The NVIDIA 6800 GS Closer Look: EVGA, Leadtek, PNY, and Evertop
by Josh Venning on January 27, 2006 8:53 AM EST- Posted in
- GPUs
Final Words
The introduction of NVIDIA's 6800 GS marks a shift for NVIDIA (and ATI) parts. With the 6800 GT starting to fade away, we are seeing more emphasis on value, with a card just as good as the GT, yet significantly cheaper. ATI scored points with the X800 GTO, and we saw in the performance tests that game choice makes a big difference on whether ATI or NVIDIA come out on top near the $200 price point. The 6800 GS definitely hits the earlier mentioned "sweet-spot" in terms of performance per price and is a persuasive answer to those looking for a smart purchase of an all-around good card, especially since the 6800 GS has the advantage over the X800 GTO in features. When the 6600 GT first came around, the high value that it offered at this price earned it excellent acclaim, and we've now essentially seen the shift of a 6800 GT class part down to the original 6600 GT price point.
We here at AnandTech have available to us a wide variety of graphics solutions that we use for work and recreation, and the types of games that we test and play are varied. This reviewer's game of choice is currently Battlefield 2, a graphically intensive game that offers fast and intense gameplay, and the 6800 GS happens to be the card that he's been using in the system. The game runs beautifully and is very enjoyable at 1600X1200 with all the settings on high (no AA). Those who have to have AA enabled or have a monitor that can display higher resolutions might find this card lacking, but for most Battlefield 2 players, the 6800 GS is more than powerful enough to get in lots of kills. This reviewer doesn't claim to be an expert at this particular game, but rest assured, it's his skill and not the hardware that's lacking. Benchmark tests give a very accurate picture of how well a game performs on any given system, but for the casual gamer, the real test is how enjoyable the game play is.
We've established that the 6800 GS performs well, but let's talk a bit about the other aspect of these cards - the price. Because the EverTop 6800 GS is only sold in Korea and Hong Kong at this time, we aren't able to provide a price for this card right now. (We will try to update this information when we can.) At the time of this writing, EVGA's e-GeForce 6800 GS is listed at $190, the lowest price of the three. The PNY GeForce 6800 GS Overclocked is a close second at $200, and it's a bit of a toss-up between these two cards, considering that the PNY is clocked slightly higher, but EVGA still has the exceptional lifetime warranty policy (EVGA will replace your card for any reason except physical damage; this includes damage due to overclocking. Check the EVGA website for details). The Leadtek WinFast PX6800 GS Extreme is a little more expensive than these two, but the high factory/user overclock and game bundle make it a pretty good deal. But if you don't want the games, it might be wiser to buy one of the other cards (especially if you plan on overclocking), as they offer nearly the same performance for a little less cash.
Here, again, is a listing of the cards as well as their clock speeds and price:
NVIDIA's 6800 GS does in fact seem like the card that most gamers will be looking to aim for a solid mid-range upgrade, especially if unlocking the pipelines of the X800 GTO isn't something that sounds like fun to you. As the rest of the 6800 series is phased out, we're now looking ahead in anticipation as to what NVIDIA has in store for us next, and in the meantime, we're sure that many gamers (us included) will be putting their 6800 GSs to good use. We're also looking forward to seeing how things play out in the mid-range category on ATI's side, particularly with their X1600 series, which looks to provide some competition for the 6800 GS as a solid mid-range part (depending on the flavor and where prices stabilize). As always, we will keep you posted.
The introduction of NVIDIA's 6800 GS marks a shift for NVIDIA (and ATI) parts. With the 6800 GT starting to fade away, we are seeing more emphasis on value, with a card just as good as the GT, yet significantly cheaper. ATI scored points with the X800 GTO, and we saw in the performance tests that game choice makes a big difference on whether ATI or NVIDIA come out on top near the $200 price point. The 6800 GS definitely hits the earlier mentioned "sweet-spot" in terms of performance per price and is a persuasive answer to those looking for a smart purchase of an all-around good card, especially since the 6800 GS has the advantage over the X800 GTO in features. When the 6600 GT first came around, the high value that it offered at this price earned it excellent acclaim, and we've now essentially seen the shift of a 6800 GT class part down to the original 6600 GT price point.
