Tweaktown 9800 GX2 Review

[ghost101]

http://www.tweaktown.com/articles/13...ion/index.html

Introduction

The latest in stalker letters is here, and it comes attached with another NVIDIA graphics card like our last. If you recall last time this happened, we received the 8800GTS G92 based card anonymously with a letter attached to it. This time we’ve got another new card and accompanying letter.

Again, it’s an NVIDIA offering, but the message was a little different this time, a little scarier. Someone wants us to have the new NVIDIA cards, but at the same time that person or company doesn’t want us to know who they are!

Really, we’re not complaining and as long as nothing like a horse’s head shows up in my bed then I’m not too concerned.

We’ve all heard about the GX2, so there isn’t much to say here; there’s no package so we’ll get stuck straight into the card and talk about its specifications before we get into the benchmarking.

[cajer]

Finally and respectful site reviews the 9800gx2, even though this card seems to be a failure. But we already knew what to expect before it even came out. Now all we need is some overclocking benchmarks.

[mascaras]

http://www.xtremesystems.org/forums/...7&postcount=45

[Richard Dower]

Guess i'll avoid this card then.

[Warboy]

This review is Inaccurate, its not using any of the Update Dated Drivers for the 9800GX2.

[Sr7]

This review is Inaccurate, its not using any of the Update Dated Drivers for the 9800GX2.

Ya, it's essentially meaningless. I'm disappointed to see they didn't get a proper driver. Oh well.

For more info, see here, from a guy who works closely with NVIDIA:

http://www.rage3d.com/board/showthread.php?t=33918735

I'm sure some of you have already seen it. But I want to warn you guys that the drivers used in this review simply enabled the card. And have recieved zero testing. They werent designed for use with the card in question and problems setting Multi GPU configuration amongst other things. They were made in very early january and are completely out dated and multi GPU wont even enable on the Vista set.

Take this information as is and consider it when your look at this article.

Chris

/thread

[Ubermann]

http://www.rage3d.com/board/showthread.php?t=33918735

Always someone that doubt and need to "defend" it.
That a complete LIE as SLI is working alright if you check the results.
I also think the performance wont go up very much either with later drivers.

And MCOFFEY are you kiddin ? can you please explain what other card there is on those pictures then ?

[Warboy]

http://www.rage3d.com/board/showthread.php?t=33918735

Always someone that doubt and need to "defend" it.
That a complete LIE as SLI is working alright if you check the results.
I also think the performance wont go up very much either with later drivers.

And MCOFFEY are you kiddin ? can you please explain what other card there is on those pictures then ?

SLi DISABLED, Look before you go off and call fanboyism

[Mr.Tweak]

This review is Inaccurate, its not using any of the Update Dated Drivers for the 9800GX2.

Hello all,

I am the owner of TweakTown and felt as if I should respond to some of your messages.

If you read the review fully, you would read on thee last page that "There has to be a new driver coming out soon. Websites have posted a newer driver than the one we received on the driver CD, but it doesn’t actually work. It refuses to install even though the driver is stated to be for the GX2."

Even in the title we state "early test" which is all it is - performance to date.

[Mr.Tweak]

How could anyone take that review seriously? Just about the silliest pretence I've ever seen. Someone mysteriously delivers the card with that dumbass note, and the review site goes along with it.

I mean how more foulish could anyone be,

andyc

Hello,


Do you think we would really test it if we didn't know it was the final revision shipping product?

[Mr.Tweak]

SLi DISABLED, Look before you go off and call fanboyism

Hello again,


So you say SLI is disabled under Vista? How could that be?

Just take for example the VERY FIRST test which is 3DMark06 Vista - the GX2 is around 5000 marks faster at the highest two resolutions than the 8800GT OC.

How on earth could SLI be enabled? I think the GPU-Z screenshot says SLI disabled and it will say SLI enabled for quad-SLI. (or it could be a bug in the software - early drivers etc)

[hecktic]

Im sure someone here would be willing to provide you with some of the leaked drivers assuming they will work on this card... you should then do a "re-review" with the up-to-date drivers... just a thought

[Mr.Tweak]

Im sure someone here would be willing to provide you with some of the leaked drivers assuming they will work on this card... you should then do a "re-review" with the up-to-date drivers... just a thought

Nvidia do not support us at all so of course we don't get new drivers from them. As we said in the article, we will re-test as soon as we get new drivers but it will probably be once they are publically released.

