Michael Brown EVGA e-GeForce 8800 GT SSC

Previous generations of Nvidia GPUs (AMD’s, too) presented buyers with a difficult choice: You could get great 3D performance for gaming or you could offload high-definition video decoding from the host CPU, but you couldn’t have both. Nvidia’s 8800 GT not only changes that situation, it does so at a competitive price.

The 8800 GT delivers stronger 3D performance than the industry’s previous sweet spot (the 8800 GTS with a 320MB frame buffer), it delivers more memory than that board, and it clubs AMD’s far-more expensive Radeon HD 2900 XT over the head for good measure (although AMD has responded with the Radeon HD 3870, see page 80). Nvidia managed to cram 754 million transistors into this beast thanks to a die shrink and a 65nm fabrication process (previous 8800-series GPUs were manufactured using a 90nm process).

The new part packs 112 stream processors, 512MB of GDDR3 memory, and a 256-bit memory interface into a GPU that requires a single-slot cooler (the fan howls like a banshee on startup but goes whisper-quiet as soon as Windows launches). Reference-design boards will run their cores at 600MHz and their memory at 900MHz; EVGA pumps these numbers to 700MHz and a cool 1GHz, respectively. The company also commands a premium price for the speed boost: While the average price for more typical boards was running around $270, this SSC Edition was fetching $330 at press time.

As mentioned above, the new GPU is capable of offloading the entire HD decode process from the host CPU, and it also provides HDCP decryption on both DVI links. This latter feature renders the chip capable of displaying Blu-ray and HD DVD movies at the native resolution of a 30-inch LCD. It’s also compliant with PCI Express 2.0 (see the White Paper on page 72 for more details). We didn’t test this card in that type of motherboard—no one’s shipping one in an SLI configuration just yet—but the new architecture offers double the bandwidth of PCI Express 1.1 (8GB/s in each direction).

AMD moved to GDDR4 memory several iterations back, but Nvidia continues to stick with GDDR3—and the decision doesn’t seem to be costing its cards anything in terms of performance. Interestingly, AMD has retreated from its 512-bit memory interface, building a 256-bit interface into the 3870 (same as the 8800 GT). But there are still two other features that could hold the 8800 GT back when it comes to competing with AMD’s Radeon 3870: First, these cards have only one SLI connector. Nvidia’s other cards, from the 8800 GTS on up, have two SLI connectors, even though only one of them is used in dual-card mode. Why worry about it? Nvidia will inevitably debut an SLI version that enables you to run more than two GPUs on one motherboard (remember quad SLI?), and that’s why the other cards have two SLI connectors. You’ll never be able to run more than two 8800 GTs in one box.

The other advantage AMD will soon offer is the ability to run more than one monitor in CrossFire mode, although that will likely require AMD’s new RD790 chipset (which hasn’t been released). Nvidia’s SLI system shuts off the second monitor when running in SLI mode (as does the current version of CrossFire).

While we’re looking at the future, we should also consider the fact that, unlike the Radeon HD 3870, the 8800 GT does not support Microsoft’s Direct3D 10.1 and Shader Model 4.1. Given the tepid response that most developers have given Windows Vista, and Microsoft’s continued insistence on tying DX10’s fortunes to its new OS, we don’t think this shortcoming matters much at all.

It’s been a long time since we’ve been able to unabashedly recommend a videocard priced this low. We just couldn’t get excited about the anemic 8800 GTS; and until now, AMD has had nothing meaty to offer. But the 8800 GT is an absolutely fantastic value, delivering great gaming performance and features that can’t be found in Nvidia’s higher-end boards. If you can swing the price, you’ll get a better gaming experience from a GeForce 8800 GTX or an Ultra (although we don’t think the latter is worth its premium); but if you’re rolling with a lower budget, the 8800 GT is a slam-dunk winner.

EVGA pumped up the 8800 GT’s core and memory clocks, but it’s sticking with a reference-design cooler.

EVGA e-GeForce 8800 GT SSC
www.evga.com

Old Potrero

Scorching gaming performance; complete solution for HD-video decoding; fabulous price.

Old Granddad

Only one SLI connector; no support for DX10.1.

Nvidia Announces the GeForce 8800 GT

AMD made no apologies when it announced the ATI Radeon HD 2900 XT last May: Their new GPU wouldn’t compete with Nvidia’s best, and that was fine with them. “Nvidia can have the high end,” they seemed to say. “We want to build the most powerful videocard that the masses can afford.” The 2900 XT was indeed faster than the Nvidia’s 8800 GTS, but it was leagues behind the 8800 GTX and even farther behind the 8800 Ultra.

Nvidia, meanwhile, gave their engineers new marching orders: Come up with a GPU that’s faster than AMD’s best—one that we can sell for less than the 8800 GTS. The chip that emerged is the result of a die shrink and a 65nm manufacturing process (previous GPUs in 8800-series are 90nm parts), and it’s a major breakthrough in terms of price/performance ratio.

This 754-million transistor monster not only delivers better performance than the 2900 XT, it also offloads the entire HD-video decode process from the host CPU (you must step down to AMD’s 2600 XT to get that feature). It also provides HDCP decryption on both DVI links, so it’s capable of displaying Blu-ray and HD DVD movies at the native resolution of a 30-inch panel. The GPU is compliant with PCI Express 2.0, but it doesn’t offer support for DirectX 10.1 and Shader Model 4.1 (although I don’t think any of those three facts amount to a pile of dead pixels right now).

Nvidia’s 8800 GT reference design packs 112 stream processors, 512MB of GDDR3 memory, and a 256-bit memory interface into a GPU that requires a single-slot cooler. The core runs at 600MHz while the shader processors hum along at 1.5GHz; memory is clocked at 900MHz. Third-party vendors such as Asus, BFG, EVGA, and XFX quickly announced products with retail prices starting at $250. Nvidia expects third-party vendors to also offer 256MB versions cards that will sell in the $200 range.

