View Full Version : ati 9800 pro advice
I don't game. I am biuldinga box to sell right now ansd wanted a nice gaming video card in it. Some of the 9800 pro's cost twice as much as others. Is one really worth the differance for the same amount of memory etc...
Is there a newer video card worth the differance in price if I was trying to maximize the resale value of the system as a whole?
Tex
Jolyon33
4 Jul 2004, 6:22pm
All ya need right here.
http://www.newegg.com/app/ViewProductDesc.asp?description=14-102-268&depa=1
Mt_Goat
4 Jul 2004, 6:54pm
Tex,
Was in Fry's today and they have built by ATI version of that Saphire card (Retail Box) for $189.00. I don't remember if that is a "Today Only" or on the "3 Day Only" sale. With tax it is still cheaper than ordering and you can walk in with it if you have a problem!!! ;)
There are basiclly 2 versions. There are the 256 bit cards (most of them) and a 128 bit version (generally the ones for under $200.00). You definitly want the 256 bit cards!!!
like Larry says ...definitely get the 256 bit card.
mmonnin
4 Jul 2004, 9:36pm
Ditto on the 256bit cards for gamers.
256bit ? When I see ati 9800 pro cards I can get 128 or 256 mb but I see no option for 128 versus 256 bit on a 9800 pro. What am I not seeing?
tex
Mt_Goat
4 Jul 2004, 11:54pm
256bit ? When I see ati 9800 pro cards I can get 128 or 256 mb but I see no option for 128 versus 256 bit on a 9800 pro. What am I not seeing?
tex
Some don't say but look for this. (see below)
256bit ? When I see ati 9800 pro cards I can get 128 or 256 mb but I see no option for 128 versus 256 bit on a 9800 pro. What am I not seeing?
tex
If you haven't seen the 128bit (http://www.guru3d.com/newsitem.php?id=1539) then feel fortunate ...many have been ripped thinking they were getting the real deal. They've only been around a few weeks so just depends on where you are looking but they are there if you look hard enough. Just steer clear.
9800 pro 128mb 256bit.
"These 'castrated' versions seem to pop up everywhere ... if you click here (http://www.buyxtremegear.com/r9800pro128.html) you can see a Radeon 9800 Pro priced at 164 USD !! When you read on you'll notice 128-bit memory, it's just something that a lot of people never heard of or can understand.
Please be careful when buying and ask the salesmen if it is the 128 or 256-bit memory version !"
very deceptive IMO
bothered
5 Jul 2004, 7:54am
You've got me thinking now which one I've got. I've looked everywhere, Sandra, ATI controle panel, and can't find anything that tells me. I even looked at the discription of it on the site I bought it from and it doesnt say. How can I find out?
If you bought it prior to April, I'd give you 90% certainty that it's 256. If it's not a Sapphire card, I'd say it's certain.
Jimborae
5 Jul 2004, 9:13am
You've got me thinking now which one I've got. I've looked everywhere, Sandra, ATI controle panel, and can't find anything that tells me. I even looked at the discription of it on the site I bought it from and it doesnt say. How can I find out?
bothered,
Use rivatuner and the low level diagnostic report within it to be sure. Sapphire says that to avoid confusion all their 128bit bus cards will be called Radeon 9800 (as oppossed to Radeon 9800 pro)
bothered
5 Jul 2004, 9:26am
If you bought it prior to April, I'd give you 90% certainty that it's 256. If it's not a Sapphire card, I'd say it's certain.
Wonderful. It's not saphire and I got it in March. :thumbsup:
Ok so I know tons more then I did but I want to make sure I'm on the right trail here.
I'm looking at an ATI Radeon pro and here is the specs.
Technical Specs Device Type - Graphics adapter
Enclosure Type - Plug-in card
Interface Type - AGP 8x
Compatibility - PC
Graphics Processor / Vendor - 1 x ATI RADEON 9800 PRO
Graphics Processor Data Width - 256-bit
RAMDAC Clock Speed - 400 MHz
Video Memory Installed ( Max ) - 128 MB DDR SDRAM - integrated
Max Resolution (external) - 2048 x 1536 / 85 Hz
Colors Max Resolution (external) - 24-bit (16.7 million colors)
Supported Display Graphics - VGA (640x480), XGA (1024x768), SVGA (800x600), SXGA (1280x1024), UXGA (1600x1200), HDTV (1920x1080), UXGAW (1900x1200), QXGA (2048x1536), 1152x864, 1920x1200, 1920x1440
API Supported - OpenGL, DirectX
Multiple Monitors Support - Yes
Max Monitors Supported - 2
TV Interface - TV out
Analog Video Format - RGB, S-Video
Digital Video Standard - Digital Visual Interface (DVI)
Interfaces - 1 x VGA - 15 pin HD D-Sub (HD-15) ¦ 1 x S-video output - 4 pin mini-DIN ¦ 1 x DVI-I - 29 pin combined DVI
Compatible Slots - 1 x AGP
Cables Included - 1 x DVI-VGA cable
Software Included - Drivers & Utilities
OS Required - Microsoft Windows Millennium Edition, Microsoft Windows 2000 / XP
Min RAM Size - 128 MB
Service & Support - 3 years warranty
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------
It's brand new and never been opened in the original box.