[Zytek_Fan]

SLi DISABLED, Look before you go off and call fanboyism

Recall that the 3870 X2 had a similar issue with CrossFire being reported as turned off when the results first started popping up

[Mr.Tweak]

Recall that the 3870 X2 had a similar issue with CrossFire being reported as turned off when the results first started popping up

See, as much as you think, we are not the devil!

[NH|Delph1]

Nvidia do not support us at all so of course we don't get new drivers from them. As we said in the article, we will re-test as soon as we get new drivers but it will probably be once they are publically released.

You shouldn't have posted if you knew that the drivers were bad, that's just poor. Especially as you know that there are better drivers circulating. Wait instead, and you won't get the bad publicity.

//Andreas

[OBR]

Under Vista you need driver 174.51! with oldest SLI doesnot work! This used drivers 173.69 are for XP not for Vista ... i have with this driver in XP +/- 20 000 points with no oced GX2 ...

[Mr.Tweak]

You shouldn't have posted if you knew that the drivers were bad, that's just poor. Especially as you know that there are better drivers circulating. Wait instead, and you won't get the bad publicity.

//Andreas

Maybe but we are media, we don't wait around.

The title clearly states it is an early test to see performance to date. We are just giving the people what they want mate.

[Mr.Tweak]

Under Vista you need driver 174.51! with oldest SLI doesnot work! This used drivers 173.69 are for XP not for Vista ... i have with this driver in XP +/- 20 000 points with no oced GX2 ...

Not you too - did you even look at the benchmarks?

Explain to us all how the GX2 is so much faster than an OC'ed 8800GT please!

[Warboy]

Not you too - did you even look at the benchmarks?

Explain to us all how the GX2 is so much faster than an OC'ed 8800GT please!

Well First off, Its a Core Revision, G92-450 on the Chip, 2, I'm expecting just a little bit more then a OC'ed 8800GT, Its just that I don't think nvidia would successfully sell a Sandwitch 8800GT, atleast it needs to be a Sandwitch 8800GTS 512mb. The Core Revision is newer then the 8800GTS, thats why I'm hoping it will be better then 2 8800GTS 512mb in SLi. and from what I see, the 8800GTS 512mb (in SLi) when overclocked can pull 18,000 easily.

I can set you up with the Updated Semi-Working drivers for Windows XP for the GX2. But If you can't get the vista ones to work, Thats something i can't control, because I couldn't get them to work no matter what.

[OBR]

Not you too - did you even look at the benchmarks?

Explain to us all how the GX2 is so much faster than an OC'ed 8800GT please!

Yes i know your results and are crappy ... sorry but i have this card and now working on own review and my results are diametrical different ... In your test are GX2 scores +/- like oced 88GT ... and in my measuring are many better ... i am sure SLI was disabled or not working properly in your setup!

3dmark 06 at 1280x1024 - with Quad at 3.6GHz = 19600 points on my setup...

[NH|Delph1]

Maybe but we are media, we don't wait around.

The title clearly states it is an early test to see performance to date. We are just giving the people what they want mate.

I'm a part of the media too, but I would never allow a review which doesn't reflect the product in the best possible way, not this way at least.

You've posted a couple of reviews lately just to be first, but from what I've seen from the comments her and elsewhere, it hasn't been much appreciated, because they have been misleading and your reputation has not gone up from it, even if you did manage to get some limelight.

You have to realize that a huge majority of all people don't read the any of the text of a review. They just check the graphs and diagrams. It doesn't help if you use font size 96 and says that it's a super-duper early test. People will still ignore it and head for the raw numbers.

There have been quite a lot of surveys showing precisely that.

//Andreas

[safan80]

Nvidia do not support us at all so of course we don't get new drivers from them. As we said in the article, we will re-test as soon as we get new drivers but it will probably be once they are publically released.

make sure you include 2560x1600 in your Quake Wars test next time.

[Sr7]

Hello all,

I am the owner of TweakTown and felt as if I should respond to some of your messages.

If you read the review fully, you would read on thee last page that "There has to be a new driver coming out soon. Websites have posted a newer driver than the one we received on the driver CD, but it doesn’t actually work. It refuses to install even though the driver is stated to be for the GX2."

Even in the title we state "early test" which is all it is - performance to date.

It's still incredibly misleading as most people don't bother to read the whole review, they read the charts and thats it.

Not to mention the whole thing about "oh wait last minute addition it turns out the card is way faster than the x2 in XP with this driver" being buried in the conclusion really rubbed me the wrong way.

[Sr7]

Nvidia do not support us at all

Gee after seeing this review there isn't much reason for me to wonder why.