I am trying to compare these two AGP video cards. I have Radeon 9600
Pro/256 now. Compusa has the GeForce FX5500/256 I am considering for
an upgrade....but how much would performance be boosted? The fill
rate for the GeForce card is given in texels/sec, while for the
Radeon, it is given in pixels/sec. (I think Giga=billion) I think
probably one can be converted to the other.
If the GeForce won't boost performance by about double, then this
isn't the card I want.

The engine clock for Geforce is actually slower...but the memory clock
is twice the speed.







Here are the specs for the two cards. On the Radeon specs, the
middle row is for the PRO version, the one I have.


.................................................. ............................................

nVidia Geforce FX5500 AGP 256 MB Video Card FX 5500 V19

Features:

* NVIDIA GeForce FX 5500 256MB DDR AGP8X DVI & TV-OUT Dual Head
* 256MB DDR Memory Capacity and 256-bit Memory Interface
* Register compatible with VGA
* Support DirectX 9.0 and OpenGL 1.4
* Support AGP 8x,4x, Windows95,98,2000,ME,NT 4,XP

Specification:

* 0.14u process technology
* 128-bit advanced memory interface
* 256-bit graphics architecture
* 270 MHz engine clock
* 400 MHz memory clock
* 350 MHz internal RAMDAC
* 68 Million vertices/ sec
* 1.0 Billion texels/ sec fill rate
* 6.4 GB/sec memory bandwidth (128bit,400MHz)
* 4 pixels per clock rendering engine
* 16 texels per pixel with 8 textures applied per clock
* NVIDIA CineFX 2.0 Engine
* Advanced Display Pipeline with full nView Capabilities
* High-performance, high-precision 3D rendering engine
* High-performance 2D rendering engine
* UltraShadow technolog
* Intellisample HCT Performance Technology y
* Advanced Display Pipeline with full nView Capabilities
* Digital Vibrance Control (DVC) 3.0
* NVIDIA nView multi-display technology
* Unified Driver Architecture (UDA)
* CineFX Engine
Powers cinematic effects beyond imagination. With advanced
vertex and pixel shader capabilities, stunning and complex special
effects are possible. In addition, increased horsepower delivers
faster and smoother gameplay.
* High-Precision Graphics
By combining the incredible dynamic range of today's
state-of-the-art 3D motion pictures with 128-bit studio-precision
color, the GeForce FX GPUs bring you the industry's best image quality
for the most demanding applications.
* DirectX 9.0 Optimizations & Support
* Ensures the best performance and application compatibility for
all DirectX 9 applications.
* nView Multi-display Technology
The nView hardware and software technology combination delivers
maximum flexibility for multi-display options, and provides
unprecedented end-user control of the desktop experience. NVIDIA GPUs
are enabled to support multi-displays, but graphics cards vary.
* AGP 8X
Provides double the bandwidth of AGP 4X 2.1GB/sec. vs.
1.1BG/sec. AGP 8X enables more complex models and detailed textures,
creating richer and more lifelike environments. Uninterrupted data
flow allows for smoother video streaming and faster, more seamless
gameplay.
* Digital Vibrance Control (DVC)
Allows the user to adjust color controls digitally to compensate
for the lighting conditions of their workspace, in order to achieve
accurate, bright colors in all conditions.
Currently this feature is not available on Mac systems.
* Unified Driver Architecture (UDA)
* Guarantees forward and backward compatibility with software
drivers. Simplifies upgrading to a new NVIDIA product because all
NVIDIA products work with the same driver software. OpenGL 1.4
Optimizations & Support
* Ensures the best performance and application compatibility for
all OpenGL applications


Display Support:

* Register compatible with VGA;
* DVI-Out for sharp LCD monitor output;
* Video out Module enabling big-screen gaming, digital time
shifting VCR, and video-editing applications.

