9800GT Finally Died

[rip]

After 4 or 5 years a clients 9800GT has died. I've been out of the loop for quite a while now and was comparing the 9800GT to several 5xx, 6xx, and even 7xx series cards and the 9800GT had higher marks than almost all of them. An example, using GPUboss.com:

http://gpuboss.com/gpus/GeForce-GT-9800-vs-GeForce-GT-630

How can this be? Am I reading it wrong? Was the 9800GT just a great card back in the day?

What would be an inexpensive replacement for the 9800GT these days?

Thanks,
Dana

 

[tweakboy]

Give her a prorper burial. gb

 

[tweakboy]

What do you got AGP or PCI ???

 

[Majcric]

You should have a lot of great choices from both camps. List the rest of your specs pl.

 

[Flapdrol1337]

gpu hierarchy chart can be useful for a quick comparison.
http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/gaming-graphics-card-review,3107-7.html

 

[rip]

You should have a lot of great choices from both camps. List the rest of your specs pl.

AMD xII 555 and 4 GB of RAM if memory serves...and it frequently doesn't

 

[RussianSensation]

For that CPU, nothing above GTX750Ti or R9 270. A used HD7850 is a good option too. If you don't want to buy used and you have a high quality 350-400W PSU, it's very hard to beat a Sapphire Dual-X HD6970 for $68:
http://slickdeals.net/f/7540688-2gb-sapphire-dual-x-amd-radeon-hd-6970-64-99-ar-masterpass-at-newegg

Performance rankings:
http://www.techpowerup.com/mobile/reviews/NVIDIA/GeForce_GTX_650_Ti_Boost/25.html

 

[Ken g6]

If you're looking for a really cheap gaming card that's no worse than a 9800 GT, here's an R7 250X for $60AR. This benchmark should approximate both cards.

If you want a significant upgrade, see what RussianSensation said. :thumbsup:

 

[SPBHM]

the 250X (7770 not 7750) is already a huge upgrade from the 9800GT (8800GT)

http://www.anandtech.com/bench/product/521?vs=536

so basically any current card like the r7 250 GDDR5 and higher on the AMD side, and GT 650/GT 740 GDDR5 and higher on the nvidia side is a big upgrade...

not to mention even slower cards can have a big advantage because vram (most 9800GTs had 512MB), and support (DX11, drivers) for current games (and their more efficient architectures, even if some spec comparisons look bad for them)...

so yes, basically something like a GTX 750 or 260x is a huge upgrade,

going cheap with an r7 240 DDR3, GT 640 should give you around the same, maybe lower performance for some games and higher for others.

 

[rip]

not to mention even slower cards can have a big advantage because vram (most 9800GTs had 512MB), and support (DX11, drivers) for current games (and their more efficient architectures, even if some spec comparisons look bad for them)...

This was my guess; DDR3 vs DDR5, and more of it. GPUBoss.com was really throwin' me off. This guy is not even a gamer but, he does do video editing which probably doesn't need the latest and greatest.

thanks all for your inputs

 

[tweakboy]

You want to stick with AMD or you want nVidia... let us know your specs...gl

 

[RussianSensation]

Don't use GPUBoss when there are real world gaming benchmarks.

 

[2is]

Don't use GPUBoss when there are real world gaming benchmarks.

Or just don't use GPUBoss, probably better off.

 

[VirtualLarry]

Or just don't use GPUBoss, probably better off.

LOL, true.

 

[skipsneeky2]

With that dual core,anything like a 7750/gtx650 honestly used would be about all i would put into it.Both moderate replacements as well.Double the vram,use half the power nearly and cool and quiet in comparison.

I had a 8800gts which is basically a 9800gt anyways and had it paired with a x2 555 unlocked to a tri-core,it just worked well enough with COD:BO1 which is maybe one of the newest games i own i could pretty much tell you worked smoothly with a dual core.The 7750/650/750 is simply a good fit.

Would grab whichever of those 3 is the cheapest you can find,they would all work.I believe there is a 200 series AMD but not sure which which replaced the 7750 but that would work even better

 

[RussianSensation]

Every single one of those cards is far worse than the Sapphire 6970 2GB deal I linked for $68.

