9600XT, 5700 Ultra, or 5900nu?

[Blastman]

I only have $175 to spend, but will shell out $200 if I have too. ?[/b]

------------------> loop back to my original 2 posts.

Some people in this thread act like if he has to buy a 9600XT, he might as well quit gaming all together. LOL.

 

[Keysplayr]

I present you with obvious logic, and that's all you have to say? Ok then.

At any rate, it looks like he bought his video card and this thread has pretty much done. He hasn't posted in a while so I'm guessing he bought the 5900 like he said he was leaning towards. Maybe he will let us know how he made out.

Keys

 

[Jayavarman]

I have not buy any card yet. My Ti200 is still working, but any 3D functionality is broken, i.e. games will not run, but I still can do 2D Windows stuff. I tried every way to fix the problem, but can't. I think something has burnt on the hardware level. But that's besides the point.

I wanted to thank you all for replying and voicing your recommendations and opinion. Blastman and Keysplayr both have some very good and valid points. And Pete, I did consider about the coupon for HL2 with the 9600XT. I know for sure that I will buy this game one way or another. Why not get the 9600XT and knock $40 from the equation? Well, I need the card now. And the game won't come til maybe April '04, if that even. This just seems like a rebate, you know they say oh this card is $170 but you'll only pay $130 because there's a $40 rebate. I don't know about you, but I never like rebates and I never factor rebates into pricing, but that's just me. If the game is in the box, that's a different story. And yes, I did see the priliminary HL2 benchmark with the ATI and Nvidia cards. To me it seems suspicious (but this is a totally different subject, I'm not going to go there). You know, nVidia used to be top notch with drivers and optimizations for their cards and ATI was the one playing catch up on the software side. But now, it seems the tables have turned. I have faith that nVidia will turn it around.

But back to the question at hand, I've pretty much ruled the 5700ultra out. I'm torn between the 9600XT and 5900nu right now. I know that I can get the 9600XT for ~$170, but if I just push another $24 (skipping 3 lunches at work), I can get the 5900nu. But is the 5900nu much superior to the 9600XT, I really don't think it is. But it is enough to bag lunches for 3 days, I think. So I don't know guys, I'm still deciding and reading around. Thanks all, I will let you know what I get.

 

[Pete]

Originally posted by: Rollo

but he forgot to mention that most retail 9600XT's include Half-Life 2 in their price

I thought about it Pete, but wanted to give advice on the cards only and not the bundles for a few reasons:
1. No one really knows when HL2 will be available
2. I don't know the available bundles on the nVidia cards to compare them, e.g. I know the XFX have Commanche4, Ghost Recon, and some sort of racing game.
3. I don't think any video game is worth settling for a much weaker card, but that's just my opinion

I agree that speed is of the essence, but the price point is a factor, as a spending limit was mentioned. Ultimately, it's Jayavarman's responsibility to look at benchmarks himself to determine which card offers him sufficient speed.

1. Well surely you don't doubt that it will be released? I agree, the delayed release is an issue, but it's not like you're throwing money away.
2. True, maybe some people will enjoy the 5900 bundles. Myself, I'm very biased toward HL2 over Ghost Recon and Commanche 4 and the like. Jayavarman appears to be dead-set on HL2 as well, though he may want some of those other titles.
3. I agree, but I'm keeping price in mind (as Jayavarman will be buying HL2).

We're just approaching things from slightly different angles, but our conclusions are the same. The 5900 is the faster card, but it's Jay's call if it's worth the extra money. As for the Doom 3 numbers, I'm as skeptical of ATi's performance in that nV-sponsored demo as I am of nV's performance in the recent ATi-sponsored one. Anand has already received purported updated nV HL2 numbers; I'm disappointed and a little worried that we haven't heard some updated ATi D3 numbers. But it looks like we have some time to go before I can see numbers obtained in a way I'm comfortable with (basically, via a public demo that anyone can run to confirm published numbers).

And Jayavarman (can I call you Jay? ) returns! If you don't want to factor in HL2, then get the 5900. I sympathize with your distaste for rebates, but we have to live with the annoying fact that HL2 was due out this month but has been delayed. I still think it's wise to factor in the cost of the game, but if you can skip three lunches and get the 5900, than you can figure out a way to skip six of them by April to have enough to buy HL2 for your 5900. If you're feeling weak or looking too skinny, consider buying the 9600XT and not skipping any lunches. But the main thing should be how the cards perform in the games you play. Look around for reviews at NordicHardware, Beyond3D, Anandtech, HardOCP, TechReport, GamePC, Firingsquad, Digit-Life, and plenty of other sites to see real benchmarks, and see if each is fast enough in your current favorite games.

