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September 2004 3Digest



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Monthly drivers report and popular 3D
accelerators comparison

Monthly 3D Digest is the project of iXBT.com devoted to releases of new Windows XP (monthly) and Windows 9x/ME (once in 4 months) drivers for popular videocards (released from the 10th of August 2004 to 10th of September 2004). As usual, there are many diagrams containing the information on changes in operation of videocards at change to last version drivers, and also summary diagrams of popular modern videocards performance. Traditionally we provide the best price/performance information for our 3Digest. We also pay much attention to ingame 3D graphics quality.

It's our 52th issue of 3Digest.

September 2004

The autumn started rich with events. GeForce 6600/6600GT (NV43) information became officially available and all readers saw what NVIDIA offered for $140-200.

The novelties turned out to be rather good in many aspects, including the support of GeForce 6800 features and enough performance (6600GT outperformed all previous High-End products like RADEON 9800XT or GeForce FX 5950Ultra). And only pipelines were twice as fewer and frame buffer write was separated into 2 clocks. I must say that NV43 has native PCI-E support, but NVIDIA's HSI bridge allows for AGP models as well.

Everybody expected an answer from ATI. And late in September the company released RADEON X700XT/Pro (RV410). There are three cards in this series, but the top performer is X700 XT. The similarity of architectures with GeForce 6600 resulted in slight performance differences at same clock rates. However, ATI product failed in Far Cry (and naturally lost to NVIDIA in DOOM III).

So, today we have GeForce 6600/6600GT almost ready for mass shipments (if only PCI-E segment is really for masses at the moment) and rather raw X700 XT. According to some sources, this RV410 revision will be featured only in X700 PRO and X700, while X700 XT will be based on the next revision (so you should expect some lag).

Finally, I'll say that while NVIDIA has all chances to introduce GeForce 6600 series in AGP segment (that lacks modern solutions) as well, ATI has yet no PCI-E b" AGP bridges, while RADEON 9800 PRO loses much to X700. So, it's still unknown with what Canadian company will answer NVIDIA's potential expansion to AGP mainstream.

As for tests, our examinations have shown that almost the best price/performance ratio is now offered by NVIDIA GeForce 6800 GT, GeForce 6800 and GeForce 6800LE (considering you will also spend $250-500 for general system upgrade). If you plan minimal upgrade expenses (like additional $100), then 6800 and 6800LE are your favourites as well. And PCI-E segment is now ruled by GeForce 6600.

CONTENTS

  1. Testbed configurations and test software
  2. Tested videocards list
  3. What's new in 3Digest
  4. Test summary diagrams and digest bottom line
  5. 3D accelerator rating calculations for the end of the month
  6. Anisotropic filtering examination
  7. Examination of different antialiasing modes
  8. Screenshot gallery
  9. Games quality section



1. Testbed configuration



1.1. System on Athlon 64 3200+:

  • AMD Athlon 64 3200+ (L2=1024K);
  • ASUS K8V SE Deluxe motherboard on VIA K8T800;
  • 1 GB DDR SDRAM PC3200;
  • Seagate Barracuda 7200.7 80GB SATA HDD.

1.2. System on Pentium4 Overclocked 3200 MHz (Prescott)

  • Intel Pentium4 3600 MHz CPU (225MHz x 16; L2=1024 KB, LGA775); Hyper-Threading ON
  • ABIT AA8 DuraMAX motherboard on i925X chipset;
  • 1 GB DDR2 SDRAM 300MHz;
  • WD Caviar SE WD1600JD 160GB SATA HDD.

Testbeds have Windows XP Professional Service Pack 2, DirectX 9.0C installed. ViewSonic P810 (21") and IIYAMA Vision Master Pro 514 (22") monitors were used.

The list of benchmarks is here

2. Graphics card list

Below is a list of graphics cards that we tested linked to respective 3Digest feature-description pages.

Drivers released by videocard manufacturers are not taken into account (unless written by GPU manufacturers) because there are very many of them and it's impossible to test them all.

3D graphics quality screenshots are provided in our monthly updated Screenshot Gallery.

