Which ATI vendor is best?

[nerfy007]

I'm about to buy a 9800 pro, but i'm not too familiar with ATI's board manufacturers. I was wondering if anyone had a particular brand that was better or worse then ATI's own.

Thanks all,

RaBId_neRF

 

[cleeve]

Ati, Hercules, Sapphire, Gigabyte = Good

Powercolor, Gigacube = Bad

________________
<b>Radeon <font color=red>9500 PRO</b></font color=red> <i>(hardmodded 9500, o/c 322/322)</i>
<b>AthlonXP <font color=red>2600+</b></font color=red> <i>(o/c 2400+ w/143Mhz fsb)</i>
<b>3dMark03: <font color=red>4,055</b></font color=red>

 

[GeneticWeapon]

Powercolor, Gigacube = Bad

The first card in the review link provided below, is a Gigacube 9800Pro. A quick reading of the part # shows it to be made by Sapphire, who you just claimed was 'good'.
<A HREF="http://www.overclockers.co.nz/ocnz/review.php?id=03vga00various0shootouthighend00107" target="_new">http://www.overclockers.co.nz/ocnz/review.php?id=03vga00various0shootouthighend00107</A>
**edit**
The Gigabyte card reviewed is also made by Sapphire.

<b>Athlon XP 2100+ @2.02Ghz
MSI K7N2 Delta-L nForce2 Ultra 400
768mb of Generic DDR266 @310 6-3-3-2
Built by ATi R9800 @420/630</b>

 

[bandikoot]

Don't forget that if you RMA your Sapphire card they'll send you back a BBA that is exactly the same except for the HSF.

 

[Koopa]

There's nothing wrong with Sapphire.

I spend my time here hoping that one day I might learn something.

 

[HardWareBoss]

You can rank them.

 

[TheGreatGrapeApe]

There's nothing wrong with Sapphire.

And what do you base that on?

Sapphire ships alot of their cards with different memory. The R9600P as an example I've seen at least 7 different types of memory on the same version of the card.

For the average stock out of the box user, they won't notice the difference, however for the enthusiasts (which I would say the majority of those 'regulars' here are) this is a big shortcoming, and creates the vital difference between just any other card and a GOOD card Sapphire is not a great Company IMO, they are an average company with large volumes. They have nice 'boutique' products like the Fireblade and Ultimate Edition cards, and while they may make the cards for other companies, their own line doesn't necessarily meet those standards.

People need to understand the difference between a GOOd card maker, an Average card maker, and a poor Card maker.

And far too many people think that their limited experience with their own card extends to the whole line. I can't get a feel for a whole line of products untill at least 2-3months in when there's enough info to ge a bigger picture. I still haven't made up my mind on the XTs since there's less info trickling out compared to the R9600Pro and the R9800Pro lines.

Look at the Volari, early promise, a few problems, and now accusations of application detection cheating in their drivers.

It takes time and research to get a good picture of the situation. And from all the info out there Sapphire is an average maker with it's stars and dogs.


- You need a licence to buy a gun, but they'll sell anyone a stamp <i>(or internet account)</i> ! - <font color=green>RED </font color=green> <font color=red> GREEN</font color=red> GA to SK

 

[addiarmadar]

Hercules is the best or also checkout HIS. All the 9800 pros are the same, just a matter of the HSF the OEM puts on. The XT models I would have to say ASUS is the best.

Barton 2500+ @ 2200mhz (10x220 vcore @ 1.8)
Asus A7N8X Dlx 440 FSB
1gb Geil GD pc3500 Dual Channel (2-3-3-6)
Segata 80gb SATA 8.5ms seek
ATI Radeon 9800 Pro(420/720)

 

[TheGreatGrapeApe]

Did you become a Forum Gigolo by doubling your posts?!? :tongue:


- You need a licence to buy a gun, but they'll sell anyone a stamp <i>(or internet account)</i> ! - <font color=green>RED </font color=green> <font color=red> GREEN</font color=red> GA to SK