.................................................. ................................

radeon 9600/256 specs:


* RADEON 9600 XT Chipset.
* Encore Edition provides 256 MB of DDR high performance
two-channel DDR memory interface that accelerates the latest 3D
applications
* Highly Optimized 128-bit 2D engine with support for new
WindowsXP GDI extensions
* 3rd Generation Visual Processing Unit (VPU) comprised of 4
rendering pipelines and 2 geometry engines
* Full support for DirectX 9.0 and the latest OpenGL 2.0
functionality
* New SMARTSHADER 2.0 technology allows users to experience
complex, movie-quality effects in next-generation 3D games and
applications
* SMOOTHVISION 2.1 technology enhances image quality by removing
jagged edges and bringing out fine texture detail, without
compromising performance
* Full support for the AGP 8X standard doubles bandwidth for more
engaging characters and environments.
* 128-bit floating-point color precision allows for a greater
range of colors and brightness
* Industry-leading hardware DVD video playback with software DVD
player support.
* Supports 3D resolutions (32-bit color) up to 2048x1536.

Detailed Specifications:

* Powered by ATI Radeon 9600 XT
* -4ns 256MB DDR memory
* 400Mhz Core Speed
* 500Mhz Memory Speed


Product Comparison Radeon 9600 XT Radeon 9600 PRO
Radeon 9600 Radeon 9600 SE
Frame Buffer 256MB DDR 256MB DDR 128MB DDR
128MB DDR
Memory Interface 128-bit 128-bit 128-bit
64-bit
Rendering Pipelines 4 4 4 4
Pixel Fillrate (Gpixels/sec) 2.0 1.6 1.3 1.3
Engine Clock (MHz) 500 400 325 325
Memory Clock (MHz) 300 300 200 200
Output Connections VGA + TV + DVI VGA + TV + DVI VGA +
TV + DVI VGA + TV + DVI

.................................................. ...............................................

Thanks, Geronimo

On Sat, 30 Dec 2006 13:28:19 -0600, geronimo
<Jamesw (AT) grandecom (DOT) net> wrote:


It's not enough of an upgrade to be worthwhile. I'd
consider cards like Radeon X800, X1600 or Geforce 6600GT,
7300GT, 7600GS a starting point. If you're only playing
aging games then the X800 series is the better bang for the
buck but may require some searching to get a good price
(around $100).

You might find better prices online than at CompUSA.

geronimo wrote:
http://www.techpowerup.com/gpudb/

9600 Pro RV350/RV360 AGP 128MB DDR 400Mhz 300Mhz 128 Bits 4/4/2 DX9.0, PS2.0, VS2.0
FX 5500 NV34 AGP 128/256MB DDR 270Mhz 200Mhz 128 Bits 4/4/2 DX9.0, PS2.0, VS2.0

http://web.archive.org/web/200503050...ydajnosci.html

Radeon 9600 Pro DX9 RV350 [24] 4 1 400 1600 600 128 9.4GB/s 8X 2x400DAC
FX 5500 DX9 NV34 [71] 4 1 275 1100 400 128 6.3GB/s 8X 2x350DAC

There is no direct comparison here, but I suspect the 9600 Pro is faster.
http://www.tomshardware.com/2004/10/..._iv/page7.html

Pointers to other comparison articles.
http://www.tomshardware.com/2005/05/...vi/page15.html
http://www.tomshardware.com/2005/07/...l#3d_mark_2005

I would not buy the FX5500 - it would be a downgrade.

Paul

Personally, I wouldn't worry about texels/sec or pixels/sec. Find some
benchmarks that include the games you play, if possible, and see how they
compare. I'd think a better question would be "I've got $xxx burning a hole
in my pocket, and I want the best AGP card for it. What's the
suggestions?". You can get a 9800Pro on NewEgg for $80 that should blow the
doors off the 9600Pro or XT. Or if you can find enough money for a 7600GS,
you may be good till you can upgrade to PCI Express.

Some benchmarks of the AGP cards of that era, although they explicity didn't
test the 5500
http://www.tomshardware.com/2004/10/...iv/page10.html

If you check out this review, the 9600XT spanks the FX5500 like a naughty
schoolgirl, getting almost twice the performance:
http://www.guru3d.com/article/Videocards/124/6/
This review says the performance is somewhere between a FX5200 and 5600. If
that's correct, that would put it way on the bottom of the scale of the
Toms's Hardware testing.

Clint

"geronimo" <Jamesw (AT) grandecom (DOT) net> wrote

Yea, probably will get the Radeon 9800 XT....double the speed and only
$130.00 new. Thanks all, Geronimo



On Sun, 31 Dec 2006 02:42:35 GMT, "Clint" <cneufeld (AT) mysocks (DOT) shaw.ca>
wrote: