9100 or fx5200?

[BenSkywalker]

Any hardware that has DirectX 9.0 hardware support can almost certainly support any current version of OpenGL. OpenGL 1.5-2.0 is supposed to roughly match DirectX 9.

Very true, but remember he asked about the 9100. Because he's not a gamer and more worried about feature support for coding, I would actually advise a 5200 over a 9100, Ti4200 or even a Ti4600(even at the same price). In this particular case, the superior feature support of the 5200 will allow him to do a lot more(and as slow as the 5200 is, it is still way faster then having to use a refrast ).

 

[The Green Bean]

Originally posted by: EXman
The 5200 is complete and udder CRAP worst 2d EVAR...

True...I had that card and the 2D was ultra slow. I later upgraded to a Geforce TI 4800SE

 

[BenSkywalker]

True...I had that card and the 2D was ultra slow.

If that is the case, then there was something going on somewhere with drivers or some settings. The TNT1 has plenty of power for 2D operations, the 5200 is an enormous step up from that.

 

[ruther]

Originally posted by: hatim

Originally posted by: EXman
The 5200 is complete and udder CRAP worst 2d EVAR...

True...I had that card and the 2D was ultra slow. I later upgraded to a Geforce TI 4800SE

Wasn´t it a 64-bit one?!

 

[ruther]

Originally posted by: BFG10K

I thought it was more of a hardware issue...

Any hardware that has DirectX 9.0 hardware support can almost certainly support any current version of OpenGL. OpenGL 1.5-2.0 is supposed to roughly match DirectX 9.

Does 9100 support Directx 9.0???? I thought it was only 8.1...(maybe 9.0 works with the "older hardware"....)

9100 features

 

[ruther]

Originally posted by: BenSkywalker
Very true, but remember he asked about the 9100. Because he's not a gamer and more worried about feature support for coding, I would actually advise a 5200 over a 9100, Ti4200 or even a Ti4600(even at the same price). In this particular case, the superior feature support of the 5200 will allow him to do a lot more(and as slow as the 5200 is, it is still way faster then having to use a refrast ).

What is "the superior feature support" that 5200 has over 9100?!

 

[ruther]

A FX5200 review

Conclusions
There are really two issues to consider as I conclude this review. First, there's the performance and features of NVIDIA's NV34 graphics chip and the GeForce FX 5200 cards that make use of it. Second, we have the Gigi FX5200P, Albatron's take on the GeForce FX 5200.

To NVIDIA's credit, the GeForce FX 5200 largely makes up for the travesty that was?and still is?the GeForce4 MX. With the GeForce FX 5200, NVIDIA can claim full DirectX 9 feature support across its entire graphics line. Even the cheapest GeForce FX 5200s, which retail for as little as $67 on Pricewatch, support all the DirectX 9 features that make NVIDIA's "Dawn" demo look so good, and that's an impressive feat. However, it's important to make a distinction between feature capability and feature competence. As we've seen in our testing, the GeForce FX 5200 is considerably underpowered in situations where even less technically capable graphics cards excel. Sure, the GeForce FX 5200 supports high precision data types, pixel and vertex shaders 2.0, and a host of other advanced features, but it doesn't seem to perform particularly well when those features are exploited.

So, while the GeForce FX 5200 is technically capable of all sorts of DirectX 9-class eye candy, I have to question just how well the card will handle future DirectX 9 games and applications. After all, a slideshow filled with DirectX 9 eye candy is still a slide show.

The GeForce FX 5200 isn't as capable a performer as its feature list might suggest, but that doesn't mean cards based on the chip aren't worth picking up. At only $67 online, the GeForce FX 5200 is a few dollars cheaper than the Radeon 9000 Pro. For gamers, the Radeon 9000 Pro offers better and more consistent performance. However, for average consumers and business users, the GeForce FX 5200 offers better multimonitor software, more future-proof feature compatibility, and silent and reliable passive cooling. The GeForce FX 5200 is a great feature-rich card for anyone that's not looking for the best budget gaming option...

3DMark03 image quality
Texture antialiasing

 

[Lazark]

well Im a gamer, but I will need the card for about 4 month and then I will switch to a better card (Im going to USA)...so, what is the best..9100 or fx5200, thats the question !

bye

 

[BenSkywalker]

What is "the superior feature support" that 5200 has over 9100?!

PS 2.0 support(and in terms of development, a lengthy instruction set exceeding the minimum specs by a considerable margin), VS 2.0 support, FP32 support(FP16 for that matter, the 9100 has int based shader hardware) and support for OGL 2.0(although not feature complete, it is much closer then the 9100) to name a few. Feature wise, the FX5200 is fairly close to the 9800XT(exceeds it in some instances), its problem is it doesn't have the performance to make those features viable for gaming.

 

[ruther]

Originally posted by: BenSkywalker
PS 2.0 support(and in terms of development, a lengthy instruction set exceeding the minimum specs by a considerable margin), VS 2.0 support, FP32 support(FP16 for that matter, the 9100 has int based shader hardware) and support for OGL 2.0(although not feature complete, it is much closer then the 9100) to name a few. Feature wise, the FX5200 is fairly close to the 9800XT(exceeds it in some instances), its problem is it doesn't have the performance to make those features viable for gaming.

