Recommended graphics cards -- a start!

nici · Post by **nici** » Thu Dec 29, 2005 5:03 am

Mats wrote:Sapphire X800 GTO Ultimate looks like a really good card. Beyond3D tested it, and the fact that they could overclock it from 400 to 535 MHz tells me it must have one of the best passive coolers out there with it's 3 heatpipes.

It probably has the R480 core like on the X850XT PE, thats why it overclocks so well. My card also has the R480 core, i think most of the Sapphire GTOs have it.

Mats · Post by **Mats** » Thu Dec 29, 2005 5:22 am

nici wrote:It probably has the R480 core like on the X850XT PE, thats why it overclocks so well. My card also has the R480 core, i think most of the Sapphire GTOs have it.

It does have the R480, but that's not my point. A 34% overclock with passive cooling though tells me that it's a quite powerful cooler, don't you think?

nici · Post by **nici** » Thu Dec 29, 2005 5:57 am

Mats wrote:
nici wrote:It probably has the R480 core like on the X850XT PE, thats why it overclocks so well. My card also has the R480 core, i think most of the Sapphire GTOs have it.
It does have the R480, but that's not my point. A 34% overclock with passive cooling though tells me that it's a quite powerful cooler, don't you think?

The cooler probably is pretty good yes, but it still needs airflow to keep cool and get that 34% overclock. I had a ZM80D-HP on my overclocked 800XL and without a fan blowing directly at it it wasnt stable and caused freezes and BSODs. Thats why i now have the VF700 again, since i need a fan anyway there isnt any increase in noise. But for a stock passively cooled pretty powerful card the GTO Ultimate seems like a good buy. Dont know if thats changed, but when i got my GTO Lite(no games) for 185€ the Ultimate costed ~230€. A pretty large price difference.

And the stock cooler on the GTO is pretty quiet too, at full speed it was about as loud as a VF700 at maybe 7V. I hate computer noise but i still used the stock cooler for a few weeks before replacing it with a vf700. I slowed the fan down with ATITool though, at idle 20% was enough and 60% was enough at full load.

Mats · Post by **Mats** » Thu Dec 29, 2005 2:20 pm

Since you have used both Zalman coolers maybe you can tell me the difference if you're using a fan with both. Which one is the best? The VF700 is a good cooler but it got a horrible design for ducting with it's fins pointing in all directions. Since I need a fan for moving the air I think it's better to let the same fan push the hot air out of the case. Circulating air is too old school for me, too inefficient. The 80D got a better design for using a fan in the front, pushing the air to the back and out.

trxman · Post by **trxman** » Thu Dec 29, 2005 3:07 pm

http://www.xbitlabs.com/articles/video/ ... s27_5.html

Tephras · Post by **Tephras** » Tue Jan 03, 2006 12:15 pm

Asus has updated their product line with the Extreme N6600TOP Silent /TD, a GF 6600 furnished with their cooling solution ReverseCool.

BigA · Post by **BigA** » Fri Jan 06, 2006 2:52 pm

I purchased a Sapphire X800 GTO Ultimate in December and, while I am happy with my purchase so far, the card is NOT 100% passively cooled. While previous versions of the card may have been entirely passive, the new version includes a fan. A picture of the fan can be seen at Newegg:

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.a ... 6814102628

The other side of the card features the same design shown above and the heatpipes connect the heatsinks on either side of the card. From some of the user reviews I have read, it appears that the card has a tendency to overheat and fail if it is not receiving adequate ventilation. Presumably this motivated Sapphire to add a fan to reduce warranty returns.

When I started my machine, I listened to the fan and it wasn't especially loud, but it was whiny and besides it's a very small fan which doesn't seem to be moving much air. Accordingly, I'm not sure how the card should be classified -- it's a passive design to which the manufacturer has added active cooling.

My solution was to disconnect the stock fan on the video card. I have used a Zalman fan bracket to suspend two undervolted 120mm Yate Loon fans, one over the CPU and a second over the video card. Since the video card has worked fine in the past as a 100% passively cooled solution, it ought to do okay in the future, provided it's getting good ventilation. So far I haven't had any problems, but I'm still finalizing my build and haven't really stressed the graphics card yet.

mk · Post by mk » Sun Feb 26, 2006 1:13 pm

Is this list dying?

I put a lot of work into making this list and I would hate to see all the relevant information drift into the dark shadows of old posts.

I think it qualifies for a sticky. That would keep it from dying.

EasyRaider · Post by **EasyRaider** » Mon Feb 27, 2006 10:47 am

mk wrote:I think it qualifies for a sticky. That would keep it from dying.

Seconded. The current sticky is outdated and messy, not much useful information to be extracted there.

mk · Post by mk » Wed Apr 05, 2006 10:31 am

Time for an update!

