Performance Tests
We ran benchmarks on the 7800 GT with the same system that we used for the 7800 GTX tests:MSI K8N Neo4 Platinum/SLI motherboard
AMD Athlon 64 FX-55 Processor
1 GB OCZ 2:2:2:6 DDR400 RAM
Seagate 7200.7 120 GB Hard Drive
OCZ 600 W PowerStream Power Supply
We'll also be testing the card's performance in the three games that we've been using: Battlefield 2, Doom 3, and Halflife 2. We'll be testing all three games at 1600x1200 with and without AA. We chose this as our resolution because it reflects what is most used by people who get a 7800 GT, given that most cost-effective LCD monitors still don't support resolutions much higher than this.
Since this is our first 7800 GT article, and we don't have any other versions to compare the XFX 7800 GT with yet, we'll be looking at how the GT compares to the 7800 GTX reference card. Because we were able to overclock our XFX 7800 GT a little bit higher than the reference 7800 GTX, we can see how significant it is to have one more vertex and 4 more pixel pipelines.
When we tested the XFX GeForce 7800 GT Overclocked, we found the numbers to be much closer to those of the 7800 GTX. On the 7800 GT, BF2 still has about a 10% decrease in fps from the GTX, which might be noticeable during game play. But the other differences were small enough not to make much difference.
As you can see when we overclocked our 7800 GT to 462MHz and 1.2GHz, we managed to match and even slightly surpass (in Doom 3) the framerates of the GTX. This is significant, but we aren't quite sure if we'll be able to see the same results on other 7800 GTs. These numbers really show us how there isn't a very big difference at all in G70 performance with one less vertex and four less pixel pipelines at 1600x1200 and lower; all the more reason to save $100 and go with the GT if a very large expensive LCD isn't in your computer room or within your budget.
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eetnoyer - Wednesday, August 31, 2005 - link
There will be some changes, however, with fewer reviews that will cover more than one card.Followed immediately thereafter by another single card review. And with so many other 7800GT cards on the market already, they just couldn't find enough to do a round-up. Newegg currently has 13 listings in stock for 7800GT and Anandtech still can't manage to scrounge up enough. This site is starting to slide.
bupkus - Wednesday, August 31, 2005 - link
Are there any games out yet that require this kind of rendering power?I only play UT2004, but with my new X800 and a new Venice @ 2.3GHz I'm rockin' right now at 1280x1024.
robere - Wednesday, August 31, 2005 - link
I as well as 5 guys i know have a Dell 2405FPW that runs a native res of 1920x1200. I have a XFX 7800GTX ATH643700 SanDiego with 2G of RAM and currently run BF2 at 1920x1200 res with allmost everything on high and have a frame rate of 60-70. So when the next gen of games come out i am interested looking at SLI or next gen GPU. By the way BF2 at this res looks kick ass.JNo - Wednesday, August 31, 2005 - link
I have a 2405 too and apparently widescreen is NOT possible for BF2 (check out widescreenforums.com) as the FOV hasn't changed. So even if you're 'forced it', you are getting the same width, it's just chopped off some of the top and bottom from the gaming world, and then zoomed in a little (giving you a little better visual impact but some gaming disadvantage). Let me know if you believe otherwise as a hell of a lot of people would like to know...Fluppeteer - Wednesday, August 31, 2005 - link
Hi Robere,You may be able to answer a question... Can you tell me whether you have any
problems if you run your 2405 from the single-link head of the 7800GTX? I gather
the timings are quite tight to the single-link limits, and there have been
reports of people struggling with the dodgy internal TMDS transmitters in
the 6800 series. I'd like to know if nVidia have fixed this with G70.
If the 2405 runs okay from that head (I'd expect it to work on the head with
the dual-link head anyway, because the Silicon Image parts tend to be pretty
clean) it presumably means nVidia have given their transmitter a redesign,
which *might* mean the G70 could run my T221-DG5 properly (from both heads).
It's kind of an expensive thing for me to find out without at least some
indication that matters have improved. :-)
(For people with less exotic - or at least, less discontinued - monitors,
there are people considering Apple 30" display + Dell 2405 rigs, who would
be equally interested in the answer.)
Thanks!
Rudee - Wednesday, August 31, 2005 - link
I agree with the reviewer's final words that those looking for a higher end card need not look further than a 7800 GT, especially if you are playing in resolutions of 1600 x 1200 or less.Ozz1113 - Tuesday, August 30, 2005 - link
Put it this way, I am upgrading from a 9500np modded to a 9700. I think you can wait a little longer from your 6800u ;]Too bad this review wasn't of the evga...not that it is all that much different
Dmitheon - Wednesday, August 31, 2005 - link
Agreed, I'm more interested in the eVGA than any of the others right due to that Battlefield2 bundle or the free mobo offer.robere - Wednesday, August 31, 2005 - link
How about some SLI GTX/GT numbers? I have a XFX GTX and are intersted in what the GT can do in SLI.ukDave - Wednesday, August 31, 2005 - link
Ditto, SLI numbers please. GT vs. GTX.From what i've seen the gap should narrow meaning even better money savings when choosing the cheaper GT option.
I have two Leadtek 7800GT's atm and the reason above is why i chose them.