 

[nRollo]

Well surely you don't doubt that it will be released?

Of course not. I do think you're loaning money to Valve and ATI when you buy these deals though, for an undetermined amount of time. It's the opposite of credit cards: pay now, get later.

True, maybe some people will enjoy the 5900 bundles

There's a matter of degree of enjoyment to consider. Is it better to have those three games now for the next five months, and a much better card, or HL2 in 5 months and a much slower card?


From what I've seen, the 9600 proponents are largely guys who bought 9600s, perhaps due to "Shader Day" and all the "It's faster than a 5900U!" nonsense.

 

[Chumster]

Jayavarman:

Based on your criteria (willing to spend $200, counting the HL2 ticket as a rebate), I'd definetly go with the 5900NU -- just be sure to avoid the "SE"-type models.

From another post:

The LeadTek A350 "LX" model with 2.8ns memory (the other 2 A350 models use 2.2ns) and the Gainward as-usual overclocked and misleadingly named "Gainward GeForce FX 5900 Ultra/1100 8x AGP 128MB" also uses 2.8ns memory. Those are exceptions and really the only 2 5900s that I've ever seen that carry 2.8ns memory. The LeadTek card at least uses a "LX" suffix to show it's a lesser product, but as usual Gainward uses a deceptive name and overclocks the card.

Chumster

 

[Keysplayr]

I'd eat peanut-butter and jelly sandwiches for a week if it meant getting the 5900nu. No joke, totally serious. Brown bag it dude, you won't regret it.
When I was card shopping, I fortunately had enough money to get the top of the line card, but I still wasn't thrilled about paying a premium for one.
So I waited a bit, ( I was not in the same situation as you with a dead card in 3D though) and the 5900 suddenly dropped from 295 to 249.00, I jumped on it. You will have a 50.00 advantage over me because you are buying at a great time. 24.00 will buy you MUCH more horsepower. 4x2 pipes, 256 bit memory interface and high speed mem, for 24.00 bucks. If you look around your house for looses change you could almost pay that, Im guessing.

Good Luck with your decision. Enjoy those PBJ's.

Keys

 

[nRollo]

Damn!

I'm still thinking!

Slow in all games, or fast in all games? Which is better?!?!? It's driving me crazy!

 

[Keysplayr]

LOL

 

[weeder]

hands down decision,the 5900nu beats both the 5700 ultra and the 9600xt. if your a ati fan then you need an xtra 100$ for a 9800pro.

 

[nRollo]

hands down decision,the 5900nu beats both the 5700 ultra and the 9600xt. if your a ati fan then you need an xtra 100$ for a 9800pro.[

Err, that's not true Weedies. A man with $245 in his pocket can get an OEM Sapphire 9700 Pro at at newegg that would serve him just as well at any game, better at PS2 DX9 games.

 

[MadScientist]

Some more fuel for the fire. A recent review comparing the 5900's to the 9800's. Stealing a quote from the reviewer's conclusion, "Well, undoubtedly you will make the right choice!".
Review

 

[KoolHonda]

Originally posted by: Rollo

hands down decision,the 5900nu beats both the 5700 ultra and the 9600xt. if your a ati fan then you need an xtra 100$ for a 9800pro.[

Err, that's not true Weedies. A man with $245 in his pocket can get an OEM Sapphire 9700 Pro at at newegg that would serve him just as well at any game, better at PS2 DX9 games.

And for $250 you can get a Retail ATI 9800 from CircuitCity. However, I went with the PNY FX5900 for $250-$50MIR, and I'm very happy with it

 

[Pete]

Originally posted by: Rollo
From what I've seen, the 9600 proponents are largely guys who bought 9600s, perhaps due to "Shader Day" and all the "It's faster than a 5900U!" nonsense.

The 5900 wasn't always 200, Rollo. Surely some people picked up a 9600P when it was $150 and the 5900 was $250+.

 

[nRollo]

The 5900 wasn't always 200, Rollo. Surely some people picked up a 9600P when it was $150 and the 5900 was $250+.

I imagine. These days though it's fairly tough to justify anything but a recommendation chart like this:
<$100 Ti4200
$150 9600Pro
$200 5900NU
$250 9700Pro
>$250 9800Pro/XT

I just don't think there's much excuse for telling people who want to spend $200 to save $50 and get a 9600Pro. When the "9600Pros will be faster than 5950s!" bs starts flying, you have to wonder if they believe it themselves.