Legit Reviews

ok, the basics:
1440x900 primarily, sometimes 1920x1080- Benchmarks #1 Folding #2 Gaming #3
signature for other specs
not really into OCing Video Cards, but you know me, sometimes i cant stop myself
power usage isn't an issue at all(60A single 12V+) Case size is also not an issue(case can accept a 5870 without trouble)
$155 price Cap, but the less the better of course(cheaper GPU= another stick of DDR3 potentially)
will purchase by this weekend at the very latest

-XFX 9800GT 512MB $105
-Gigabyte 9800 GTX 512MB $110
-BFG 9800GTX+ 512MB $140
-XFX GTS 250 512MB $140

cards above chosen by lowest price for model(GT/GTX/etc.) with brands i know and trust, as well as overall consumer reviews(overlooking the morons) except the GTX, theres ONLY one at the egg

i know the GTS would be newer tech etc(though it doesnt have HDMI-out for some reason) but is the only difference between those models, the branding? i mean i have a hard time seeing differences between the GTX models aside from the little + mark, and no difference between THAT and the GTS aside from clock speeds...

I have this one http://www.bestbuy.com/site/BFG+-+NVIDI ... 9&st=video cards&cp=1&lp=15 and this one http://www.bestbuy.com/site/PNY+-+NVIDI ... 1&st=video cards&cp=2&lp=14 They fold 24/7 and run cool and not very noisy. Each card gives me about 6k ppd. I like that they use low power. Only one six pin connector. I wish I bought these before I bought the XFX 280's that I have in my new rig.

skier wrote:ok, the basics:
1440x900 primarily, sometimes 1920x1080- Benchmarks #1 Folding #2 Gaming #3
signature for other specs
not really into OCing Video Cards, but you know me, sometimes i cant stop myself
power usage isn't an issue at all(60A single 12V+) Case size is also not an issue(case can accept a 5870 without trouble)
$155 price Cap, but the less the better of course(cheaper GPU= another stick of DDR3 potentially)
will purchase by this weekend at the very latest

-XFX 9800GT 512MB $105
-Gigabyte 9800 GTX 512MB $110
-BFG 9800GTX+ 512MB $140
-XFX GTS 250 512MB $140

cards above chosen by lowest price for model(GT/GTX/etc.) with brands i know and trust, as well as overall consumer reviews(overlooking the morons) except the GTX, theres ONLY one at the egg

i know the GTS would be newer tech etc(though it doesnt have HDMI-out for some reason) but is the only difference between those models, the branding? i mean i have a hard time seeing differences between the GTX models aside from the little + mark, and no difference between THAT and the GTS aside from clock speeds...

the GT only has 112 shaders, the other 3 cards have 128 and the number of shaders is wat counts the most when it comes to folding. the GTX+ is 55nm (higher OC and cooler running) but I have that BFG and it blows hot air INSIDE the case, raising the ambient temp of the case considerably. I would go for the gigabtyte9800GTX or the 250GTS. the extra $30 gives you 55nm (the regular GTX is 65nm) + higher clocks out of the box + higher OC ability - it's up to you if you think it's worth the extra $30 (I say yes).

XFX 9800GT 512MB - 112 shaders, 65nm
Gigabyte 9800 GTX 512MB -128 shaders, 65nm
BFG 9800GTX+ 512MB - 128 shaders, 55nm
XFX GTS 250 512MB - 128 shaders 55nm (basically a rebranded 9800GTX+ - same specs and everything, different sticker but blows hot air OUT of the box)

hope this helps.

definitively a gtx+ or gts250. They're both the same 55nm part and run cooler (and therefore hopefully quieter) and use less power while offering room for higher clocks. There have also been a lot of good deals on the gts250 recently as well. You can often find them for ~$120 or less. That said unless your set on an Nvidia card, I would(and did) pick up a 5750 when shopping in that price range. You gain dx11 and they meet and typically beat the gts250 in almost all cases. They're 40nm with lots of overclock room, and they can be had for about $140. I paid $120 for mine two weeks ago.

there was a Biostar GTS250 with HDMI and heatpipe cooling for $109 i picked up, and i got a $93 Zotac 9800GT for good measure
(been workin on a roof in the cold the past couple days so my budget went up a bit :D )

lol can never have enough graphics cards

mx6er2587 wrote:lol can never have enough graphics cards

when you review, you really can't

mx6er2587 wrote:definitively a gtx+ or gts250. They're both the same 55nm part and run cooler (and therefore hopefully quieter) and use less power while offering room for higher clocks. There have also been a lot of good deals on the gts250 recently as well. You can often find them for ~$120 or less. That said unless your set on an Nvidia card, I would(and did) pick up a 5750 when shopping in that price range. You gain dx11 and they meet and typically beat the gts250 in almost all cases. They're 40nm with lots of overclock room, and they can be had for about $140. I paid $120 for mine two weeks ago.

please read the post carefully before giving advice:

skier wrote:ok, the basics:
1440x900 primarily, sometimes 1920x1080- Benchmarks #1 Folding #2 Gaming #3

that means his #2 objective is folding and when it comes to folding the ATI cards suck.
also: as I said before: THAT particular BFG9800GTX+ has a stupd kind of cooler, that blows all the hot air inside the case, which is a major pain. other GTX+ 's may come with the default cooling solution when the heat is blown OUT of the case - those are fine. I bought that BFG card and only found out after opening the box about this problem.

as i said above, i got these cards:

BIOSTAR GTS 250 512MB 256Bit, 1 6-pin power


Zotac 9800GT 512MB 256Bit, no 6-Pin power

sbohdan wrote:
please read the post carefully before giving advice:

skier wrote:ok, the basics:
1440x900 primarily, sometimes 1920x1080- Benchmarks #1 Folding #2 Gaming #3

that means his #2 objective is folding and when it comes to folding the ATI cards suck.
also: as I said before: THAT particular BFG9800GTX+ has a stupd kind of cooler, that blows all the hot air inside the case, which is a major pain. other GTX+ 's may come with the default cooling solution when the heat is blown OUT of the case - those are fine. I bought that BFG card and only found out after opening the box about this problem.

So the ati card will benchmark better and game better, but because folding is his #2 I need to read more carefully? If benchmarking is really his main objective he will do best with an ati card. hands down. Also with the gpu3 client comming in the very near future we may finally see folding parity between ati and nvidia.

I also never said he should buy that particular 9800gtx+ just that both the + and the gts250 were the 55nm g92b and that's what he should be looking for as opposed to the g92 based cards.

But since he's already gone and purchased cards it really doesn't matter anyway does it? In fact he stated he had purchased cards before you tried to call me out. Your post seems entirely unnecessary.

i initially wanted an ati 5 but i'm thinking down the road, so i got the surrounding cards(and when i say "Benchmarks" i mean reviews) being 9600GSO-GT240-9800GT-GTS250-GTX260 cuz would you rather see more, or less cards in a videocard review i decided not to be greedy ;)