Cards list:

  1. ATI RADEON 9550 128MB DDR 4ns (250/400 MHz)
  2. ATI RADEON 9550XT 128MB DDR 3.3ns (400/500 MHz)
  3. ATI RADEON 9600 128MB DDR 4ns (325/400 MHz)
  4. ATI RADEON 9600 SE 128MB 64bit DDR 4ns (325/400 MHz)
  5. ATI RADEON X300 SE PCX 128MB 64bit DDR 5ns (325/400 MHz)
  6. ATI RADEON X300 PCX 128MB DDR 5ns (325/400 MHz)
  7. ATI RADEON X600 PRO PCX 128MB DDR 3.3ns (400/600 MHz)
  8. ATI RADEON 9600 Pro 128MB DDR 2.8ns (400/600 MHz)
  9. ATI RADEON 9600 256MB DDR 5ns (325/400 MHz)
  10. ATI RADEON 9600 XT 128MB DDR 3.3ns (500/600 MHz)
  11. ATI RADEON X600 XT PCX 128MB DDR 2.5ns (500/760 MHz)
  12. ATI RADEON 9600 XT 128MB DDR 2.8ns (525/650 MHz)
  13. ATI RADEON 9800 SE 128MB 128bit DDR 3.3ns (325/540 MHz)
  14. ATI RADEON 9800 SE 128MB DDR 2.8ns (360/680 MHz)
  15. ATI RADEON 9800 128MB DDR 3.3ns (325/580 MHz)
  16. ATI RADEON 9800 Pro 128MB DDR 2.8ns (380/680 MHz)
  17. ATI RADEON 9800 Pro 256MB DDR 2.8ns (380/680 MHz)
  18. ATI RADEON 9800 XT 256MB DDR 2.5ns (412/730 MHz)
  19. ATI RADEON X700 XT PCX 128MB GDDR3 2.0ns (475/1050 MHz)
  20. ATI RADEON X800 Pro 256MB DDR3 2.0ns (475/890 MHz)
  21. ATI RADEON X800 XT PE 256MB DDR3 1.6ns (520/1120 MHz)
  22. ATI RADEON X800 XT 256MB DDR3 1.6ns (500/1000 MHz)
  23. ATI RADEON X800 XT PCX 256MB DDR3 1.6ns (500/1000 MHz)
  24. NVIDIA GeForce FX 5200 128MB DDR 64bit 6ns (250/333 MHz)
  25. NVIDIA GeForce FX 5200 128MB DDR 5ns (250/400 MHz)
  26. NVIDIA GeForce FX 5600 128MB DDR 3.6ns (325/550 MHz)
  27. NVIDIA GeForce FX 5600 XT 128MB 64bit DDR 4ns (235/400 MHz)
  28. NVIDIA GeForce FX 5600 XT 128MB 128bit DDR 4ns (235/400 MHz)
  29. NVIDIA GeForce FX 5700 LE 128MB DDR 5ns (250/400 MHz)
  30. NVIDIA GeForce FX 5700 128MB DDR 3.6ns (425/550 MHz)
  31. NVIDIA GeForce PCX5750 128MB DDR 3.6ns (425/500 MHz)
  32. NVIDIA GeForce FX 5700 Ultra 128MB DDR2 2.2ns (475/900 MHz)
  33. NVIDIA GeForce FX 5700 Ultra 128MB DDR3 2.0ns (475/950 MHz)
  34. NVIDIA GeForce FX 5900 XT 128MB DDR 2.8ns (390/700 MHz)
  35. NVIDIA GeForce PCX5900 128MB DDR 3.6ns (350/550 MHz)
  36. NVIDIA GeForce FX 5950 Ultra 256MB DDR 2.0ns (475/950 MHz)
  37. NVIDIA GeForce 6600 128MB DDR 3.6ns (300/550 MHz)
  38. NVIDIA GeForce 6600GT 128MB GDDR3 2.0ns (500/1000 MHz)
  39. NVIDIA GeForce 6800 128MB DDR 2.8ns (325/700 MHz)
  40. NVIDIA GeForce 6800LE 128MB DDR 2.8ns (325/700 MHz)
  41. NVIDIA GeForce 6800 256MB GDDR3 2.0ns (350/1000 MHz)
  42. NVIDIA GeForce 6800 GT 256MB DDR3 2.0ns (350/1000 MHz)
  43. NVIDIA GeForce 6800 GT PCX 256MB DDR3 2.0ns (350/1000 MHz)
  44. NVIDIA GeForce 6800 Ultra 256MB DDR3 1.6ns (400/1100 MHz)
  45. NVIDIA GeForce 6800 Ultra PCX 256MB DDR3 1.6ns (400/1100 MHz)
  46. NVIDIA GeForce 6800 Ultra 256MB DDR3 1.6ns (425/1100 MHz)

