PNY 6600GT AGP vs PNY 6800GS AGP

[BigErnSTL]

I realize the 6800GS is a faster chip with more pipes than the 6600GT, but my question is just how much of an upgrade is that over the card I have now? I'm using the PNY 6600GT AGP.

The 7800GS is probably out due to the lack of punch over the 6800GS to justify spending a hundred dollars more on it. Or does it have a lot more power? I haven't been too impressed by the benchmarks I've seen of it.

I am not doing a motherboard upgrade now so I want one more AGP upgrade to hold me over for awhile while the new stuff from AMD & Intel sorts out.

MY CPU is an Athlon64 3000+ @1.9Ghz with 1GB of PC3200 DDR.

Thanks.

Aaron

 

[steckman]

I upgraded from a LeadTek 6600GT AGP to a BFG 6800GS and was pleased with the results. Battlefield 2 and Oblivion work much better now. No real difference in the other games I play.
I'm in the same boat as you since I wanted to do one last upgrade to my system before I build a new computer for Vista at some point next year.
Oh, and I recommend against buying a PNY card because of their poor customer service.

 

[fainis]

if the price is good for you..go for it...6800 has 256 bit interface, the width of the address bus with the memory, 6600 only has 128bit...and that`s a big difference..........also there are more pixel pipes on 6800

 

[steckman]

I don't remember what the differences in 3DMark06 and AquaMark were between my 6600GT and 6800GS, except that they were fairly large. My setup is similar to yours: Athlon64 3000+ @2.0GHz with 1GB of PC3200 DDR. So if you want me to run the benchmarks later today, let me know and I will post them here.

 

[BigErnSTL]

I don't remember what the differences in 3DMark06 and AquaMark were between my 6600GT and 6800GS, except that they were fairly large. My setup is similar to yours: Athlon64 3000+ @2.0GHz with 1GB of PC3200 DDR. So if you want me to run the benchmarks later today, let me know and I will post them here.

That would be cool.

I've never run those benchmarks though, the only thing I've run to test the system is the Doom 3 time demo at 1024x768 no AA High Quality. I get about 68 fps, and I think 55-58 fps with 2xAA enabled. It's been awhile and most places bench Quake 4 now.

I know the 6800GS is a 12 pipe card, and apparently the AGP versions are not too difficult to unlock to 16 pipes and bascially make it an Ultra.

 

[chenBrazil]

if you are going to uprade your rig to PCiexpress soon , stick with the 6600 GT as you will not notice much diference in gamming with 6800 GS ... a 7800 GS would be more noticed , but even that may not justify the investment if you are planning an upgrade for the next year... maybe you would get some points in some benchmarks , but in realworld ... 4 or 9 fps... I would stick with GT ...

 

[steckman]

You may want to download 3DMark06 and/or Aquamark and see what your results are. Otherwise, the numbers for my system won't mean much in comparsion .

Unlocking the pipes is easy, but it is hit or miss on whether or not those pipes are damaged in some way. I unlocked mine with Riva Tuner 2, but got graphic corruption. At least it is easy to revert back.

 

[steckman]

I agree with chenBrazil to a certain extent. I only upgraded to a 6800GS because my friend did graphics work for Oblivion and I wanted to run it at a higher resolution. Also, the upgrade only cost me $100 after I unloaded my 6600GT on eBay. I've heard the AGP 6800GS is hard to find these days though.

 

[BigErnSTL]

I won't be building a new rig until at least 2/2007 or so, after Vista comes out. I just want one more upgrade to hold me over, the 6600GT is doing decent but it still has some hiccups in games at the higher resolutiosn I like to run at.

 

[steckman]

As promised:

3DMark06:
2100 3DMarks
SM2.0 Score: 892
HDR/SM3.0 Score: 810
CPU Score: 784

Aquamark3:
GFX 7,095
CPU 8,850
Score 50,653

 

[BigErnSTL]

Thanks. Can I just download 3DMark06?


I got the CPU OC up to 2.01Ghz last night so that is another bonus. I've been thinking either a 6800GS or a X800GTO for about 170-180 bucks, or an X850Pro for 210 bucks.


I think I have no choice but to go for that 6800GS and hope I can unlock the rest of the pipes! I must upgrade something on that system, and while I was thinking of an X2 3800+ CPU I don't think that will help as much as a new video board.

256MB and a 256-bit bus should really help at higher resolutions and with AA right?

 

[steckman]

Yeah, you can download 3DMark06 from Futuremark or other sites on the Internet. The Basic addition is free and you can not change any settings for the test.

Yes, the extra texture memory will help when using higher resolution textures, and the extra horsepower in the chip will help with AA. I don't have any personal experience with the X800GTO or the X850Pro. I would probably search the net for benchmarks for those cards for the games that you play. Oblivion, Battlefield 2, and FEAR are some of the more popular benchmarking games lately.

 

[fainis]

yes my friend 256 bit 256mb memory should help allot in higher resolution.......AA and AF ...memory bandwith is the key in here..........