Test Setup/Performance Tests
We ran a number of performance tests with these cards to give us a good idea of how well they perform relative to each other. This lets us see first-hand the actual difference between a reference factory clocked and factory overclocked card. This means that we should see the ASUS numbers slightly lower than XFX's or EVGA's. We tested three games at 1600x1200 resolution with and without AA enabled. The games that we used (Battlefield 2, Quake 4, and Halflife 2: Lost Coast) were chosen because they represent a wide range of game engines. This is the test system that we used:
NVIDIA nForce 4 motherboard
AMD Athlon 64 FX-55 2.6 GHz Processor
1 GB OCZ 2:2:2:6 DDR400 RAM
Seagate 7200.7 120 GB Hard Drive
OCZ 600 W PowerStream Power Supply
Essentially, what we see in these tests is that the difference in performance between a 7800 GT clocked at reference speeds and factory overclocked to 470MHz/1.1GHz or 450MHz/1.05GHz isn't enough to affect gameplay in a significant way. It's true that you can get a few fps higher in a game with an overclock like this, but it hardly ever makes it worth paying extra money for a card that's factory overclocked, especially when you can easily clock it yourself as high as or even higher than any other card out there. Interestingly though, in the case of these three 7800 GT's, the lowest clocked card (ASUS EN7800 GT) is also the highest priced, and the highest clocked card (EVGA e-GeForce 7800 GT) is the lowest price of the three.
We ran a number of performance tests with these cards to give us a good idea of how well they perform relative to each other. This lets us see first-hand the actual difference between a reference factory clocked and factory overclocked card. This means that we should see the ASUS numbers slightly lower than XFX's or EVGA's. We tested three games at 1600x1200 resolution with and without AA enabled. The games that we used (Battlefield 2, Quake 4, and Halflife 2: Lost Coast) were chosen because they represent a wide range of game engines. This is the test system that we used:
NVIDIA nForce 4 motherboard
AMD Athlon 64 FX-55 2.6 GHz Processor
1 GB OCZ 2:2:2:6 DDR400 RAM
Seagate 7200.7 120 GB Hard Drive
OCZ 600 W PowerStream Power Supply
Essentially, what we see in these tests is that the difference in performance between a 7800 GT clocked at reference speeds and factory overclocked to 470MHz/1.1GHz or 450MHz/1.05GHz isn't enough to affect gameplay in a significant way. It's true that you can get a few fps higher in a game with an overclock like this, but it hardly ever makes it worth paying extra money for a card that's factory overclocked, especially when you can easily clock it yourself as high as or even higher than any other card out there. Interestingly though, in the case of these three 7800 GT's, the lowest clocked card (ASUS EN7800 GT) is also the highest priced, and the highest clocked card (EVGA e-GeForce 7800 GT) is the lowest price of the three.
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Sunrise089 - Thursday, December 8, 2005 - link
I appreciate this write up - the holidays are here, and many of us are in the market for a video card, so this comparison is helpfull. Your comparison of the cards, and your power and overclocking results were nice to see. Nice choice of games for a quick review as well. That said:1) Why did you overclock the cards, and then not test the overclocked cards in the three games you choose? This is especially important considering the plateau issue with OC'ing the cards - maybe the eVGA would have jumped to the next level of performance, making it the clear choice.
2) Why oh why does Anandtech insist on not including any other cards in so many of its video articles. PLEASE PLEASE just add a 7800GTX and a X850XT to the chart. If you really went all out and showed us the 3 7800GTs, the same cards OC'd, the 7800GTX, the X850XT, a 6800GS, and either a X800GTO or an X800XL then this comparison might actually help someone decide whether or not to upgrade and what card they should buy to get their desired level of performance.
Seriousely AT, just comparing the overclocked 7800GT to a GTX and a 6800GS would be so helpfull for someone buying a card this month, you all should have been able to realize that.
Zenbeatnik - Thursday, December 8, 2005 - link
Ditto. I also wouldn't mind seeing a few other processors that more or less reflect the average user thrown into the review. You know maybe like a 3700 E4, an X2 3800+, or an Opteron would be useful for a lot more people that are thinking about adding a 7800GT.ksherman - Thursday, December 8, 2005 - link
I am NOT likin the little circuit city popup... dont tell me AT is getting into popups...icepik - Thursday, December 8, 2005 - link
Agreed. The flashy adds on either side of the article are plenty and should generate sufficient revenue. There is no justification to throw annoying pop-up ads into the mix especially on an enthusiast site.KristopherKubicki - Thursday, December 8, 2005 - link
Hi,The banner ad is rogue - some 3rd party advertiser has it inserted in one of their streams. We are working on getting rid of it ASAP.
Kristopher
shabby - Thursday, December 8, 2005 - link
Firefox + adblock = no ads, periodbupkus - Thursday, December 8, 2005 - link
Ditto. I really hate those things. I tried to tell myself that it costs to run this site but can't help how I feel about pop-ups.bupkus - Thursday, December 8, 2005 - link
I guess the close button on the pop-up is timed to stay open for a specified time. IOW, it doesn't work.phaxmohdem - Thursday, December 8, 2005 - link
No sh8t I hate those stupid animated pops as well. Come on anand, WTF???Back on topic, that Asus card looks frickin sweet IMO. Would be a great centerpiece for a flashy system build.
toattett - Thursday, December 8, 2005 - link
I don't think the picture of Anandtech's eVGA 7800GT CO is correct.