Connect3d x800gto - get this if you missed the gto2 deal

[Munky]

*** First impressions:

Ordered this x800gto from monarchcomputer for $180. Didnt even remove the heatsink, just went straight to tweaking it. In my system it shows up as an x800pro for some reason, maybe because the included Cat 5.7 driver doesnt have a profile for the gto yet. Anyway, the cooler is copper, and has a real fan, as opposed to one of those "water paddle" type things that seem to make a lot of noise and not much cooling. Lets just say that this cooler is quieter than the one on my sapphire x800 vanilla, even at full speed. Also, it only reaches full speed during POST, during regular gameplay it stays pretty quiet, around 43% speed or so, while keeping the gpu temps around 65C, but I have good airflow in my case, so that's probably helping as well.

*** Overclocking:

Decided to first stick with 12 pipes and see how far I can push it. On stock cooling, the max gpu speed is 579mhz, and the max mem speed is 589mhz with the fan at 100%. (Stock is 400/490). I decided to use 570/570 as a safe speed. Then, I reset the fan, and thinking I turned it back down to stock speeds, I proceeded to run 3dmark05 to get a whopping 6000 even. Shocked, I checked the clocks and sure enough, it was still running 570/570. I was logging the temps during the test run, and it showed 75C max. Did I mention this card had a nice cooler? When I reset the speed correctly this time, the score came out to a more predictable 4541.

*** Unlocking:

I successfuly flashed the modified 16 pipe bios, and went to tweaking again. Turned the fan up to a reasonable 70% and it ran stable at 570/570, temps hovering around 70C under load. Ran 3dmark05 again, and this time got a score of 6688. For a $180 card, nothing else even comes close. I have a zalman vf700cu from my previous card - I'll install it tomorrow and see how much farther I can push this card.

screenshot

UPDATE:

Installed the zalman cooler. The good news is it stays around 55C under load. The bad news is I only got another 10mhz on the mem, and nothing on the core, so I'm stuck at 570/580. Looks like I need more voltage, so I'm gonna try and pencil it this weekend, maybe I'll reach 600.

 

[Corporate Thug]

why would you swap out the 1 GB 9800 for this POS?

 

[JohnMellencamp]

why would you swap out the 1 GB 9800 for this POS?

and did you notice his 10 GHz Athlon128 @ 12.2 GHz and
8 GB OCZ Uranium DDR4 @ 6.1 GHz

Also I`m not sold on the gto version I want the squared for a decent price

 

[Avalon]

Originally posted by: JohnMellencamp

why would you swap out the 1 GB 9800 for this POS?

and did you notice his 10 GHz Athlon128 @ 12.2 GHz and
8 GB OCZ Uranium DDR4 @ 6.1 GHz

Also I`m not sold on the gto version I want the squared for a decent price

Connect3d has almost 100% success rate. So far only one person has not been able to mod his/her card, and that's probably just user error.

 

[lavaheadache]

Good job Munky. You're becoming quite the flasher these days.

 

[Munky]

Originally posted by: lavaheadache
Good job Munky. You're becoming quite the flasher these days.

Nothing like a good flash to see some um... big results

 

[mOeeOm]

I doubt it worth it to sell my x800xl, buy a GTO/GTO^2 and flash right? I should just buy a 7800GTX or something from ATI's new line up once it drops to non-absurd prices?

 

[Munky]

Depends how much money you're willing to spend. I'm sure you can sell the x800xl for about $200 and then pick up one of these for $180, and you technically have a free upgrade. But if you want to run the latest games at max settings at 1600x1200, then you might as well just save up for a more substantial upgrade, although in most cases the 7800gt is not much faster than an unlocked and OC'd x800gto, so you may want to get at least a 7800gtx or a 1800xt.

 

[CaiNaM]

munky, is that agp or pci-e?

 

[Munky]

Originally posted by: CaiNaM
munky, is that agp or pci-e?

It's PCi-e. AFAIK, the AGP gto's dont unlock

 

[Sunrise089]

Originally posted by: JohnMellencamp

Also I`m not sold on the gto version I want the squared for a decent price

I know the feeling, but I don't think any more are being made, I would buy this while its still cheap rather than wait for a price drop on the GTO^2 that will never come. Otherwise wait for a 7800gt in your budget.

Originally posted by: mOeeOm
I doubt it worth it to sell my x800xl, buy a GTO/GTO^2 and flash right? I should just buy a 7800GTX or something from ATI's new line up once it drops to non-absurd prices?

Depends. It would take some effort to list your card and ship it, and then you wouldn't have a card at all for a few days, unless you ordered the C3D card first, and then in that case you would have $180 tied up, though whether or not that matters to you I have no idea. Basically for a little bit of work you will improve your performance and make $$$, I would do it, but someone else may not think its worth the time/risk.

 

[mOeeOm]

Originally posted by: Sunrise089

Originally posted by: JohnMellencamp

Also I`m not sold on the gto version I want the squared for a decent price

I know the feeling, but I don't think any more are being made, I would buy this while its still cheap rather than wait for a price drop on the GTO^2 that will never come. Otherwise wait for a 7800gt in your budget.