Archive (videocards, information on which is no longer updated)

3. September 2004 news and the current business

  • 3.1. The following drivers were released from August 10, 2004 to September 10, 2004:

    • NVIDIA ForceWare for all NVIDIA cards:

      • Windows XP: 65.76, 66.31;


    • ATI Catalyst for all ATI cards:

      • Windows XP: 6.476 (CATALYST 4.9 WHQL); 6.483 (CATALYST 4.10beta)




  • 3.2. This month we used 65.76 drivers for NVIDIA cards summaries; 6.476 drivers for ATI cards summaries.

4. Summary diagrams of graphics cards performance with the latest drivers for September 2004

We recommend you visit unofficial product support websites, if you come across any "peculiarities".

Summary graphs were compiled using all testbed results. I guess no more comments needed, readers will easily understand what is what themselves. :)

5. 3D accelerator rating calculations for the end of the month


Anyone who wants to conduct his own rating calculations with his own values may download this Excel table (Office XP) in RAR 3.0 or ZIP format.

Prospect and usability ratings were calculated platformwise, i.e. there are two rating series.

The method of rating calculation is described here.

Calculations were conducted considering the following assumptions:

  1. Windows XP is used;
  2. Percentage of performance and quality demand ratio:
    • performance priority - 60%
    • quality priority - 40%

  3. ONLY 1600x1200@32bpp resolution was used for the prospect rating;
  4. Usability ratings are split into the 4 categories. First three imply additional expenses for system upgrade. This is considered in APG value that is +$100 for Low-End, +$250 for Middle-End, and +$500 for High-End. We believe that if a user wants to purchase a very expensive and powerful accelerator, he understands the inanity of installing it into a Low-End PC. So we separated the usability rating for different PC levels. The 4th category implies only card expenses.

  1. Athlon64 3200+ (VIA K8T800):

    Usability rating (rating from the previous 3Digest is in parentheses):

    Usability rating: card price + $500

    01. NVIDIA GeForce 6800 128MB, 325/700 MHz
    (02)
    02. NVIDIA GeForce 6800 GT 256MB, 350/1000 MHz
    (01)
    03. NVIDIA GeForce 6800LE 128MB, 325/700 MHz
    (--)
    04. NVIDIA GeForce 6800 256MB, 350/1000 MHz
    (--)
    05. NVIDIA GeForce 6800 Ultra 256MB, 400/1100 MHz
    (03)
    06. ATI RADEON X800 PRO 256MB, 475/890 MHz
    (04)
    07. ATI RADEON X800XT PE 256MB, 520/1120 MHz
    (07)
    08. NVIDIA GeForce 6800 Ultra 256MB, 425/1100 MHz
    (05)
    09. ATI RADEON X800XT 256MB, 500/1000 MHz
    (--)
    10. ATI RADEON 9800 PRO 128MB, 380/680 MHz
    (06)
    11. ATI RADEON 9800 128MB, 325/590 MHz
    (08)
    12. ATI RADEON 9800XT 256MB, 412/730 MHz
    (09)
    13. ATI RADEON 9800 PRO 256MB, 380/680 MHz
    (10)
    14. ATI RADEON 9600XT 128MB, 525/650 MHz
    (11)
    15. ATI RADEON 9600XT 128MB, 500/600 MHz
    (12)
    16. ATI RADEON 9600 PRO 128MB, 400/600 MHz
    (13)
    17. ATI RADEON 9800 SE 128MB 256bit, 380/680 MHz
    (14)
    18. ATI RADEON 9550XT 128MB 400/500 MHz
    (15)
    19. ATI RADEON 9600 128MB, 325/400 MHz
    (17)
    20. ATI RADEON 9800 SE 128MB 128bit, 325/540 MHz
    (16)
    21. ATI RADEON 9600 256MB, 325/400 MHz
    (18)
    22. NVIDIA GeForce FX 5900XT 128MB, 390/700 MHz
    (19)
    23. ATI RADEON 9550 128MB 250/400 MHz
    (20)
    24. NVIDIA GeForce FX 5700 Ultra 128MB, 475/900 MHz
    (23)
    25. NVIDIA GeForce FX 5700 Ultra 128MB 475/950 MHz DDR3
    (22)
    26. NVIDIA GeForce FX 5700 128MB, 425/550 MHz
    (24)
    27. NVIDIA GeForce FX 5950 Ultra 256MB, 475/950 MHz
    (21)
    28. ATI RADEON 9600SE 128MB 64bit, 325/400 MHz
    (25)
    29. NVIDIA GeForce FX 5600 128MB, 325/550 MHz
    (26)
    30. NVIDIA GeForce FX 5700LE 128MB, 250/400 MHz
    (27)
    31. NVIDIA GeForce FX 5600XT 128MB 128bit, 235/400 MHz
    (29)
    32. NVIDIA GeForce FX 5200 128MB, 250/400 MHz
    (28)
    33. NVIDIA GeForce FX 5600XT 128MB 64bit, 235/400 MHz
    (30)
    34. NVIDIA GeForce FX 5200 128MB, 64bit, 250/333 MHz
    (31)


    Usability rating: card price + $250

    01. NVIDIA GeForce 6800 128MB, 325/700 MHz
    (01)
    02. NVIDIA GeForce 6800LE 128MB, 325/700 MHz
    (--)
    03. NVIDIA GeForce 6800 GT 256MB, 350/1000 MHz
    (02)
    04. ATI RADEON 9800 PRO 128MB, 380/680 MHz
    (03)
    05. NVIDIA GeForce 6800 256MB, 350/1000 MHz
    (--)
    06. ATI RADEON 9800 128MB, 325/590 MHz
    (04)
    07. ATI RADEON X800 PRO 256MB, 475/890 MHz
    (05)
    08. NVIDIA GeForce 6800 Ultra 256MB, 400/1100 MHz
    (06)
    09. ATI RADEON X800XT PE 256MB, 520/1120 MHz
    (08)
    10. ATI RADEON X800XT 256MB, 500/1000 MHz
    (--)
    11. NVIDIA GeForce 6800 Ultra 256MB, 425/1100 MHz
    (07)
    12. ATI RADEON 9600XT 128MB, 500/600 MHz
    (12)
    13. ATI RADEON 9600XT 128MB, 525/650 MHz
    (10)
    14. ATI RADEON 9800XT 256MB, 412/730 MHz
    (11)
    15. ATI RADEON 9800 PRO 256MB, 380/680 MHz
    (09)
    16. ATI RADEON 9600 PRO 128MB, 400/600 MHz
    (13)
    17. ATI RADEON 9550XT 128MB 400/500 MHz
    (14)
    18. ATI RADEON 9600 128MB, 325/400 MHz
    (15)
    19. ATI RADEON 9800 SE 128MB 256bit, 380/680 MHz
    (16)
    20. ATI RADEON 9800 SE 128MB 128bit, 325/540 MHz
    (18)
    21. ATI RADEON 9600 256MB, 325/400 MHz
    (17)
    22. ATI RADEON 9550 128MB 250/400 MHz
    (19)
    23. NVIDIA GeForce FX 5900XT 128MB, 390/700 MHz
    (20)
    24. ATI RADEON 9600SE 128MB 64bit, 325/400 MHz
    (21)
    25. NVIDIA GeForce FX 5700 128MB, 425/550 MHz
    (22)
    26. NVIDIA GeForce FX 5700 Ultra 128MB, 475/900 MHz
    (23)
    27. NVIDIA GeForce FX 5600 128MB, 325/550 MHz
    (25)
    28. NVIDIA GeForce FX 5700 Ultra 128MB 475/950 MHz DDR3
    (24)
    29. NVIDIA GeForce FX 5700LE 128MB, 250/400 MHz
    (26)
    30. NVIDIA GeForce FX 5950 Ultra 256MB, 475/950 MHz
    (27)
    31. NVIDIA GeForce FX 5200 128MB, 250/400 MHz
    (28)
    32. NVIDIA GeForce FX 5600XT 128MB 128bit, 235/400 MHz
    (29)
    33. NVIDIA GeForce FX 5600XT 128MB 64bit, 235/400 MHz
    (31)
    34. NVIDIA GeForce FX 5200 128MB, 64bit, 250/333 MHz
    (30)