We here at AnandTech have available to us a wide variety of graphics solutions that we use for work and recreation, and the types of games that we test and play are varied. This reviewer's game of choice is currently Battlefield 2, a graphically intensive game that offers fast and intense gameplay, and the 6800 GS happens to be the card that he's been using in the system. The game runs beautifully and is very enjoyable at 1600X1200 with all the settings on high (no AA). Those who have to have AA enabled or have a monitor that can display higher resolutions might find this card lacking, but for most Battlefield 2 players, the 6800 GS is more than powerful enough to get in lots of kills. This reviewer doesn't claim to be an expert at this particular game, but rest assured, it's his skill and not the hardware that's lacking. Benchmark tests give a very accurate picture of how well a game performs on any given system, but for the casual gamer, the real test is how enjoyable the game play is.
We've established that the 6800 GS performs well, but let's talk a bit about the other aspect of these cards - the price. Because the EverTop 6800 GS is only sold in Korea and Hong Kong at this time, we aren't able to provide a price for this card right now. (We will try to update this information when we can.) At the time of this writing, EVGA's e-GeForce 6800 GS is listed at $190, the lowest price of the three. The PNY GeForce 6800 GS Overclocked is a close second at $200, and it's a bit of a toss-up between these two cards, considering that the PNY is clocked slightly higher, but EVGA still has the exceptional lifetime warranty policy (EVGA will replace your card for any reason except physical damage; this includes damage due to overclocking. Check the EVGA website for details). The Leadtek WinFast PX6800 GS Extreme is a little more expensive than these two, but the high factory/user overclock and game bundle make it a pretty good deal. But if you don't want the games, it might be wiser to buy one of the other cards (especially if you plan on overclocking), as they offer nearly the same performance for a little less cash.
Here, again, is a listing of the cards as well as their clock speeds and price:
| Graphics Card | Factory Speed | Price |
| Leadtek WinFast PX6800 GS Extreme | 485/1.1 | $213 |
| PNY GeForce 6800 GS Overclocked | 470/1.1 | $200 |
| EverTop GeForce 6800 GS | 425/1.0 | N/A |
| EVGA e-GeForce 6800 GS | 450/1.05 | $190 |
NVIDIA's 6800 GS does in fact seem like the card that most gamers will be looking to aim for a solid mid-range upgrade, especially if unlocking the pipelines of the X800 GTO isn't something that sounds like fun to you. As the rest of the 6800 series is phased out, we're now looking ahead in anticipation as to what NVIDIA has in store for us next, and in the meantime, we're sure that many gamers (us included) will be putting their 6800 GSs to good use. We're also looking forward to seeing how things play out in the mid-range category on ATI's side, particularly with their X1600 series, which looks to provide some competition for the 6800 GS as a solid mid-range part (depending on the flavor and where prices stabilize). As always, we will keep you posted.
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superkdogg - Friday, January 27, 2006 - link
This article was good and informative if a consumer is only looking @ 6800GS cards. Now, if they were smart they would consider the 7800GT for more money, and the 6600GT to save money. If they were not opposed to supporting the red team, they could look at the x800gto2 and it's unlockable quad and overclocking that part too. They could also look at the x1600's and the entire x850/800 pro series would not be far from this price range.It's nice to have information available. It's even better when reviewers pull it together for consumers rather than consumers having to do the legwork.
bob661 - Friday, January 27, 2006 - link
Sounds like instant gratification syndrome to me. What wrong with doing the legwork yourself? Especially when it's already been done. Why should AT have to do redo test because of lazy readers, like yourself?andrep74 - Friday, January 27, 2006 - link
One obvious area of testing that was overlooked, and would have been somewhat simple, was to do some CPU scaling: while using the fastest CPU available does remove the CPU from the equation, the fact that these cards are midrange means that people who buy the card will most likely have midrange CPUs, also. Perhaps two or three speeds at "midrange" CPU speeds like 3200, 3500, 3700 would have shed light on the effects of CPU on performance. Interpolation requires at least two to three points of analysis.superkdogg - Friday, January 27, 2006 - link
You're calling me lazy? Hmm. My wife, kids and two jobs don't think so. Well, maybe my wife sometimes.Seriously though. Read my comment. What's the first sentence? Yep, you're right I do say that the article is useful for people who are only interested in the 6800GS. My point is that most consumers would want to compare the 6800GS with other cards in a similar price range and since AT serves consumers, it is probably in the best interest of everybody to focus on a wider segment of the population.