With all the new chips from Nvidia it seems that there will be major changes in the list.

Here is four cards that needs to be placed in the list. There is probably more cards out there so please post your finds.

How should these cards rank??

It is still a mystery to me why this thread i not a sticky??

Asus EN7300LE/HTD/128M (7300 LE) - Power consumption ? / ? watt.

Gigabyte GV-NX73G128D (7300 GS) - Power consumption ? / ? watt.

Asus EN7600GS SILENT/HTD (7600 GS) - Power consumption ? / ? watt.

XFX 7600GS 256MB DDR2 DUAL DVI TV Xtreme (7600 GS) - Power consumption ? / ? watt.

eVGA e-GeForce 7600GS w/ Passive Heatsink (7600 GS) - Power consumption ? / ? watt.

MSI NX7600GS-T2D256EH (7600 GS) - Power consumption ? / ? watt.

Asus EN7600GT SILENT/2DHT/256M (7600 GT) - Power consumption ? / ? watt.

Gigabyte GV-NX76T256D-RH (7600 GT) - Power consumption ? / ? watt.

~El~Jefe~ · Post by **~El~Jefe~** » Wed Apr 05, 2006 3:56 pm

rei · Post by **rei** » Wed Apr 05, 2006 9:51 pm

don't forget the xfx xtreme 7600gs

cbloyd · Post by **cbloyd** » Sat Apr 08, 2006 11:19 am

How about the Gigabyte X1600 Pro Silent Pipe II?

They're now available from Newegg for $109.00, and probably less soon, as prices are dropping on these. More pictures:

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.a ... 6814125021

Has anyone tried the new Silent-Pipe II cards? Gigabyte claims that they will exhaust heat through the PCI slot due to the temperature differential between the inside of the case and the outside air. If true, that looks like an advantage over heatsink designs that are completely internal to the case.

mk · Post by mk » Mon Apr 10, 2006 10:33 am

Update

Changes:

- There is now four known 7600 GS cards with passive cooling. The Asus card is a new find! Below it is Asus - XFX - eVGA - MSI. I have placed the 7600 GS cards above the 6600 GT and below the 1600 XT. Maybe they should be above the 1600 XT's to? please comment.

- There is now two known 7600 GT cards with passive cooling. Below it is Asus - Gigabyte. I have placed the 7600 GT cards in the top of the middle performance section. Please comment.

Questions remaining:

- Where does the 7300 LE and 7300 GS goes in the list? any suggestions?

-

cbloyd wrote:How about the Gigabyte X1600 Pro Silent Pipe II?

Where will this go in the list?

- With the new additions there is now 14 cards in the middle section. This means that some cards has to be removed to keep the list simple. Is the time up for the 6600 GT cards? or does some other card have to go? Please comment!

- Several cards still don't have power consumption numbers. Post what you know!

Please help keep the list updated and post your finds in this thread.

cbloyd · Post by **cbloyd** » Mon Apr 10, 2006 12:13 pm

mk wrote:Update

cbloyd wrote:How about the Gigabyte X1600 Pro Silent Pipe II?
Where will this go in the list?

I'd say it's a medium performance card, and would fit near the bottom of the medium list.

Also, on re-reading the thread, I noticed that Halcyon had already posted this card. Apologies for the duplication.

mk · Post by mk » Mon Apr 10, 2006 12:27 pm

cbloyd wrote:Also, on re-reading the thread, I noticed that Halcyon had already posted this card. Apologies for the duplication.

It's a good thing that you did post it again. I think I took it for a XL instead of a Pro the first time (almost did it this time to...). That's why it is not in the list.

I will check for comments tomorrow and do another update.

stupid · Post by **stupid** » Mon Apr 10, 2006 2:59 pm

Perhaps you would like to fill in some of the missing idle and load power consumption from Xbitlabs' GPU article.

Also you should update the very post rather than simply in later posts, that way when people see the first post they will know that the list contains the most recent cards. Posting updates in later posts simply confuses the matter when people have to read thru a lot of posts. Simply put CONSOLIDATE.

You should probably add one more category called "Premium GPUs", "Ultra High End GPUs" or "OMGWTFBBQ". These $400+ cards are simply in a class by themselves. Consider the fact that a single 7900GTX can hold it's own against 2 7800GTXs in SLI mode; I mean equal if not slightly better. Hell, a 7800GTX 512MB can hold it's own against 2 7800GTXs in SLI mode in Quake 4.

Premium GPUs should include:
X1900XTX
X1900XT
7900GTX
7800GTX 512MB
7900GT

Perhaps the best benchmark to use (actually it's not that flattering) is Oblivion. That game is so damn GPU hungry that you will be lucky if you can squeeze out 40+ FPS using Ultra High End GPUs in Crossfire or SLI mode.