RADEON X850 XT PE vs. FireGL V7100

Hi all,
I'm building a new system in january. ASUS P5AD2-E Premium, Pentium 4 560J (OC to 3.8Ghz, 1066MHz FSB), Audigy 2 ZS, etc... But i'm stuck on my graphics card solution.

First off, i'll preface this by saying i've used ATi's top line gaming cards in my new systems for a while now, mainly b/c i wanted power at a price i could afford. But now i can afford to get something better if i want.

I'll be using my computer for everyday use, as well as gaming, and DCC (Digital Content Creation). I use Newtek Lightwave 3D on a regular basis for work and recreation, as well as other 3D programs like MAX and Maya.

My question is this, given what i'll be using the computer for, is it time to get something like the Fire GL v7100 instead of a RADEON X850 XT PE? Where would i notice a difference, positive or negative, between the two? What are the main differnces in the two cards besides a list of specs? As in, what do the different specs between them do?

Thanx to anyone for their help, i really appriciate anything anyone can offer.

<P ID="edit"><FONT SIZE=-1><EM>Edited by LogicSequence on 12/15/04 07:40 PM.</EM></FONT></P>

The FireGL would have better drivers for 3d applications like 3dStudioMAX, lightwave, etc. better refresh rates in viewports and such.

To be honest, gaming 3d cards are pretty good nowadays in 3d apps, I'd save the cash and go with the X850 but that's just me. I don't think it's worth the extra cash unless ALL you do is work in CAD.

________________
<b>Radeon <font color=red>9700 PRO</b></font color=red> <i>(o/c 332/345)</i>
<b>AthlonXP <font color=red>3200+</b></font color=red> <i>(Barton 2500+ o/c 400 FSB)</i>
<b>3dMark03: <font color=red>5,354</b>

DCC is my job, too, but I've found that a decent gaming card will perform well enough in 3d apps, and if you use your computer for gaming and what have you it performs as good as a professional 3d card in those areas.

If you're super hardcore, and you have the cash to burn, then by all means get the FireGL.

________________
<b>Radeon <font color=red>9700 PRO</b></font color=red> <i>(o/c 332/345)</i>
<b>AthlonXP <font color=red>3200+</b></font color=red> <i>(Barton 2500+ o/c 400 FSB)</i>
<b>3dMark03: <font color=red>5,354</b>

1 million polys, eh? I don't think a professional card is going to make all that much difference to you in that kind of scene, but give it a shot.

I suspect you won't be impressed at the difference...

________________
<b>Radeon <font color=red>9700 PRO</b></font color=red> <i>(o/c 332/345)</i>
<b>AthlonXP <font color=red>3200+</b></font color=red> <i>(Barton 2500+ o/c 400 FSB)</i>
<b>3dMark03: <font color=red>5,354</b>

If you got money to burn, get two 512MB quadros in SLI for a GB of DDR3 memory. Even the hugest models will fit in there. It will demolish any single card you can get. Even the Wildcat Realizms. You might want to consider a different CPU like the E0 stepped ones. Power draw is going ot be huge on that system no matter what though so I hope you got a good PSU