So, 9100 doesn´t support those features?! Interesting...regarding 2d/3d image quality, is FX 5200 really better than 9100?

Maybe those features aren´t viable for gaming, but for my work it will be(3d design and visualization of chemical engineering plants - OpenGL). Indeed, I think it will more than sufficient.

 

[BFG10K]

Does 9100 support Directx 9.0????

Actually it doesn't. Ben is right and I made a mistake because I momentarily forgot that the other card you listed was the 9100.

If you need hardware-level DirectX 9 and equivalent OpenGL support then the 5200 is the only card of the two that will give it to you. The 9100 is DirectX 8.1.

 

[ruther]

What brand do you recommend?! Probably I will get a MSI or a Prolink card...

inno, chaintech and xfx cards don´t seem to be good, as they have been sold as 64-bit ones(where I live).

 

[BFG10K]

I've had good experiences with Gainward and Leadtek for all of my past nVidia cards but recently some people have been reporting problems with Gainward so I'd recommend Leadtek.

 

[conlan]

well Im a gamer, but I will need the card for about 4 month and then I will switch to a better card (Im going to USA)...so, what is the best..9100 or fx5200, thats the question !

9100

 

[Lazark]

Now I have another problem...its seems that the only card that is in the store is the sapphire radeon 9100 64mb. I still stick vwithv that or change to a fx5200??.....THANKS!!!

 

[Lazark]

please, somebody tell me if the radeon 9100 (with 64mb) is far better than the fx5200 or the radeon 9200 (non - SE amd 128mb)...thanks!!!....I need to buy it tomorrow!!

 

[McArra]

I think 64mb ones are 64bit which is crap. Hmmmm maybe 9200.

 

[Lazark]

I think that the only model betwen 8500 and 9600 that has 64 bits are the 9200SE and the 9600SE...so, if the 64mb from the 9100 are 128 bit, its better to stick with it, or to ghange maybe to an 9200 or fx5200?...thanks!

 

[ruther]

Originally posted by: McArra
I think 64mb ones are 64bit which is crap. Hmmmm maybe 9200.

I don´t think so: there are 64mb ones that are 128bits. At least regarding FX5200 ones.

And I guess there are 128mb ones that are only 64bit... for instance: xelo cards

...GeForce FX 5200

183 MHz
64 oder 128 MB (I suppose "oder" = "or")
AGP 4x
256 bit
.
.
Speicherinterface - 64 bit (memory interface)
.
Grafikspeicher - 64 oder 128 MB (memory size)

 

[ruther]

BTW, what about 2D quality of those cards? Is it any better than my old Radeon 32MB LE?! Just curious about...

 

[bandana163]

Originally posted by: Lazark
please, somebody tell me if the radeon 9100 (with 64mb) is far better than the fx5200 or the radeon 9200 (non - SE amd 128mb)...thanks!!!....I need to buy it tomorrow!!

As I see things:
Radeon 9200 = R9000 with 8xAGP (useless extra feature here) = roughly a GF2 Ultra, slower than a GF3
R9100 = R8500LE = faster than a GF3, slower than a Ti4200
FX5200 64 bit = GF2 performance, about 2.8GB mem bandwidth (the same as a GF2 MX had), usually clocked around 250/333 (yes, 166MHz DDR) useless for playing new games, performance is inexcusable
FX5200 128bit / FX5200 128bit Ultra = Roughly same or a bit better than a GF3/R9000. No match for a 9100/8500.
FX5200s have DX9 support, but don't have the performance to play any DX9 games in the future.

I'd get the R9100.

 

[Lazark]

I lost to much performance using a r9100 of 64mb than the 128mb? (I can only buy the 64mb, the other is sold out)

thanks

 

[slashDevSlashNull]

If you're planning to buy a new video card within months, why buy a crappy card now? Save your money and spend them when buying the "real"card.

btw, I actually own a Sapphire 9100 64MB and I'm pretty satisfied with it. BUT... it has some flaws, mostly driver related. With some games I have severy problems (eg. Halo) and with some other games I have small problems (eg. UT2003).

In the end, the 9100 is an outdated chip that performs very much like its price: It's OK, but it's not a bargain.

 

[Lazark]

Im buying a video card, because I need a card to run the pc!....so you have the 9100 64mb?..it is 128bit memory bus? and what kind of driver-related problem do you have for example, halo?.


thanks

 

[bluemax]

BEWARE!! Do NOT choose an ATI card with the description "SE". SE's are cut, sliced and castrated and set out for the dogs. They suck!

I would normally recommend the 9100, but for strictly openGL work, I'd say the GFFX 5200 isn't so bad...
MAKE SURE it's 128-bit though!! There's some 64-bit crappers out there - don't get suckered! :Q

If you could get a TI4200 somehow, you'd be better off.......