XFX 9800 GX2 Graphics Card Review

This week NVIDIA launched its new high end graphics card called the 9800 GX2. This card has a pair of 9800 GPUs on one card reminiscent of the 7900 GX2 from a few years ago. The 7900 GX2 had some issues and didn’t do as well in the marketplace as NVIDIA hoped. Today we are going to check out the XFX 9800 GX2 and see how well it performs.

Features & Specifications

The XFX 9800 GX2 has dual 9800 GPUs that each has 512MB of GDDR3 memory. The memory bus is 512-bit and the memory clock is 2.0GHz. The XFX 9800 GX2 has a core clock of 600 MHz and a shader clock of 1500 MHz. The XFX 9800 GX2 we are looking at today is stock clocked. XFX says that factory overclocked cards are coming in the future. Other features include HDCP compliance, SLI ready and HDTV ready. NVIDIA will release drivers to allow the XFX 9800 GX2 to operate in quad SLI mode soon.

Test System

The test machine I am using for this review has the following specifications:

• CPU- Intel QX6850
• Mainboard- XFX 680i
• PSU- PC Power and Cooling 1KW
• Display- Dell 30-inch
• OS- Windows XP Pro
• RAM- 2GB DDR2 PC6400

Benchmarks & Testing

To test the XFX 9800 GX2 I will be using 3DMark06, Bioshock, and Crysis. The first test up for the XFX 9800 GX2 is 3DMark06.

Bioshock

I ran 3Dmark06 at all stock settings and at stock settings in the NVIDIA control panel. The XFX 9800 GX2 scored as follows in 3DMark06:

• Total 3DMarks- 16227
• SM2.0- 6233
• HDR/SM3.0- 7672
• CPU- 4715
• Return to Proxycon- 50.732
• Firefly Forest- 53.157
• Canyon Flight- 88.639
• Deep Freeze- 64.807
• CPU1- 1.562
• CPU2- 2.277

For comparison the PNY Verto 9600 GT I reviewed recently scored 11367, The ASUS HD 3850 Top scored 10257 (different test machine), and the XFX 8800 GTS 512MB XXX scored 14012 3DMarks.

Crysis

The next test up was with Crysis, which I ran at 1600 x 1200 with 2X AA and all settings on medium. I used Fraps to record frame rate data on a single player game from the original beach insertion at the start of the game. Fraps recorded the following frame rate data:

• Min- 52 fps
• Avg- 79.62 fps
• Max- 121 fps

The XFX 9800 GX2 blew out the Crysis test at the normal settings that I test with so I decided to bump everything up to higher settings and ran the game at 2560 x 1600 with 2x AA and all settings on high. Using Fraps to record frame rate data at the same level showed:

• Min- 1 fps
• Avg- 20.468 fps
• Max- 31 fps

Bioshock

The next test up was with Bioshock. I ran the game at 1920 x 1200 with all settings on high, distortion on, real time reflections on, high detail shaders on and high detail post processing on. I used Fraps to record frame rate data on the Fontaine Fisheries level where you leave your weapons behind. Fraps recorded the following frame rate data:

• Min- 34 fps
• Avg- 104.74 fps
• Max 204 fps

Final Thoughts

When the dust settled there was no doubt that the XFX 9800 GX2 is the fasted video card in the land. The raw performance allowed me to play Crysis at the highest settings I have played at with any two other video cards. I can’t wait to see what the XFX 9800 GX2 can do in quad SLI. The only real drawback is the price, the XFX 9800 GX2 retails for right at $600.