    Usability rating: card price + $100

    01. NVIDIA GeForce 6800 128MB, 325/700 MHz
    (03)
    02. NVIDIA GeForce 6800LE 128MB, 325/700 MHz
    (--)
    03. ATI RADEON 9800 128MB, 325/590 MHz
    (02)
    04. ATI RADEON 9800 PRO 128MB, 380/680 MHz
    (01)
    05. ATI RADEON 9600 128MB, 325/400 MHz
    (10)
    06. ATI RADEON 9550XT 128MB 400/500 MHz
    (04)
    07. NVIDIA GeForce 6800 GT 256MB, 350/1000 MHz
    (05)
    08. ATI RADEON 9600XT 128MB, 500/600 MHz
    (07)
    09. ATI RADEON 9600XT 128MB, 525/650 MHz
    (06)
    10. ATI RADEON 9600 PRO 128MB, 400/600 MHz
    (08)
    11. ATI RADEON 9550 128MB 250/400 MHz
    (09)
    12. NVIDIA GeForce 6800 256MB, 350/1000 MHz
    (--)
    13. ATI RADEON 9600 256MB, 325/400 MHz
    (11)
    14. ATI RADEON 9800 SE 128MB 256bit, 380/680 MHz
    (16)
    15. ATI RADEON 9800 SE 128MB 128bit, 325/540 MHz
    (14)
    16. ATI RADEON X800 PRO 256MB, 475/890 MHz
    (13)
    17. ATI RADEON 9600SE 128MB 64bit, 325/400 MHz
    (12)
    18. NVIDIA GeForce 6800 Ultra 256MB, 400/1100 MHz
    (18)
    19. ATI RADEON 9800 PRO 256MB, 380/680 MHz
    (15)
    20. NVIDIA GeForce FX 5600 128MB, 325/550 MHz
    (19)
    21. ATI RADEON 9800XT 256MB, 412/730 MHz
    (17)
    22. ATI RADEON X800XT PE 256MB, 520/1120 MHz
    (21)
    23. NVIDIA GeForce FX 5700 128MB, 425/550 MHz
    (20)
    24. ATI RADEON X800XT 256MB, 500/1000 MHz
    (--)
    25. NVIDIA GeForce FX 5700LE 128MB, 250/400 MHz
    (23)
    26. NVIDIA GeForce 6800 Ultra 256MB, 425/1100 MHz
    (22)
    27. NVIDIA GeForce FX 5900XT 128MB, 390/700 MHz
    (24)
    28. NVIDIA GeForce FX 5200 128MB, 250/400 MHz
    (25)
    29. NVIDIA GeForce FX 5700 Ultra 128MB, 475/900 MHz
    (26)
    30. NVIDIA GeForce FX 5600XT 128MB 128bit, 235/400 MHz
    (29)
    31. NVIDIA GeForce FX 5700 Ultra 128MB 475/950 MHz DDR3
    (27)
    32. NVIDIA GeForce FX 5200 128MB, 64bit, 250/333 MHz
    (28)
    33. NVIDIA GeForce FX 5600XT 128MB 64bit, 235/400 MHz
    (30)
    34. NVIDIA GeForce FX 5950 Ultra 256MB, 475/950 MHz
    (31)