We’ve only just started to probe the 8800 GT’s capabilities, but we’re very impressed with what we’ve seen so far. There’s no other way to say it: Nvidia’s new GPU poops all over AMD’s current best effort, delivering more performance and crucially important features at a price point that’s hundreds of dollars lower. The 8800 GT is faster than both models of the 8800 GTS, too, despite having a narrower memory interface than both it and the 2900 XT (the 2900 XT has a 512-bit interface to either 512MB or 1GB of memory; the 8800 GTS has a 320-bit interface to either 320- or 640MB of RAM).

Now the big question is can AMD’s upcoming RV670 manage to outdo the 8800 GT? I’ll be able to provide the answer in the next couple of weeks; in the meantime, I think Nvidia is going to sell a boatload of 8800 GTs.

SINGLE-CARD BENCHMARKS

	RADEON 2900 XT (512MB)	GEFORCE 8800 GT (512MB)
3DMARK06 GAME 1 (FPS)	22.6	26.4
3DMARK06 GAME 2 (FPS)	21.0	20.3
QUAKE (FPS)	85.6	83.7
FEAR (FPS)	66.0	71.0
SUPREME COMMANDER (FPS)	27.9	29.1

DUAL-CARD BENCHMARKS

	RADEON 2900 XT (512MB)	GEFORCE 8800 GT (512MB)
3DMARK06 GAME 1 (FPS)	44.1	47.0
3DMARK06 GAME 2 (FPS)	42.3	37.2
QUAKE (FPS)	145.7	101.3
FEAR (FPS)	113.0	120.0
SUPREME COMMANDER (FPS)	44.7	33.4

Best scores are bolded. AMD-based cards tested with an Intel D975BX2 motherboard; Nvidia-based cards tested with an EVGA 680i SLI motherboard. Intel 2.93GHz Core 2 Extreme X6800 CPUs and 2GB of Corsair DD2 RAM used in both scenarios.

Nvidia Announces the GeForce 8800 GT

AMD made no apologies when it announced the ATI Radeon HD 2900 XT last May: Their new GPU wouldn’t compete with Nvidia’s best, and that was fine with them. “Nvidia can have the high end,” they seemed to say. “We want to build the most powerful videocard that the masses can afford.” The 2900 XT was indeed faster than the Nvidia’s 8800 GTS, but it was leagues behind the 8800 GTX and even farther behind the 8800 Ultra.

Nvidia, meanwhile, gave their engineers new marching orders: Come up with a GPU that’s faster than AMD’s best—one that we can sell for less than the 8800 GTS. The chip that emerged is the result of a die shrink and a 65nm manufacturing process (previous GPUs in 8800-series are 90nm parts), and it’s a major breakthrough in terms of price/performance ratio.

This 754-million transistor monster not only delivers better performance than the 2900 XT, it also offloads the entire HD-video decode process from the host CPU (you must step down to AMD’s 2600 XT to get that feature). It also provides HDCP decryption on both DVI links, so it’s capable of displaying Blu-ray and HD DVD movies at the native resolution of a 30-inch panel. The GPU is compliant with PCI Express 2.0, but it doesn’t offer support for DirectX 10.1 and Shader Model 4.1 (although I don’t think any of those three facts amount to a pile of dead pixels right now).

Nvidia’s 8800 GT reference design packs 112 stream processors, 512MB of GDDR3 memory, and a 256-bit memory interface into a GPU that requires a single-slot cooler. The core runs at 600MHz while the shader processors hum along at 1.5GHz; memory is clocked at 900MHz. Third-party vendors such as Asus, BFG, EVGA, and XFX quickly announced products with retail prices starting at $250. Nvidia expects third-party vendors to also offer 256MB versions cards that will sell in the $200 range.

We’ve only just started to probe the 8800 GT’s capabilities, but we’re very impressed with what we’ve seen so far. There’s no other way to say it: Nvidia’s new GPU poops all over AMD’s current best effort, delivering more performance and crucially important features at a price point that’s hundreds of dollars lower. The 8800 GT is faster than both models of the 8800 GTS, too, despite having a narrower memory interface than both it and the 2900 XT (the 2900 XT has a 512-bit interface to either 512MB or 1GB of memory; the 8800 GTS has a 320-bit interface to either 320- or 640MB of RAM).

Now the big question is can AMD’s upcoming RV670 manage to outdo the 8800 GT? I’ll be able to provide the answer in the next couple of weeks; in the meantime, I think Nvidia is going to sell a boatload of 8800 GTs.

SINGLE-CARD BENCHMARKS

	RADEON 2900 XT (512MB)	GEFORCE 8800 GT (512MB)
3DMARK06 GAME 1 (FPS)	22.6	26.4
3DMARK06 GAME 2 (FPS)	21.0	20.3
QUAKE (FPS)	85.6	83.7
FEAR (FPS)	66.0	71.0
SUPREME COMMANDER (FPS)	27.9	29.1

DUAL-CARD BENCHMARKS

	RADEON 2900 XT (512MB)	GEFORCE 8800 GT (512MB)
3DMARK06 GAME 1 (FPS)	44.1	47.0
3DMARK06 GAME 2 (FPS)	42.3	37.2
QUAKE (FPS)	145.7	101.3
FEAR (FPS)	113.0	120.0
SUPREME COMMANDER (FPS)	44.7	33.4

Best scores are bolded. AMD-based cards tested with an Intel D975BX2 motherboard; Nvidia-based cards tested with an EVGA 680i SLI motherboard. Intel 2.93GHz Core 2 Extreme X6800 CPUs and 2GB of Corsair DD2 RAM used in both scenarios.