 ??? is that new.

[Pinchy]

Thanks for the quick reply! :)

Well thats the thing...im not going to upgrade for a while - until DX10 is affordable over here where we are - Australia. We wont see the DX10 cards for 2-3 months after release, if not more. Then we gotta wait till its affordable :p (So behind in Australia :rolleyes:)

Originally, the only difference i could see between those two (besides the price :D), is the 256 vs 512mb (which wont matter seeing as im only on a 19" LCD with 1280x1024 max), the cooler difference (and i dont even know if the X1950XTX stock cooler is that great) and the GDDR4 vs GDDR3 (better overclock...but i generally run the card at stock anyways).


Oh and another factor i have to consider - size. I dont really want a huge card.

What are the size differences from the X1950 PRO to the XT to the XTX?



EDIT - change the X1950XT to $370, but add the HIS arctic cooler (The X1950XT, HIS, with the AC is $370)


All prices are from this site (cheapest around):
http://www.tekcorp.com.au/catalog/index.php?cPath=23_25

LOL i forgot to add shipping for the X1950XTX, so its like $500.

[tkpenalty]

PCB lengths of the three cards are the same. However I would rather go with the X1950XTX due to the fact that it can match the performance of a 8800GTS 640 (in crossfire), between the 8800GTS and 8800GTX, not in SM4.0 however.

[Pinchy]

But if the X1950XTX CF is between the 8800GTS and GTX, surely the X1950XT CF would be up there (the only diff is a little slower clock speeds).

DX10 cards would probably pwn crossfire anyway, so by the time i could afford a second card, i may as well get a DX10 GPU ;)


Thanks for the replies guys :)

[tkpenalty]

8800GTS 320 would be a better idea IMHO

[Pinchy]

Yeah I was thinking the 8800GTS, but isnt it a HUGE card (or is that just the GTX?)

And how are the coolers on em?

[tkpenalty]

Um, 8800GTS is a bit smaller than the 8800GTX, around the length of the X1950 series

[Pinchy]

Hmmm, at least its smaller than the 8800GTX.

Im liking the X1950XT with the HIS cooler. Its pretty cheap ($370), and should OC into an X1950XTX...(25Mhz on core and 100Mhz on memory).

Although, an 8800GTS hammers it at only $50 more :ohwell:

I dont know why - but i just dont like the 8800GTS. I know nvidia have sort of fixed it up, but im still paranoid about the drivers and all the problems they got/had :p

Well i guess we have ruled X1950XTX out (Whats the point when an 8800GTS is cheaper ;), and i can just OC the X1950XT)

So, X1950XT with great cooler, or powerful 8800GTS for $50 more?

[DOM]

8800GTS is a better card and you'll can keep it longer then a 1950XT

[Grings]

8800gts's are EXACTLY the same length, i just changed from an x1800 (same length as x19xx) and they were both the same size pcb's

[Pinchy]

Thanks Grings :)

So we can rule size out of the way :D

[TylerZambori]

Dude, you can get an HIS x1950XTX with 512mb for $370
on newegg.com, if they will ship to Australia.

I'm not so sure about the nvidia card being better.
Did he say why it's better?

[Carbine]

Dude, you can get an HIS x1950XTX with 512mb for $370
on newegg.com, if they will ship to Australia.

I'm not so sure about the nvidia card being better.
Did he say why it's better?

You dont need to say the 8800 is better you should already know..

[TylerZambori]

That doesn't wash. Why is it better? The drivers?

[LiNKiN]

It is architecturely more of a badass than the 1950, and of course theres DirectX 10 compliance. Just visit the Manufacturers' websites for specs, then google some benchies, then youll understand! :toast:

[Grings]

That doesn't wash. Why is it better? The drivers?

the 1950's direct nvidia competitor is the 7900gtx, the previous generation nvidia card, 8800's are faster in just about all aspects, have shader model 4, faster memory (xtx's have ddr4 granted, but 8800's use 320/384bit interfaces)

[TylerZambori]

http://tinyurl.com/2zjt9n

Grudge match: ATI radeon x1950xtx versus Nvidia Geforce 7900 gtx


Verdict

As in Oblivion, ATI takes the 3DMark06 victory because of its ability to perform antialiasing with high-dynamic range lighting.

[Pinchy]

Dude, you can get an HIS x1950XTX with 512mb for $370
on newegg.com, if they will ship to Australia.

I'm not so sure about the nvidia card being better.
Did he say why it's better?

lol thats the problem, Newegg doesnt ship to Australia so im stuck with what ive got :(

[TylerZambori]

lol thats the problem, Newegg doesnt ship to Australia so im stuck with what ive got :(

I found one more that sells it for a similar price, but they also don't ship
internationally. You could get a connect 3D one shipped there, but
I dunno about its cooling.

Oh well, I'm waiting for prices to come down myself. When it gets down to
$300 I'll probably get it.