SAPPHIRE Radeon X850 XT or ALBATRON nVidia 7600GS ??

[alien_3333]

Hello there

i'm soon buying a new desktop computer made out of

ASUS A8N-SLI SE
AMD ATHLON 64 3500+ Socket939 2.2GHz L2 512Ko
CORSAIR Value Select - DIMM - 512 Mo - PC3200 - 400 MHz - CL 2.5 (x2)

and i need a decent graphic card that would allow me to play i.e. Need For Speed... i found those two (and some bad reviews for the first one) and am having a hard time deciding which one to choose... the vga charts here say the x850 xt is better tho... so please any suggestions on those 2 (or other PCI-E graphic cards within 150 euros) would be most welcomed!

Thanks!

 

[Gary_Busey]

What site will you be ordering from?

 

[prozac26]

THe X850XT kills the 7600GS.

Try looking for a 7600GT, it's about the same (maybe little better) then a X850XT.

 

[alien_3333]

i will order from www.grosbill.com (i live in france)... thx for the advice... is it a reliable card ? i read some reviews about it (came across a couple only tho) and just like 1 or 2 were bad... do you think it does the job ?

 

[prozac26]

7600GT and X850XT are both very good mid-range cards. Can't go wrong with either one.

 

[raven3x7]

depending on where in the EU you live you could find a 7600GT that should outperform the x850 for about 150/160 Euros

 

[pojomofo]

The X850XT destories the 7600GS, it will outperform a 7600GT as well, but he 7600 has newer technology behind it, and SLI make it a good choice. I would choose the X850XT in a heartbeat

 

[TheGreatGrapeApe]

As has pretty much been mentioned it breaks down to the following;

X850XT = Performance
GF7600GS = Features

A good balance would be if you could swing a GF7600GT which gives you the best of both worlds, but it depends on the pirce/availability in your area.

From your original options I'd say the X850XT will give you better overall gaming for the most part.

 

[Gary_Busey]

I know the 7600GS has a lot of overhead as far as overclocking. Anyone have any idea which would be faster after overclocking each to a stable max?

 

[TheGreatGrapeApe]

Not much room on the GS, it's saddled with DDR2 which is already being crippled by the 128bit interface.

The core can get a bit more, but you'd likely need to ensure a better HSF, or at least improve the thermal conductive material.

 

[Gary_Busey]

Yeah, of course, I wouldn't overclock without getting an aftermarket HSF. I just remember reading some reviews where they got a healthy overclock out of the 7600GS.

 

[alien_3333]

thx for the answers... well in france pretty much a lot is available even the stratospheruc X1950 XTX or so.... my intend is watch movies and do just a bit of gaming (NFS - Most Wanted i guess) and im not gonna bother overclocking and buying VGA vents/heat pipes (unless its necessary absolutely necessary).... or is it really really worth it to overclcok ? and if i overclock the 7600 GS, would it be any better than the other ?

 

[Gary_Busey]

Nah, the X850XT is still a stronger card. Whether or not it's worth it is a matter of personal opinion. Yes, you will see improved frame rates. On the other hand, you may void your warranty or your stock frame rates are high enough that even if you get more FPS, you won't really notice a difference to justify overclocking. If you're happy with the performance from a stock card, it's best just to leave it alone.