What's a good deal on a card like this? How much better is a 256mb card? You know me I always scarf for the best deal I can get.
What's a good deal on a card like this? How much better is a 256mb card? You know me I always scarf for the best deal I can get.
Not enough to even come close to justifying the extra money.
You've got the right one.
Yeah but whats a really good price for something like this? Brand new in the box. Are other brands better? I mean every dog and his brother seems to have their own version of these things.
Tex
bothered,
You can also check the pattern of the RAM on your 9800pro to determine what you have exactly. If you have an L-shaped layout, you have the 256-bit version. If the RAM is all in a straight line, then you have the 128-bit version.
Tex,
Newegg sells 128mb, 256bit 9800pros for $206, but that's oem bulk with no box......after some more searching, a retail version with box goes for a little more at $210.
I would be a little weary of that card though, b/c in the description you posted, the RAMDAC speed is listed as 400mhz, but 9800pro's default core speed is 380mhz along with a default memory speed of 340ddr(680mhz effective). Just something to watch out for....if it's new in box then how is it overclocked by 20mhz?
Yeah but whats a really good price for something like this? Brand new in the box. Are other brands better? I mean every dog and his brother seems to have their own version of these things.
Tex
ppl prefer sapphire because they have the largest selection and great prices. You can probably find an equal price from another brand but for the price sapphire is the best really.
retail(atlantis) is $209.99 and oem is $206 @ newegg. Retail is in the box and includes a game like "tomb raiders". I saw the movie so I went oem. ;D
As Larry pointed out to me in another thread ...you can get the card at a similar price from Ati if you have an old POS vid card to trade off ...the knock off $50 which would bring it down to around $199 but that probably doesnt include S&H.
Mt_Goat
5 Jul 2004, 7:54pm
Tex,
If that is the exact product pictured then it is a 256 bit card for sure.
That is also the same one Fry's sells for $249.00 regular price and had on sale this past weekend for $189.00. $189.00 is an excellent price!!!
The 256MB variant of the Radeon 9800 Pro is virtually identical to the 128MB model. The only difference is the 256MB Radeon 9800 Pro uses DDR II memory which has a higher latency compared to the old DDR memory. Therefore, a slight memory clock speed bump was implemented to eliminate any loss of performance due to the increased DDR II latency. ...rojackpot
If it makes you feel any better Tex ...I payed $299 for that card at christmas time and that was a weekend sale ...it was going for something like $305 at the time or better.
So how much better is an x800 then? Been scanning the prices on them also. Trying to make some money on a package deal and a high end video card could be a big plus.
tex
well x800 is supposedly top choice.
x800 is 12 pipes ...there were rumors a while back that it would be 16 pipes.
Idunno if that has been confirmed or not but I would assume that 16 pipes would come with the release of a later version.
Also where these cards are really supposed to shine is with pci express.
So my opinion is this ...if you're building a 64 bit athlon and want the top performer then I would wait for the pci express version.
It depends on the marketing target actually.
You'll be waiting a while to see PCI Express on the A64 platform. To my knowledge, the first platform supporting PCIEx for the A64 is the nVidia C8K-04 (nForce4). That just showed up in non-working engineering samples for the first time at Computex in June.
I suspect sampling to begin around the turn of autumn, and the products to arrive on the shelves in time for Christmas.
This estimation is consistent with the periods between nForce2 and nForce3 announcements, and shelf arrival. Alternatively, I believe it's also consistent with the average chipset cycle used by nVidia (Roughly 6 months if necessary features should be added). They just released the NF3 250Gb, and it has yet to fully penetrate the s939 market. It would be silly of them to release the nForce4 sooner than winter to kill their 250Gb off.
The box is pretty much done and just needs a video card.
Tex
csimon
10 Jul 2004, 6:09am
my sapphire 9800 pro 128m 256b @ $206 came in today. Pretty nice looking. The heatsink and fan look way nicer than the one in the pic. In fact the fan uses a 3 pin header rather than the old 2 pin like my old one did. I'll plug in tomorrow and see how it goes.
headsup ...the sapphire 9800pro 128/256 dropped from $206 to $199 (http://www.newegg.com/app/viewproductdesc.asp?description=14-102-268&DEPA=0).
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