    Usability rating: just card price

    01. ATI RADEON 9600 128MB, 325/400 MHz
    02. NVIDIA GeForce FX 5200 128MB, 64bit, 250/333 MHz
    03. ATI RADEON 9550 128MB 250/400 MHz
    04. ATI RADEON 9550XT 128MB 400/500 MHz
    05. NVIDIA GeForce FX 5200 128MB, 250/400 MHz
    06. NVIDIA GeForce FX 5600 128MB, 325/550 MHz
    07. ATI RADEON 9600SE 128MB 64bit, 325/400 MHz
    08. ATI RADEON 9800 128MB, 325/590 MHz
    09. ATI RADEON 9600XT 128MB, 500/600 MHz
    10. ATI RADEON 9600 PRO 128MB, 400/600 MHz
    11. ATI RADEON 9600XT 128MB, 525/650 MHz
    12. ATI RADEON 9800 PRO 128MB, 380/680 MHz
    13. NVIDIA GeForce FX 5700LE 128MB, 250/400 MHz
    14. ATI RADEON 9600 256MB, 325/400 MHz
    15. NVIDIA GeForce FX 5700 128MB, 425/550 MHz
    16. NVIDIA GeForce FX 5600XT 128MB 64bit, 235/400 MHz
    17. ATI RADEON 9800 SE 128MB 128bit, 325/540 MHz
    18. NVIDIA GeForce FX 5600XT 128MB 128bit, 235/400 MHz
    19. ATI RADEON 9800 SE 128MB 256bit, 380/680 MHz
    20. NVIDIA GeForce 6800 128MB, 325/700 MHz
    21. NVIDIA GeForce 6800LE 128MB, 325/700 MHz
    22. NVIDIA GeForce FX 5900XT 128MB, 390/700 MHz
    23. NVIDIA GeForce 6800 GT 256MB, 350/1000 MHz
    24. NVIDIA GeForce FX 5700 Ultra 128MB, 475/900 MHz
    25. ATI RADEON 9800 PRO 256MB, 380/680 MHz
    26. ATI RADEON X800 PRO 256MB, 475/890 MHz
    27. NVIDIA GeForce FX 5700 Ultra 128MB 475/950 MHz DDR3
    28. NVIDIA GeForce 6800 256MB, 350/1000 MHz
    29. ATI RADEON 9800XT 256MB, 412/730 MHz
    30. ATI RADEON X800XT PE 256MB, 520/1120 MHz
    31. NVIDIA GeForce 6800 Ultra 256MB, 400/1100 MHz
    32. ATI RADEON X800XT 256MB, 500/1000 MHz
    33. NVIDIA GeForce 6800 Ultra 256MB, 425/1100 MHz
    34. NVIDIA GeForce FX 5950 Ultra 256MB, 475/950 MHz

    Prospect rating (the previous rating is in parenthesis):

