Anything faster than an x1650pro 512?

[BD]

Hey, all.

I'm trying to nurse my AGP system along as far as I can.

Just found out the new Splinter Cell won't work on my current card
(x850Pro), as this card doesn't support Shader v3.

I'm looking at a HIS X1650Pro AGP. The memory and core speeds are both
considerably higher than my 850, and it has double the RAM - so I
expect it would perform a little better than the 850. But my CPU will
likely be the bottleneck soon (1.83GHz AMD).

I went through a couple of product comparisons re. this model, and it's
not clocked as high as other distributors' models (Powercolor) - but I
doubt I'd see a noticeable distinction between the various
distributors' offerings

Anyone know of a better bang-for-the-buck for AGP than a 1650Pro 512
for $175USD plus shipping??

Thanks for all comments..

 

[William]

Hey, all.

I'm trying to nurse my AGP system along as far as I can.

Just found out the new Splinter Cell won't work on my current card
(x850Pro), as this card doesn't support Shader v3.

I'm looking at a HIS X1650Pro AGP. The memory and core speeds are both
considerably higher than my 850, and it has double the RAM - so I
expect it would perform a little better than the 850. But my CPU will
likely be the bottleneck soon (1.83GHz AMD).

I went through a couple of product comparisons re. this model, and it's
not clocked as high as other distributors' models (Powercolor) - but I
doubt I'd see a noticeable distinction between the various
distributors' offerings

Anyone know of a better bang-for-the-buck for AGP than a 1650Pro 512
for $175USD plus shipping??

Thanks for all comments..

ATI is supposed to come out with a x1950pro for AGP in the next few months.
And for around $200.00. I would definitely go with that one. Once out, it
will rule-the-roust, be king-of-the-hill, top-dog, for agp.

<Begin technical garbage> Though the 1650pro is faster than the 850pro, the
AGP version is slower than its sister pci-e version due to having to use a
translation gateway to go from native pci-e to agp interface. I suspect the
1950pro for agp will be the same. <End technical garbage>

William

I love copy and paste, this is the third one today asking this question -
strange.

 

[BD]

I love copy and paste, this is the third one today asking this question -
strange.

Odd - and I went looking in the group for an answer, and only found one
guy asking about alternatives to the 850 - and he was being tragically
ignored. ;-)

Thanks for the tip - I'll watch for that card.

 

[Paul_in_NC]

For all those ATI users who are looking to get more life out of their AGP
systemboards...

---------------------------
Best Agp Card For ~$140

Radeon X850 PRO

Codename: R530, 90 nanometer technology
12 Pixel Shaders, Six Vertex Shaders, 12 Texture Units, 12 Raster Operations
Processors
256 bit memory bus
520 MHz core, 540-MHz DDR (1400 MHz effective) Memory

The old X850 PRO has resurfaced in AGP circles, and delivers very, very
respectable performance for the older interface. The 7600 GS and X1650 PRO
cannot really compete with the raw power of the X850 PRO.

http://www.tomshardware.com/2006/10/31/the_best_video_cards_for_your_money/page4.html
-------------------------

 

[BD]

Radeon X850 PRO

Ummm... it's the X850 I will need to replace, as it does not support
Shaders v3.

Or am I missing something...?

 

[Paul_in_NC]

BD,
Umm... oops, 'doh and my bad.
I was in a hurry and wasn't paying attention to the question. Mea Culpa.
I with william on waiting a few months for the X1950PRO AGP if you have a
necessity for SM 3.0.
I would also advise *not* investing in the X1650PRO AGP.

Paul

 

[BD]

I would also advise *not* investing in the X1650PRO AGP.

Oh, okay - mildly curious as to why not, but if the 1950 will grind all
comers into the ground, I'll wait.

 

[Clint]

I think the point is that your X850 will out-perform the X1650Pro. So while
you'll be able to run the new Splinter Cell game that you want (because
you've got the Shader 3.0 support), you'll lose performance overall,
including other games you're running fine now.

If you look at the Toms Hardware benchmark comparison (take it for what it's
worth), it looks like you could lose 10 to 20% of your performance. The
best comparison I could see was somewhere between the 6800GT and X850XT,
since they don't have a X850Pro in the list.

Clint

 

[Frodo]

The ATI X850 Pro uses 256 bit memory access
The X1650 only has 128 bit memory access.

The new X1950 AGP coming out soon has 256 bit memory access.

 

[Paul_in_NC]

/nods his head in agreeance to Frodo

The ATI X850 Pro uses 256 bit memory access
The X1650 only has 128 bit memory access.

The new X1950 AGP coming out soon has 256 bit memory access.

 

[BD]

I think the point is that your X850 will out-perform the X1650Pro.

Yeah, the specs seemed to suggest that I wouldn't necessarily be all
that far ahead.

I'll wait for the 1950.

I can play HL2 or FEAR again, and not go into Splinter Cell withdrawal.