 

[skipsneeky2]

Every single one of those cards is far worse than the Sapphire 6970 2GB deal I linked for $68.

Awesome card sure but unless that rig gets a quad core,its just gonna be a waste.Having had a e8200 CD2 rig at one point paired with a gtx560,in demanding games like BF3 i found myself severely bottlenecked.The 560 is slower then the 6970.

Later on before i scrapped that AM2+ system,i eventually dropped in a x6 1090t and i had a 570 going with it and i found some games held it back dramatically and others just barely made it a good match.I had the 1090t oced to 4Ghz.

 

[SPBHM]

Every single one of those cards is far worse than the Sapphire 6970 2GB deal I linked for $68.

yes but with a dual core Phenom II it's probably not that important, also we have no idea about what PSU/case/motherboard he is using, an old high end card like the 6970 could mean PSU/cooling problems, and some sata ports blocked,

 

[Spjut]

TC, what motherboard do you have? If you're lucky you could unlock two cores and have a fully functional quad core

 

[Silverforce11]

I had around 4 different 8800GTs (which the 9800GT evolved from), still in boxes in the garage somewhere.. one of the best GPUs ever.

You are severely CPU bottleneck, don't waste $ on any GPU beyond $100.

 

[RussianSensation]

yes but with a dual core Phenom II it's probably not that important, also we have no idea about what PSU/case/motherboard he is using, an old high end card like the 6970 could mean PSU/cooling problems, and some sata ports blocked,

Cooling isn't going to be a problem. This is one of the coolest cards ever made.

Also, happens to be ridiculously quiet at stock.

Total system power consumption with the super power hungry i7 920 @ 4.0Ghz is below 335W

Source

Therefore, with his dinky AMD CPU, a solid 350-400W PSU is more than enough (Antec, XFX, Sparkle, Fortron, etc.)

Performance is nearly 2X faster than a GTX650 or 7770:

In 3 years you can easily sell it to someone for $30, making your total cost of ownership $38. :wub:

Believe me, I would recommend a more budget card if I could find a deal but I can't at the moment as the next best budget card deal expired:
http://slickdeals.net/f/7535032-msi-geforce-gtx-650-ti-video-card-45-ar

I totally realize that he'll be CPU limited but he'll also heavily GPU limited too. I can't recommend a 1GB card $70-80 card when so many games are using 2GB for medium settings and 6970 @ $68 provides 90% of the performance of an R9 270X/7870. You guys have to realize that while his CPU won't be getting him 80-100 fps as an i7 4790K, when we are talking about latest titles, a 7870 barely gets 30 fps so you'll be primarily GPU limited.

Obviously in some games he'll be crazy CPU limited. Perhaps he can find a cheap CPU drop-in upgrade too. This is one of those unfortunate cases with an X2 550 where you are nearly always either CPU or GPU limited or both.

 

[skipsneeky2]

RussianSensation is right,if the Op has a quality power supply the 2gb 6970 really is untouchable for that price even if there will be a cpu bottleneck.

The other choices of course only work if the psu is of questionable quality or age.

 

[rip]

RussianSensation is right,if the Op has a quality power supply the 2gb 6970 really is untouchable for that price even if there will be a cpu bottleneck.

The other choices of course only work if the psu is of questionable quality or age.

PSU is OCZ 600 and MB is a middle of the road Gigabyte from that era (4 or 5 yrs ago)

 

[SPBHM]

I was not talking about cooling just the card, if he have a very small and cheap case everything is going to run warm compared to a newer low TDP card;

also as I said size might be a problem, and ultra bad PSUs can probably handle an r7 250 a lot easier than a 6970.

also the 6970 is not so great for some newer games compared to more basic GPUs with other architectures and much lower size and power usage.

2x over 7770 on current games seems far from the reality,

but if it's cheap enough (like it is) and his PSU/case/MB can handle it, sure...

 

[Leyawiin]

Did anyone not miss the part where the OP said the client is NOT A GAMER. Just stick a GTX 650/GTX 740, or R7 250/250X in it and call it a day. No worries about the power supply, no worries about bottlenecking the old CPU and still better than what he had.