    01. NVIDIA GeForce 6800 Ultra 256MB, 425/1100 MHz
    (02)
    02. NVIDIA GeForce 6800 Ultra 256MB, 400/1100 MHz
    (03)
    03. NVIDIA GeForce 6800 GT 256MB, 350/1000 MHz
    (04)
    04. ATI RADEON X800XT PE 256MB, 520/1120 MHz
    (01)
    05. ATI RADEON X800XT 256MB, 500/1000 MHz
    (--)
    06. NVIDIA GeForce 6800 256MB, 350/1000 MHz
    (--)
    07. NVIDIA GeForce 6800 128MB, 325/700 MHz
    (06)
    08. ATI RADEON X800 PRO 256MB, 475/890 MHz
    (05)
    09. NVIDIA GeForce 6800LE 128MB, 325/700 MHz
    (--)
    10. ATI RADEON 9800XT 256MB, 412/730 MHz
    (07)
    11. ATI RADEON 9800 PRO 256MB, 380/680 MHz
    (08)
    12. NVIDIA GeForce FX 5950 Ultra 256MB, 475/950 MHz
    (10)
    13. ATI RADEON 9800 PRO 128MB, 380/680 MHz
    (09)
    14. ATI RADEON 9800 128MB, 325/590 MHz
    (11)
    15. NVIDIA GeForce FX 5900XT 128MB, 390/700 MHz
    (12)
    16. NVIDIA GeForce FX 5700 Ultra 128MB 475/950 MHz DDR3
    (13)
    17. NVIDIA GeForce FX 5700 Ultra 128MB, 475/900 MHz
    (14)
    18. ATI RADEON 9600XT 128MB, 525/650 MHz
    (15)
    19. ATI RADEON 9600XT 128MB, 500/600 MHz
    (16)
    20. ATI RADEON 9800 SE 128MB 256bit, 380/680 MHz
    (17)
    21. NVIDIA GeForce FX 5700 128MB, 425/550 MHz
    (18)
    22. ATI RADEON 9600 PRO 128MB, 400/600 MHz
    (19)
    23. ATI RADEON 9550XT 128MB 400/500 MHz
    (20)
    24. NVIDIA GeForce FX 5600 128MB, 325/550 MHz
    (23)
    25. NVIDIA GeForce FX 5700LE 128MB, 250/400 MHz
    (21)
    26. ATI RADEON 9800 SE 128MB 128bit, 325/540 MHz
    (22)
    27. ATI RADEON 9600 256MB, 325/400 MHz
    (24)
    28. ATI RADEON 9600 128MB, 325/400 MHz
    (25)
    29. ATI RADEON 9550 128MB 250/400 MHz
    (26)
    30. NVIDIA GeForce FX 5600XT 128MB 128bit, 235/400 MHz
    (27)
    31. NVIDIA GeForce FX 5200 128MB, 250/400 MHz
    (28)
    32. ATI RADEON 9600SE 128MB 64bit, 325/400 MHz
    (29)
    33. NVIDIA GeForce FX 5600XT 128MB 64bit, 235/400 MHz
    (30)
    34. NVIDIA GeForce FX 5200 128MB, 64bit, 250/333 MHz
    (31)


  2. Pentium4 3600 (i925X):

    Usability rating (rating from the previous 3Digest is in parentheses):

    Usability rating: card price + $500

    01. NVIDIA GeForce 6800 GT PCX 256MB, 350/1000 MHz
    02. NVIDIA GeForce 6800 Ultra PCX 256MB, 400/1100 MHz
    03. NVIDIA GeForce 6600 GT 128MB, 500/1000 MHz
    04. ATI RADEON X800XT PCI-E 256MB, 500/1000 MHz
    05. ATI RADEON X700XT 128MB, 475/1050 MHz
    06. NVIDIA GeForce 6600 128MB, 300/550 MHz
    07. ATI RADEON X600XT 128MB, 500/760 MHz
    08. ATI RADEON X600 PRO 128MB, 400/600 MHz
    09. ATI RADEON X300 128MB 325/400 MHz
    10. NVIDIA GeForce PCX5900 128MB, 350/550 MHz
    11. ATI RADEON X300SE 128MB 64bit 325/400 MHz
    12. NVIDIA GeForce PCX5750 128MB, 425/500 MHz


    Usability rating: card price + $250

    01. NVIDIA GeForce 6600 GT 128MB, 500/1000 MHz
    02. NVIDIA GeForce 6800 GT PCX 256MB, 350/1000 MHz
    03. ATI RADEON X700XT 128MB, 475/1050 MHz
    04. NVIDIA GeForce 6800 Ultra PCX 256MB, 400/1100 MHz
    05. ATI RADEON X800XT PCI-E 256MB, 500/1000 MHz
    06. NVIDIA GeForce 6600 128MB, 300/550 MHz
    07. ATI RADEON X600XT 128MB, 500/760 MHz
    08. ATI RADEON X600 PRO 128MB, 400/600 MHz
    09. ATI RADEON X300 128MB 325/400 MHz
    10. ATI RADEON X300SE 128MB 64bit 325/400 MHz
    11. NVIDIA GeForce PCX5900 128MB, 350/550 MHz
    12. NVIDIA GeForce PCX5750 128MB, 425/500 MHz


