8800GTS 512Mb bottleneck?

[Caimbeul]

Just a quickie,

Do you think it would be a waste to plant a 8800GTS into my rig??

 

[Caimbeul]

Seeing as i cannot edit this message I have poted again...it may be useful to know that i have the following:

AMD 64 X2 4400+
2GB DDR400
ASUS NForce something or other (shamefulthat i have forgotten in know! )
+ the standard bits and bobs.

 

[nOcLuE98]

no way. This processor is fast as crazy. It performs up there with the GTX and in some cases better, so no, it will not bottleneck you. What are you OCing to?

 

[paprocto]

I think he's wondering if his system is fast enough to justify using a video card as fast as the 8800GTS.

 

[CNeufeld]

I'll throw in my $0.02. This last weekend was a mad upgrade weekend. Got my GTS 512MB card on Friday, plunked it in to my E6300 (overclocked to 2.4GHz) system. Got 9800 on 3DMark06. Then on Saturday, I picked up an E8400 processor. Plunked it in, and went up to 12,000+. Nothing else changed.

I did not, however, benchmark a bunch of games, unfortunately.

Clint

 

[sNaKeEe]

I just bought the Nvidia 8800 GTS. It's the best card I've owned so far considered it's so cheap.

 

[CNeufeld]

I'm very happy with mine, too... Very quiet, fast, came with Crysis... I figure it ended up being cheaper than buying a GT, since I was going to buy the game and a VGA cooler anyway...

Clint

 

[Hatman]

Yes it WILL bottleneck. Quite a bit, but that doesn't mean performance will magically stop at an invisible wall, it'll keep increasing.


Tbh think 8800GT is more worth its money for your computer. Maybe get a aftermarket cooled one for your extra money.

 

[cnumartyr]

I'm very happy with mine, too... Very quiet, fast, came with Crysis... I figure it ended up being cheaper than buying a GT, since I was going to buy the game and a VGA cooler anyway...

Clint

Same here. Also came with a dual slot cooler, faster clocks, and 16 more SP!

 

[ZozZoz]

I have a 320mb 8800gts, which used to run with E6600 until recently. After upgrading to E6850 I scored higher in 3dmark05 and 06, and experienced better frame rate while playing certain titles

 

[vivalv1000]

here's a tricky one, explain what a bottleneck is, this should be interesting.

I will echo that... I always see a lot off posts such as this, folks will say "sure it will slow down, bottleneck, etc". How do you know??? have you used these same components, do you have a site that reflects these tests, with these exact components???

 

[pauldh]

I would not hesitate to put a 512MB GTS in your rig. It depends on the resolution and games you play, but check out at higher res with fsaa things become GPU bound with an 8800GT on all these cpu's (COD4, UT3, Crysis):
http://firingsquad.com/hardware/$500_gaming_pc_upgrade/page5.asp

I would not put two 8800GTS 512MB cards in an X2 4400 rig though.

 

[maverick7]

no ur system will be able to handle it. Sure it will slow the gpu down a bit but nothing huge

 

[systemlord]

You couldn't have picked a better graphics card for your system, you put your money in the GPU which is where most of the demanding stuff is done, in the GPU.

 

[jerseygamer]

With that card if you stay at a respectable res that cpu is fine.

 

[neisonator]

my 4800 at 3.0 ghz bottlenecks my card will be getting a 8400 and a x38 soon

 

[Caimbeul]

Wow! wasnt expecting so many replies but thanks to you all for the input. I will be playing (hopefully at my native res of 1680x1050) - Based what has been said, I think i will take the plunge as I am looking to go Intel in the next few months aswell.

On a completely non graphics note, I was wondering if someone could give me one further snippet of advice re the rest of the system upgrade...?

Was looking at getting an E8400 CPU or Q6600, now do you have to match the RAM speed to the CPU FSB?? ie do i need 1333Mhz RAM for the E8400 to get the best from it or will DDR800 do? I have seen 4xGb of OCZ Reaper (4-4-4-15) DDR2 800Mhz for just under £76 and am very tempted to pick it up in case the prices go up but if i need other RAM more suited to a higher FSB on the CPU then I will have to wait.

As always any help is appreciated.

 

[spoonboy]

I'll throw in my $0.02. This last weekend was a mad upgrade weekend. Got my GTS 512MB card on Friday, plunked it in to my E6300 (overclocked to 2.4GHz) system. Got 9800 on 3DMark06. Then on Saturday, I picked up an E8400 processor. Plunked it in, and went up to 12,000+. Nothing else changed.

I did not, however, benchmark a bunch of games, unfortunately.

Clint

?

an important point that needed to be made lol

 

[pauldh]

No you do not need higher clocked DDR2, you can run DDR2-800 (PC-6400) with a 1333 bus cpu.

 

[Caimbeul]

Thanks for that Pauldh that is good to know but would it have a significant impact on gaming performance?

 

[mactronix]

No.
Mactronix

 

[chedrz]

Toss it in there! I use an 8800GT with my 4200+, and it's a HUGE improvement over my old 7900GT. Sure, you may not get quite as many frames as someone with an e6850, but in most games (not including Crysis, etc.), 10 frames isn't going to killl you.

Trust me. It's worth it.

 

[Mousemonkey]

HUGE improvement over my old 7900GT.

9 days to go, I have to wait 9 whole days!

 

[systemlord]

Its a good idea to run the RAM at a 1:1 with the DRAM:FSB ratio, ie. my processor runs at 3.2GHz on a 1600MHz FSB so running my RAM at 800MHz gives me a 1:1 ratio and half of 1600 is 800 = 1:1. This is how Intel comes up with 1:1 ratio. My processor is a 1066MHz FSB unlike yours being a 1333MHz FSB so your 1:1 ratio will be a bit different. My RAM will run at 1200MHz overclocked but I run it at 800MHz to get the 1:1 ratio, plus at 1200MHz extra cooling is required because my dimms get very hot!


The Q6600 will be remembered as one of the best quads Intel has come out with for so little money, once overclocked can even beat the pants off some of the $1000 dollar top of the crop CPU's from Intel. These Q6600's have been known to OC upto 3.8GHz, most being happly with 3.6GHz. You can't go wrong with either the E8400 or the Q6600, there both monsters for any hardcore gaming rig. As for the best RAM I think the Crucial Ballistix DDR2 800 are the best.

Crucial Ballistix DDR2 800 >> http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820146565

 

[rallyimprezive]

My set up is very similar to yours.

I was planning on getting the Q6600 with new mobo, and ram. But based on the performance I am seeing, there is no need for me to spend the extra money.

My native resolution is 1680 x 1050.
Crysis performance is very playable with setting on high and no FFSA.