This sort of article was very useful in the days of the MX400's and the GeForce GTS's. Back then, there was only one viable card per price point (ATI's first real card was the 8500's to be honest) and manufacturers didn't just regurgitate the reference design. However, since now there are innumerable cards that could possibly meet an end user's needs, the fact that all decisions are in some way based on relative value, and the fact that most if not all manufacturers use the reference design exclusively, this article's relevance is somewhat limited.
My point is not that the article was poorly written, that it was slanted against ATI, that it was dishonest, or that it does not provide what it says it will. None of those things are true. What I was writing about was whether or not this article needed to be written at all and if it would have been more useful to review more than one graphics card. If you eliminate chance and the fact that one manufacturer uses a Zalman heatsink, and figure in that the GTO is just thrown in for comparison, this is essentially a one-card review, but takes the same amount of time to compile data and write as a 4-5 card review would.
Would it not be more useful to have one widely available 6800GS, a X800 Pro, a 6600GT, a 7800GT, a x800XL, and a x800 GTO (especially the GTO2 and show unlocking), rather than the article as written? I think that it would, and I don't think that you can build an argument that it wouldn't. BTW, don't bother flaming me because I'm through with this since you can't read and understand my first sentence and resort to name calling in titling your response.
superkdogg - Friday, January 27, 2006 - link
But, what I wrote was "Why not write a full-blown midrange comparison?" That is what my title was and that is what I meant and said.My meaning is that there is no point in singling out a 600GS roundup anymore than there is a NForce4 roundup or any other part based on 4 different colors of the reference design. I was stating that it is much more useful to compare different cards than tell us again that overclocks are about the same and that this will vary based on your setup and your particular card.
As far as instant gratification. "Hello, I am the internet. I am here to fulfill your thirst for knowledge. But I won't because it might happen too fast." Umm, don't think so. The whole point of the internet is to have the knowledge at our fingertips. Otherwise why would we read this stuff. Why not better compile the knowledge into a more readily usable form? That was and is my question. Read my comment. I don't rip them for writing a 6800GS roundup. I wonder why the assumption is that knowing the difference between brands is more important than knowing what cards are available in the price range.
Spoelie - Friday, January 27, 2006 - link
If I had one comment I'd say the x1600xt would have been a better choice as a competitor for the 6800gs.However, it pains me to see how the comments always start out with people 'angry' because the review didn't contain the information for their own particular situation. A review can NOT cover every particular base, it is a decision made at the start what to cover. If you think you can do better, write your own article, if not then yes, you will have to do your own legwork. Do not always expect people to figure things out for you.
If the article was named "Vidcard midrange comparison" you'd have reason to complain, now the article does what it set out to do.
This comment is directed to everyone having replied up till now, not anyone in particular.
Bull Dog - Friday, January 27, 2006 - link
Oh right and the X1600XT costs some $40 LESS than the 6800GS. And appropriately, doesn't perform quite as good.deathwalker - Friday, January 27, 2006 - link
This review has missed the mark by failing to include the "AGP" versions of the 6800GS. Test results for the AGP version are important not only because there is still a very large contigent of gamers still using APG graphics supported motherboards but also because the clocking is very different on the AGP versions vs. the PCIe version. Dissapointing that AT had there tunnel vision visors on for this exersize.bob661 - Friday, January 27, 2006 - link
AGP is dead which is why it wasn't tested. This IS an enthusiast site not a J6P site.Patrese - Friday, January 27, 2006 - link
I'd like to see the AGP 6800GS tested anyway. As Anandtech is a worldwide website (as it was said in the article), they should be aware that in less developed countries AGP is still a big deal, even for new computers. Here in Brazil, buying a Semprom 3100+ with Palermo core and putting it to work at 2.5GHz on air is becoming a national sport [sort of :)], and most of them are AGP based systems. It's not cutting edge technology, but still is enthusiast stuff!I'm not a cry-baby though, as I found the review really good (Zalman kicks the stock cooler's a**!). They may test the AGP version on other occasion. It's just a reply for those who think AGP is already dead and gone, specially in this price range.