Originally posted by: mOeeOm
I doubt it worth it to sell my x800xl, buy a GTO/GTO^2 and flash right? I should just buy a 7800GTX or something from ATI's new line up once it drops to non-absurd prices?

Depends. It would take some effort to list your card and ship it, and then you wouldn't have a card at all for a few days, unless you ordered the C3D card first, and then in that case you would have $180 tied up, though whether or not that matters to you I have no idea. Basically for a little bit of work you will improve your performance and make $$$, I would do it, but someone else may not think its worth the time/risk.

Ya but in Canada the prices are insane, www.ncix.com selling GTO^2 for $283, I doubt I'll be able to sell my x800xl for $300 anywhere.

 

[mamisano]

Make sure you post what core and memory you have, I am curious. My GTO2 arrives tomorrow

 

[Munky]

Originally posted by: mamisano
Make sure you post what core and memory you have, I am curious. My GTO2 arrives tomorrow

Atitool says r423, which is what I believe all c3d gto's have. Memory is samsung 2ns. That would make mine the equivalent of a x800xt when unlocked, and although the gto in theory has less OC potential than the r480/1.6ns mem of the gto2, obviously that doesnt seem to be a problem with my card.

 

[Sunrise089]

Originally posted by: mOeeOm


Ya but in Canada the prices are insane, www.ncix.com selling GTO^2 for $283, I doubt I'll be able to sell my x800xl for $300 anywhere.

Well I wouldn't buy a GTO^2, even in the US, too much price increase, but I would buy a GTO from Connect3D thats available here for $180+shipping, give or take. Just find somebody trustworthy to buy the card for you down here and then ship it to you, I would do it, although my 0 heat makes that probably not the most attractive idea, I'm sure you could find somebody that would.

 

[JimmyH]

Looks like your GTO is sweet. I am considering a Zalman vf700-Cu. Especially if I pencil it. Does it go higher w/ the zalman and what drop in temps?

 

[Munky]

I'll install tha zalman tonight when I get back from work (hopefully the new ramsinks from newegg have arrived too). I've used the zalman before on a 9800p, and a x800, and in both cases the results were good. The x800 was not as good OC'er as this card (450 max stable on the core), but with the stock cooler it would go above 80C when OC'd. Installed the zalman, ran it on high fan speed, and not only was it a lot quieter, but the x800 core never went above 60C when OC'd.

The stock cooler on this card is decent, but I'll install the zalman anyway to keep it cool and maybe even push it farther.

 

[JimmyH]

Thanxs on info munky. Anxiously awaiting your Zalman results

 

[Madellga]

Munky, congratulations for the good card and nice o/c.

My original X800PRO unlocked never went past 520, even with ATI Silencer.

 

[Elfear]

Those are sweet results Munky. I wish I could convince my cheap friends to buy one of those. That's some serious graphics power for $180. A stock 7800GT scores about the same in 3DMark05.

 

[sisq0kidd]

Aww man, I just bought an x800xl for 180 bucks. If I saw your thread earlier, I would have picked this gto for sure, unlocked or not.

Excellent review munky!

P.S. Your screen shot makes me want to empty your recycling bin.

 

[Pocatello]

Originally posted by: Avalon

Originally posted by: JohnMellencamp

why would you swap out the 1 GB 9800 for this POS?

and did you notice his 10 GHz Athlon128 @ 12.2 GHz and
8 GB OCZ Uranium DDR4 @ 6.1 GHz

Also I`m not sold on the gto version I want the squared for a decent price

Connect3d has almost 100% success rate. So far only one person has not been able to mod his/her card, and that's probably just user error.

This guy has one hell of a DREAM machine.

 

[Munky]

Originally posted by: Pocatello

Originally posted by: Avalon

Originally posted by: JohnMellencamp

why would you swap out the 1 GB 9800 for this POS?

and did you notice his 10 GHz Athlon128 @ 12.2 GHz and
8 GB OCZ Uranium DDR4 @ 6.1 GHz

Also I`m not sold on the gto version I want the squared for a decent price

Connect3d has almost 100% success rate. So far only one person has not been able to mod his/her card, and that's probably just user error.

This guy has one hell of a DREAM machine.

That's my "satire-sig" machine. My dream machine would be uhh... what I have now plus an X2.

 

[Sunrise089]

Originally posted by: sisq0kidd
Aww man, I just bought an x800xl for 180 bucks. If I saw your thread earlier, I would have picked this gto for sure, unlocked or not.

Excellent review munky!

P.S. Your screen shot makes me want to empty your recycling bin.

You still got a pretty nice deal on the XL, but if you're that worried just sell it and buy a GTO, nothing wrong with changing your mind.

 

[jlbenedict]

I had better results lastnight after a few days of burn in..

I started the Find Max Core tool, and went off to take a shower... me being old forgetful that I am.. forgot about it running... well.. my wife asked me what was wrong with the computer, and I noticed it had locked up...

I checked the ATI Tool log, and noticed it made it up to a Core of 660 before locking up..
The log showed throughout the increments of the core no artifacting...

So, the outcome looks a little better this time and looks like I can squeeze a little performance out of this baby