Radeon 9800np -vs- GeForceFX 5900np?

[Lokan]

Can anyone point me to a review with both of these Video cards in them? I've seen various benches with one or the other and comparisons to sister cards (i.e. 9800np -vs- 5900Ultra or 5900 -vs- 9800Pro). The reason I ask is because I had a Radeon 9800np and while it made Max Payne 2 look and run phenominal, Call of Duty consistantly crashed. I returned it and bought a 5900non-ultra. Don't get me a wrong, I'm not particular to either brand, I just want the best card I can get for $250. It seems the Radeon handles AA better but it's IQ is less than stellar when running against the 5900. I've had nVidia since my old Voodoo 3000 and I've never had issues with it. The stability, speed, and overall support for their cards have been great. However, everyone (or nearly everyone) on AT said "radeon 9800". Well, I did that and my fears about stability were confirmed, mainly with Call of Duty.

My problems are these however...

I love the digital vibrance on the nVidia drivers. It makes my screen "jump out" at me. ATI has no comparable setting that I've found. Also, I like stability. It's just me. I hate crashes (who doesn't?). However, image quality and speed are a factor.

I'm torn people! HELP! The 5900 is running about 10-20fps *average* slower in most games that I've played -vs- the 9800. Also, I only have an AthlonXP 1800 (going to max the board out at 2400 soon though). Is the 5900 limited by the CPU speed, or the Radeon for that matter?

Any guidance, help, real world thoughts and experiences would be greatly appreciated. Thanks for reading my ramble and I hope someone out there can help...

 

[nCred]

I think the problems i Call of Duty were caused by the drivers and that theres a fix for it now.
I have a 9800 np together with a XP 1800+, and I have had no problems with stability in the many games
i´ve tested.

 

[Corporate Thug]

i dont know of any reviews but the 5900 will be faster in dx8 games, the 9800 np will be faster in DX9 games. also, if u can find a 9800 np with samsung chips, you can flash it to a pro in which case it'll be faster than a 5900 in both dx8/dx9

 

[syberscott]

Originally posted by: shady06
i dont know of any reviews but the 5900 will be faster in dx8 games, the 9800 np will be faster in DX9 games. also, if u can find a 9800 np with samsung chips, you can flash it to a pro in which case it'll be faster than a 5900 in both dx8/dx9

Even the 9800np with Infineon 3.0 ram will almost reach the speed of a 9800pro by just overclocking (and some will take the flash, especially with extra cooling). The Infineon 3.0 chips are rated for 333Mhz. I just got one of these myself. The main thing to watch out for is that you want the red pcb and not the black one. And like Shady said, try for the samsung ram.

 

[Lokan]

I understand about overclockability but the one 9800 that I had was using the 3.3 infineon so overclocking wasn't truely an option, also, I tend to run everything stock.

Also, to the Call of Duty point, I realize it's a software/driver issue. I have yet to see a fix and it rendered the game unplayable to me. My time off of work is limited and I need games to be able to play reliably. For instance, if I go on a two hour spree and just use the auto save features (or if the game doesn't even HAVE those) and my game crashes, I could lose sometimes 15-30 minutes of game time. While this may not sound like a lot, please keep in mind I work on average 55-60 hours a work week, then my fiancee demands time (who'd have thought?), so that leaves what, 3-5 hours of game time? Stability is extremely important.

So there's no reviews out there w/ those two cards compared directly to one another?

Thanks for the responses guys, please keep the comments coming. I like to consider all angles!

 

[Lokan]

Ugh, I hate to do this, but bump to the top for more advice....

 

[Corporate Thug]

at stock the 5900 will bes faster most of the time