    Usability rating: card price + $100

    01. NVIDIA GeForce 6600 GT 128MB, 500/1000 MHz
    02. ATI RADEON X700XT 128MB, 475/1050 MHz
    03. NVIDIA GeForce 6600 128MB, 300/550 MHz
    04. NVIDIA GeForce 6800 GT PCX 256MB, 350/1000 MHz
    05. ATI RADEON X300 128MB 325/400 MHz
    06. ATI RADEON X800XT PCI-E 256MB, 500/1000 MHz
    07. NVIDIA GeForce 6800 Ultra PCX 256MB, 400/1100 MHz
    08. ATI RADEON X600XT 128MB, 500/760 MHz
    09. ATI RADEON X300SE 128MB 64bit 325/400 MHz
    10. ATI RADEON X600 PRO 128MB, 400/600 MHz
    11. NVIDIA GeForce PCX5750 128MB, 425/500 MHz
    12. NVIDIA GeForce PCX5900 128MB, 350/550 MHz


    Usability rating: just card price

    01. ATI RADEON X300SE 128MB 64bit 325/400 MHz
    02. NVIDIA GeForce 6600 GT 128MB, 500/1000 MHz
    03. NVIDIA GeForce 6600 128MB, 300/550 MHz
    04. ATI RADEON X700XT 128MB, 475/1050 MHz
    05. ATI RADEON X300 128MB 325/400 MHz
    06. ATI RADEON X600 PRO 128MB, 400/600 MHz
    07. ATI RADEON X600XT 128MB, 500/760 MHz
    08. NVIDIA GeForce PCX5750 128MB, 425/500 MHz
    09. NVIDIA GeForce 6800 GT PCX 256MB, 350/1000 MHz
    10. ATI RADEON X800XT PCI-E 256MB, 500/1000 MHz
    11. NVIDIA GeForce 6800 Ultra PCX 256MB, 400/1100 MHz
    12. NVIDIA GeForce PCX5900 128MB, 350/550 MHz

    Prospect rating (previous rating is in parenthesis):

    01. NVIDIA GeForce 6800 Ultra PCX 256MB, 400/1100 MHz
    02. NVIDIA GeForce 6800 GT PCX 256MB, 350/1000 MHz
    03. ATI RADEON X800XT PCI-E 256MB, 500/1000 MHz
    04. NVIDIA GeForce 6600 GT 128MB, 500/1000 MHz
    05. ATI RADEON X700XT 128MB, 475/1050 MHz
    06. NVIDIA GeForce 6600 128MB, 300/550 MHz
    07. NVIDIA GeForce PCX5900 128MB, 350/550 MHz
    08. ATI RADEON X600XT 128MB, 500/760 MHz
    09. ATI RADEON X600 PRO 128MB, 400/600 MHz
    10. NVIDIA GeForce PCX5750 128MB, 425/500 MHz
    11. ATI RADEON X300 128MB 325/400 MHz
    12. ATI RADEON X300SE 128MB 64bit 325/400 MHz



Image quality



6. Anisotropic filtering examination

Anisotropic filtering examination on the example of Call Of Duty (OpenGL) and Unreal 2: The Awakening (Direct3D 2: The Awakening (Direct3D), (Windows XP)

7. Antialiasing examination

Antialiasing examination in FarCry (Direct 3D), (Windows XP)

8. Games screenshot gallery

All test screenshots are compiled into a gallery where you can qualify the work of a chosen videocard. All shots were taken at the same 1024x768 resolution at the maximum quality. Screenshot gallery

9. Games artefacts gallery

Games quality section



We thank all the companies that provided us with graphics cards and other equipment for our 3Digest, including:
HIS (Peter Yueng personally)
Bench'emAll! (Alexander Kondratyuk AKA Render personally for helping us optimize our tests).



Vitaly Milov (black_nqr@yahoo.com)




Danil Gridasov (degust@ixbt.com)




and Andrey Vorobiev (anvakams@ixbt.com)






18.09.2004

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