Thinking of getting a 7950 GX2.

[Hicks]

hey guys.

I game at 1600x1200 and ym X1800XT does struggle in a few games, i can't run 4X and 16X AF in games like Quake 4, prey, DOW, FEAR.

DX10 games and Vista are still a long time away, so no point in getting a R600or w/e, still then.

I went round me mates house, and FEAR was butter smooth, at 1600x1200, with 4X and 16xaf with soft shadows on, and everything on full. Thats pretty awesome.

I asume my PSU is good enough? and ll need a BIOS update, according to Nvidia's list of compatible boards.

Can anyone with a GX2 tell me how it actually plays games???

[Okda]

why not wait few dasy and get X1950XTX which is known to be like OR better than 7950GX2 and in the same time it is only made using one PCB so u can use an aftermarket cooler ( maybe w/c it )

[Hicks]

It's not know to be anything. We can educated guesses how fast it's gonna be. It's an R580 with 2Gz memory speed. How in the hell is that gonna beat a GX2? from the reviews of the X1900, it can't.

The GX2 also seems to clock nicely. My mate has his at 600/1600 stable.

[smith_6079]

It's not know to be anything. We can educated guesses how fast it's gonna be. It's an R580 with 2Gz memory speed. How in the hell is that gonna beat a GX2? from the reviews of the X1900, it can't.

The GX2 also seems to clock nicely. My mate has his at 600/1600 stable.

It is known to do some serious competition. Two reviews that have already flashed us have showed some very impressive results. The X1900 core was seriously bandwidth limited. I've got an X1900XTX and I get better results by overclocking the memory more than I do when over clocking the core more. The cooler on it from the factory probably won't even need an aftermarket one unless you want to go water. And if it comes in at it's estimated introductory price of $400 you could save some money, have better graphics and still be playing at speeds along with a GX2.

Just my $.02.

[Barracuda]

be patient wait for dx10 cards dont waste your money now it is not the best move

[DonS1mpson]

DX10 cards are closer than some many think, I hear that they will hit the stores by fall.

[drtitanium0]

be patient wait for dx10 cards dont waste your money now it is not the best move

I agree thats why i got a 7600gt I already have $400 saved up for my DX10 card.

[smith_6079]

I also agree that waiting for a next generation GPU will always be better for the wallet. However, if someone really wants to stay on top of the performance hill, they have to upgrade frequently. I'll also probably wait for R600.

[easyrider]

I agree thats why i got a 7600gt I already have $400 saved up for my DX10 card.

yeah but the time DX 10 games will be full swing your DX card will be old technology and a few generatioms behind.

[Sneil]

Agh, I say get it now and sell a few weeks before the dx10 cards release. Thats what im doing. It'll be at least 2 months before you can get a dx10 card in stock which is a long time to wait in my opinion.

[mdzcpa]

I'd get the GX2 now and then get a directx 10 card at the six month refresh point.

[smith_6079]

The R600 will perform better than the X1950XTX. If it doesn't, ATI would hurt too much. It's refreshes would be something to wait for as well, but an enthusiasts patience has to give in at some point if they want to actually game instead of wait for upcoming hardware. We'll see how things go.

[Hicks]

I'd get the GX2 now and then get a directx 10 card at the six month refresh point.

Thats my thinking as well, thanks.

Whats the best brand to go for? XFX, Gainward, BFG? Ive always had Gainward Nvidia cards.

[smith_6079]

Thats my thinking as well, thanks.

Whats the best brand to go for? XFX, Gainward, BFG? Ive always had Gainward Nvidia cards.

Actually, if you get an EVGA one and if G80 comes in the next 90 days you would be able to step-up for little to no extra cost. That way you would sit with a 7950GX2 for now and then have a G80 all for around $500. Pretty good price for two cards........errr, I mean three........you know what I mean....

[gr8golf]

Not only that - but the EVGA card is only $499 at Newegg. Cheapest of all the options.

[ca1n]

I would wait but I am running a xtx.

[Hicks]

You know what anoying? Everyone assuming your American and want to use Newegg.:p

I think im gonna have to wait and see.

[BlaqMale]

i'm new here but i purchased a 7950gx2 on day 1, i knew very well at the time the x1950xt was coming and g80 but my plan was to ride out for a while with the gx2 (since it will work with vista) and then early 08 upgrade again to a g90 and amd's k8l dx 10.1. personally i'm trying to slow down my upgrade cycle, i spend too much time on forums and reading reviews to need more than a gx2 for now.

just a different perspective i'm trying to give you. when g80 and r600 comes out you'lls have the typical debugging stage stage adding to how long you'll have to wait and it's not like dx9 and xp will be obsolete overnight but i do realise (s not z in jamaica ) this is XS

[gr8golf]

You know what anoying? Everyone assuming your American and want to use Newegg.:p

I think im gonna have to wait and see.

I'll tell you what's annoying, ppl quickly reading your post and missing the point completely. I didn't assume you were American or a Newegg fanboy. The point was that the eVGA 7950 was the cheapest of all the vendors there. You may or may not find the same to be true at your retailer of choice, but it is a good thing when the only AIB manufacturer I know of with a step up program and the kind of customer support they have is the least expensive.

[Turok]

You know what anoying? Everyone assuming your American and want to use Newegg.:p

I think im gonna have to wait and see.

Well, but people are not psychic you know
Fill in the Location: option on your XS profile

[Nistomax]

The 7950gx2 is a very nice card. I run it at 1280x1024 and it doesnt struggle at all. In fact, im thinking of getting a 21" or larger monitor because it doesnt even break a sweat at current resolution. Also, my card is on stock clock speeds and cooling

I play prey, oblivion, HL2 and a few of its mods, and other games at full settings and there is no problem. I'd imagine it would perform just as well at high resolutions due to its large memory size.
http://www.nvidia.com/content/geforce_gx2_sbios/us.asp
That is anandtechs review of the card. Note how the 7950 is average at lower resolutions but goes to the top on high resolutions with AA.

You may or may not need a bios update (I didnt have to update my a8n32 bios even though it is older then the listed one). Also, the card is very big and runs fairly warm(around 60-65C idle).

If you have the money and you dont intend to get a dx10 card as soon as they are released, then this card should hold you over for a while. I dont plan on upgrading until second or third wave of dx10 cards or maybe even later.

[Hicks]

I decided to go for the Gainward 7950 GX2, should be here by Friday at the lastest, i can't wait, lol.

What are the best drivers to use? The 91.31 lastest?

[Okda]

91.45

there is a thread about it here

[Nistomax]

I use 91.31 and it works fine.
When the card comes, I would suggest logging the temperatures of the card and other components for a little bit as the card might increase your ambient temperatures. I had to rewire a little because there were a bunch of wires blocking the fan.
I hope you enjoy the card, let us know how it works at the high resolution.

[Okda]

u should change to 91.45 since it was releasedspecially for ur card to fix LOTS of problems