ATI X's

M

mattsprattuk

New Member
ok, im a little confused at the moment...
im looking at getting a PCI-E GPU, ATI all the way, because its all i know, i dont care which is actually better (ive seen some of the arguments on this site about it :D)
so heres my confusion:

theres too many different ranges of card
to begin with i thought the X850 was just a really old GPU seeing as theres now an X1950... how wrong was i?
im by no means an idiot when it comes to computers, but i just need to get the gist of this range.

i was looking at an X700 and was wondering how it would compare to an X1600... any ideas? because the X700 was like £30 i assumed it was crappy, yet the X850 costs a bomb!

would it be a high end GPU if i had the X700 working in crossfire?
long story short:
whats better, X700 or X1600?
and is it a big difference in performance?
 
I'm a big Nvidia fan, but only because they are the better of the two major companies at the moment. DO NOT WHATEVER YOU DO get a X700 pro. This is how it goes, the X700 pro was released to compete with the 6600GT, and judging from the popularity of the 6600GT it didn't go so well. So a few months after the X700 pro was phased out and the X800GT took its place as a competitor to the 6600GT which was somewhat successful. The X800GT was made from lleft over X800XT cores (a previous high end card).
If its only between X700 and X1600 then definitely the X1600, because it has a more advanced architecture. The X1k series of which the X1600 is mid range in supports shader model 3 while the Xxxx series only support shader model 2.

If you care about your money and care about the value of your purchase, the I suggest you get the 7600GT from nvidia. Its the bigger brother of the 6600GT and its very popular. You know the only difference to the end user between nvidia and ATi are the drivers, you install different drivers that's it. You shouldn't buy eletronics based on loyalty.
 
im completely indifferent when it comes to GPU manufacturers, but i just spashed out a fair wad of cash on a crossfire motherboard, and i dont think SLi would work with it.
does the X800 support shader model 3?
 
Nope, I told you, the Xxxx series doesn't support shader model 3, only the X1k series does. While nvidia on the other hand has three generations of cards that support shader model 3, the 6 and 7 and now 8 series.
 
I know I know, In terms of performance the X850XT far outperforms the X1600 pro, but when games come out that HAS to require shader model 3, the X850 will not be able to play, like with my old MX440. :( When games come out that HAS to require hardware support for Pixel shaders, I was left high and dry. :( :( :(
 
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