6800 GS-Based Cards Fastest in Midrange
Danny Allen
TheXFX GeForce 6800 GS offers topnotch performance and a full copy of the game Far Cry.
This month we tested five new mainstream graphics boards priced between $150 and $299, including three models based on ATI's midrange Radeon X1600 chip set. Of these, only PowerColor's fourth-place X1600 XT Bravo Edition ($169) earned a spot on our chart; new boards from Asus and Diamond Multimedia fell short of the Top 5.
Of the three Radeon X1600 boards we evaluated, the Asus EAX1600XT Silent was the most noteworthy, thanks to a unique design that replaces the standard fan with a large but silent heat sink. Despite the appeal of this clever arrangement, the model's high price ($209) and middling performance prevented it from making the chart.
Cards based on nVidia's GeForce 6800 GS chip nabbed the first and third positions on the chart, due in large part to their class-leading performance. A welcome $25 price drop helped EVGA's returning e-GeForce 6800 GS ($175) retain the top spot it captured in the February issue's chart (see Top Graphics Cards), while the newly tested and slightly pricier ($200) XFX GeForce 6800 GS placed third.
The XFX board amassed some of the best performance numbers of the group, notching wins in the Battlefield 2, Quake 4, and Doom 3 games. For example, in our Battlefield 2 test, which we ran at 1600 by 1200 resolution with antialiasing turned off, the XFX 6800 GS managed 47 frames per second, beating out the EVGA card's mark of 42 fps. Results from the same test with antialiasing turned on brought the two cards a little closer, but the XFX unit still achieved the better score--35 fps versus the EVGA's 32 fps.
Two cards based on ATI's aging Radeon X800 GTO chip round out the Top 5. PowerColor's overclocked Radeon X800GT016 ($184) makes its inaugural appearance on the mainstream graphics boards chart, finishing a strong second, and Diamond's Multimedia Viper Radeon X800 GTO ($180) takes the fifth spot.
In addition to the Asus card described above, another notable card that failed to make our chart was ATI's new $199 All-in-Wonder 2006 Edition 256MB PCI. It replaces the discontinued X800XL All-in-Wonder, which held second place in our February chart. Although the new board has extras such as built-in TV/FM radio tuning capabilities--and ships with dedicated video input and output breakout cables--its Radeon X1300-based graphics chip struggled in our performance tests.
Find the Very Latest Mainstream Graphics Board Charts
Click on the links below for the latest graphics board rankings or a comprehensive list of all graphics boards we've tested.
Top 5 Mainstream Graphics Boards From the May 2006 Issue of PC World Magazine
